The Book of Mu: Essential Writings on Zen's Most Important Koan

The word "mu" is one ancient Zen teacher's response to the earnest question of whether even a dog has "buddha nature". Discovering for ourselves the meaning of the master's response is the urgent work of each of us who yearns to be free and at peace. "Practicing Mu" is synonymous with practicing Zen, "sitting with Mu" is an apt description for all Zen meditation, and it is said that all the thousands and thousands of koans in the Zen tradition are just further elaborations of Mu.

This watershed volume brings together over forty teachers, ancient and modern masters from across centuries and schools, to illuminate and clarify the essential matter: the question of how to be most truly ourselves.

Includes writings from: Dogen, Hakuin, Dahui, Thich Thien-An Zenkei Shibayama, Seung Sahn, Taizan Maezumi, Sheng Yen Philip Kapleau, Robert Aitken, Jan Chozen Bays, Shodo Harada Grace Schireson, John Daido Loori, John Tarrant Barry Magid, Joan Sutherland, and many more!

• Sitting with Koans: Essential Writings on Zen Koan Introspection
• Bring Me the Rhinoceros: And Other Zen Koans That Will Save Your Life
• Introduction to Zen Koans: Learning the Language of Dragons
• Opening the Hand of Thought: Foundations of Zen Buddhist Practice
• The Art of Just Sitting: Essential Writings on the Zen Practice of Shikantaza
• If You're Lucky, Your Heart Will Break: Field Notes from a Zen Life
• The Gateless Gate: The Classic Book of Zen Koans
• Taking the Path of Zen
• The Light Inside the Dark: Zen, Soul, and the Spiritual Life
• The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-Men Kuan (Mumonkan)