Product Description

Dainin Katagiri (1928–1990) was a central figure in the transmission of Zen in America. His first book, Returning to Silence, emphasized the need to return to our original, enlightened state of being, and became one of the classics of Zen in America. In You Have to Say Something, selections from his talks have been collected to address another key theme of Katagiri's teaching: that of bringing Zen insight to bear on our everyday experience. "To live life fully," Katagiri says, "means to take care of your life day by day, moment to moment, right here, right now." To do this, he teaches, we must plunge into our life completely, bringing to it the same wholeheartedness that is required in Zen meditation. When we approach life in this way, every activity—everything we do, everything we say—becomes an opportunity for manifesting our own innate wisdom. With extraordinary freshness and immediacy, Katagiri shows the reader how this wisdom not only enlivens our spiritual practice but can help make our life a rich, seamless whole.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #401060 in Books
• Published on: 2000-01-04
• Released on: 2000-01-04
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: 8.56" h x .44" w x 5.56" l, .53 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 194 pages

From Publishers Weekly
"You are Buddha, so learn to behave as a Buddha. Go beyond your self-centered ideas, your likes and dislikes." So begins a section in the essay, "Bodhi Mind," by the influential American Zen master Katagiri. Though these instructions sound easy, these collected essays are not for the beginner. The anthology's no-nonsense style and approach hit the reader like a slap with a stick from a Zen meditation teacher correcting one's posture in Zen meditation. While erudite and informed, these essays lack any humor and warmth that might entice the novice to sample the delights of Zen even further. The lessons stare up at you like figures from a spreadsheet, demanding a reader's uncritical acceptance. The essays read like the thoughts of a Zen bureaucrat rather than a lover of this rich and profound path to self-knowledge.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
     "Through vivid imagery, humorous anecdotes, and an irrepressible sense of astonishment, Katagiri Roshi reminds us through this collection of talks that the heart of Zen lies in the very moment we are living now." –Stephen Batchelor, author of Buddhism without Beliefs

Ingram
One of the most influential Zen teachers in America shows how to bring the insights that arise through meditation into our everyday experience. Dainin Katagiri (1928-1990) was a central figure in the transmission of Zen in America. His first book, RETURNING TO SILENCE, became one of the classics of Zen in America.