Rami Shapiro is one of our favorite teachers. This book is one of his very best. One doesn’t have to be Jewish or Zen to appreciate the way Rami guides the reader through knowing and non-knowing and through being in the world in ways that are full of meaning without pretending as if one’s scrutinizing of things is how meaning is created.
He begins by referring to Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, the Zen classic that is the inspiration for Rami’s work and title: “According to Suzuki Roshi, Beginner’s Mind is ‘empty, free of the habits of the expert, ready to accept, to doubt, and open to all the possibilities. It is the kind of mind which can see things as they are, which step by step and in a flash can realize the original nature of everything.’ ”
Then he points out that the Jewish equivalent to beginner’s mind is “questioning mind,” and summarizes: “Jewish Mind/Questioning Mind and Zen Mind/Beginner’s Mind are the same mind: dynamic, daring, iconoclastic, often humorous, and devoted to shattering what Zen calls ‘dead words’ — words, texts, isms, and ideologies closed to fresh inquiry.” This is in Part One — where there is also a beautiful reflection on how Zen koan and Jewish midrash interplay.
But don’t mistake what Rami is doing here as having little relevance in how one lives a life. That is, in fact, everything to do with his exploration of meaning. Part Two of the book — the much longer part — is many short chapters on practical matters. These are called:
How to Listen, How to Speak, How to See, How to Eat, How to Pray, How to Love, How to Fight, How to Forgive, How to Thank, How to Rest, How to Walk, How to Wake Up (in the Morning), How to Shit, How to Vote, and How to Die.
The chapter on “How to Vote” ought to be turned into a brochure distributed in the mail to every electorate. (See the excerpt accompanying this review for a sample.) The summary? “How do we vote when we vote from Zen Mind/Jewish Mind? We vote to limit power and the powerful in service to minimizing suffering and maximizing happiness for all beings.”
