In 1633, at age eleven, Bankei Yotaku was banished from his family's home because of his consuming engagement with the Confucian texts that all schoolboys were required to copy and recite. Using a hut in the nearby hills, he wrote the word Shugyo-an, or "practice hermitage," on a plank of wood, propped it up beside the entrance, and settled down to devote himself to his own clarification of "bright virtue."He finally turned to Zen and, after fourteen years of incredible hardship, achieved a decisive enlightenment, whereupon the Rinzai priest traveled unceasingly to the temples and monasteries of Japan, sharing what he'd learned."What I teach in these talks of mine is the Unborn Buddha-mind of illuminative wisdom, nothing else. Everyone is endowed with this Buddha-mind, only they don't know it." Casting aside the traditional aristocratic style of his contemporaries, he offered his teachings in the common language of the people. His style recalls the genius and simplicity of the great Chinese Zen masters of the T'ang dynasty.This revised and expanded edition contains many talks and dialogues not included in the original 1984 volume.
Bankei the best antidote to Dogen's and Hakuin's overdoseMay 21, 2006 1 out of 6 found this review helpful
There are two books in English based on translations of Zen Master Bankei teachings, both pusblished in 1984. "Bankei Zen" is the title of the book written by Peter Haskel who behaved both as translator and editor under the supervision of his teacher Yoshito Hakeda. Haskel assisted the reader organizing the text and adding headings here and there to paragraphs, dialogues, anecdotes, poems. Also he added technical notes highlighting biographical and historical circumstances. These headings focus the attention of readers in their efforts to find their way throughout Bankei teachings. "The unborn" is the title of the book written by Norman Waddell, just a translator. His book becomes the forest of words. One Dharma Talk after the other and, here and there, also some highly interesting biographical and historical notes. However, Waddell produced a revised version in 2000 and included only minor changes to translations to very specific paragraphs. However no mention is made to Haskel's book on the same subject and author, similar texts. Under section III, other works in the bibliography section this reference to Hakei's book is conspicuously absent. Within the community of scholars the standard is mentioning books written by other authors on the same subject and basic source. This is not the case of Prof. Waddell at Otani University in Kyoto. His approach is below standards; competitors in the field must be mentioned after what is acceptable and recommended within the scientific and academic community. Haskel's translation has been tailored to readers making their best to find out their way around a genial and easygoing Japanese Zen Master of the 17th century. Bankei is the antidote for those suffering an overdose of Dogen and Hakuin teachings and comments.
Important Zen HistoryDecember 31, 2003 5 out of 7 found this review helpful
Of all the ancient masters-Bankei seems to speak the loudest to us in modern times. The Unborn makes this clear due mostly to the wonderfully natural translation Norman Waddell has given us. Bankei had an interesting background in Chinese thought, as most youth of his day, he started out early on reading the Confucian texts. But to Bankei Yotaku, Confucianism wasn't adding up, and so he turned to Zen Buddhism. While his style is primarily that of the Rinzai, he also incorporated Soto ideology as well into his teachings.
Sadly, at Bankei's time, being a Zen priest all too often became a "rank one wears" in society, more for the aristocratic society than for the common layperson. He was a bright beacon and a simple master who spoke to the people, not just the "upper class." This book is essentially a compilation of Dharma talks between Buddhist monks and priests, and himself. People from all over China would come to hear him speak of the Unborn Buddha-mind, which he instructs is always there yet while many don't know of it. It to me speaks of cutting your roots, of realizing though you were bore by your mother, there is also a part of you that remains unborn. Every moment, from moment to moment-you are being born as the Buddha. Zen master Thich Man Giac of modern times held a ceremony in which he handed out flowers to participants. He asked them to place a red flower on their lapel if their mother is still alive, and a white one on if she is dead. Jakusho Kwong -roshi recalls Thich wore a red flower. This he found funny, because Man Giac at this time was very old. So he asked him later how is mother is still alive, and Man Giac answered, "My mother is Kannon Bosatsu." That is essence, is the unborn Buddha-mind.
I hope you enjoy this book!:)
The Teacher's TeacherSeptember 15, 2003 13 out of 14 found this review helpful
I had the good fortune to attend a number of Alan Watts' live talks in the Monterey-Big Sur area during the sixties. Some 35 years later his body of work continues to stimulate my growth and understanding. While Watts never proclaimed any one person as his teacher or guru, the 17th century Zen master Bankei (1622-1693) appears to have been a major influence.
As early as 1950 Watts specifically identifies Bankei as a resource in an article he wrote for the journal of the Buddhist Lodge in England. He quotes Bankei even more profusely in his 1957 opus The Way of Zen. Finally, in his autobiography In My Own Way, published a year before his death in 1973, Watts reveals having spent many hours studying Bankei and elevates him to a representative of "Zen at its best." He said that he referred people to Bankei's observations whenever they accused him of misinterpreting Zen.
I am delighted to find that the teachings of this Zen iconoclast par excellence are available once again in the revised edition of The Unborn: The Life and Teachings of Zen Master Bankei, translated by Norman Waddell. Highly recommended with one caveat: if your feet are firmly planted in orthodoxy, anticipate the appearance of major cracks in your foundation. A retrofit will not necessarily be an option.
The Direct teachings of Master BankeiAugust 31, 2003 14 out of 14 found this review helpful
A great gem of a book for any seeker. Master Bankei's teachings revolved around the principal that we are all a part of the Unborn-here and now and that once we abide in that no other knowledge or practice is really necessary. His teachings mainly point this out from many angles based on peoples questions and issues at the time. After many years of his own struggle as a seeker he came to the realization that since everything arises from the Unborn we are all Buddhas once we really abide in the Unborn, which is possible NOW without any other knowledge. He felt that seekers distanced themselves from this very direct teaching by doing too many things like working on koans or spending a lot of time reading religious Buddhist texts, all the while missing the Unborn Buddha Mind right now that is always present. It seems hard to believe but Master Bankei very profoundly and intelligently makes a great case for this teaching in this wonderful book. I strongly recommend it. It is along the lines of the teachings of Papaji,Ramana Maharshi, Nisargadatta Maharaj and more recently Eckhart Tolle (The Power of Now & Stillness Speaks).
Ably translated for an English speaking readershipFebruary 25, 2001 5 out of 6 found this review helpful
The Unborn: The Life And Teachings Of Zen Master Bankei, 1622-1693 is here presented in a significantly revised and expanded edition containing many talks and dialogues with monks and priests not included when it was first published in 1984. Ably translated for an English speaking readership by Norman Waddell, this superbly presented compendium of illuminative Buddhist wisdom is highly recommended for personal, temple, academic, and community library Buddhist studies collections and reading lists.
