Helen Tworkov

This expanded edition of the highly acclaimed investigation of Zen teaching in America, by the founder and editor of America's first Buddhist magazine, lays bare the issues at the heart of the Zen mission. Through in-depth portraits of five American Zen masters, Tworkov creates a trenchant sociological picture of an important strand of American spiritual life.

The meat of the book — the profiles of five American Zen teachers (Robert Aitken, Jakusho Kwong, Bernard Glassman, Maurine Stuart, and Richard Baker) — is informative and, with one exception, appears balanced.

The exception is Tworkov's apparent sympathy for Richard Baker. She thinks that he was treated badly, and this comes across in her writeup of him. Yet Baker's own words reveal him to be a classic addict — addicted to work and Zen, perhaps, but addicted nonetheless. So without show more knowing anything about Baker's time at San Francisco Zen Center besides what comes through in Tworkov's sympathetic portrait, I am confident that her sympathy is misplaced.

The afterword, however, is unbearable. Tworkov has a romantic fetish for "enlightenment" and thus disapproves of the general turn away from "enlightenment" in American Zen in the late 20th century. (Tworkov's fetish for enlightenment explains her sympathy for Baker, whom she plainly believes had strong "enlightenment" experiences.) Tworkov's disdain for American "everyday Zen" permeates her afterword, which is not worth reading. show less

This is one of those books where you relate to parts and skim past others that aren't interesting to you. For me, the beginning was strong where she was raised and ventured out into the world to find herself with fascinating trips, meeting new friends and sometimes taking drugs. She shared her thoughts on Buddhism and other religions over time.

To write about your personal life for publication takes a great deal of deep thinking and encouragement. It's an achievement I admire. While much of show more what she had to say went over my head, the book was well written and I'm sure others will get more out of it than I did. show less