A ZEN LIFE - D.T. Suzuki (Excerpt)

[chiroo2]

First i read his book 'Introduction to Zen' and it meant nothing. Then I realized myself, read it again and found thruth and myself in every word...

[authmaax]

0:34 ignorant?



[humaner]

Simply a Bodhisattva ..as if that could ever be simple.

[thisNewFoundLand]

...one other note: .anyone who claims that DT Suzuki was in support of ANY war has absolutely no knowledge of the man and his life's work.

peace; and thanks uploader.

[takahide1973]

@thisNewFoundLand I agreed 

[thisNewFoundLand]

...i have collected about 7 of DT Suzuki's books, and i continually return to them for the ever-unfolding wisdom they contain. DT was a genius; his writing in English is extraordinary considering that it was not his native tongue. Suzuki-sensei's text concerning the great Chinese visionary named HuiNeng ("The Zen Doctine of No-Mind") is a treasure of wisdom; a more gentle introduction to his profound intelligence is "The Awakening of Zen" which includes speeches he gave in Europe etc...

[bluetoothdandy]

i guess the current "trend" is to paint Suzuki as a nationalist. It gets ambitious authors published because it garners headlines, although those that have read his private diaries and papers have not come away with that impression - nor indeed those that i have met who actually knew him.

[perfectlygonebeyond]

@bluetoothdandy when i first heard this accusation against suzuki i was taken aback by it, but i've never seen it substantiated. in support of suzuki as "nationalist" all i've ever seen has been two texts, one taken from his personal writings when he was still very young, and another taken from one of his published books that is blatantly taken out of context. meanwhile what we do know about him goes against nationalism. i can only think that this current trend is nothing less than libel.

[egopotato]

slice it anyway you want, examine it through electron microscope for 40 yrs., talk about it some more... boxes! boxes of explanations and labels that only approximates the real event without your default assumptions. in the end, it's all about you!

[jajaja69nyc]

charming total distortion of buddhist philosophy..... impossible to explain, yeah, especially with superficial and wrong psudeo-interpretation. but don't take my word for it - go spend 40 years meditating, seeking out the most authentic teachers, and studying the best translations of the original texts you can find.

[godhelpme2009]

and then I can be as wise and balanced as yourself, or is it deep & centered,

or , is it  open & full of insight .

What exactly is it that will be gained by this recipe you prescribe ?

And are you the evidence of the resounding efficacy of such a program ?

A program that you're suggesting people spend 40 years of their lives dedicated to ?

You do seem awfully sure of yourself and your...opinions .

Maybe, I should follow your advice.

[jajaja69nyc]

yes, by all means! it would do you good. do you think i am making this up? ar eyou going to be enlightened sitting around watching cheezy youtube videos? you got to WORK at it, dude, just like the masters.

[ZurDruid]

THANKS ! (the first time)

[catandpiddle]

Reality is an illusion, huh? Zero and infinity, life and death one in the same? So how come he supported the war? Fancy talk, that's all... Most of these guys were treated like rock stars everywhere and to purport that ego annihilation is their goal just smacks of something out of whack. Particularly this old nationalist.

[pef23]

@catandpiddle Reading a couple of works by Sharf and Victoria and the like doesn't qualify you to make claims like that. Have you atually checked any of the (extremely limited) "proofs" that these scholars' arguments lay on? I am guessing that your knowledge of the Japanese language is as poor as some of these scholars. The myth of Suzuki as nationalist was started by a few men that stood to gain a lot in terms of their own careers.

[catandpiddle]

@pef23 yes you're quite right, you are indeed 'guessing' my knowledge of the japanese language. I'm a translator, make a living this way and read, speak and write the language very well indeed. there is no 'myth' about it at all. suzuki was an avowed nationalist and I know with certainty that victoria researched the subject very well. not only that, there are native japanese researchers who have the same opinion about suzuki.

[pef23]

@catandpiddle In that case I would certainly like you to point me to some of this proof as I have never seen anything conclusive in Suzuki's own words. Victoria adds his own skewed interpretation to everything I have seen from him. Do you know of anything where Suzuki says "I support Japanese expansion into Asia" or anything of the like? You say "avowed." What do you mean by that?

[catandpiddle]

@pef23 Much of what we know about anyone that has passed on lacks credulity unless written down and Suzuki would have been shrewd enough to keep his thoughts on the matter either private or shared with only a few. The gleanings from those that knew him here, in Japan, in fact very much 'do' point towards nationalism. Mumon roshi was the same, a nationalist and expansionist no doubt about it at all. I shall look for the book you've mentioned but the larger point is, Zen is avoided by many in Japa

[pef23]

@catandpiddle Also, I would be keen to know if you have read Sato's "Brian Victoria and the Question of Scholarship" in the Eastern Buddhist and Victoria's own response in the same issue. I can't see how you can interpret Victoria any other way but that he concedes defeat on the issue but remains subjectively unconvinced - not exactly an academic standpoint. In addition, the work by the native Japanese researchers is highly questionable. How do you argue that their work is reliable?

[catandpiddle]

@pef23 The "Negative Side" of D. T. Suzuki's Relationship to War . Enough said ...

[pef23]

@catandpiddle I read that article and thought it was utter garbage. If you think it has any worth, there is not too much point in me going on like this. If you choose to believe that Suzuki was a nationalist, there is certainly some proof to "support" that hypothesis, but Suzuki was absolutely not "avowed." Future finds of private letters, etc. may prove this but at this stage there is no conclusive evidence. I think it is pointless to make such strong accusations without any reliable proof.

[catandpiddle]

@pef23 Then there's little point of any further discussion I think. Perhaps your credulity is hardwired to your aversion to criticism. So be it. Live a full and good life.

[pef23]

@catandpiddle Same to you friend :) Merry Xmas!

[JapanInterCulture]

Zen monks want their students to learn from direct experience, not by reading "about" Zen. Suzuki was also adamant that the aim of Buddhism is to get in touch with one's "true self," not blindly follow a leader (including the Buddha). His understanding is much deeper than that of some who look down upon him. Others' experiences can be worthwhile, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to interview people who respect him and who evolved their own understandings.

Michael Goldberg

[fntime]

@JapanInterCulture The 'mind' as we know it, keeps us from experiencing

reality....but first you must become aware of the 'intellectualized egoistic

mind', that has function, but often 'crowds out' the mind that is capable

of experiencing and understanding reality. Without contact with reality,

most thoughts are illusionary.

[demonfelix]

Strange...I recently have been encountering Suzuki in interesting places though I've never read him. I've read many books by Alan Watts and I have a Zen teacher here in Japan, Jinen-san. According to the Zen master what D.T. Suzuki says is different from what he is saying but Suzuki was a great man.

[llcoolj111]

Thanks so much for posting this. I appreciate it.