TaiSheridan.com

Buddhist Poetry
Accessible and Inspirational

Blue Jeans Zen
Nine Ways to Sit Quietly
www.BlueJeansZen.com

Free Buddhist Poetry
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Tai Sheridan, Ph.D.

Shades and Blue Jeans

Tai Sheridan is a writer, poet, philosopher, and Zen priest. His poetry transforms ancient Buddhist texts into accessible and inspirational verses. The Buddha in Blue Jeans series of original poems offers a modern contemplative approach to awakening. His books are free and can be downloaded on all electronic devices. Tai gravitates towards forests and oceans.

Relax, You're Going to Die

Just released. See below for description. A reader's comment:

"I just read Relax You're Going to Die...a beautiful strong bold book...a brilliant synthesis. Thanks for the gift."- Veronica

The Zen Wheel of Life Mantra:
A Song of Luminous Wisdom and Love
Free

The Wheel of Life Mantra is a poetic expression of the Bhavacakra, an ancient mandala that presents the most significant wisdom teachings of Buddhism. It is used to contemplate the causes and conditions of suffering, and is a guide to non-dual wisdom, loving kindness, compassion, and equanimity.
An Amazon Reviewer: Great Work! Very enjoyable and profound. May go a little over the heads of people with no prior knowldege of the concepts, such as a "New Eatrh" by Ekhart Tolle. Beautiful! Loved it!

The Buddhacarita - A Modern Sequel:
The Poetic Saga of Buddha's Life from Birth to Enlightenment
Free

The Buddhacarita, Asvaghosa's second century sanskrit poem, is the oldest existing story of Buddha's life. The saga begins with Buddha's magical birth and ends with his enlightenment. The ancient myth presents Buddha's relentless inquiry into the nature of reality and artfully weaves together an archetypal hero's journey, Buddhist philosophy, phantasmagorical occurrences, and historical facts.

The authoritative English translations of The Buddhacarita are wonderful but difficult to read linguistic interpretations. This poetic rendition brings the joy and meaning of Buddha's search to the modern reader.

Warm Zen: Dogen's Bendowa in Verse
Free

Warm Zen is an easy to read and understand poetic interpretation of Dogen's complex philosophical essay 'Bendowa'. Dogen's writing is based on the Buddhist philosophy and experience of 'no-self' and the unconditioned reality of existence-being, also called the 'dharmakaya', the mystical and transcendent body of light. Topic headings and contemporary verses give insight into spiritual awakening.

Rice Eyes: Enlightenment in Dogen's Kitchen
Free

Rice Eyes: Enlightenmnet in Dogen's Kitchen, is a poetic presentation of Dogen's essay Tenzo Kyokun, Instructions to the Cook, by Zen Priest and Poet Tai Sheridan. 'Rice Eyes' is a metaphor for the non-dual world, the essential Buddhist experience of oneness. Dogen uses the role of Tenzo, or head cook, to demonstrate how to live, work, and experience a spiritual life that brings benefit to everyone.

Relax, You're Going to Die
Free

A contemporary and contemplative spiritual exploration of Death, by best selling author, Poet-philosopher, and Zen priest Tai Sheridan, Ph.D. Beneath the surface, many anxieties, worries, and fears are associated with death. 'Relax, You Are Going To Die' is an invitation to examine your relationship with death and your ability to live with grace and dynamic vitality.

The question of death and dying is an inseparable part of a spinning two headed coin. One side says "dying", and the other says "living". This book was written in order to help you see the spinning coin more clearly and to help you deepen your relationship to the mystery of living and dying, which is the basis of living a wise, kind, and beneficial life.

Buddha in Blue Jeans:
An Extremely Short Simple Zen Guide
to Sitting Quietly and Being Buddha
Free

'Buddha in Blue Jeans' is an extremely short, simple, and straight forward universal guide to the practice of sitting quietly and being yourself, which is the same as being Buddha.

Sitting quietly can teach many ways to accept life, meet pain, age gracefully, and die without regret. Topics include: Sit Quietly; Care For Your Body; Accept Your Feelings; Give Thoughts Room; Pain is Natural; Be Who You Are; Live Each Moment Well; Love Indiscriminately; Listen to Others; Be Surprised; Wonder; Live gratefully; Do No Harm; Benefit life; A Wish for The World.

The book encourages sitting quietly every day. The book is for people of any faith, religion, race, nationality, gender, relationship status, capacity, or meditation background.

Thank you world for your kind words.
Wishing you happiness. - Tai

Thank you so much for all of your writings (interpretations).. they are so easy to digest and enjoy! My rice eyes are having a feast!!

I read a few pages of your poetry in The Buddhacarita: A Modern Sequel and in Snow Falling in Moonlight. Wow! Stunningly beautiful. . . sparkling.

