Books by and about Jun Po Roshi

A Heart Blown Open: The Life and Practice of Zen Master Jun Po Denis Kelly Roshi (Divine Arts Media, 2012)
by Keith Martin-Smith

This memoir chronicles the extraordinary journey of Zen master Jun Po Denis Kelly Roshi, whose life landed him in prison long before he landed in a monastery. Experience the successes and failures that led him to found an entirely new form of Buddhism called Mondo Zen.

Starting from an abusive and alcoholic home in Wisconsin, Kelly becomes a major force in the counterculture of the 1960’s and one of its biggest manufacturers of LSD. He ends up on the run for five years before serving time in a federal prison and then goes on to spend six years in a Zen monastery.

In his fiftieth year, he becomes a recognized Zen master in his own right, but the real journey is just about to begin.

“Written with extraordinary heart and skill, A Heart Blown Open chronicles the making of an Integral Zen Master. Jun Po’s life has been as unpredictable as it has been astounding. Jun Po’s dedication to exploring his own psychological shadows in light of his own awakening consciousness is the story of our times, and is an absolute must-read for anyone with even a passing interest in human evolution, and it was brought together brilliantly by Keith.”

Ken Wilbur

The Heart of Zen (North Atlantic Books, 2014)
by Jun Po Denis Kelly and Keith Martin-Smith

Take a step-by-step approach to a growing problem in spiritual circles. More and more of us are “waking up” into spiritual insight, only to get stuck. Life still comes at us full force, and hope can turn to frustration as the gulf between spiritual belief and everyday life looms ever larger. Part discussion on these intricate topics and part experiential guide, The Heart of Zen offers a one-of-a-kind take on enlightenment, emotional maturity, and the honesty required to take one’s seat in true liberation.

“This is one of the most important works on spiritual realization to be written in years. There’s really nothing like this out there…you really can’t afford to miss this revolutionary process for your own awakening and enlightenment. My absolutely highest recommendation.”

Ken Wilbur

The Junpo Roku: The Dharma & Recorded Sayings of Junpo Denis Kelly (2012)
by Daju Suzanne Friedman

The Junpo Roku is a record of the early teachings of Roshi Junpo Denis Kelly, a Rinzai Zen Master and the Abbot of the Hollow Bones Rinzai Zen Order. Junpo Roshi is the creator of the Mondo Zen process.

The Junpo Roku captures Junpo Roshi’s depth, humor, and wisdom while presenting his dharma talks and various lively Zen exchanges between him and his students. This roku, or official record, addresses such topics as Zen meditation, the nature of mind, the ego, koan practice, form and ritual, sutras, everyday dharma, and the Zen Buddhist approach to thoughts and emotions.

Recommended Reading List

• Buddha for Beginners, Stephen Asma
• The Essential Rumi, Coleman Barks
• Zen for Beginners, Judith Blackstone, Zoran Josipovic, and Naomi Rosenblatt
• The Zen Teaching of Huang Po: On the Transmission of Mind, John E. Blofeld
• Zen Therapy, David Brazier
• The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women, Zenshin Florence Caplow (Editor),
  Reigetsu Susan Moon (Editor)
• When Things Fall Apart, Pema Chodron
• The Sutra of Hui-Neng: Grand Master of Zen, Thomas Cleary
• The Dhammapada Thomas Cleary
• Awareness, Anthony deMello
• Moon in a Dewdrop:Writings of Zen Master, Dogen Eihei Dogen
• Buddhist Women on the Edge, Marianne Dresser
• Zen Buddhism a History, Vol. 1 & 2, Heinrich Dumoulin
• The Yoga of Eating, Charles Eisenstein
• The Way of Zen, Tenshin Fletcher
• Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis, Erich Fromm, D. T. Suzuki, and Richard De Martino
• Daughters of Emptiness (Poems of Chinese Buddhist Nuns), Beata Grant
• Buddhism, Plain and Simple, Steve Hagen
• Waking Up, Sam Harris
• Coming Home; Mother of the Buddhas, Lex Hixon
• The Heart of Understanding, Thich Nhat Hanh
• The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching, Thich Nhat Hanh
• Light on Yoga, B.K.S. Iyengar
• Fire in the Belly, Sam Kean
• Path with Heart; After the Ecstasy, the Laundry, Jack Kornfield
• Sitting with Koans; John Daido Loori
• The Heart of Being: Moral and Ethical Teachings of Zen Buddhism, John Daido Loori
• Riding the Ox Home: Stages on the Path of Enlightenment, John Daido Loori
• The Language of Emotions, Karla McLaren
• Beyond Sanity and Madness, Dennis Genpo Merzel
• The Enlightened Heart; The Enlightened Mind, Stephen Mitchell
• The Lankavatara Sutra: Translation and Commentary, Red Pine
• How to Change Your Mind, Michael Pollan
• Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism, John Powers
• What the Buddha Taught, Walpola Rahula
• The Genius of Being Peter Ralston
• Zen Training;Two Zen Classics, Katsuki Sekida
• Zen Women (Beyond Tea Ladies, Iron Maidens and Macho Masters), Grace Shireson
• The Zen Commandments, Dean Slyuter
• Why Religion Matters, Houston Smith
• Introduction to Zen Buddhism; Zen Buddhism, D.T. Suzuki
• Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, Shunryu Suzuki
• The Passion of the Western Mind, Richard Tarnas
• Women of the Way: Discovering 2,500 Years of Buddhist Wisdom, Sallie Tisdale
• Cutting through Spiritual Materialism; Crazy Wisdom; The Myth of Freedom, Chogyam Trungpa
• The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel Van Der Kolk
• Zen Cancer Wisdom, Daju Suzanne Friedman
• Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin, Norman Waddell
• Paths Beyond Ego, Roger Walsh and Frances Vaughan
• Essential Spirituality, Roger Walsh
• Dhammapada: The Sayings of Buddha; The Zen Teachings of Master Lin-Chi, Burton Watson, I-Hsuan
• Eye of Spirit; One Taste; No Boundary; Integral Spirituality, Ken Wilber
• Why Buddhism is True, Robert Wright