The Zen Commandments: Ten Suggestions for a Life of Inner Freedom.

Rating:
Summary: Life is Wonderful
Review: I had the pleasure of meeting Dean in my Aikido dojo. He is truly a disciple of his own teachings. He draws people to him through his effortless style and cheerfullness. I since purchased the The Zen Commandments and have read and reread it. It is a very easy read, but with profound yet simple advise on how to enjoy life. I highly recommend this book to any one.

Rating:
Summary: Sluyter Touts the Good Stuff
Review: In pronouncing his name, it says "rhymes with lighter," but it should say, "rhymes wit fighter," cause Sluyter comes out punching. His no nonsense approach is just the kick in the pants many of us need to fall into realization of our spirituality. Sluyter is intellectual, but counteracts it with a certain abecedarian common sense that makes this book fun and easy to read. If you're at all skeptical about what he's saying, the quotes remove much of the doubt. What I love about this book is the universal approach to spirituality a la Sri Ramakrishna. It took all of my effort just to prevent myself from nidificating while reading this page turner. His ability to reach an audience should make even the holiest teacher green wih envy. I'm waiting patiently for the next Sluyter book, because this one changed my life faster than a las vegas wedding.

Rating:
Summary: witty and wise
Review: It's been about 2 years now, that I've had this book. I have read it about 6 times. It's highly readable, very memorable, and easy to comprehend.

I've struggled alot with the the restrictiveness of religion--with the freak-factor of spirituality if one ventures into the eastern religions or non-traditional beliefs...this is not that sort of book--nothing hippie, freaky or weird about this one...I let my mom read it!

If I were to run out of my buring house, after my wallet and car keys, I'd grab this book. When I start to feel far from my spirituality, far from hope, far from answers, this is the book I pull off the shelf.

Rating:
Summary: witty and wise
Review: Mainstream religions exhort us to behave ourselves-follow the rules, obey the commandments, adhere to the precepts, and we will be saved, blessed, and granted Grace, in this life or the next. Dean Sluyter puts the cart back before the horse. He emphasizes-and points the way to-the direct inner connection with the Divine that awakens consciousness and gives rise to compassionate loving-kindness. And, wonder of wonders, he does it with sparkling humor and the same surprising references to pop culture that made his first book, "Why the Chicken Crossed the Road," such a delight. Whether you're looking for enlightenment or entertainment, you're bound to find both in these ten suggestions.

Rating:
Summary: modern spiritual classic
Review: There are certain spiritual classics that come to mind right off the bat that have stood the test of time and have provided manna for weary wayfarers and the rest of us. Titles like "The Dark Night of the Soul" and "The Cloud of Unknowing" are the first two I think of. These are books that you begin to read mostly out of curiousity and soon realize that every page is to be SOAKED in, slowly, savoring the deliciousness of it all. Merton's "(New) Seeds of Contemplation", CS Lewis' visionary "Great Divorce", St. Augustine's Confessions...etc. Then there are modern books, written within the last ten years that I am convinced are of this caliber. Terence Grant's "The Silence of Unknowing" was the only one I thought I had found. But "the Zen Commandments" is another one of those special books. Reading it on a wistfully breezy friday evening almost gave me the feeling of being on a weekend spiritual retreat, shacking up in some monastery. Some may attack it for being too user-friendly and call it bubble gum spirituality. I wonder why anything has to be cryptic to be spiritual. Sluyter invites us to take a look at the Ten Commandments in a new helpful light. He wanders with us through each commandment and strips each one down to it's pure naked core. For example, the first commandment:

I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt and the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me.

Is reworded to bring out it's flavor:

I am the supreme oceanic boundlessness that has saved you from all wavelike turbulence and constriction. Don't go back to it by mistaking any single wave for the whole ocean.

It was at this point that I knew this was a book to be savored.
If you're itching to see life in a new, ancient way, I highly recommend taking this particular journey.

Rating:
Summary: Fresh New Look at Zen
Review: This book will open your eyes to a wonderful new way to approach Zen and how you can actually apply it to everyday life even if you are down in the trenches just putting one foot in front of the other. I loved reading it, laughed frequently and was sorry when I finished.

Rating:
Summary: thank you, mr. sluyter....
Review: this is a sweet and thoughtful book...
skillfully and beautifully written...
it certainly gets to the heart of the matter...
just the reading of it provides peace...
thank you, mr. sluyter...

Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: Trying to sum up this book, the author's own words come to mind: a "street smarts" of sorts for Eastern philosophy. It is a unique and refreshing look at the same not-so-obvious-to-some drudgery.

It covers basic tenets that will change your life if you live by them. Sluyter avoided meditation details which indeed enhances the applicability of this book to most people's lives. I found the practical advice, in Dean's own original language, very valuable.

The general pace of the book is good as well, keeping the reader interested at some level. If you are set in your ways or have a negative outlook, you probably won't find much here. If you have already based opinions on Eastern religions, I'd still bet this book expands your Zen conversation skills.

Rating:
Summary: Sluyter Touts the Good Stuff
Review: Trying to sum up this book, the author's own words come to mind: a "street smarts" of sorts for Eastern philosophy. It is a unique and refreshing look at the same not-so-obvious-to-some drudgery.

It covers basic tenets that will change your life if you live by them. Sluyter avoided meditation details which indeed enhances the applicability of this book to most people's lives. I found the practical advice, in Dean's own original language, very valuable.

The general pace of the book is good as well, keeping the reader interested at some level. If you are set in your ways or have a negative outlook, you probably won't find much here. If you have already based opinions on Eastern religions, I'd still bet this book expands your Zen conversation skills.