The ability to read and understand the invisible world around us. It isn't about the supernatural, but being more aware of the present moment and seizing its maximum capacity. This is Kusan. With this power, you'll be able to transcend the doldrums of daily life by realizing that there is beauty in the ordinary. Through judo, we can transmit this idea, but Kusan is just as applicable to any aspect of the human condition. Kusan can help us develop the tools to succeed right now, and be prepared for the future.

The power and simplicity of the Korean Zen tradition shine in this collection of teachings by a renowned modern master, translated by Martine Batchelor. Kusan Sunim provides a wealth of practical advice for students, particularly with regard to the uniquely Korean practice of hwadu, or sitting with questioning. An extensive introduction by Stephen Batchelor, author of Buddhism without Beliefs, provides both a biography of the author and a brief history of Korean Zen.

Kusan Sunim (1901-83) was one of the greatest modern masters of Korean Zen. As the Zen Master of the Songgwang Monastery, he preached the sermons and dharma talks collected here. First published in 1985 and long out of print, these pithy, down-to-earth, refreshingly practical guides to meditation and spiritual cultivation are now again available to followers of Buddhism and the Way of Zen. A brief history of Korean Buddhism, a fascinating account of life in a Korean monastery, and a biography of Master Kusan provide important background information, and the glossary of Korean and general Buddhist terms is a valuable tool for readers new to the field of Buddhist studies. Of special interest is Master Kusan's presentation of a meditation practice, unique to Korean Zen, the hwadu. Zen students familiar with koan riddles and the "just sitting" practice of Japanese Zen will be eager to learn of this distinctively Korean approach to meditation, and to read Master Kusan's detailed instructions for its practice. Master Kusan also offers a interpretation of the classic Ten Oxherding Pictures, illustrated by the ink paintings of "Living National Treasure" Sokchong Sunim.

Robert Buswell, a Buddhist scholar who spent five years as a Zen monk in Korea, draws on personal experience in this insightful account of day-to-day Zen monastic practice. In discussing the activities of the postulants, the meditation monks, the teachers and administrators, and the support monks of the monastery of Songgwang-sa, Buswell reveals a religious tradition that differs radically from the stereotype prevalent in the West. The author's treatment lucidly relates contemporary Zen practice to the historical development of the tradition and to Korean history more generally, and his portrayal of the life of modern Zen monks in Korea provides an innovative and provocative look at Zen from the inside.

A translation of the Chinese text, the Brahmajala Sutra. This a fundamental text for Chinese, Korean and Japanese Buddhists in the East and West and demonstrates an ancient ground for socially engaged Buddhism.

Since 1965 the Korean American population has grown to over one million people. These Korean Americans, including immigrants and their offspring, have founded thousands of Christian congregations and scores of Buddhist temples in the United States. In fact, their religious presence is perhaps the most distinctive contribution of Korean Americans to multicultural diversity in the United States. Korean Americans and Their Religions takes the first sustained look at this new component of the American religious mosaic. The fifteen chapters focus on cultural, racial, gender, and generational factors and are noteworthy for the attention they give to both Christian and Buddhist traditions and to both first&– and second-generation experiences. The editors and contributors represent the fields of sociology, psychology, theology, and religious ministry and themselves embody the diversities underlying the Korean American religious experience: they are Korean immigrants who are leaders in their fields and second-generation Korean Americans beginning their careers as well as leaders of both Christian and Buddhist communities. Among them are sympathetically analytical outside observers. Korean Americans and Their Religions is a welcome addition to the emerging literature in the sociology of &"new immigrant&" religious communities, and it provides the fullest portrait yet of the Korean religious experience in America.