In the spring of 2006, Bill Porter traveled through the heart of China, from Beijing to Hong Kong, on a pilgrimage to sites associated with the first six patriarchs of Zen. Zen Baggage is an account of that journey. Like most travel literature, Porter takes readers to places few Westerners have ever ventured. He weaves together historical background, interviews with Zen masters, and translations of the earliest known records of Zen, along with personal vignettes. Porter's account captures the transformations taking place at religious centers in China but also the abiding legacy they have somehow managed to preserve. Porter brings wisdom and humor to every situation, whether visiting ancient caves containing the most complete collection of Buddhist texts ever uncovered, enduring a six-hour Buddhist ceremony, searching in vain for the ghost in his room, waking up the monk in charge of martial arts at Shaolin Temple, or meeting the abbess of China's first Zen nunnery. Porter's previously published Road to Heaven: Encounters with Chinese Hermits has become recommended reading at Zen centers and universities throughout America and even in China (in its Chinese translation), and Zen Baggage is sure to follow suit.
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"Red Pine's translation transports us to China in the fourteenth century, transfixes us in the beauty of the hermit poet's work, and demonstrates the transformative power of a Zen adept's talk." -- Michael Wenger
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4.6 out of 5 stars
25 reviews
43 of 45 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Old Man Zen
Feb 18 2009
By Rita Hooks
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Zen Baggage: A Pilgrimage to China by Bill Porter is a tedious travelogue told by a grumpy old man. However, as he carries his baggage of tea and books through the interior of China, Porter slowly reveals himself to be a man of Zen as I understand his understanding of Zen: a mind at work in the everyday world.
Meditating makes Porter's knees hurt, and he actually prefers being on the outside of the meditation hall. And although respecting the ceremonies and rituals practiced by the Zen Buddhist monks and nuns, he'd much rather take a nap.
In the everyday world, Porter grumbles about headaches, backaches, and allergies to dust as he travels by bus, train, taxi, motorcycle, mini-van, or tractor through frigid cold, tropical heat, or torrential rain. But before it all becomes too tiresome, he finds a delicious pumpkin cookie, a skillful masseuse, or an impressive PhD student who peels mangoes for him with a Uighur knife pulled from her boot.
Porter enjoys wild mushrooms, hot baths, gooseberry wine, afternoon naps, Iron Goddess tea, and an occasional fun-sized Snickers -- all providing much-needed breaks from his traveling and journaling. Writing about his pilgrimage to the ancient temples and grave sites of Zen patriarchs, Porter brings to light his mind, a mind at work in the everyday world, the everyday world of China, that is.
Along roads that end in dusty wasteland or muddy ruts, he is one porter who carries his Zen baggage lightly. And who's to say that Bodhidharma wasn't just another grumpy old man from the West?
Porter, Bill. Zen Baggage: A Pilgrimage to China. Berkeley: Counterpoint, 2009.
Meditating makes Porter's knees hurt, and he actually prefers being on the outside of the meditation hall. And although respecting the ceremonies and rituals practiced by the Zen Buddhist monks and nuns, he'd much rather take a nap.
In the everyday world, Porter grumbles about headaches, backaches, and allergies to dust as he travels by bus, train, taxi, motorcycle, mini-van, or tractor through frigid cold, tropical heat, or torrential rain. But before it all becomes too tiresome, he finds a delicious pumpkin cookie, a skillful masseuse, or an impressive PhD student who peels mangoes for him with a Uighur knife pulled from her boot.
Porter enjoys wild mushrooms, hot baths, gooseberry wine, afternoon naps, Iron Goddess tea, and an occasional fun-sized Snickers -- all providing much-needed breaks from his traveling and journaling. Writing about his pilgrimage to the ancient temples and grave sites of Zen patriarchs, Porter brings to light his mind, a mind at work in the everyday world, the everyday world of China, that is.
Along roads that end in dusty wasteland or muddy ruts, he is one porter who carries his Zen baggage lightly. And who's to say that Bodhidharma wasn't just another grumpy old man from the West?
Porter, Bill. Zen Baggage: A Pilgrimage to China. Berkeley: Counterpoint, 2009.
22 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tagging along with Bill
Jan 16 2009
By Michael A. Nicosia
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I thought Bill Porter's first book about his journeys in China, Road to Heaven, was one of the most entrancing books I have encountered in my many years of avid reading. However, his new book is equally compelling. As someone with a deep interest in Chinese thought and culture, I have been wondering what the current state of spiritual life is in the brave new world that is modern China. This book goes a long way toward answering some of my questions. Bill's ability to communicate and his intimate knowledge of Ch'an literature and history gives a richness to this deceptively simple tale of his wanderings.
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
What A Long Strange Trip It's Been
Jan 9 2009
By Barry Magid MD
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Bill Porter traveled to sites associated with the Six Chinese Zen patriarchs and his book blends a history of the development of Zen with an account of its current rebirth in post-Cultural Revolution China which has permitted the reestablishment of the monasteries and genuine Zen training. Porter's wears his erudition lightly but his own humor and insight are on display on every page. If you speak fluent Chinese and a have a strong back (and butt) you might want to make the trip yourself. but personally I'm glad he travelled on all those Chinese buses to distant mountain retreats so I don't have to. But the old teachers are alive and well in this book - even if they insisted Zen had no need of words - congratulations to Porter for resurrecting them.
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4.6 out of 5 stars
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