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by Amala Wrightson (Author), Kathryn Argetsinger (Author), Richard Von Sturmer (Contribution by)
Zen is a subject of fascination for many people, though few have received authentic training in its actual practice. Finding Your Seat presents the basics of that practice, particularly within the context of a Zen Buddhist community, and will serve as a valued handbook for those setting out on this path. Beginning with basic instructions for Zen meditation and sitting postures, the book offers guidance for each successive step along the way, from attending group sittings and beginning to work with a teacher, to taking part in sesshin (week-long intensive retreat).
Each instructional topic is accompanied by a talk chosen from those delivered by Sensei Amala Wrightson over many years of teaching at her Centre in Auckland, New Zealand. These give a sense of the beauty, spontaneity and profundity of the Zen teaching tradition as well as its applicability to present-day circumstances and to our daily lives.
Although the underlying aspiration of Zen training--to awaken for the benefit of all beings--remains always the same, the expression and methods of that training must take the forms best suited to the culture and orientation of the people doing the practice. Thus Finding Your Seat offers an expression of the Zen being taught and practiced in Aotearoa today, while at the same time serving as a trustworthy general guide to an ancient and venerable tradition.
