Skip to main content
City of Melbourne Libraries

The way of Zen = [Zendō]

Watts, Alan, 1915-19731989
Book
After D.T. Suzuki, Alan Watts stands as the godfather of Zen in America. Often taken to task for inspiring the flimsy spontaneity of Beat Zen, Watts had an undeniably keen understanding of his subject. Nowhere is this more evident than in his 1957 classic The Way of Zen, which has been reissued. Watts takes the reader back to the philosophical foundations of Zen in the conceptual world of Hinduism, follows Buddhism's course through the development of the early Mahayana school, the birth of Zen from Buddhism's marriage with Chinese Taoism, and on to Zen's unique expression in Japanese art and life. As a Westerner, Watts anticipates the stumbling blocks encountered with such concepts as emptiness and no-mind, then illustrates with flawlessly apt examples. Many popular books have been written on Zen since Watts' time, but few have been able to muster the rare combination of erudition and clarity that have kept The Way of Zen in readers' hands decade after decade.
Main title:
Author:
Imprint:
New York : Vintage Books, 1989.©1957.
Collation:
xv, 236 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm.
Notes:
Parallel title in Japanese characters.Originally published: New York : Pantheon, 1957.First published in paperback by Vintage Books in 1989.Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:
9780375705106 (paperback)
Dewey class:
294.3927
Language:
English
Added title:
Subject:
BRN:
134448
LocationCollectionCall numberStatus/Desc
City Library-SocietySOCIETY 294.3927 WATTOn loan - Due: 04 Jun 2026
Kathleen Syme Carlton-SocietySOCIETY 294.3927 WATTOn loan - Due: 05 Jun 2026
Southbank Library-SocietySOCIETY 294.3927 WATTOn loan - Due: 16 Jul 2026
Clear current selections
items currently selected
View my active Pick list
0Items in my active Pick list