Our Mission
Before
Thought Publications is dedicated to making available authentic religious works
primarily from Buddhist roots for the benefit of all. We also strive to offer
open communications and explanations of works from Sufism, Jainism and Mystical
Christianity. We publish translations of the sutras, commentaries and teachings
of past and contemporary Buddhist masters, and original works by leading Buddhist
scholars and poets. We publish our titles with the appreciation of Buddhism
as a living philosophy and with the special commitment to preserve and transmit
important works from all the major Buddhist traditions. There is an unbounded
openess to Buddhism so we also strive to include books which have a quality
of discovery and inquiry. Some of the books listed are works in progress and
may change slightly over time. Thanks for visiting us here and good luck on
your journey of discovery.
Paul Lynch,
JDPSN
Guiding Teacher, Five Mountain Order
Paul Dochong Lynch, JDPSN received Inka, which is approval to teach koans and lead retreats,
from Zen Master Moore on April 9, 2006. His title, Jido popsa-nim means Honored
Dharma Master and is the equivalent to the title of Sensei bestowed in Japanese
Lineages. Popsa-nim has been the Abbot of the Zen Center since 1993 and began
practicing with Moore Sonsa-nim in the late eighties. Before coming to Zen Paul
practiced Vipassana Buddhist Meditation for several years with a teacher in
Escondido. Lynch Popsa-nim has been practicing Buddhist meditation for more
than twenty years, and with the sanction of Zen Master Sungsan, founded the Huntington Beach Zen
Center on August 14th of 1993; the center has since changed its name to the
Golden Wind Zen Center. In June of 2008 Paul founded the Five Mountain Sangha with the assistance of Jiun Foster, Osho and Greg LeBlanc, Osho.
years.
Robert
Harwood
Director and Spiritual Leader of The Very Center in Cookeville, Tennessee
Bob Harwood has practiced Zen for almost 20 years and enjoys writing about mysticism
in all spiritual traditions. He currently gives satsang in the Advaita Vedanta
tradition, dharma talks in the Zen tradition, and workshops in meditation and
mysticism in Christian churches. Bob's teaching is that who we are is already
perfect and complete. Who we are is whole and complete, in love, at peace, and
needs nothing. The sense of having a personal self is an illusion created by
the intellect, and no separate entity exists who can attain enlightenment. The
realization of this fact is what the word “enlightenment” points
to. Anyone wanting to verify these claims need only stop, be still, and perceive
what IS.
Jiun
Foster, Osho
Abbot, Five Mountain Sangha
Along with being the director of the
Five
Mountain Buddhist Seminary,
Rev. Jiun Foster is the Five Mountain Sangha Abbot, and abbot and teacher for
the Great Cloud Zen Center of Cincinnati. A former fully ordained Bhikshu, Rev.
Jiun has been a practicing Buddhist for over twenty years, and brings nearly a
decade of experience as an ordained teacher to our activities.
Proceeds
All purchases
from Before Thought Publications go to helping support the Five Mountain Sangha. The Community was founded by Paul Lynch, JDPSN
and as a disciple of famed Korean Zen Master Sungsan. The proceeds are being
donated by the authors to the ongoing work or spreading the Dharma in the West.
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Disc: $11.99 Chanting meditation means keeping a not moving mind, and perceiving the sound of your own voice. Perceiving your voice means perceiving your true self or true nature. Then you and the sound are never separate, which means that you and the whole universe are never separate. Thus, to perceive your true nature is to perceive universal substance. With regular chanting, your center gets stronger and stronger. When your center is stronger, you can control your feeling, condition and situation.
In our Zen Centers, people live together and practice together. At first, people come with strong opinions, strong likes and dislikes. For many people, chanting meditation is not so easy: much confused thinking, many likes and dislikes. But when we do chanting meditation correctly, perceive the sound of our own voice and the voices all around us, our minds become clear. In Clear mind, there is no like or dislike, only the sound of the voice.
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Print: $14.44 Download: $4.62 Written by Dochong, JDSPN. Peering Through the Clouds - glimpses of the present, between the shadows of discursive thought; the prose and poetry of Dochong, JDPSN.
In this second book of poetry Dochong, JDPSN explores the deeper side of spirituality. He explores Zen practice in an effort to transcend the boundries of his own opinions, condition and situation. The reader also may note a transition from the visceral perception of the world, which was the primary mode in the first book, to a more experiential perception in seeing and feeling this world. It is in this transition between the common world and the world of grace that I have found there are infinite ways to approach it. The method really depends upon which one you might like or more importantly which practice you can adopt into your everyday life. Only you the reader can decide their own direction, however, for me I prefer to live in all the infinite realms of all possible worlds.
