Explains what Zen is and how it came to America, how to practice Zen and incorporate it into daily living, and the Zen approach to the world.

Living Zen is that rare achievement, both a survey of the rich history of Zen Buddhism and a guide to the practice of this most demanding and effortless art of being. The distinguished Belgian scholar Robert Linssen offers a sage corrective to the idea that the Zen way is available only to those prepared to sit life out under the Bodhi-Tree. Gently but insistently he undermines this typically Western view; inviting and enabling us, as Christmas Humphreys puts it in his preface, to take “the leap from thought to No-thought, from the ultimate duality of Illusion/Reality to a burst of laughter and a cup of tea.” “Linssen’s aim throughout this penetrating book is to encourage his readers to outgrow the cocoon of self-centered thought and feeling. The core of the book lies in its lucid analysis...and in the meaning which it gives to the true attention, focused undesirously in the immediate present, which can dissolve the endless distractions of the fear-conditioned ego.”—The Times Literary Supplement “Robert Linssen finally gives a sensible explanation of what Zen is all about.”—Saturday Review “An excellent study.”—San Francisco Chronicle

Legendary Yankees catcher (and accidental Zen master) Yogi Berra once asked, ''How can you think and hit at the same time?'' The answer is you can't. And you can't enjoy a full, satisfying life while obsessing over the past or future. You can't savor existence by living inside your head by thinking instead of doing. This is one of the main themes of Zen Buddhism. Zen teaches us to focus on the here and now to live in a reality that's meant to be fully experienced. Zen is seeing into your true nature. It is about liberation from our racing minds from limited perspectives about ourselves, our relationships, our emotions and reactions. For many Zen Buddhists, contemplating koans is a vital part of this path to liberation. Life Between the Tigers is a new collection, adapted for the modern Western reader, of Buddhist parables and Zen koans (paradoxes that challenge our perspective on life and reality). In their original forms, many koans are set in times and places that are ''alien'' to most Westerners. They refer to traditions, customs, locations, and histories that can confuse (and even deter) new students of Buddhism. In Life Between the Tigers, these classic stories have been edited into everyday English, so the average reader can better understand and enjoy them. Whatever your spiritual leanings, Life Between the Tigers will challenge you to see something you previously could not or would not see, provoking insights both profound and prosaic. ''You know the sound of two hands, clapping. What is the sound of one hand?'' asks one koan. Linear, logical thinking will get you nowhere with a riddle like that. So prepare to let go of your logical mind and see reality for what it is a place where our words for things are not the things themselves and where human concepts limit our ability to understand the world around us.Life Between the Tigers is a new collection of Buddhist parables and Zen koans (paradoxes that challenge our perspectives on life and reality) - adapted for the modern Western reader. In their original forms, many koans are set in times and places that are alien to most Westerners. They refer to traditions, customs, locations and histories that can confuse (and even deter) students of Buddhism. In Life Between the Tigers, these classic stories have been edited into everyday English, so the average reader can better understand and enjoy them. Life Between the Tigers is designed to provoke spiritual and emotional insights both profound and prosaic. "

FOREWORD BY GUY KAWASAKI Presentation designer and internationally acclaimed communications expert Garr Reynolds, creator of the most popular Web site on presentation design and delivery on the Net — presentationzen.com — shares his experience in a provocative mix of illumination, inspiration, education, and guidance that will change the way you think about making presentations with PowerPoint or Keynote. Presentation Zen challenges the conventional wisdom of making "slide presentations" in today’s world and encourages you to think differently and more creatively about the preparation, design, and delivery of your presentations. Garr shares lessons and perspectives that draw upon practical advice from the fields of communication and business. Combining solid principles of design with the tenets of Zen simplicity, this book will help you along the path to simpler, more effective presentations.

A Sot Zen priest and Dharma successor of Kosho Uchiyama Roshi explores eight of Zen's most essential and universal liturgical texts and explains how the chants in these works support meditation and promote a life of freedom and compassion.

In Conclusion -- 2 In Zen, What Does It Mean "To BeEnlightened"? -- 3 Developing Traits of Character on the Way to Altruism -- Cultural Estimates of Character, East and West -- What Can Zen Buddhism Offer Today? -- Native Capacities -- Altruism -- Recent Interviews with Contemporary Buddhist Teachers in the West -- Part II Implications of a Self-Other Continuum -- 4 The Self: A Primer -- The Semantics of Self -- Where Is the Self? -- Recent Studies of Our Normal Autobiographical Self: A Progress Report

Charlotte Joko Beck offers a warm, engaging, uniquely American approach to using Zen to deal with the problems of daily living—love, relationships, work, fear, ambition, and suffering. Everyday Zen shows us how to live each moment to the fullest. This Plus edition includes an interview with the author.