Perfectly Ordinary: Buddhist Teachings for Everyday Life

Product Description

In this practical, easy to understand book Alex Kakuyo explains how the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path of Buddhism can help us in daily life. Drawing from personal experiences on farms, in temples, and in the U.S. Marines, Alex tells stories that show how the daily grind of work, traffic jams, and family drama is the source of our enlightenment.

Review

Sensei Alex Kakuyo is one of the most interesting young Buddhist teachers around today. His take on Buddhism is refreshingly different. The fact that he’s ex-military gives Alex a very different take on a lot of issues that concern American Buddhists. I think a lot of people who wouldn’t ordinarily be interested in Buddhism will find Alex’s writing appealing.  
 
-Brad Warner, Soto Zen Priest and author of Letters to a Dead Friend about Zen

  
Sensei Alex Kakuyo has that rare gift for making Buddhist teachings interesting and accessible without watering them down.  Kakuyo caps off each pithy, readable chapter with a lucid lesson that recasts traditional Dharma principles in a contemporary light.You’ve heard this stuff before, you just haven’t heard it quite like this. 

-Shozan Jack Haubner, Rinzai Zen Monk and author of Zen Confidential

 
Alex Kakuyo does a wonderful job of conveying the simple yet profound teachings of Buddhism while simultaneously sharing some of his own personal life stories.  If you’re looking for a book that covers all the basics in a thorough and well thought out manner, this is the book for you.  
 

-Noah Rasheta, Host of the Secular Buddhism Podcast    

                        
Sensei Alex has written a very thoughtful and engaging book about lived Zen. Throughout this book, he tells relatable stories that illuminate the presence of the Dharma in everyday experiences.  He blends balanced advice about interacting with the world with meditations on the great beyond.  This is a handbook of lessons that you can return to constantly.  
 
-Raymond Lam, Senior Writer at Buddhist Door Global 
 
I absolutely loved reading Sensei Alex Kakuyo’s book, Perfectly Ordinary: Buddhist Teachings for Everyday Life.  He covers his content in a substantial manner and his words are clear and straightforward.  And the examples he uses make you smile and want to keep reading.  If you take a little taste of this book, you’ll want to eat it all up!  

-Rev. Koyo Kubose, President of The Bright Dawn Center of Oneness Buddhism 
 
No nonsense language and a wry sense of humor dishing practical advice for living a life with less suffering and more ease.  These are the kinds of stories you’d expect from your wise, old grandmother.  Yet they weave together the fundamentals of Buddhism and everyday common sense to craft profound teachings that will not only make you smile, but also show you that life can be better with practice.  
 

-Dhammapida Konin Cardenas, a nun in the Theravada Forest Tradition in the West and in the Soto Zen Buddhist Tradition
 
Sensei Alex Kakuyo’s “Perfectly Ordinary: Buddhist Teachings for Everyday Life” goes to the heart of the Buddhist experience. Written by a former Marine who eventually became an American Buddhist minister, it is afield guide for the rest of us whose objective is to bring meaning to our own lives and the lives of others. Sensei Alex weaves his own experiences and the fundamental teachings of Buddhism into an easy-to-follow narrative that is both educational and entertaining.Semper Fi, Alex!   

-Ven. Shih Ying-Fa, Abbot of CloudWater Zendo, the Zen Center of Cleveland
 
Many books offer the Dhamma, but few are as accessible as “PerfectlyOrdinary.” Sensei Kakuyo has shown a compassionate thoughtfulness in his short passages, and sayings such as, “Nirvana exists on a spectrum,”shall stay with me on my own path. Read him cautiously and deeply.
 

-Jennifer Hawkins, Community Director of The Secular Buddhist Association

Perfectly Ordinary: Buddhist Teachings for Everyday Life is a rare treat. Alex