Zen in daily life

Zen teacher Dogen and the Soto approach to Zen

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List of recommended Books

[Skip to list of Zen Books] [Skip to list of Martial Art Books] [Skip to list of Taoist Books] [Skip to list of Other Books]

Preliminary Words

All the books listed here have been read in one of two ways: from A to Z at least one time, or reading thoroughly and extensively covering most issues and chapters. Any other cases will be noted explicitly. Most of these books I have in my library.
I only list and recommend on books that I value (to my best judgment and current attainment) as Humanistic, leading to deep and genuine Knowledge, and that can truly help people with information or knowledge for self-cultivation and development.
The books are classified into Must-books, Important-books, and Nice-books. Must-books are the books that to my own judgment must be read by people that are keen participators in fields that those books are related to. Important-books are books that it is important or very important to read. And Nice-books are Nice-to-have books. They contain some valuable and important or interesting content. It is as plane as it is - Nice to have them or read them. Even if a book is not classified as a must it doesn't mean that it is not a valuable, deep, and worth reading book, if it wouldn't I would not have included it in the list. Every one is welcome to judge by himself/herself.
All books are in English unless noted otherwise. A list of books in Hebrew is given in the Hebrew version of this site.
Currently you can find 160 recommended books on Zen, Martial Arts, Taoism and related subjects and more.
It must be noted that such translators as Thomas Cleary, Eva Wong, John Stevens, F. Cook, Prof. Masunaga Reiho and others had done tremendous pioneering hard and excellent work to bring the treasures of Zen and Taoism and Martial arts to the interested westerners. Those and other generous people have opened the gate for deep knowledge. Generally speaking almost any book of them is worth reading. While reading their books and train and cultivating ourselves we should remember their benevolence efforts, that keep on helping us now.
It is not possible to learn zen or martial arts by reading even from the best books or web sites. Reading is no substitute for practice and meeting a true teacher.

Ofer C.

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Zen Books

name	M/I/N	Writer/Translator Name	Comments	ISBN
Soto approach to Zen	Must	Masunaga Reiho
Zen in Daily living	Must	Masunaga Reiho
Zen beyond Zen	Must	Masunaga Reiho
Denkoroku	Must	Author: Keizan Translator: F.H. Cook
How Zen became Zen	I to M	Morten Schlütter		0-8248-3508-5
Zen Gardens	Nice	Tom Write & Mizuno Katsuhiko	Kyoto nature	4-8381-0111-2
Zen Gardens	N to I	Martin Roth & John Stevens		0-8348-0202-3
The Sword of No-Sword	Must	John Stevens	Life of Zen Master Warrior Tesshu
The Hekigan Roku	Must	Translator: R.D.M Show	The Blue Cliff Records (great)
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind	I to M	Shunryu Suzuki		0-8348-0079-9
Dream Conversations	N to I	Author: Muso Kokushi. Translator: Thomas Cleary		0-87773-992-7
The Zen teaching of Homeless Kodo	Imp	Kosho Uchiyama
Introduction to Zen Buddhism	Nice	D.T. Suzuki
Zen Enlightenment	Nice	Heinrich Dumoulin		0-8348-0141-8
Zen Buddhism - A history (vol. 2)	N to I	Heinrich Dumoulin
Zen words for the Heart	N to I	Author: Hakuin, T: N. Waddell
Zen doctrine of no-mind	Nice	D.T. Suzuki
Master Dogen's - Shobogenzo (3 vol.)	I to M	Translators: Gudo Nishijima & Chodo Cross	very important because offer all of Shobogenzo
Zen teaching of Huang Po	Imp	Translator: John Blofeld
Zen Antics	Must	Translator: Thomas Cleary	Great companion to the Zen trainees
Immovable Wisdom - The teaching of Takuan Soho	Must	Translator: Nobuko Hirose
Zen and the Japanese culture	I to M	D.T. Suzuki
The Tiger's Cave	Imp	Trevor Leggett
Buddhism and Zen	I to M	Nyogen Senzaki & Ruth Strout McCandless
Original Teachings of Chan Buddhism - Selected from The Transmission of the Lamp	N to I	Translator: Chang Chung-Yuan
The Record of tung-shan	N to I	Translator: William F. Powell
Master Yunmen (teaching and life)	Imp	Translator: Urs App
The Essence of Zen	I to M	Author:Sekkei Harada, Translator: Daigaku Rumme
Zen Action Zen person	Imp	T.P. Kasulis
Zen Flesh Zen Bones	Imp	Paul Reps & Nyogen Senzaki
Zen and the art of Archery	N to I	Eugen Herrigel
The Zen way to the Martial Arts	N to I	Taisen Deshimaru
Sounds of Valley streams (translations from Shobogenzo)	I to M	Francis H. Cook
Dogen's formative years in China	Imp	Takashi James Kodera
The Buddhist Tradition	Imp
Flowers of Emptiness (translations from Shobogenzo)	I to M	Hee-Jim Kim
Zen and the way of the sword	Imp	Winston L King
A Primer of Soto Zen	Imp	Prof. Masunaga Reiho
Questions to a Zen Master	Imp	Taisen Deshimaru
Empty Logic - Madhyamika Buddhism	N to I	Hsueh-Li Cheng
Dharma Eye - Soto Zen Journal	N to I	The Soto Zen Education center
Zen at Work	N to I	Les Kaye
The Elements of Zen	I to M	David Scott and Tony Doubleday
Bankei Zen	Must	Peter Haskel

