1 comments about Sacred Koyasan: A Pilgrimage to the Mountain Temple of Saint Kobo Daishi and the Great Sun Buddha.

1. Okay, just to put all the cards on the table, I was already predisposed in this book's favor at first sight. Shingon Buddhism and its founder, Kukai (Kobo Daishi), sparked my intense fascination all those years ago when I first started acquainting myself with Japan and Japanese Buddhism and has remained a persistent if sometimes understated obsession ever since. And my visits to Shingon's mountain headquarters, the extensive temple complex up on Koyasan, remain one of my fondest memories of the 1990's. So, yes, I was thrilled to see a substantial book-length study of Koyasan finally come out in English. And given Koyasan's immense importance as a religious site, about time too!
   
   Given all that, the book still exceeded my expectations and is probably one of the most thoroughly enjoyable as well as brass-tacks informative books I've read in quite a while. The style is deceptively informal and colloquial, even a bit cheesy now and then, but a veritable mountain of painstakingly thorough research and years of firsthand experience have been weaved into this narrative with a deeply serious enthusiasm that only comes from true labors of love. All of which trumps the fact that, in a way, this is not a specialized work of groundbreaking original scholarship in the sense that something new has been translated and/or analyzed in expert's jargon. Rather it is a superb synthesis of such studies skillfully and accessibly unpacked while informed by a keen observational eye--all rendered in the engaging format of a kind of personally meaningful travelogue.
   
   Indeed, a vividly concrete account of getting to and leaving Koyasan frames the main body of the work, the latter of which comes alive with detailed descriptions of the main buildings of this extensive temple complex--what they're like, what they contain, what goes on there, their place in the overall institutional framework, and such--AND the temple town and its many old and quirky shops (including a venerably vintage sake shop) as well as Koyasan's many and varied ritual and festival cycles all taking place at these many locations. Coupled with this and giving it depth is a highly reliable retelling of the life and thought of the man who established Koyasan in the 800's, Kukai (Kobo Daishi) along with the many legends that grew up around him--and then a fascinating and thorough history of Koyasan starting with Kukai's immediate disciples and following the tale through the ages up until the Meiji persecutions of the late 1800's and on into present times. One also gets a good solid portrait of the average life of a monk at Koyasan from youth to old age, from novice to head of the Shingon order.
   
   A short review such as this actually can't do justice to both the variety and the fine level of detail packed not only in the main narrative but also in the footnotes. Definitely check the latter or you'll be missing out. That said, this is not a travel guide in the sense that you are given info about travel routes and accommodations and such; if you are actually planning to physically visit Koyasan, you will want to consult other sources for that. But for understanding what's actually going on once you get there this book might very well be almost indispensably useful. Anyway, whether you're riding up the cable car starting your own pilgrimage or sitting somewhere on the other side of the world imagining it all, "Sacred Koyasan" is just the thing for getting into the spirit of this holy place at once highly civilized and cozily rustic, quietly austere and exuberantly festive, mystically esoteric and down-home familiar, freshly contemporary and old as the hills.

4 comments about The Buddhist Guide to New York: Where to Go, What to Do, and How to Make the Most of the Fantastic Resources in the Tri-State Area.

1. I'd read a little about Buddhism but not really gotten around to figuring out how to practice it until I came across this little gem, which erased all my excuses for procrastinating - I don't know where to go, what if they don't speak English, how am I supposed to act? The author lays it all out and, from reading about the different schools of Buddhism and the individual character of temples and practice centers, I was able to identify several places I wanted to try. You will learn so much!



2. I bought this book mainly to get a better feel for the various Buddhist sects proliferating today, as the book has a great capsule overview of what the focus of each main group is. However, the book is book insightful and amusing, and will save the novice Buddhist visitor or tourist many a misstep or faus pas, not to mention wasted time. Wilson gives great, easy to follow information and covers not only NYC but I think the whole state. Definitely goes in my bag the next time I take a trip north!



3. Jeff Wilson, a Buddhist who practices in the Pure Land tradition, has written an indispensable guide to Buddhist practice in New York City...

   His book is very reader friendly and gives a tremendous feel for all the various places to practice which are available in the tri-state area...the book is a must have for both the experienced practitioner who wants to have a guide and the new practitioner who is looking for a sangha...




4. a lot of addresses and not too much deeper information.
   But i think everything related to buddism is covert...

No comments about Doggin' The Finger Lakes: The 50 Best Places To Hike With our Dog.

No comments about Polish countrysides; (American Geographical Society of New York. Special publication).

No comments about Insight FlexiMap New York City.

1 comments about Hagstrom New York City 5 Borough Atlas.

1. I have the Long Island version and now this one. Nice big print, only issue is matching the roads when they go off the page.

No comments about Literary Landmarks of New York: The Book Lover's Guide to the Homes and Haunts of World Famous Writers.

1 comments about Rand McNally 6th Edition New York City 5-Borough street guide.

1. This book covers not only the 5 boroughs but also large parts of Westchester Co. and NE New Jersey. Clear maps with disambiguing colors featuring all of NYC's streets. On-the-street navigation could be difficult because of the high amount of names and information on the maps so plan your trip. This guide will get you anywhere.
   If you still manage to get lost: you'll find every street in the directory.

No comments about Not for Tourists 2009 Guide to Queens (Not for Tourists Guidebook).

No comments about New York Hot & Hip.