Zen and The Art of Archery (plus Extra)

Eugene Herrigel's "Zen and the Art of Archery" is a classic. It was the original "Zen and the Art of ..." book. It was the first book to introduce Zen to the West, and was and continues to be very influential in how Westerners view Zen -- although not entirely in a positive way.



Eugene Herrigel (1884-1955) was a German who was in Japan teaching philosophy from 1924-1929. While there, he stuied Kyudo -- traditional Japanese archery -- hoping to further his understanding of Zen. (In 1929, he returned to Germany to accept a post in phillosophy. In 1937, like so many other academics, he joined the Nazi party.)



He first put together his notes on his experience in 1936. In those notes, there was no mention of the word Zen. In 1948, he expanded his notes into this thin volume. That's when "Zen" entered the picture. First published in Germany in 1948, English translation 1953, Japanese translation 1955. Introduction by DT Suzuki.



The great irony was that Herrigel's teacher, Kenzo, was NOT a teacher or adherent of Zen Buddhism. He refered to his philosophy and practice as "The Great Way" -- which had much more in common with Taoist philosophy than Zen. It was DT Suzuki (famous for writing about Zen, but not a man of realization or even insighet) who decided that "Great Way" meant Mahayana and therefore Zen Buddhism. Suzuki wrote the introduction to the English translation (1953). (Nowadays, Modern scholars of Zen tend to regard Suzuki's interpretation of Zen as idiosyncratic.)



Still, it's a great read. Enjoy.