Edward Espe Brown: Sincere and Wholehearted

Sounds True: Insights at the Edge

Edward Espe Brown is a Zen priest and the former head cook at Tassajara Mountain Zen Mountain Center who helped found Greens Restaurant in San Francisco. He is the author of No Recipe and the classic Tassajara Bread Book. With Sounds True, he is publishing The Most Important Point: Zen Teachings of Edward Espe Brown. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with Edward about the origin of his newest book: a quote from his teacher Suzuki Roshi, who said, "The most important point is to find out what the most important point is." Edward describes his discipleship with Suzuki Roshi and why Zen practice can sometimes be like feeling your way through pitch darkness. Tami and Edward talk about the tradition of "taking the backward step" and moments of realization that transcend your expected practice. Finally, they talk about Edward's path away from extremely low self-esteem and the role of difficult emotions in Zen contemplative practice. (77 minutes)