One Bird, One Stone: 108 Contemporary Zen Stories

By Sean Murphy

Book Overview

"Anyone looking for insightful quotes, humor, Zen wisdom, or even just a good story will find something in these bite-sized anecdotes." --Tricycle Magazine

Drawn from the archives of major Zen centers in America and interviews with some of the most seminal figures of American Zen, including Philip Kapleau, Bernie Glassman, Gary Snyder, and Walter Nowick, One Bird, One Stone presents the notable encounters between teachers and students, the moments of insight and wisdom, the quotable quotes, and the humor of Zen as it has flowered in America over the last one hundred-plus years.

Murphy, a Zen student and an accomplished writer, conducted numerous personal interviews and distilled over one hundred pithy stories. He covers Zen masters Suzuki, Maezumi, Seung Sahn, Robert Aitken, and Philip Kapleau along with earnest students Gary Snyder, Alan Watts, and Philip Whalen and others.

"Sean Murphy's eloquent book is thought-provoking and lovely. This collection of 108 new teaching stories in the American Zen Buddhist tradition is a poetic account of the transplanting of Zen Buddhism to this new Western soil and some of the various ways it has taken root here in the lives of a wide spectrum of teachers and practitioners." --Sharon Salzberg, New York Times-bestselling author and cofounder of The Insight Meditation Center

"The book gives you a profound glimpse into the well of the Zen mind." --Santa Fe New Mexican

"Stories to inspire the mind and to find the true heart." --Stephen and Ondrea Levine, authors of Who Dies?

"Intelligent, funny, wise and, best of all, speaks to the heart." --Rafe Martin, Zen Bow

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1571746978
• ISBN13: 9781571746979
• Release Date: April 2013
• Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing Company
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.93 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Great find

I bought this originally as a gift and found it so good I bought another for myself. I also then bought it as a book on tape which is over 7 hours of unedited material. You won't regret buying this piece of zen history in america.

two hands clapping

One Bird, One Stone takes on three tasks. It provides an overview of the history of Zen in the United States. It introduces the reader to some of the more influential persons who contributed to the history of Zen in the United States. It offers a large number of anecdotes that together give the reader a feel for what Zen is in its North American incarnation. This is an easy book to read (or to listen to if you have the audio edition). It is not a cold and abstract exposition of Zen philosophy. Rather, it is warm. It is a sharing of stories about people the author knows and admires.While I approach meditation/contemplation from within the Christian tradition, it is not difficult to appreciate the compassion and grace to be found in Zen, as presented by this author. It is a good book and is worth reading.

Take heart...

Carefully researched, and written in a fresh, engaging style, Murphy's book puts a human face on the American Zen movement. Framed with the author's narrative of his quest for the roots of American Zen, the multi-typeface layout offers the reader the option of random meditative reading. Suitable for experienced Zen practitioners or people like me, heartened by these stories of clarity, compassion, and humor, a quiet respite from our "noisy years."

now and zen

One Bird, One Stone joins my list of favourite Zen books, along with Suzuki's 'Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind' and George Crane's 'Bones of the Master'. Sean Murphy has written a beautiful, illuminating, funny book that resonates with the power of fresh Zen thinking. He's gathered stories from an impressive range of American Zen teachers, including a few who are famously reticent about giving interviews.I love the stories about Bernie Glassman (in his red suspenders printed with daisies), Hung Ju's illicit berry pie and the one where Issan Dorsey is on his deathbed. When a friend says he's going to miss him, Issan asks, 'Are you going somewhere?' This is typical of the humour that runs through the book and serves to highlight the teachings.The book gives some great details about how Beat poets discovered Zen, from Kerouac and Ginsberg to Philip Whalen. There's also a story about Zen's influence on John Cage's compositions.This is a wonderful, inspiring book for anyone who's interested in Zen's impact on America.

Zen for the Rest of Us

I very much enjoyed this lovely book with the remarkably American flavor. Unlike many other zenstorybooks I've read, this one addressed the dailylife, the dharma of the western soul.In addition to the often piquant tales related by 3 generations of zen students and teachers, wereceive a fascinating history of it's evolution inthe United States. With quotes from such notablesas Alan Watts and Erich Fromm, we also are treatedto source material such as the quotations, "No matterwhere you go, there you are," and "Don't just dosomething, sit there".If you enjoy the gentle humor and wisdom of themasters as I do, you'll find this book to be a realtreat.