Rational Zen
by Thomas Cleary
Category: Religion

Zen has often been portrayed as being illogical and mystifying, even aimed at the destruction of the rational intellect. These new translations of the thirteenth-century Zen master Dogenandmdash;one of most original and important Zen writersandmdash;illustrate the rational side of Zen, which has been obscured through the centuries, tainting people's understanding of it. Rational Zen consists of enlightening selections from Dogen's two masterworks, andquot;Treasury of Eyes of True Teachingandquot; (the famed Shobogenzo, Japan's most sophisticated philosophical work) and andquot;Universal Book of Eternal Peace,andquot; which until now has been unavailable in English. The translator also provides explanations of the inner meanings of Dogen's writings and sayingsandmdash;the first commentaries of their kind of English. A compendium of authentic source materials further enhances the reader's insight into Dogen's methods, linking them to the great classical traditions of Buddhism that ultimately flowered in Zen.