[Skip to list of Zen Books] [Skip to list of Taoist Books] [Skip to list of Other Books]

Martial Art Books

name	M/I/N	Writer/Translator Name	Comments	ISBN
Japanese Swords	N to I	Nobuo Ogasawara		4-586-54022-2
The Dragon Mask	I to M	Trevor Leggett	Judo stories in the Zen Tradition	1-874572-16-x
Kata of Kodokan Judo Revised	Must	Kotani, Osawa, Hirose
Osoto-Gari	N to I	Yasuhiro Yamashita		0-9518455-8-6
The Little Capeira Book	Imp	Nestor Capoeira		1-55643-199-6
Judo - Formal Techniques	Must	Otaki & Draeger		0-8048-1676-x
Tai Chi Classics	I to M	Waysun Liao		0-87773-531-x
Tai Chi Chuan	Nice	Douglas Lee
Tomoe-Nage	Nice	Katsuhiko Kashiwazaki		1-85223-249-8
Iron & Silk	N to I	Mark Salzman	A story of learning Budo in China
Stick Fighting	I to M	Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi
Japanese Art of War	N to I	Thomas Cleary
Cheng Tzu's Thirteen Treatises on Tai Chi Chuan	I to M	Cheng Man Ch'ing
Bruce Lee's Fighting Method	Imp	Bruce Lee & M. Uyehara
The Techniques of Judo	I to M	Shinzo Takagaki & H. Sharp
Martial Arts - The spiritual dimension	imp	Peter Payne	very good first entrance
Ninja Secrets from the Grandmaster	I to M	Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi & S. Hayes
Aikido with Ki	Imp	Koretoshi Maruyama	Must to Aikido trainees
The Essence of Tai Chi Chuan	Must	Translator: Lo, Inn, Amacker, Foe
Ninjutsu - History & Tradition	I to M	Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi
Tai Chi Chuan & I Ching	N to I	Da Liu
Hsing - I Chuan	Nice	D. Hsieh
Chen style Tai Chi Chuan	N to I	Feng Zhiqiang & Feng Dabiao & Chen Xiaowang
The Tao of Tai Chi Chuan	Must	Jou Tsung Hwa	Best companion for Tai Chi students
Shaolin Chin Na	Nice	Yang Jwing Ming
The Sword and the centuries	N to I	Alfred Hutton	European Swords!
Practical Unarmed combat	Imp	Moshe Feldenkrais
The Art of peace	N to I	Author: Morihei Ueshiba, Translator: John Stevens
The Karate Dojo	N to I	Peter Urban
Hwarang Do	Nice	Joo Bang Lee
Abundant Peace -Biography of Morihei Ueshiba	I to M	Johns Stevens	Must to Aikido trainees
Jo - The Japanese short Staff	Nice	Don Zier & Tom Lang
Diary to the Way	I to M	Ira Lerner
Essence of Ninjutsu	Must	Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi
The Book of Five Rings + The Art of War of Yagyu!	Must	Author: Musashi, Author: Yagyu Munenori, Translator: Thomas Cleary
Advanced Yang Style Tai chi Chuan (vol. 1)	N to I	Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming
Advanced Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan (vol. 2)	Nice	Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
Bo - The Japanese long Staff	Nice	Tadashi Yamashita
Ancient Chinese Weapons	Nice	Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
Moi Fah - The Plum Flower Fist (Northern Chinese Kongfu)	Nice	Kown Wing Lam & T. Mancuso
Pa Kua Chuan (for self defense)	Nice	D. Hsieh
The Tai chi journey	N to I	John Lash
Karate - Beginner to Black belt	N to I	H.D. Plee
Tai Chi Touchstones - Yang family Secret Transmissions	Must	Translator: Douglas Wile
Modern Bujutsu & Budo	Imp	Donn F. Draeger
Classical Budo	I to M	Donn F. Draeger
Beyond the Known	I to M	Tri Thong Dang	Nice story about being a disciple
Women in Aikido	I to M	Andrea Siegel	Very important book to both sexes
Advanced Karate	Imp	Masutatsu Oyama
The Deity Of the Sword, Katori Shinto Ryo (3 vol)	Nice	Risuke Otake
Kodokan Judo	I to M	Jigoro Kano
The weapons and Fighting Arts of Indonesia	I to M	Donn F. Draeger
Hsing Yi Chuan	I to M	Liang Sho-Yu & Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
Legacies of the Sword (Kasima Shinryu School)	Nice	Karl F Friday
The Secrets of Aikido	imp	John Stevens

