Zen in English Literature and Oriental Classics

Simply one of the best books written for those interested in the inner spirit of poetry, literature and the spiritual life inspired by Zen. Blyth wrote it while interred by the Japanese during WWII. The core message is that the soul of Zen is the identical with the core spirit of poetry.

blyth's first book ain't his best nor his easiest but worth at least one read

the premise is more or less that great literature is zen, and what's not is not. so when wordsworth is good he's also zen, and bad wordsworth is also non-zen.

blyth's personal story is worth googling [it's also recounted in [author: rick fields]' wonderful [book: how the swans came to the lake]

the book came out the same time as [author: aldous huxley]'s [book: perennial philosophy] by the way (context, context)

One of the more pleasurable books ever written if you are interested in English Literature and Zen.