Discover how hiking can be a kind of spiritual pilgrimage—calming our minds, enhancing our sense of wonder, and deepening our connection to nature

ZEN ON THE TRAIL
Hiking as Pilgrimage
by Christoper Ives
September 2018

Evoking the writings of Gary Snyder, Bill Bryson, and Cheryl Strayed, Zen on the Trail explores the broad question of how to be outside in a meditative way. By directing our attention to how we hike as opposed to where we’re headed, Ives invites us to shift from ego-driven doing to spirit-filled being, and to explore the vast interconnection of ourselves and the natural world. Through this approach, we can wake up in the woods on nature’s own terms. In erudite and elegant prose, Ives takes us on a journey we will not soon forget.

Christopher Ives is a professor of religious studies at Stonehill College. In his teaching and writing he focuses on ethics in Zen Buddhism and Buddhist approaches to nature and environmental issues. His publications include “Imperial-Way Zen: Ichikawa Hakugen’s Critique and Lingering Questions for Buddhist Ethics”; “Zen Awakening and Society”; “Divine Emptiness and Historical Fullness”; a translation (with Abe Masao) of Nishida Kitaro’s “An Inquiry into the Good”; and a translation (with Gishin Tokiwa) of “Hisamatsu Shin’ichi’s Critical Sermons of the Zen Tradition”.