Mountains are Mountains and Rivers are Rivers deals with such subjects as achieving peace of mind, coping with stress, accepting lifes disappointments, enhancing creativity,finding meaningful work, and improving relationships with your family members. There is also a useful dictionary of the terms, such as zazen, dharma, and sartori, used in the readings, along with concepts such as attentiveness, simplicity, and acceptance. This is an excellent and accessible guide for anyone wishing to slow down lifes frantic pace and develop a more peaceful lifestyle.

Yu Qiuyu is one of China's greatest modern essayists. Sometimes a prickly commentator, he is above all a storyteller. In this volume he takes his inspiration from China's geography, both human and physical, and brings the culture of his country to life with human characters and historical narrative. The forests of Hainan, the Three Gorges, classical pagodas, ancient remains under modern Shanghai, even the open skies... all have their stories and cultural connections, traced with erudition and wit by an inquisitive mind. "I sought a path across mountains and rivers, plastering my brief life across a rugged corner of this planet," explains Yu Qiuyu. The Book of Rivers and Mountains is another in a series of meditative essays about Chinese culture and history. In this book he returns to the Chinese mainland in contemplation of its people and the natural landscape that has shaped their way of life. He refers to mountains and rivers as the "facial expressions of the land" and the only true way of understanding the history of the country and its people.

In simple, striking verse, legendary poet Gary Snyder weaves an epic discourse on the topics of geology, prehistory, and mythology. First published in 1996, this landmark work encompasses Asian artistic traditions, as well as Native American storytelling and Zen Buddhist philosophy, and celebrates the disparate elements of the Earth — sky, rock, water — while exploring the human connection to nature with stunning wisdom. Winner of the Bollingen Poetry Prize, the Robert Kirsch Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Orion Society's John Hay Award, among others, Gary Snyder finds his quiet brilliance celebrated in this new edition of one of his most treasured works.

In these talks given at the Upaya Zen Center in 2012, Norman Fischer presents Dogen's medieval essay in language understandable to us in the 21st century and gives us a rich commentary on how to apply these principles in our daily lives. The talks are in 52 short sections as a weekly guide, with each accompanied by practice suggestions.

Theodore Levin takes readers on a journey through the rich sonic world of inner Asia, where the elemental energies of wind, water, and echo; the ubiquitous presence of birds and animals; and the legendary feats of heroes have inspired a remarkable art and technology of sound-making among nomadic pastoralists. As performers from Tuva and other parts of inner Asia have responded to the growing worldwide popularity of their music, Levin follows them to the West, detailing their efforts to nourish global connections while preserving the power and poignancy of their music traditions.

"In the Faraway Mountains and Rivers continues the self-narrative of Japanese student-soldiers, which Midori Yamanouchi and Joseph Quinn introduced to the English speaking world in their previously published Listen to the Voices from the Sea." "The letters and journal excerpts in this volume present the poignant reflections of University of Tokyo students drafted to fight in World War II, some of them as kamikaze pilots. The brightest young men in Japanese society turned to poetry, philosophy, literature, and religion to cope with their situation. They express their love of family and friends, as well as their anguish, confusion, and sadness. The words of these students are pervaded by a sense of helplessness and fate rather than any animosity toward the United States." "Reading In the Faraway Mountains and Rivers you will hear echoes of the common experience of soldiers in all wars. You will be reminded of the courageous spirit and sense of duty that they share, but you will also be left with the indelible impression of the terrible toll that war takes on the human spirit, on every side of every conflict." "Full of sorrow and beauty, replete with the reflections of young men as they struggle with their preparation for the brutalities of war and ultimately death, In the Faraway Mountains and Rivers offers the thoughtful reader a contemplative and transforming experience."--BOOK JACKET.