Introduction to Zen Training

Introduction to Zen Training is a translation of the Sanzen Nyumon, a foundational text for beginning meditation students by Omori Sogen – one of the foremost Zen teachers of the twentieth century.

Written to provide a solid grounding in the physical nature of Zen meditation training, this text discusses breathing, pain, posture, state of mind and physiology, drowsiness and benefits, as well as the context in which zazen training takes on meaning. Students will also learn what to consider when searching for a teacher and the differences between the two main Japanese schools of Zen: Soto and Rinzai Zen.

This book addresses many of the questions which arise when someone first embarks on a journey of Zen meditation – ranging from how long to sit at one time to how to remain mindful when not sitting – and it concludes with commentaries on two other fundamental Zen texts, Zazen Wasen (The Song of Meditation) and the Ox-Herding Pictures.

Though meditation has been practiced in Asia for thousands of years, it did not catch on in the West until researchers began to test the effects and benefits of this mindfulness practice in the mid-20th century. These benefits include:

Increased focus, problem solving, decision making and creative thinking skills
Reduced blood pressure and risk of stroke or heart attack
Improvements to the immune system, arthritis, fibromyalgia, asthma, IBD and other health conditions
Pain relief
Improved memory and mood

Author Biography

Omori Sogen (1904-1994) began his formal training in Zen, Kenjutsu (swordsmanship), and calligraphy in his early twenties, and was a widely respected sword teacher and advisor to the Japanese Cabinet. After WWII, he entered the priesthood in the Tenryu-ji Rinzai lineage. For the next forty years he continued to teach swordsmanship, calligraphy and Zen meditation, while writing 20 books and serving as a court magistrate eventually becoming president of the principle Rinzai University in Japan, Hanazono Daigaku. He established the International Zen Dojo in Hawaii and founded Daihonzan Chozen-ji in Honolulu the first headquarters temple in Rinzai Zen established under canon law outside Japan. Translated by: Hosokawa Dogen Roshi was Abbot of Daihonzan Chozen-ji and a dharma successor of Omori Sogen Rotaishi and Roy Yoshimoto. New Foreword by: Meido Moore Roshi is Abbot of Korinji Rinzai Zen Monastery in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, and author of The Rinzai Zen Way: A Guide to Practice. Introduction by: Trevor Leggett is author of A First Zen Reader, Zen and the Ways and many other books on Zen, Taoism and Asian philosophy.