Zen Seeds: 60 Essential Buddhist Teachings on Effort, Gratitude, and Happiness

From a living treasure of Japanese Zen, an inspiring collection of teachings about the power of Buddhist practice to help you transform suffering and touch the marrow of your life.

In this sparkling collection of teachings, Japanese Zen master Shundo Aoyama Roshi offers an earthy entry to the practice of Zen Buddhism. Or rather, she offers a myriad of entries, for Zen Seeds, as its title suggests, is comprised of brief chapters meant to plant seeds of wisdom and compassion in readers. Ranging from classical Zen material, such as the teachings of Dogen and koans, to anecdotes from Aoyama’s fascinating life and from those of her many students, the book builds a profoundly compelling portrait of Zen, both in the lives of monastics and in those of the innumerable laypeople–artists, housewives, and businesspeople–whom Aoyama has spent her entire life helping. A pioneering female leader in the Soto Zen school, Aoyama demonstrates the power of practice not only for women, but for anyone seeking to lead a life of greater clarity and compassion.