The Spirit of Zen

Senior priest Ming Po Larry Matthews shares his insights in a book review of Sam van Shaik’s The Spirit of Zen, a recent publication of a newly discovered teaching originally entitled The Masters and Students of the Lanka. The texts were discovered in a cave on the old Silk Road in modern Gansu, China. These texts have been called the Buddhist Dead Sea Scrolls. Their translation greatly impacted our understanding of the early Chan Patriarchs.

In The Spirit of Zen, scholar and historian Sam van Schaik takes us on a fascinating journey back to some of the earliest roots of Zen. Rather than presenting Zen as a mysterious collection of koans, robes, incense, and inscrutable facial expressions, he uncovers the living heart of the tradition as it appeared over a thousand years ago.

One of the most refreshing insights of the book for me is that early Zen was remarkably practical. The central concern was not becoming a “special spiritual person” but discovering peace of mind by understanding the nature of one’s own mind. The early teachers pointed out that most of our suffering comes from constantly chasing what we want and avoiding what we don’t. Sound familiar? Apparently, humans have been doing this for at least a thousand years, and probably much longer.

For modern lay practitioners, perhaps the most valuable lesson is that awakening is not hidden in some distant monastery, available only after twenty years of perfect posture and an advanced degree in Buddhist terminology. The early Zen teachers pointed to the awakened nature already present within ordinary life. Sitting meditation matters, but not because it manufactures enlightenment. Rather, it helps us recognize what has been present all along beneath our worries, plans, opinions, and endless internal commentary.

The book also reminds us that Zen has always evolved. What we call Zen today emerged through centuries of adaptation across China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and now the West. The forms may change, but the essential invitation remains the same: wake up to this moment, this breath, this life.

Perhaps I could summarize the spirit of the book this way: Stop trying so hard to become enlightened; notice the one who is trying;

then notice the awareness already present before the trying began.

That’s classic Zen, simple enough to understand in thirty seconds and deep enough to occupy us for a lifetime. Or, as many of us discover after years of spiritual seeking: we travel thousands of miles looking for the treasure, only to discover it has been sitting quietly in our own living room the entire time. The good news is that the treasure doesn’t charge rent.

The enduring message of The Spirit of Zen is that both humble and liberating awakening is less about adding something new and more about recognizing what has never been absent. And that, as the old Zen masters might say, is hiding in plain sight