A Place to Start
Martine Batchelor, Principles of Zen (Thorson’s,
1999)
An excellent introduction to Zen practice you
can slip into your back pocket, covering everything from sitting postures
to fundamental philosophy, written by a longtime and sophisticated
practitioner
Kazuaki Tanahashi and David Schneider, eds. Essential
Zen (HarperSanFrancisco, 1994)
Because Zen relies so much on direct experience,
its teachings are most often transmitted through koans and stories
rather than theoretical works; this is a fine introduction to the
poetry and humor of those teachings
Donald S. Lopez, Jr., The Story of Buddhism:
A Concise Guide to its History and Teachings (HarperSanFrancisco,
2001)
An engaging and clear-eyed exploration weaving
together history, legend, and doctrine, written by a distinguished scholar
with firsthand experience of his subject; it gives the reader the feeling
of what it's like to be inside these traditions, as well as what it's
like to consider them thoughtfully from outside
Looking Deeper ~ Traditional
Peter Hershock, Chan Buddhism (University of Hawai'i
Press, 2005)
A brilliant introduction to the origins of the
koan tradition in China over a thousand years ago; essential to understanding
what we’re
doing now
Andy Ferguson, Zen's
Chinese Heritage: The Masters and their Teachings (Wisdom
Publications, 2000)
A feast of stories about the old teachers and their doings
Looking Deeper ~ Contemporary
John Tarrant, Bring Me the Rhinoceros: And Other Zen Koans to Bring You Joy (Harmony Books, 2004)
John Tarrant, The Light Inside the Dark: Zen, Soul and the Spiritual Life (HarperCollins, 1998)
Stephen Batchelor, Buddhism Without Beliefs: A Contemporary Guide to Awakening (Riverhead Books, 1997)
Chogyam Trunppa, The Teacup and the Skullcup: On Zen and Tantra (Vajradhatu Publications, 2007)
Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (Weatherhill, 1972)
Pema Chodron, When Things Fall Apart (Shambhala, 1997)
Mark Epstein, Thoughts without a Thinker: Psychotherapy from a Buddhist Perspective (Basic Books/HarperCollins, 1995)
