 "is a cloud a member of the sky?" | 2007-07-13 |
| - Reviewed By hillzertoo |
"The empty mirror," he said. "If you could really understand that, there would be nothing left here for you to look for."
A Dutch student spends a year in a Zen Buddhist monastery in Kyoto in the late 1950's. He shows up at this monastery not really knowing why he wants to be there; he just vaguely knows he wants to do Zen.
The storytelling is lean and direct; no tangents or wordiness with this narrative. This makes for some very engaging and quick reading.
Van de Wetering is one of those rare people who can produce a compelling first book with such seeming effortlessness; his style engages you from the first paragraph and doesn't let go until the last sentence.
This is a spiritual odyssey without the spirit; the seeker seeking for what he knows not. In his pursuit of this unknown, "Jan-san" is brutally honest about his limitations and cultural alienation; his inept struggling with his koan penetration seems to be the core problem he has.
Yet, his humor underpins much of this struggle: with himself, his fellow monks, and his sense of "What the hell am I doing this for?"
Quite the entertaining read - highly recommend.
Extracts: A Field Guide for Iconoclasts
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 "A humorous, grouchy, true story" | 2006-01-14 |
| - Reviewed By dmchess |
In the summer of 1958 Janwillem van de Wetering showed up at the door of a Zen monastery in Kyoto Japan, knowing pretty much no one, not speaking the language, and without a really good idea what he was doing there. This book describes, with a certain amount of humor and what seems to be quite a bit of honesty, the months that followed (interlaced with Zen stories that he heard during those months, including some that I hadn't heard anywhere else before; I like Zen stories).
There aren't many dates in the book (or I wasn't paying enough of that kind of attention to notice them), but I think he stayed at the monastery for more than six months and less than two years. His descriptions of the time are interesting, funny, warm, vivid, and all sorts of good words like that (and also rather dark, mordant and/or grouchy in tone, often frustrated, impatient, dissatisfied). He did not find the answers to life's problems, his knees hurt alot, he misunderstood the head monk and Zen master frequently, and he (like the other residents of the monastery) cheated and broke the rules with impressive frequency.
The writing is spare and specific; this is the story of what one particular set of months in one particular monastery were like. Any broad conclusions about The Meaning Of Zen Training or anything else are left pretty much entirely to the reader.
The author left feeling that the whole thing had perhaps been a failure; but the master said "now you are a little awake; so awake that you will never fall asleep again". Which altogether is more satisfying, I think, than perky converts describing how happy and fulfilled their new meme complex has made them.
One tiny annoyance that struck me as out of keeping with the tone of the rest of the book: on a crowded train ride during a brief trip away from the monastery to renew his Dutch passport, he concentrates so hard on the feeling of a woman who is pressed up against him that he convinces himself that he is mentally influencing her to rub herself against him, trembling. She got off at the next station (can hardly blame her!), and he concludes that the idea that "someone who has trained his will can influence others, without saying anything, without doing anything observable, had now been proved", but that that's not really the point of Zen and he probably shouldn't do it anymore. He doesn't seem to consider the possibility that he's just proven that he can fool himself, which seems to me much more likely, and something that should have occurred to anyone actually paying attention.
But that's just a nit (I like nits), and perhaps adds as much to the book as it takes away from it. I very much enjoyed reading it (and it didn't take long; it's 146 pages, with little or no bogging down). He has at least two other books about his experiences in other vaguely Zen-related places; I intend to someday maybe read those also. |
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| "how many books have been written about my 'trip to zen'?" | 2005-06-19 |
| - Reviewed By uptonatom |
| too many - this is one of the first and is the BEST. period. |
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 "How to fall off a Zen log" | 2005-05-16 |
| - Reviewed By indraznet |
You can't fault Jan-san for his honesty.It may even help some people who over-stretch themselves with warped fantasies about the perfect Zendo. Nevertheless, it isn't a helpful account. The experiences which seem to endear many readers to this book are common place, the hops over the wall, night life etc. - obtained without reference to Zen. Given the lethargic atmosphere inside the temple, it is hardly surprising than Jan-san sought stimulation - outside it. Jan-san honestly reports a luck-lustre attitude. If you want apathy - well, life is short.
