Foreword by Maurice Béjart

Zen is not a religion, although it is inseparable from Buddhism; Nor is it an ideology, although it implies a deep philosophy inspired by the enlightened knowledge of the Buddha. Zen is, above all, an experience. A non-verbal experience inaccessible from purely scholarly media. An experience that requires practice. Zen is meditation, meditation in sitting posture (zazen), but it is also the act of living in full consciousness.

Zen cannot be institutionalized. Zen is an individual exercise of meditation and freedom in everyday life.

The practice of Zen has been the essence of Master Taisen Dashimaru's legacy to the West. Through words and through images, this volume offers us this teaching, as well as that of the great patriarchs of the tradition.

It does not matter where the reader opens this book: in any of its pages you will find the subtle flavor of Zen, the essentials of a wisdom that each one must relive for himself. A wisdom that is learned day by day, step by step.