Book detail: Dogen on Meditation and Thinking: A Reflection on His View of Zen is presented as a focused source page for quotations connected with this book, collection, transcript, or source record.
This work engages with the teachings of Dogen, the founder of the Soto school of Zen Buddhism in Japan, focusing particularly on his approach to meditation and the place of cognitive activity within spiritual practice. The book addresses how Dogen understood the relationship between seated meditation, commonly known as zazen, and the function of thought in the context of Zen training. It explores tensions and integrations between contemplative stillness and reflective inquiry in Dogen's writings, drawing on his major works such as Shobogenzo. The text considers how Dogen's view of meditation differs from or aligns with other Buddhist approaches, and examines his philosophical treatment of consciousness, presence, and the nature of mind. The analysis situates Dogen's ideas within the broader history of Zen and Mahayana Buddhist thought, while also attending to the distinctive characteristics of his Japanese context and his creative interpretation of Chinese Chan precedents.
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