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Stage I

Records of Ancient Masters

Yampolsky, Philip B., trans., The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch: The text of the TunHuang Manuscript. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998.

Records of Modern Masters

Aitken, Robert. Taking the Path of Zen. San Francisco: North Point Press, 1982.

Beck, Charlotte Joko. Everyday Zen: Love & Work. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1989.

Chödrön, Pema. Start Where You Are. Boston: Shambhala, 1994.

Kapleau, Roshi Philip, ed. The Three Pillars of Zen: Teaching, Practice, and Enlightenment. New York: Anchor Books, 2000.

Loori, John Daido. Mountain Record of Zen Talks. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1988.

Loori, John Daido. Path of Enlightenment: Stages in a Spiritual Journey. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1999.

Loori, John Daido. The Still Point: A Beginner’s Guide to Zen Meditation. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1996.

Master Sheng-yen. Getting the Buddha Mind. Edited by Ernest Heau. Elmhurst, N.Y.: Dharma Drum Publications, 1982.

Suzuki, Shunryu. Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind. Trumbull, Conn.: Weatherhill, 2001.

History

Armstrong, Karen. Buddha. New York: Penguin, 2001.

Fields, Rick. How the Swans Came to the Lake: A Narrative History of Buddhism in America. Boston: Shambhala, 1992.

Philosophy and Theology

Maguire, Jack. Essential Buddhism: A Complete Guide to Beliefs and Practices. New York: Pocket Books, 2001.

Rahula, Walpola. What the Buddha Taught. New York: Grove Press, 1989.

Stage II

Sutras

Price, A. F. and Wong Mou-lam, trans. “The Diamond Sutra.” In The Diamond Sutra and the Sutra of Hui-neng. Boston: Shambhala, 1990.

Records of Ancient Masters

Okumura, Shokahu, trans. Shobogenzo Zuimonki: Sayings of Eihei Dogen Zengi. Recorded by Koun Ejo. Tokyo: Soto-shu Shumucho, 1998.

Red Pine, trans. The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma. San Francisco: North Point Press, 1987.

Records of Modern Masters

Aitken, Robert. The Mind of Clover: Essays in Zen Buddhist Ethics. San Francisco: North Point Press, 2000.

Katagiri, Dainin. Returning to Silence: Zen Practice in Daily Life. Boston: Shambhala, 1988.

Loori, John Daido. Cave of Tigers: Modern Zen Encounters. Trumbull, Conn.: Weatherhill, 2000.

Loori, John Daido. Bringing the Sacred to Life: The Daily Practice of Zen Ritual. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1999.

Loori, John Daido. Invoking Reality: Moral and Ethical Teachings of Zen. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1998.

Maezumi, Hakuyu Taizan. The Echoless Valley. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1998.

Master Sheng-yen. Faith in Mind: A Guide to Ch’an Practice. Elmhurst, N.Y.: Dharma Drum Publications, 1993.

Trungpa, Chögyam. Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism. Boston: Shambhala, 1973.

U Pandita, Sayadaw. In This Very Life: The Liberation Teachings of the Buddha. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1993.

History

Ch’en, Kenneth. Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1974.

Dumoulin, Heinrich. Zen Buddhism: A History—India and China. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1994.

Matthiessen, Peter. Nine-Headed Dragon River: Zen Journals. Boston: Shambhala, 1998.

Prebish, Charles S., ed. Buddhism: A Modern Perspective. University Park, Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1994.

Stage III

Sutras

Thurman, Robert A. F., trans. The Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti: A Mahayana Scripture. University Park, Pa.: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1976.

Records of Ancient Masters

Cook, Francis Dojun. How to Raise an Ox: Zen Practice as Taught in Zen Master Dogen’s “Shobogenzo.” Los Angeles: Center Publications, 1993.

Leighton, Taigen Dan with Yi Wu, trans. Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi. Boston: Tuttle, 2000.

Okumura, Shohaku and Taigen Daniel Leighton. The Wholehearted Way: A Translation of Eihei Dogen’s “Bendowa.” Boston: Tuttle, 1997.

Yampolsky, Philip B., trans. The Zen Master Hakuin: Selected Writings. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985.

Records of Modern Masters

Kornfield, Jack. A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life. Tuttle Library of Enlightenment. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell, 1993.

Loori, John Daido. Heart of Being: Moral and Ethical Teachings of Zen Buddhism. Boston: Tuttle, 1996.

Loori, John Daido. Teachings of the Insentient: Zen and the Environment. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 1999.

Loori, John Daido. Two Arrows Meeting in Mid-Air: The Zen Koan. Boston: Tuttle, 1994.

Miura, Isshū and Ruth Fuller Sasaki. The Zen Koan. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1966.

Sogyal Rinpoche. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1993.

Trungpa, Chögyam. The Myth of Freedom and the Way of Meditation. Boston: Shambhala, 1988.

Dogen and Kosho Uchiyama. From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment: Refining Your Life. Translated by Thomas Wright. Trumbull, Conn.: Weatherhill, 1998.

