Overview

You have to swallow the whole fish, Zen Master Taizan Maezumi told his students, and then spit out the bones. First absorb the tradition, endure the hardships of Zen training, then you can spend the rest of your life separating the real treasure from the baggage it came in, learning what you can let go of and what is truly yours. Spitting Out the Bones is American Zen Master Genpo Merzels story of his exhilarating and humbling journey, including the last five years rising from the ashes of his very public fall from grace, and a candid exploration of the challenge of bringing the essence of the great tradition he inherited to life in the West.

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9780977142392

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Reviews

Absolutely riveting! Genpo Roshi is a master storyteller and a master teacher and this book is alive with his vitality. Its message, and his journey, are both timely and universal. Traditional religions, and their leaders, must now learn to help people go through their own personal transformational processes. Many new paths are opening -- many different journeys are becoming possible. Dennis Genpo Roshi has shown us his journey. Those who read this book can use his story to help them find their own paths. -- Hal & Sidra Stone, Creators of Voice Dialogue (from the Foreword) There's a lot of meat and marrow here, as well as things which might stick in one's throat. Ruination can be a true friend with benefits, as this candid story reveals. We who are imperfect can certainly sympathize and even identify with Genpo Roshi's story and inner journey. If you want a deep slice of American Zen life, from a teacher's point of view, with all its ups and downs, twists and turns -- beyond over-idealized images -- read this book. -- Lama Surya Das, author of Awakening the Buddha Within A very important contribution to the convergence of deep spiritual practice and contemporary Western psychology, and a deeply honest, self-revealing account of a Western Zen teacher's journey. As both a therapist and a Zen teacher, I highly recommend this book to anyone on the spiritual path, to therapists, and to all those interested in expanding their understanding of themselves and their lives. -- Zen Master Nicolee Jikyo McMahon, Marriage and Family Therapist A terrific book! I can't think of a more important challenge the world faces right now than how to bring the wisdom of the great spiritual traditions into the modern and post-modern world. It's one of the most urgent and far-reaching things we have to do, and this is a major step in that direction. -- Ken Wilber, author of Integral Spirituality A vivid and inspiring reminder that growth and transformation on a large-scale or global level are inseparable from honest and sometimes painful reckoning of our flaws and failings on a personal level. -- Jack Canfield, Motivational speaker and trainer, coauthor of The Success Principles This book offers much hard-earned and valuable wisdom. His love of Zen and his maturity has transformed Zen into a practice of the heart. -- Jack Kornfield, author of Bringing Home the Dharma

Author Information

Dennis Genpo Merzel trained under Zen Master Taizan Maezumi becoming a Zen teacher in 1980. He is one of a small group of Westerners recognized in both the Soto and Rinzai Zen traditions. In 1999, Genpo Roshi combined western psychology and Zen to create Big Mind, a self-discovery process that's been experienced by thousands of people across North America and Europe. His work is rooted in a deep appreciation of traditional Zen, which he has practiced and taught for over four decades, and his ongoing exploration of ways to integrate the wisdom and insights of both East and West into everyday life.

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