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Print: $14.92 Written by Bob Harwood with Paul W. Lynch, JDPSN. In this book Christian spirituality is explored from a fresh perspective. For those who sense that something is missing in traditional Christianity or those who intuit that union with God is possible, this book is a must read. The authors explore the underlying message of biblical scriptures and parables, a message that is generally ignored in mainline church traditions. By giving clear instructions concerning how to meet God “face to face,” the authors show that Christianity has much more in common with other world religions than is usually supposed. They suggest that the teachings put forth by the foremost mystic of all time, Jesus of Nazareth, are better understood and actualized through contemplative spiritual practices than through reflective thought, intellectual study, or efforts that reinforce a sense of individual doer-ship.
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Print: $5.95 A booklet intended for prospective students of the Five Mountain Sangha. This handbook reviews basic membership information as well as general information about the Sangha.
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Print: $14.92 An exploration of Korean Buddhism as practiced in the 21st Century America.
Practicing at a Zen center, we begin to realize how our opinions create our problems, by coming between us and the situations we find manifest in our lives. When we have to courage to let go of these opinions, it is possible to live our everyday lives with clarity and harmony. Over time we learn to cooperate, to see clearly, and to accept people and situations as they are, with this our minds become strong and wide. Then it becomes possible to act, in the manner of a Bodhisattva for others with no trace of ourselves.
The forms practiced in Zen are designed to help us see our opinions, and our minds that don't pay attention, in each situation that we find ourselves. If we keep a mind that wishes to leave no trace of our passage, these forms fall easily into place. We hope that your training here will help your spiritual growth, and through that help bring about a peaceful world.
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Print: $13.92 A book on the function and ceremony of ritual. This is a collection of important ceremonies, including daily chanting, that comprise the life of a Buddhist Practitioner.
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Print: $13.92 Written & Translated by Paul Lynch, JDPSN. In this 21st Century Quantum Physical World why observe Buddhist Precepts? Taking refuge in the 3 Jewels is the initial step in becoming a Buddhist and following the precepts forms the foundation of the path. Buddhists practitioners observe various levels of precepts, depending upon each individual’s level of commitment to the path. The initial refuge in the 3 Jewels signifies the starting point on the path of the eradication of suffering and the awakening of not just one’s self but all sentient beings. Taking precepts can be compared to military personnel adhering to the rules of military law or citizens of a particular country abiding by the common law of their society. The difference between the first two approaches and the Buddhist approach is that the military rules or the common laws are external restrictions whereas the Buddhist precepts spring forth from a practice of self–discipline which eventually can become self regulated.
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Print: $11.99 Written and Compiled by Paul Lynch, JDPSN. The Koan Collection of the Five Mountain Order. One of the core tenants of Zen Buddhism is Koan practice. The original concept of Koan, although associated with Buddhist practice in the West is not a Buddhist word and translated means a public case, a public exchange, a public situation, or a public document. The pronunciation of the Chinese character for Koan is Gongan in Chinese or Koan in Japanese. The common use for this word comes from ancient China, and referred to a situation when copies of a government document were produced, the scribe would use a “chop” or seal on the copy in such a way that half of the seal was on the original document and half was on the copied document. This would allow for future verification of the authenticity of the copy by matching the two halves of the seal.
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Hardcover Print: $23.75 Written and Compiled by Paul Lynch, JDPSN. The Koan Collection of The Five Mountain Order. One of the core tenants of Zen Buddhism is Koan practice. The original concept of Koan, although associated with Buddhist practice in the West is not a Buddhist word and translated means a public case, a public exchange, a public situation, or a public document. The pronunciation of the Chinese character for Koan is Gongan in Chinese or Koan in Japanese. The common use for this word comes from ancient China, and referred to a situation when copies of a government document were produced, the scribe would use a “chop” or seal on the copy in such a way that half of the seal was on the original document and half was on the copied document. This would allow for future verification of the authenticity of the copy by matching the two halves of the seal.
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Print: $12.92 The Barrier That Has No Gate (無門關, Mandarin. Wumenguan, Japanese. Mumonkan) is a collection of 48 Chan (Zen) koans compiled in the early 13th century by Chinese monk Wumen (無門). This book contains the original Chinese along with the Author's translations into English. Wumen's preface indicates that the volume was published in 1228. Each koan is accompanied by a commentary and verse by Wumen. A classic edition includes a 49th case composed by Anwan (pen name for Cheng Ch'ing-Chih) in 1246. Wu-liang Tsung-shou also supplemented the volume with three poems relating to case number 47, composed in 1230.
Along with the Blue Cliff Record and the oral tradition of Hakuin Ekaku, The Gateless Gate is a central work much used in the Linji/Mazu Schools of practice. Five of the koans in the work concern the sayings and doings of Zhaozhou; four concern Yunmen.