A review of The Zen Wheel of LIf e Mantra: Great Work! Very enjoyable and profound. May go a little over the heads of people with no prior knowldege of the concepts, such as a "New Eatrh" by Ekhart Tolle. Beautiful! Loved it!

Venerable, thanks for your acceptance. I read your book Buddha in Blue Jeans and honestly speaking nowhere i found such simple explanation of zen. I am honored to befriended with you. - India

Buddha in Blue Jeans is a wonderful little book that brought me a lot of peace while reading it. It reminded me to double-check the way I was living my life, and to keep things uncomplicated.

The Light of The Ancient Buddhas
Free

Keizan's thirteenth century "Denkoroku", The Transmission of the Light, is a sophisticated Zen fairytale about enlightenment and the empty ground of Being. Keizan uses archetypal myths, legends, and dreams to describe the luminous and awakened Zen mind. The author transforms eighteen of the stories into lyrical ballads that focus on the light of the Universal Self.

Celestial Music: Sutras of Emptiness
Free

Celestial Music presents modern interpretations of the Lotus, Diamond, Heart Wisdom, and Loving Kindness Sutras in easy to read and inspirational verse. The Buddhist sutras express the path of enlightened living based on curiosity, good will, wisdom, and compassion. They journey through the depths of human experience: living and dying, love and loss, anguish and peace.

Snow Falling in Moonlight: Odes in Praise of Dogen's Shobogenzo
Free

Dogen (1200-1253) is the father of Soto Zen. The author has transformed twelve of his spiritual essays from theShobogenzo (The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye), into poems about non-dual wisdom, luminous mind, loving kindness, and Zen practice. Poems include Odes to Moon, Time, Space, Light, Now Mind, Truth, Awakening, Cedar Trees, Mountains Rivers, and Plum Blossoms.

The Bare Bones Dhammapada: Big Mind Big Love
Free

This modern poetic interpretation of the well loved Dhammapada presents the path of wisdom and joy as universal truths for a contemporary audience. It transforms the original using minimalistic images and modern meanings that cut to the chase of Buddha's wisdom. The Dhammapada is one of the oldest Buddhist texts on walking the path of enlightenment, love, integrity, and kindness.

Patanjali - Yoga Sutras in Lingo:
The Liberation of Spirit in Modern Metaphors
Free

Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras teach restraint, wise action, and morality as a path to “The Supreme Lord”. Written between 100 BCE and 500 BE, this ancient Hindu text espouses the eight limbs of yoga for realizing the divine. Sanskrit translations tend to be literal and perplexing. Poet and Zen Priest Tai Sheridan's book gives readers an immediate intimacy between Patanjali and their experience.

Secrets of True Happiness
Free

'Secrets of True Happiness' is a simple and straight forward guide to becoming Truly Happy by living wisely. When you are truly happy you can be at ease in the world as a Buddha in Blue Jeans: a person of presence, openness, love, and benefit.

Topics include True Happiness; Wanting; Anger; Pride; Life and Death; Uncertainty; Change; Openness; Time; Creativity; Work; Family; Solitude; Nature; Love.

Amazon Review: * 5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Inspiration for Mindful Meditation and Easy Buddhist Teachings., December 13, 2011
by Leah

This review is from: Buddha in Blue Jeans: An Extremely Short Zen Guide to Sitting Quietly (Kindle Edition)These readings are easy to read and a great motivator for mindful meditation. And the Buddhist teachings put you in an uplifting mindset for each day. I've listened to Buddhist CDs in the past and been cofused, but these lists are consise and easy to understand. Things start to make sense. Kudos to the author.

Amazon Review: * 5.0 out of 5 stars
Simple and Elegant, December 29, 2011
by Bonez

This review is from: Buddha in Blue Jeans: An Extremely Short Zen Guide to Sitting Quietly (Kindle Edition)This book, at it's face value, might not seem like much. It's a very short book (as it states in the title) but for the most part it's exactly what you need to set yourself right. There are alot of people that stress the details, that need ceremony and great struggles for something to have meaning and feel like they are getting benefit. Most of what we need is for someone to say "Hey! Just be present here, now." That's a majority of our problem, if we were to sit and calm ourselves, pay attention and just be present for a while, you'd be amazed at the results. This book outlines it beautifully and is a good companion to have so that you can go back to it again and again and remember what is important, just to sit quietly, and learn what you need....by sitting quietly.

Thank you for giving me the gift of the book Buddha in Blue Jeans. The book is one of this small tributes to create inner peace and let compassion flourish amongst us. - Oslo, Norway

Thank you for your hard work and lovely words in Warm Zen Practice. Your transformation of scripture to verse is very nice and greatly appreciated. Reading this lightens me. Thank you. - Georgia, U.S.

Thank you very much for your lovely book, Buddha in Blue Jeans. It is very inspirational and I am glad you wrote it.

View or Download Ebooks

Nine Ways to Sit Quietly with Blue Jeans Zen at www.BlueJeansZen.com