The Roots of Goodness Zen Master Dogen's Teaching on the Eight Qualities of a Great Person

Zen master Kōshō Uchiyama illuminates the eight qualities of a great person as enumerated by the Buddha and the seminal thirteenth-century Zen master Eihei Dōgen. As his life drew to a close, the seminal thirteenth-century Zen master Eihei Dōgen chose to make his final teaching a commentary on the Buddha's own final teaching, which was on the eight qualities of a great person. In Dōgen's phrasing, those qualities are * having few desires, * knowing one has enough, * appreciating serenity, * making diligent effort, * not losing sight of the true dharma, * concentrating on settling in meditative absorption, * practicing wisdom, and * not engaging in useless argument. In The Roots of Goodness, the inimitable Japanese Zen teacher Kōshō Uchiyama R shi delivers an insightful commentary on these eight qualities, plumbing their deep roots in Buddhism while also showing their applications to modern life. Daitsū Tom Wright, a longtime student of Uchiyama, translates his teacher's words,