Reddit reviews EMPTY MIRROR P

Here's a book that might help: The Empty Mirror by Janwillen Van de Wetering. In the 1950's the author, then about 18, spent a year and a half in a Japanese Zen monastery; back then, Westerners doing Zen meditation were nearly unheard of; this book tells what he experienced there, and it's fascinating.

I guess the point of me recommending a book is that if Zen could be explained in a paragraph, it would be too trivial to bother with. Some things are like that... whatever you can say in thirty seconds doesn't express more than a tiny bit of the truth of it, and talking for a solid month wouldn't do the job either. Quick! Explain chocolate to somebody from another planet. You can't. They have to taste some themselves.

But, still. Given the impossible, thankless and foolish assignment of explaining Zen in a few words, my failed attempt might go like this:

You have blind spots. Learn to see them. Might come in handy sometime.

Tons of books have affected me deeply. One that I might say changed my life was The Empty Mirror. In summary, a 'lost' Dutch soldier shows up at a Japanese Buddhist monastery in 1958.

My wife encouraged me to read this about a decade ago, and it resonated like crazy. I proceeded to study Buddhism in fits and starts, learning more about it and myself.

Am I a Buddhist? No, I can't say that I am. However, I've gained so much from my learning, and most of it stemmed from this book.

If I tell you your depression isn't justified, what will you do? Slit you wrists? Or does it have to be justified for that? Your depression just is. You have it. It sucks. It is its own joy eating beast.

It sucks to be you. Or does it? Intellectually you know it doesn't. You have a lot going for you, so why aren't you happy? You are highly accomplished but are just figuring out that accomplishments bring rushes, thrills, but not happiness. Happiness comes from within and is a personal choice (I know - it doesn't feel like one).

You could be me twenty years ago. Your depression might be the oncoming solstice (I'm feeling it too and I'm in the southern US), but a good dose of philosophy never hurt anyone.

I have a book recommendation for you written by another young dutchman looking for the meaning of it all. Read it and see if your world view changes. At the very least, you'll find it a welcome distraction.

I've never been to Japan, but according to this book, https://www.amazon.com/Empty-Mirror-Experiences-Japanese-Monastery/dp/0312207743/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543269309&sr=8-1&keywords=the+empty+mirror , lay practioners attended sesshin at daitoku-ji.