Singing and Dancing Are the Voice of the Law - by Bussho Lahn (Paperback)

About the Book

"Singing and Dancing Are the Voice of the Law introduces us to one of the great works of Zen literature, the Song of Zazen. Zen teacher Busshåo Lahn illuminates Hakuin Ekaku's enigmatic poem in plain language, unpacking it and applying it to contemporary life. His book offers a wealth of information on the context and content of this 18th-century work, clearly evoking its themes of abiding wisdom, meditation, compassionate self-regard, and our own everyday life's potential to express deep spiritual truth. Short stanza by short stanza, this exceptionally readable and deeply engaging book shows how the Song of Zazen's teachings and invitations are as applicable now as they were when it was written nearly three centuries ago. Lahn offers readers an intuitive and progressive path of exploration of their spiritual lives, regardless of their faith tradition"--

Book Synopsis

"This is one of the best books on Zen and Zen practice that I have read in years. Busshō uses a well-known Zen song/poem to elucidate the key features of Zen meditation, practice and life....It brings the famous Zen master's teaching alive while also showing how it is relevant to Zen practice in the 21st century." -Tim Burkett, author of Nothing Holy About It and Zen in the Age of Anxiety

Foreword Book of the Year Finalist (Nonfiction: Religion)

Singing and Dancing Are the Voice of the Law introduces us to one of the great works of Zen literature, "The Song of Zazen." Zen teacher Busshō Lahn illuminates Hakuin's enigmatic poem in plain language, unpacking it and applying it to contemporary life. His book offers a wealth of information on the context and content of this eighteenth-century work, clearly evoking its themes of abiding wisdom, meditation, compassionate self-regard, and our own everyday life's potential to express deep spiritual truth.

Short stanza by short stanza, this exceptionally readable and deeply engaging book shows how the poem's teachings and invitations are as applicable now as they were when they were first written nearly three centuries ago. Lahn offers readers an intuitive and progressive path of exploration of their spiritual lives, regardless of their faith tradition.

Review Quotes

"Busshō Lahn has a flair for metaphor, anecdote, and the one-sentence paragraph. He also has a deft way of holding the Zen tradition, including its formality and ritual: lightly, with real appreciation and understanding born of experience, but without even an ounce of piety. You'll have so much fun reading this book you'll forget how inspiring it is." -Norman Fischer, Zen priest and author of When You Greet Me, I Bow: Notes and Reflections from a Life in Zen

"This is one of the best books on Zen and Zen practice that I have read in years. Busshō uses a well-known Zen song/poem to elucidate the key features of Zen meditation, practice and life....It brings the famous Zen master's teaching alive while also showing how it is relevant to Zen practice in the 21st century." --Tim Zentetsu Burkett, author of Nothing Holy About It and Zen in the Age of Anxiety

"A deeply personal invitation to dive into your life and awaken your heart of wisdom. With wit and insight, this book calls you into intimacy with yourself and into joyful, authentic, compassionate engagement with what is." --Ben Connelly, Author of Inside the Grass Hut and Mindfulness and Intimacy

"In this engaging and insightful book, Busshō Lahn takes us on a deeply personal, and yet universally accessible and resonant journey through Zen practice, and our common spiritual humanity... Anyone interested in the spiritual path, whether they be Zen practitioners or not, will benefit greatly from reading this rich work. Highly recommended." --Rev. Seifu Singh-Molares, Executive Director, Spiritual Directors International

"'Don't miss your life!' It is Busshō Lahn's plea and invitation. This is not a Zen roadmap for your life. Rather, you are being offered a mirror. Look at your life--your suffering, your compassion, your wisdom, your sorrows and joys. Reflect upon your life through Lahn's personal, humble, thoughtful and accessible introduction to the Song of Zazen. In so doing, you just may find delight in the one upon whom you gaze. Yes, and freedom and joy in sharing your life and love with others." --Rev. Mark S. Hanson, Presiding Bishop Emeritus, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

"At some point in reading this book, I stopped taking notes. Then, I stopped reading altogether and simply sat....Singing The Song of Zazen with Busshō Lahn is like surfacing a melody that's been in your bones forever. You find yourself singing with a choirmaster who is wise, funny, surprising--and compassionate beyond measure. Just join the chorus." --Martha E. Stortz, Professor of Religion, Augsburg University

"Lahn invites readers along on a personal and practical journey - venturing from knowing to unknowing, from expert to beginner - towards utilizing the teachings and practices of Zen for not only those who practice it, but also for outsiders seeking deeper insight into the timeless and universal truth, meaning, purpose, connection, and love of the "beautiful, elegant, humble, and deeply wise tradition" of themselves." --Hans Gustafson, Ph.D., Director, Jay Phillips Center for Interreligious Studies, University of St. Thomas

"Busshō Lahn's Singing and Dancing Are the Voice of the Law off

About the Author

Tim Burkett began studying Zen in 1964 with Shunryu Suzuki, author of Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, and was ordained as a Zen priest in 1978 by Dainin Katagiri, author of Returning to Silence and other books. Tim has been the guiding teacher at the Minnesota Zen Meditation Center for the last 19 years. Tim is the author of Nothing Holy About It (Shambhala) and Zen in the Age of Anxiety: Wisdom for Navigating Our Modern Lives (Shambhala, 2018), which was selected as one of the 100 best spiritual books of 2018.