I was just given a complementary copy of The Story of Mu written by James Cordova & illustrated by Mark Morse. I got the comp because it includes as an appendix an adaptation of a dharma talk I gave (with an interpolated uncredited paragraph written by Melissa Myozen Blacker – you’ll have to figure out which one it is. And, yes, I can hear some of my friends saying, “the good one.”), “On the Utter, Complete, Total Ordinariness of Mu.”
I read the Story of Mu is a single sitting. It is a children’s book. And, oh my, I cannot possibly recommend it highly enough. This book is something wonderful.
If you’re not familiar with the Zen koan that inspires this children’s book it goes in the version presented in the book, “One day a student went to see the great teacher Chao-chou and asked, “Does a dog (like me) have Buddha nature or not?” And Chao-chou said, “Mu.”
The word Mu is usually translated as no, or not. But, it can also be rendered as empty. Or, even boundless.
And, yes, I said it is a children’s book. And it is. A perfect gift for any child who wonders.
And speaking of wonder…
If you ever wondered what Buddhism is about, if you ever wondered what Zen points to, if you ever wondered what that koan Mu could possibly mean, James Cordova lays it all out, plain, simple, beautiful.
I read this book and I wept.
James opened his heart and revealed it all.
Plain. Simple. Beautiful.
Your life, and mine. Right here.
Like any book worthy of the title “children’s” it is illustrated, beautifully by Mark Morse. A hug to go with the kiss…
James Myosan Cordova is a professor of psychology and chair of the Psychology Department at Clark University, in Worcester, Massachusetts. He is also a teacher in the Boundless Way Zen school. And, I’m proud to say, a friend.
Mark Morse is an artist and works as a storyboard and conceptual illustrator at a digital consulting agency.
I encourage you to buy a copy for yourself, and one for a friend, whether younger or not. Doesn’t matter.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In