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Opening the Hand of Thought

Foundations of Zen Buddhist Practice

By Kosho Uchiyama
Edited by Tom Wright, Jisho Warner and Shohaku Okumura
Published by Wisdom Publications
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

About The Book
For over thirty years, Opening the Hand of Thought has offered an introduction to Zen Buddhism and meditation unmatched in clarity and power. This is the revised edition of Kosho Uchiyama's singularly incisive classic.

This new edition contains even more useful material: new prefaces, an index, and extended endnotes, in addition to a revised glossary. As Jisho Warner writes in her preface, Opening the Hand of Thought "goes directly to the heart of Zen practice... showing how Zen Buddhism can be a deep and life-sustaining activity." She goes on to say, "Uchiyama looks at what a person is, what a self is, how to develop a true self not separate from all things, one that can settle in peace in the midst of life."

By turns humorous, philosophical, and personal, Opening the Hand of Thought is above all a great book for the Buddhist practitioner. It's a perfect follow-up for the reader who has read Zen Meditation in Plain English and is especially useful for those who have not yet encountered a Zen teacher.

About The Author
Kosho Uchiyama

Kosho Uchiyama was born in Tokyo in 1912. He received a master’s degree in Western philosophy at Waseda University in 1937 and became a Zen priest three years later under Kodo Sawaki Roshi. Upon Sawaki’s death in 1965, he became abbot of Antaiji, a temple and monastery then located on the outskirts of Kyoto. Uchiyama Roshi developed the practice at Antaiji and occasionally traveled in Japan, lecturing and leading sesshins. The three pillars of his practice were his writings, his time spent guiding and talking with disciples and visitors, and zazen, the sitting practice itself. He retired from Antaiji in 1975 and lived with his wife at Noke-in, a small temple outside Kyoto, where he continued to write, publish, and meet with the many people who found their way to his door, until his death in 1998. He wrote over twenty books on Zen, including translations of Dogen Zenji in modern Japanese with commentaries, a few of which are available in English, as are various shorter essays. He was an origami master as well as a Zen master and published several books on origami.

Product Details
  • Publisher: Wisdom Publications (June 10, 2005)
  • Length: 256 pages
  • ISBN13: 9780861719778

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Raves and Reviews

"Few books have spoken with such clarity to the essence of Zen."

– John Daishin Buksbazen, author of Zen Meditation in Plain English

"Uchiyama [was] one of the most contemplative of Zen Buddhist teachers, and until his death in 1999, was also one of the most influentia. Now, through this new edition of his most famous book, he continues to enlighten our lives. His book is important for its clarity, its rejection of jargon, and its refusal to make illumination a drama."

– The Japan Times

"Uchiyama Roshi's words have long been my inspiration, and I am delighted that this collection of his teachings is now available in a revised and expanded edition."

– Robert Aitken, author of Taking the Path of Zen

"If you read one book on Zen this year, this should be that book."

– James Ishmael Ford, head teacher of Boundless Way Zen and author of Zen Master Who?

"Not since DT Suzuki has the evasive quality of Zen been explained so well to the Western reader. This book was Uchiyama's gift to his monks-in-training as well as laypeople following the path of Zen. This welcome re-release has been refined with further introductory material."

– Kyoto Journal

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Opening the Hand of Thought

Foundations of Zen Buddhist Practice

By Kosho Uchiyama
Edited by Tom Wright, Jisho Warner and Shohaku Okumura
Published by Wisdom Publications
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

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