Living by Vow: A Practical Introduction to Eight Essential Zen Chants and Texts Paperback – June 26, 2012

This book was very powerful for me, as it clearly explains the myriad meanings behind the words of many of the sutras we chant in our zen center, in a way that does make them more personal and useful to my life, and makes "vow" come alive in my zen practice. Okumura Roshi also did a splendid job of bringing insight and light to complicated zen writings in his book Realizing Genjokoan. I like his writing because he explains and offers background and history, and then offers his heart offering by sharing how to use this information in practicing zazen. My gut sense of his interpretations sticks very true to the spirit of zen practice. For instance, I better understand the Gatha of Repentence. I enjoy his sections on Dogen, and the vast knowledge of his teachings about Dogen in general, and also comments on emptiness that makes the Heart Sutra very alive for me. Okumura is a really great teacher in so many ways, through his books, and sharing his heart as well in his writing. I recommend it for those who have been practicing zazen a few years. This is not a quick read, but really you don't want it to be.

This is a fantastic book. I bought it as a "quick read" while I was waiting for some hard-copy books to ship, thinking that I could blow through it in a couple of days. Far from it! This book requires a depth of attention and one willingly gives it thanks to the easy and charming writing style. It is, as it says on the tin, about the chants and vows we go through as part of our practice, but goes to the heart of them, giving them a deeper meaning and usually line-by-line analyzes them. This is a book that will be read MANY times and is heavily highlighted and bookmarked. I've recommended it to my teacher and new practitioners alike. It would be excellent for a book group or a study group. This book will enrich your practice and your understanding of why we say what we say. I find it an essential edition to my books on Zen Buddhism, and I have very few that I consider worth that place.

For years I have recited the various verses we recite before or after meditation and other events without really understanding why or what we were really talking about. This book is a classical explication de texte of these ancient verses squarely anchored in the context of the great Japanese philosopher monk of ancient Japan, Dogen Zenji, founder of the principal Soto school of Zen, which was transmitted to the West by Shunryu Suzuki in San Francisco, and Taisan Maezumi in Los Angeles.I am only half way through it and all the things I thought before have already been completely undone. I have listened to many mystifying Dharma talks from Western masters and Tibetan lamas, and I have laboriously read all 4 volumes of Gudo Nishima's edition of Dogen's Shobogenzo, with all the erudite academic annotations, but this simple volume, Living by Vow, in plain language from the inside perspective of a Japaneze Zen monk who grew up in this tradition in his native Japan, and whose translations of the daily Zen liturgy into modern English are so eloquent, has taken me to a new level of appreciation and understanding, or not understanding and being free with that. For anyone seeking a way through the mystifying permutations of Zen franchises proliferating our world of spiritual consumerism, this is a capital book!

I recently relocated to Bloomington Indiana where Roshe Okumura has a Sangha. This book is being included in our Dharma discussions. This is a great book for any practitioner of Zen! Many of the traditional Buddhist liturgies are examined and explained through insight and in a thoughtful manner that combines the eastern philosophy of Zen wisdom to Western readers.

The chapter on the Heart Sutra makes this book worthwhile. It is the best I've ever read on that Sutra, and it may very well be the best introduction to the essentials of Mahayana Buddhism

It seems that I have been waiting for this book for a very long time.The essence of the book is to guide and explain in the most straight forward way that I have ever read on Zen practice.Not one of the chapters explains more than an everyday "ordinariness" in Zen but the explanation brings the reader into a world of deep and, on occaisions for me, profound understanding of what this practically means in a Zen way.This book will require more than one reading; not because it is difficult to read (on the contrary, it is very easy to read) but because of the important insights that it contains into the human condition and how Zen practice may assist us to find a better way of living.I owe Shohaku Okamura a debt of gratitude for this important work, thank you.

While this book is written specifically for practitioners of Soto Zen Buddhism, I would recommend it to any serious Buddhist practitioner or anyone simply interested in truly understanding Buddhism (the Dharma). The insights that Shokaku Okumura presents here are clear, deep and relevant to everyone's life. He has given me much greater insight into the important Buddhist teachings on vow, emptiness, The Four Noble Truths, The Three Jewels (refuges), and continuous practice. You owe it to yourself to read this outstanding book, and then practice with its teachings each and every day for the rest of your life.

Although scholarly, this book is easy to understand regarding the writing style. The topics are deep and wondrous, yet given the explanation, comprehensible in an every day sense. A must read for any Zen student.

Mais um livro excelente de Okumura. Fácil de ler e compreender, direto. Sempre úteis.

Explications importantes sur plusieurs chants et sutras. Ce livre d’Okumura Roshi permet de comprendre l’importance de vivre par vœu plutôt que de suivre les illusions de son karma. La description du samsara est très intéressante et permet de comprendre plusieurs de nos vieux comportements associés au fait que nous considérons nos illusions comme étant la réalité.

Libro bellissimo, come tutti quelli di Okumura del resto. Indispensabile per comprendere cosa significa "vow" nel buddhismo e nella vita.

bought this book for a friend and he was very enthusiastic. So basically it's his review of the book:After studying various works of the Deshimaru lineage and pracitcing Zen for a couple of years, "Living by Vow" was a real treasure to discover. Haven't read a book before, which incorporates and integrates a high level of intellectual knowledge with a deep understanding of Zen practice.I highly recommend this book to everybody who feels unformfortable with chanting ancient texts or just wants to deepen their understanding of the scriptures.

This is another wonderful work by Shohaku Okumura Roshi (a Soto Zen priest in the lineage of Kosho Uchiyama Roshi (1912-1998) and Kodo Sawaki Roshi (1880-1965)). This volume explores the meaning of a number of texts recited daily both in Soto Zen Buddhist monasteries and by lay practitioners. Okumura Roshi brings his many years of practice, combined with his vast knowledge as a scholar of Buddhist literature, to provide the student and practitioner with a wonderful resource. For the practitioner new to these texts and for those who have recited them for many years, Okumura's work will be of great value.Eight texts are translated and commented on. They are:1. The Four Bodhisattva Vows2. The Verse of Repentance3. The Verse of the Three Refuges4. The Robe Chant5. The Meal Chants6. The Heart Sutra7. Merging of Difference and Unity (Sandokai)8. The Verse for Opening the Sutra"A great book. Steeped in the best of the Japanese Soto Zen tradition, Shohaku Okamura has lived and taught in America for decades. This experience--honed by the sincerity of Shohaku's character, scholarship, and commitment--results in a rare text that fully integrates the richness of Dogen's culturally profound Buddhism with the needs of the contemporary student. Shohaku's discussion of Soto Zen's key liturgical texts will be required reading for all students of that tradition--and will be of great benefit to anyone who wants to appreciate the nature and scope of religious life. I am inspired and delighted by this book and will be using it for a long time to come."--Zoketsu Norman Fischer, author of Training in Compassion: Zen Teachings on the Practice of LojongOkumura Roshi's Realising Genjokoan: The Key to Dogen's Shobogenzo and The Mountains and Waters Sutra: A Practitioner's Guide to Dogen's Sansuikyo may also be of interest (and I highly recommend them).