This 'mirror' - is empty, empty of all the benefits one might find, practicing Zen in earnest. |
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| "Meaning of Life" | 2004-10-01 |
| - Reviewed By cassey |
| The author's search for the meaning of life at a Zen monastery in Kyoto. For those who have fleeting fantasies of taking up Zen in a Japanese monastery this book is a real eye-opener. |
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| "A very readable account of something beyond words..." | 2000-10-05 |
| - Reviewed By yuri_k |
| I remember when I first saw this book - it caught my attention because I had read Van De Wetering's mystery novels - and decided to try it out. Next to the classic "Zen in the Art of Archery" I think Van De Wetering's work is one of the best Western accounts of coming to terms with meditation and Zen. I'm not sure you'll run out and buy a zafu after reading this but I bet you'll enjoy the tale anyway! He has some great characters throughout the story and he doesn't come across as either condescending or frustratingly thick-headed like some Western accounts of the East. |
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| "Enlightening Introduction to Zen Buddhism" | 1999-06-07 |
| - Reviewed By scottl@centerpartners.com |
| I was first required to read this title in an Introduction to Buddhism course in undergraduate school. Since then, I have read probably two dozen books on Zen and/or Buddhism and I owe it all to 'The Empty Mirror.' The author has done a great job of describing life in a Zen monastery, the Zen koan, and it's a great introduction to the religion/philosophy. I'd recommend it to any student of religion, philosophy, or Zen Buddhism or anyone wanting to expand their knowledge on Buddhist monastic life. Janwillem Van de Watering does a good job of keeping the reader interested with light humor and a mix of day-to-day experiences during his stay at the monastery. |
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| "Crazy Zen Wisdom" | |
| - Reviewed By Anonymous |
| I hadn't realized when I picked up this book that it was written in 1973 about experiences in the 1950's. Although it remains relevant in this time, it is rather surprising to think of a time when Eastern philosophy was difficult for Westerners to find. (Mind you, I say this as a resident of a Zen Buddhist abbey in Detroit.) At the time van de Wetering traveled to Japan, one wouldn't find Zen teachers in America or Europe, much less Zen communities. In this way, van de Wetering's journey paved the way for us, and for that I thank him deeply. In some ways, the book provides a basic introduction to the Zen precepts and the monastic way of life. After all, when he was writing it, there were very few books on Westerners practicing Zen. So in some ways, this book covers ground that many more recent, more popular books have covered. However, this book is full of surprises for people who might have a one-dimensional view of monastic life. There is peaceful meditation, but there are also arguments among the monks. Van de Wetering apparently expected to transcend human life in the monastery, but inside, he found the same problems as outside. He also found his own need to escape, to occasionally go out for a beer. It's a central paradox most readers who practice Zen will sympathize with; we want tranquility, but suffering is so darn interesting. Sometimes this paradox, as van de Wetering presents it, is hilarious. Traditional Zen stories can be vulgar, and so can contemporary Zen stories. We, like the author, must reflect on our expectations and assumptions to see what is really there |
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| "the empty mirror" | |
| - Reviewed By Anonymous |
| I read this book at a time when there was a great deal of turmoil going on in my life. I spoke to a friend who thourght that reading this book might give me back balance to what you could call a personal catastrophie. The Empty Mirror gave me that and more. I found Mr. Janwillem's experience in the monastery outstanding in the sense that it is something I've wanted to do all my life. Maybe in the next one, life that is, I'll be more serious and take a leaf out of Mr Janwillem van dan wetering's book(s). For a lasting nice warm and fuzzy felling that gives you some insight about life, I can only recommend this to you all with peace compassion and happiness. May all beings be happy. |
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| "The lighter side of Zen" | |
| - Reviewed By Anonymous |
| The first of two books from his experience in a Zen monastery, it is entertaining above all. Offers a glimpse of the nature of Zen philosophy as well, but most fun is seeing how this Westerner deals with life in a foreign culture-within-a-culture. A good book for thinkers who need a vacation. |
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