James Zito is a Buddhist film-maker, and the director of a newly released documentary on the history of Zen Buddhism, Inquiry Into the Great Matter. James joins us to discuss his new film, focusing primarily on what he learned while making the film. He shares some specifics on the lives of the famous Zen masters, Daito Kokushi and Ikkyu Sojun. While quite different, each masters reflected very important aspects of Zen Buddhism.
We conclude our discussion, exploring the state of Zen in Japan today, which compared to times in the past several hundred years, has declined greatly. Will traditional Japanese Zen be able to exist in a hyper-modern Japan, and as it spreads across the world?
Episode Links:
Inquiry into the Great Matter: A History of Zen Buddhism ( http://historyofzendvd.com )
Vajra Video ( http://www.vajravideo.com )