What Is Zen?: Plain Talk for a Beginner’s Mind

An accessible and enjoyable introduction to Zen Buddhist practice--in a reader-friendly question-and-answer format--by two highly regarded teacher-writers.

The question-and-answer format makes this introduction to Zen especially easy to understand--and also to use as a reference, as you can easily look up just the question you had in mind. The esteemed Zen teacher Norman Fischer and his old friend and teaching colleague Susan Moon (both of them in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki, author of Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind) give this collaborative effort a playful tone: Susan asks a question on our behalf, Norman answers it, and then Sue challenges him. By the time you get through their conversations, you'll have a good basic education in Zen--not only the history, theory, and practice but also the contemporary issues, such as gender inequality, sexual ethics, and the tension between Asian traditions and the modern American reality.

ZOKETSU NORMAN FISCHER is a Zen teacher in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki and Sojun Mel Weitsman. An award-winning poet and author of numerous books, he is the founder of Everyday Zen, an organization that brings Zen teachings to people from a wide range of backgrounds. He also teaches meditation in Jewish communities throughout the United States.
SUSAN MOON was for many years the editor of Turning Wheel, the Journal of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. A longtime writer, writing teacher, and activist, she is the author of several books and the creator of the fictional Zen teacher Tofu Roshi, whose ＂Dear Abby＂-style advice column has entertained Bay Area readers in several publications for nearly thirty years.