Library's review
from cover
The key to self-development, says Mike Sayama, is the experience of samadhi, a state of relaxed concentration in which the individual neither freezes out of fear nor clings due to desire. Simply stated, Samadhi is the free flow of vital energy within the body and between the body and the
The first part of the book studies self-realization in Zen Buddhism. The author pinpoints its essence in Buddhi's enlightenment. The development of Zen is then traced, continuing down to living masters who in very recent times have transplanted the lineages from Japan to the United States. Sayama notes that we must choose as masters those to whom the authentic taeaching has been transmitted through generation, and he examines in loving detail the sometimes strange and astonishing behaviors of those whose very presence communicates the state of samadhi.
The second part of the book presents Zen therapy, a way of self-development emphasizing the cultivation of samadhi through psychophysical training. Sayama compares the effects of Rolfing, Fenldenkrais, and Zen therapy on the human body and mind. He includes easy-to-follow directions for creating the inner state he describes. He tells vivid stories of extraordinary cases treated from the point of view that the best therapy is nothing less that the removal of all dualism. Four main practices are presented: zazen (meditation), hara development, circulation of the vital energy, and communication.
Mike Sayama graduated from Yale University summa cum laude and received his Ph. D. in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan. He has been training in Zen and the martial arts for more than ten years under Tanouye Tenshin Roshi. Currently, he is a member of the board of directors and the educational staff of the Institute for Zen Studies in Hawaii
Contents
Preface, List of Illustrations
Interpenetration, The Buddha's Enlightenment
The Cohzen-ji Line
Bodhidharma
Hui-neng Ta-chien
Lin-chi I-hsuan
Hakuin Ekaku
Omori Sogen
Tanouye Tenshin
Zen Therapy
The Way: A Philosophy of Life
The Transcendent Unconscious and the True Self
Creative Problem Solving
Mind-Body Training
All Ways Are One in the End
Notes, Bibliography, Index
The key to self-development, says Mike Sayama, is the experience of samadhi, a state of relaxed concentration in which the individual neither freezes out of fear nor clings due to desire. Simply stated, Samadhi is the free flow of vital energy within the body and between the body and the
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universe. Moving effortlessly across traditions and techniques, Sayama discovers that sages throughout history-Greek philosophers, German mystics, Indian seers, and our own Albert Einstein among others-have taught that this experience of transcendanetal oneness lies at the heart of full self-realization.The first part of the book studies self-realization in Zen Buddhism. The author pinpoints its essence in Buddhi's enlightenment. The development of Zen is then traced, continuing down to living masters who in very recent times have transplanted the lineages from Japan to the United States. Sayama notes that we must choose as masters those to whom the authentic taeaching has been transmitted through generation, and he examines in loving detail the sometimes strange and astonishing behaviors of those whose very presence communicates the state of samadhi.
The second part of the book presents Zen therapy, a way of self-development emphasizing the cultivation of samadhi through psychophysical training. Sayama compares the effects of Rolfing, Fenldenkrais, and Zen therapy on the human body and mind. He includes easy-to-follow directions for creating the inner state he describes. He tells vivid stories of extraordinary cases treated from the point of view that the best therapy is nothing less that the removal of all dualism. Four main practices are presented: zazen (meditation), hara development, circulation of the vital energy, and communication.
Mike Sayama graduated from Yale University summa cum laude and received his Ph. D. in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan. He has been training in Zen and the martial arts for more than ten years under Tanouye Tenshin Roshi. Currently, he is a member of the board of directors and the educational staff of the Institute for Zen Studies in Hawaii
Contents
Preface, List of Illustrations
Interpenetration, The Buddha's Enlightenment
The Cohzen-ji Line
Bodhidharma
Hui-neng Ta-chien
Lin-chi I-hsuan
Hakuin Ekaku
Omori Sogen
Tanouye Tenshin
Zen Therapy
The Way: A Philosophy of Life
The Transcendent Unconscious and the True Self
Creative Problem Solving
Mind-Body Training
All Ways Are One in the End
Notes, Bibliography, Index
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ISBN
887061478
Publication
State University of New York Press