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Print: $12.92 The Blue Cliff Record is a collection of Zen Buddhist koans originally compiled in China during the Song dynasty in 1125 and then expanded into its present form by the Chan master Yuanwu Keqin (1063 – 1135). The book includes Yuanwu's annotations and commentary on Xuedou Zhongxian's (980 – 1052) collection 100 Verses on Old Cases — a compilation of 100 koans. Xuedou selected 82 of these from the Jingde Chuandeng Lu (Jingde (era) Record of the Transmission of the Lamp), with the remainder selected from the Yunmen Guanglu (Extensive Record of Yunmen Wenyan (864 – 949). Yuanwu's successor, Dahui Zonggao (1089 – 1163). wrote many letters to lay students teaching the practice of concentrating on koans during meditation. But Dahui did not explain and analyze koans. Oral tradition holds that Dahui noticed students engaged in too much intellectual discourse on koans, and then burned the wooden blocks used to print the Bìyán Lù.
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Print: $13.20 The Original Version of the Compass of Zen Teaching by Zen Master Seung Sahn, with commentaries by Paul Lynch, JDPSN. This quintessential summary of Buddhist thought was passed down from teacher to student. But what does it mean, and where did these insights come from? Zen Master Sǔngsan was taught by the foremost scholars of his time in Korea and this ancient understanding which is traced back to 7th Century China is clear and concise. These are modern “cliff notes” for Buddhist Theology. Join his disciples in unraveling the history or their origin.
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Print: $12.96 Paul W Lynch is the founder and the CEO of InSync Technologies, LLC. InSync Technologies is focused on ERP integration consulting and has partnered with Oracle, Microsoft, Princeton Softech, Q4Bis and Sage Software. The team of highly qualified consultants that Paul and his partner’s have assembled currently focus on both the business and the technical infrastructure components of computer systems management.
Paul began his career twenty eight years ago in manufacturing and distribution and has remained dedicated to improving business processes in these two important business sectors. During his management career Paul served in various roles such as Chief Information Officer, Chief Technology Officer, VP of Supply Chain, Director of Manufacturing Engineering and Plant Manager. Additionally he has managed numerous implementations of ERP packages such as Oracle-JDEdwards EnterpriseWorld, Oracle-JDEdwards EnterpriseOne, SSA-BPCS, Pansophic-PRMS, Exact-Macola, MAS90 and others.
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Print: $13.92 Shrimad Rajchandra (1867–1901), considered by Jainists as one of the most enlightened saint and poet of recent times, is recognized by them as the ideal symbol of ‘clarity, purity and holiness as it should be’. This is best reflected in his literature captured in the scripture ‘Vachanamrut’. It is a leading scripture of research, attracting several interpretations and translations. Mahatma Gandhi–ji kept in contact with him for obtaining clarity on spiritualism and derived his spiritual inspiration from Life History of Shrimad Rajchandra Life History of Shrimad Rajchandra
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Print: $14.92 Written by Robert Harwoood. Pouring Concrete is a fascinating account of how a scientist evolved into a mystic. Autobiographical in nature, the book recounts how the author became consumed with a wide range of existential questions including: Is there a God? Where do humans come from and where do they go? What is a subatomic particle, really? What is art? How could life have arisen from inanimate matter? Do religious miracles occur, and if so, what does that imply about the nature of reality? Why is it that the more we learn the less we seem to know? Not only does the book describe the author’s subsequent (any many times laughable) efforts to find answers, but in the process of doing so, it provides invaluable insights and information about the spiritual path. The author tells the reader, in effect, “Trust yourself 100% because, whether you know it or not, you are always manifesting the truth.” The truth is usually too close for us see, and he explains how to step back and see the big picture.
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 Cold
Heart Thawing:
The Zen Poetry of Do Chong-An Anthology of Poetry About Living in the Modern World
(Paperback)
by Do Chong Poep Sa (Author)
List Price: $13.95
Price: $13.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25.
Details
Availability: In Stock. Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Gift-wrap available.
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Book Description
Zen poetry about living in the modern world. Cold Heart Thawing is a collection
of work both inspired and simple, a must read for all on a spiritual path.
A collection of Zen poetry from the Abbot of Ocean Eyes Zen Center in Long Beach,
California. This first collection of poetry was written between 1995 and 1997,
and follows the spiritual path of a Buddhist layperson searching for balance
between the life of dedicated Zen practice and the life of a layperson living
in this modern world. The introduction contains an interview with Do Chong's
grand-teacher Zen Master Seung Sahn, the 78th Patriarch of Korean Chogye Buddhism,
in which the two discuss poetry and Zen practice. Some exiting insights about
Zen poetry and life are shared with the reader in this conversation.
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