Books & Print

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The Story of Zen from Sumeru Press is a complete overview of the ideas, history, evolution, and practice of Zen Buddhism, based on interviews with more than 100 Zen teachers and senior students in Canada, the United States and Mexico. Rick McDaniel, the author, is a long-time Zen practitioner and well-known expert in his field; this is his sixth book on the subject of Zen. The foreword is by Genjo Marinello Roshi, and the afterword is by Dosho Port Roshi.

Part One of the book situates Zen within the larger context of Buddhism, recounting Shakyamuni Buddha's life story, what he taught, how it evolved through time into the Mahayana, and how it continued to evolve upon its encounter with Daoism in China.

Part Two of the book explains the essence of Chan (in China), Zen (in Japan), how Westerners first encountered Zen, and how Zen expanded out of Asia as a result of that encounter.

Part Three of the book explores the Zen Boom of the 1960s, the challenges and scandals of the 1980s, and how modern American Zen has revisioned and grown from those difficulties. Of particular interest are contemporary voices of Zen teachers and senior students today, with an eye on the future of Zen practice, incorporating such modern social issues as feminism, racism, and environmental activism.

The book includes a bibliography and a glossary.

Richard Bryan McDaniel taught at the University of New Brunswick and Saint Thomas University before starting a 27-year career in International Development and Fair Trade. He is the creator of the YMCA Peace Medallion. A long time Zen practitioner, he lives in Fredericton, NB. This is his sixth book in a series on the evolution of Zen Buddhism as it moved from China to Japan and the West. His other three books published by Sumeru are The Third Step East: Zen Masters of America, Cypress Trees in the Garden: The Second Generation of Zen Teaching in America, and Catholicism and Zen.

The Sumeru Press Inc. is dedicated to publishing and distributing Buddhist books and art, with a particular focus on Buddhism in Canada. It celebrates and supports all lineages.

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