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Helmuth von Glasenapp: Five world religions

Diana & Richard St Ruth: Zen Buddhism - Simple Guides
Simple Guides Zen Buddhism will help you to appreciate the significance of this particular school of Buddhism, understand the history of Zen and 'Ways of Zen' and to discover how Zen is a way of life - not a belief system. The guide will also help you to avoid faux pas in conversation, travelling and personal relationships.

Taisen Deshimaru: Zen & budo

Tsai Chih Chung: Zen Speaks
Inspired by the earliest and core texts of Zen Buddhism, Zen Speaks distills the philosophy and wisdom of Zen in a series of illustrated Chinese character cartoon panels that are irreverently humorous and profoundly wise.

John Stevens: Three Budo Masters
This text presents a comparative study of the lives of the founders of judo, karate and aikido, and their profound influence on modern society.

Inazo Nitobe: Bushido
This book is a classic to which generations of scholars and laymen alike have long referred for insights into the character of the Japanese people. And all of its many readers in the past have been amply rewarded, as will be all those who turn to its pages in the next and future decades.

Tsai Chih Chung: Confucius Speaks

Taisen Deshimaru: The Ring of the Way: Testament of a Zen Master
Discusses the teachings of Zen Buddhism and examines the nature of life and death

Dave Lowry: The Karate Way: Discovering the Spirit of Practice

H. M. Enomiya-Lasalle S. J.: Zen: Way to Enlightenment

John Heider: The Tao of Leadership
The Tao of Leadership is an invaluable tool for anyone in a position of leadership. It provides the simplest and clearest advice on how to be the very best kind of leader: be faithful, trust the process, pay attention, and inspire others to become their own leaders. Heider's book is a blend of practical insight and profound wisdom, offering inspiration and advice. This book is used as a Management/Leadership training text by many Fortune 500 corporations, including IBM, Mitsubishi, and Prudential.

Lao-ce: Tao Te Ching
Traditionally attributed to Lao Tzu, an older contemporary of Confucius (551 - 479 BC), it is now thought that the work was compiled in about the fourth century BC. An anthology of wise sayings, it offers a model by which the individual can live rather than explaining the human place in the universe. The moral code it encourages is based on modesty and self-restraint, and the rewards reaped for such a life are harmony and flow of life.

Lin Yutang: My Country and My People
In this classic book Yutang Ling does a fantastic job of describing Chinese people, customs and culture in an understandable way for the Western reader. this book was the first of it's kind, Ling being a rarity as he was fluent in both English and Chinese, having been born in China but growing up in America. This extremely popular book will prove to be a fascinating read, and is highly recommended on the bookshelf of anyone with an interest in different cultures and societies.

Ian Reader: Shinto - Simple Guides
THIS BOOK WILL HELP YOU • to appreciate the significance of Japan’s own religion in everyday life • to recognize the key traditions and festivals (matsuri) of the Shinto year • to understand what you will see at Shinto shrines and in Shinto rituals • to gain insights into the controversies surrounding Shinto, politics and nationalism.

Miyamoto Musashi: The Book of Five Rings (Go rin no sho)
Miyamoto Musashi's Go Rin no Sho or the book of five rings, is considered a classic treatise on military strategy, much like Sun Tzu's The Art of War and Chanakya's Arthashastra. The five "books" refer to the idea that there are different elements of battle, just as there are different physical elements in life, as described by Buddhism, Shinto, and other Eastern religions. Through the book Musashi defends his thesis: a man who conquers himself is ready to take it on on the world, should need arise.

Takuan Soho: The Unfettered Mind: Writings from a Zen Master to a Master Swordsman
Takuan was a giant in the history of Zen; he was also a gardener, calligrapher, poet, author, adviser to samurai and shoguns, and a pivotal figure in Zen painting. He was known for his brilliance and acerbic wit. In these succinct and pointed essays, Takuan is concerned primarily with understanding and refining the mind—both generally and when faced with conflict. The Unfettered Mind was a major influence on the classic manifestos on swordsmanship that came after it, including Miyamoto Musashi's Book of Five Rings and Yagyu Munenori's Life-Giving Sword.

Yagyu Munenori: The Life-Giving Sword: Secret Teachings from the House of the Shogun
The legendary seventeenth-century swordsman Yagyu Munenori was the sword instructor and military and political adviser to two shoguns—and was a rival to the great Miyamoto Musashi. Despite his martial ability and his political power, Munenori spent his life immersed in Zen teachings and practice. These teachings formed the framework for his deeply spiritual approach to sword fighting; Munenori saw in the practice of the sword a way to transform the student into a total human being. The Life-Giving Sword is Munenori’s manifesto on his approach. His central themes are the “Life-Giving Sword”—the idea of controlling one’s opponent by spiritual readiness to fight rather than by actual fighting—and “No Sword,” which is the idea that the mind must be free of everything, even the sword itself, in order to get to the place of complete mastery. Munenori’s ideas are essential reading for martial artists of all kinds and can be applied to business and human relations as well.

Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Secret Wisdom of the Samurai
The Hagakure is one of the most influential of all Japanese texts—written nearly 300 years ago by Yamamoto Tsunetomo to summarize the very essence of the Japanese Samurai bushido ("warrior") spirit. Its influence has been felt throughout the world, and yet its existence is scarcely known to many Westerners. This is the first translation to include the complete first two books of the Hagakure and the most reliable and authentic passages contained within the third book; all other English translations published previously have been fragmentary and incomplete.