Yasutani, Hakuun. Flowers Fall: A Commentary on Zen Master Dogen’s “Genjokoan.” Boston: Shambhala, 1996.

History

Prebish, Charles S. Luminous Passage: The Practice and Study of Buddhism in America. Berkeley, California: University of California Press, 1999.

Suzuki, Daisetz T. Zen and Japanese Culture. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993.

Philosophy and Theology

Chittister, Joan. The Rule of the Benedict: Insights for the Ages. New York: Crossroad, 1999.

Maguire, Jack. Waking Up: A Week Inside a Zen Monastery. Woodstock, Vermont: Skylight Paths, 2000.

Stage IV

Sutras

Watson, Burton, trans. The Lotus Sutra. New York: Columbia University Press, 1993.

Records of Ancient Masters

Leighton, Taigen Daniel and Shohaku Okumura, trans. Dogen’s Pure Standards for the Zen Community: A Translation of “Eihei Shingi.” Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995.

Powell, William F., trans. The Record of Tung-shan. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1986.

Sasaki, Ruth Fuller, Yoshitaka Iriya, and Dana R. Fraser, trans. A Man of Zen: The Recorded Sayings of Layman P’ang. Trumbull, Conn.: Weatherhill, 1992.

Tanahashi, Kazuaki, ed. Moon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dogen. San Francisco: North Point Press, 1995.

Watson, Burton. The Zen Teachings of Master Lin-Chi. Boston: Shambhala, 1993.

Koan Collections

Shibayama, Zenkei. The Gateless Barrier: Zen Comments on the Mumonkan. Boston: Shambhala, 2000.

Records of Modern Masters

Aitken, Robert. Practice of Perfection: The Paramitas from a Zen Buddhist Perspective. Washington, D.C.: Counterpoint, 1997.

Chödrön, Pema. The Places that Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times. Boston: Shambhala, 2001.

Loori, John Daido. Making Love with Light: Contemplating Nature with Words and Photographs. Mt. Tremper, N.Y.: Dharma Communications, 2000.

Maezumi Roshi, Taizan. Appreciate Your Life: The Essence of Zen Practice. Botson: Shambhala, 2001.

Seung Sahn. Only Don’t Know: Selected Teaching Letters of Zen Master Seung Sahn. Boston: Shambhala, 1999.

History

Ferguson, Andy. Zen’s Chinese Heritage: The Masters and their Teachings. Boston: Wisdom, 2000.

Foster, Nelson and Jack Shoemaker, eds. The Roaring Stream: A New Zen Reader. New York: Ecco Press, 1996.

Queen, Christopher S., ed. Engaged Buddhism in the West. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2000.

Philosophy and Theology

Epstein, Mark. Thoughts Without a Thinker: Psychotherapy from a Buddhist Perspective. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.

Suzuki, Daisetz T. Essays in Zen Buddhism. New York: Grove/Atlantic Press, 1989.

———.  Essays in Zen Buddhism. 2d series. York Beach, Maine: Samuel Weiser, 1970.

———.  Essays in Zen Buddhism. 3d series. York Beach, Maine: Samuel Weiser, 1976.

Stage V

Sutras

Conze, Edward. Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines and Its Verse Summary. Columbia, Mo.: S. Asia, 1994.

Suzuki, D. T. and Dwight Goddard, trans. “The Lankavatara Sutra.” In A Buddhist Bible, edited by Dwight Goddard, 277-356. Boston: Beacon Press, 1994.

Records of Ancient Masters

Blofeld, John, trans. The Zen Teachings of Huang Po (Obaku): On the Transmission of Mind. New York: Grove Press, 1958.

Cleary, Thomas, trans. Secrets of the Blue Cliff Record: Zen Comments by Hakuin and Tenkei. Boston: Shambhala, 2000.

Cook, Francis H. Sounds of Valley Streams: Enlightenment in Dogen’s Zen: Translation of Nine Essays from Shobogenzo. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1988.

Shantideva. The Way of the Bodhisattva: A Translation of the Bodhicharyavatara. New York: Random House, 1997.

Tanahashi, Kazuaki, ed. Enlightenment Unfolds: The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Dogen. Boston: Shambhala, 2000.

Waddell, Norman, trans. The Unborn: The Life and Teaching of Zen Master Bankei. San Francisco: North Point Press, 1982.

———,  trans. Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin. Boston: Shambhala, 1999.

Koan Collection

Cleary, Thomas and J. C. Cleary, trans. The Blue Cliff Record. Boston: Shambhala, 1977.

Records of Modern Masters

Jiyu-Kennett Roshi, P. Zen is Eternal Life. Mt. Shasta, Calif.: Shasta Abbey, 1987.

Trungpa, Chögyam. Dharma Art. Boston: Shambhala, 1996.

History

Bielfeldt, Carl. Dogen’s Manual of Zen Meditation. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988.

Conze, Edward. Buddhism: Its Essence and Development. Eagle Point: Coronet Books, 1994.