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Taoist Books and related issues

name	M/I/N	Writer/Translator Name	Comments
The Tao of I Ching - Way of Divination	I to M	Jou Tsung Hwa
The Buddhist I Ching	N to I	Translator: Thomas Cleary
The Inner Teaching of Taoism	Must	Author: Chang Po-Tuan, Translator: Thomas Cleary	Best of Bests
Bone Marrow Nei Kung	Nice	Mantak & Maeewan Chia
Traditional Acupuncture: The law of the five elements	Nice	Dianne M Connelly
Cultivating Stillness	Must	Translator: Eva Wong	definite Must
Understanding Reality	Must	Author: Chang Po-Tuan, Translator: Thomas Cleary	Must of Musts
The Way and its Power	I to M	Arthur Waley	Tao Te Ching
Chuang-Tzu - the Inner Chapters	N to I	A.C. Graham
Teaching of the Tao	I to M	Translator: Eva Wong
The Chinese Sexual Yoga Classics	N to I	Douglas Wile
Muscle/Tendon Changing & Marrow/brain Washing Chi Kong	Imp	Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming
Taoist classic Chuang-Tsu	N to I	Tranlator: Fung Yu-Lan
I Ching Mandalas	N to I	Translator: Thomas Cleary
Awakening to the Tao	Must	Author: Liu I-Ming, Translator: Thomas Cleary	very good companion for the trainee
The Astrology of I Ching	N to I	Translator: W.k. Chu, Editor: W.A. Sherrill
Kiatsu	N to I	Koichi Tohei
I Ching	N to I	Translator: Richard Willhelm, Translator: C.F. Baynes
Chinese Qigong Therapy	I to M	Translators: Yang Entang, Yao Xiuqing
Daoist Health Preservation Exercises	N to I	Bian Zhizhong
Massotherapy of Traditional Chinese Medicine	I to M	Author: Cao Xi Zhen, Translator: Ding Chang Hao
The Secrets of Chinese Meditations	Nice	Lu K'uan Yu
The Tao of Meditation	N to I	Jou Tsung Hwa
Seven Taoist Masters	Must	Translaor: Eva Wong	Must of Musts!
The great path of Awakening	N to I	Jamgon Kongtrul
Chi Nei Tsang - Internal organs Chi Massage	Imp	Mantak & Maneewan Chia
Awaken healing energy through the Tao	Nice	Mantak Chia
Scholar Warrior	I to M	Deng Ming Dao
The wandering Taoist, Seven Bamboo Tablets of the Cloudy Satchel, Gateway to a vast World	Must	Deng Ming Dao	Great trilogy - the life story of a Taoist disciple
The Yellow Emperor's Classic of internal Medicine	I to M	Translator: Ilza Veith
Taoist Secrets of Love	Nice	Mantak Chia & M. Winn
I Ching Numerology	N to I	Da Liu
Ki - practical guide for Westerners	Nice	William Reed
The complete book of Shiatsu Therapy	N to I	Toru Namikoshi
Shiatsu & Stretching	Imp	Toru Namikoshi
Zen Imagery Exercises (Meridian Exercises)	N to I	Jou Tsung Hwa
Taoist Yoga	Imp	Lu K'uan Yu
Meridian Qigong	N to I	Li Ding
The Taoist I Ching	Must	Author: Liu I Ming, Translator: Thomas Cleary	Must of Musts!
The Spirit of Tao	Must	Translator: Thomas Cleary
Book of Ki - Coordinating Mind and Body in daily life	Imp	Koichi Tohei	Very imp to Aikido trainees
The Root of Chinese Chi Kong	I to M	Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
The Tao of Sex	Nice	H.S. Levy & Akira Ishihara
Chinese Medical Terminology	N to I	Frank Liu & Liu Yan Mau
Body and Mature behavior	Imp	M. Feldenkrais
The way to locate Acu-Points	N to I	Translators: Dr. Meng Xiankun & Dr. Li Xuewu
Tao & longevity	N to I	Translator: Wen Kuan Chu
Taoism - the way of the mystic	N to I	J.C. Cooper
Immortal sisters - secrets of Taoist women	I to M	Translator: Thomas Cleary
Taoist Meditation	Imp	Isabelle Robinet

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Others:

name	M/I/N	Writer/Translator Name	Comments	ISBN
Japanese for beginners	Imp	Yoshida, Kuratani, Okunishi	Excellent book	4-05-050647-5
Fun with Chinese Characters	Nice	Tan Huay Peng	Serious of books
Illustrated Japanese Characters	Imp	Japan Travel Bureau	Splendid
The Book of Tea	Nice	Kakuzo Okakura
Japanese Picture Dictionary	Nice	Editors of passport books
Kanji book (series of books)	N to I	Naganuma
Kanji and Kana	Imp	Wolfgang Hadamitzky & Mark Spahm
A look into Japan (illustrated)	N to I	Japan travel Bureau
a guide to learning Hiragana & Katakana	N to I	K.G. Henshall & Tetsuo Takagaki

Zen in daily life

Zen teacher Dogen and the Soto approach to Zen

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DOGEN TEXTS

KEIZAN TEXTS

MASUNAGA TEXTS

What is Zen

Western Interest in Zen

The Standpoint of Dogen and His Ideas on Time

Other Essays

DAN WAXMAN TEXTS

Zen Q & A

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