Kaza, Stephanie and Kraft, Kenneth, eds. Dharma Rain: Sources of Buddhist Environmentalism. Boston: Shambhala, 2000.

Lopez, Donald S. The Heart Sutra Explained: Indian and Tibetan Commentaries. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1988.

Stage VI

Sutras

Wai-tao. “Surangama Sutra.” In A Buddhist Bible, edited by Dwight Goddard, 108-276. Boston: Beacon Press, 1994.

Records of Ancient Masters

App, Urs, trans. Master Yunmen: From the record of the Chan Teacher “Gate of the Clouds.” Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1994.

Cleary, Thomas, trans. Stopping and Seeing: A Comprehensive Course in Buddhist Meditation by Chih-i. Boston: Shambhala, 1997.

Nishijima, Gudo and Chodo Cross, trans. Master Dogen’s Shobogenzo—Book 1. Woods Hill, Mass.: Windbell, 1998.

Koan Collection

Cleary, Thomas, trans. Book of Serenity: One Hundred Zen Dialogues. Boston: Shambhala, 1998.

Records of Modern Masters

Trungpa, Chögyam. Transcending Madness: The Experience of the Six Bardos. Boston: Shambhala, 1992.

Philosophy and Theology

Heine, Steven. Dogen and the Koan Tradition: A Tale of Two Shobogenzo Texts. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994.

Thurman, Robert A. F. Essential Tibetan Buddhism. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1995.

Wolters, Clifton, trans. The Cloud of Unknowing and Other Works. New York: Penguin Books, 1978.

Stage VII

Sutras

Nanamoli, Bhikkhu and Bhikkhu Bodhi, trans. The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya. Boston: Wisdom, 1995.

Records of Ancient Masters

Buswell, Jr., Robert E., ed. Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul’s Korean Way of Zen. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1991.

Chung-Yuan, Chang, trans. Original Teachings of Ch’an Buddhism: Selected from the Transmission of the Lamp. New York: Pantheon Books, 1969.

Nishijima, Gudo and Chodo Cross, trans. Master Dogen’s Shobogenzo—Book 2. Woods Hill, Mass.: Windbell, 1996.

Koan Collections

Cleary, Thomas, trans. Transmission of Light: Zen in the Art of Enlightenment by Zen Master Kaizan. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2002.

Cook, Francis H., trans. The Record of Transmitting the Light: Zen Master Keizan’s “Denkoroku.” Los Angeles: Center Publications, 1991.

History

Downing, Michael. Shoes Outside the Door: Desire, Devotion, and Excess at San Francisco Zen Center. Washington, D.C.: Counterpoint, 2001.

Philosophy and Theology

Abe, Masao. Zen and Western Thought. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1984.

Thurman, Robert A. F., trans. The Tibetan Book of the Dead: Liberation through Understanding in the Between. New York: Bantam Books, 1994.

Underhill, Evelyn. Practical Mysticism. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover, 2000.

———. The Spiritual Life: Great Spiritual Truths for Everyday Life. Oxford: One World, 1999

Stage VIII

Sutras

Walshe, Maurice, trans. The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Digha Nikaya. Boston: Wisdom, 1995.

Records of Ancient Masters

Green, James, trans. The Recorded Sayings of Master Joshu. Boston: Shambhala, 2000.

Nishijima, Gudo and Chodo Cross, trans. Master Dogen’s Shobogenzo—Book 3. Woods Hills, Mass.: Windbell, 1997.

Philosophy and Theology

Gregory, Peter N., ed. Traditions of Meditation in Chinese Buddhism. Kuroda Institute, Studies in East Asian Buddhism, no. 4. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1986.

Kim, Hee-Jin, ed. Dogen Kigen: Mystical Realist. Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 1987.

LaFleur, William R., ed. Dogen Studies. Kuroda Institute, Studies in East Asian Buddhism, no. 2. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1985.

Lopez, Jr., Donald S., ed. Buddhist Hermeneutics. Kuroda Institute, Studies in East Asian Buddhism, no. 6. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1988.

McRea, John R. The Northern School and the Formation of Early Ch’an Buddhism. Kuroda Institute, Studies in East Asian Buddhism, no. 3. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1987.

Underhill, Evelyn. Mysticism: The Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness. Oxford: One World, 2000.

Stage IX

Sutras

Cleary, Thomas, trans. The Flower Ornament Scripture: A Translation of “The Avatamsaka Sutra.” Boston: Shambhala, 1993.

Records of Ancient Masters

Nishijima, Gudo and Chodo Cross, trans. Master Dogen’s Shobogenzo—Book 4. Woods Hill, Mass.: Windbell, 1999.

Yokoi, Yuho, trans. Eihei-Koroku. Tokyo: Sankibo, 1987.

Philosophy and Theology

Cook, Francis Dojun. Hua-yen Buddhism: The Jewel Net of Indra. University Park, Pa.: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1997.

Gimello, Robert M. and Peter N. Gregory, eds. Kuroda Institute, Studies in East Asian Buddhism, no. 1. Studies in Ch’an and Hua-yen. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1984.