Dialogues in a Dream Author:Muso Soseki Dialogues in a Dream is the first complete English translation of the Muchu Mondo, the best-known work of the eminent Japanese Zen master Muso Soseki (1275-1351). — Comprising ninety-three relatively short chapters, Dialogues in a Dream presents Muso's answers to questions on Buddhist thought and Zen meditation by the shogun Ashikaga Tadayoshi (1... more »306-1352). The book covers a variety of topics, ranging from the meaning of ritual, compassion, and enlightenment to the significance of landscape gardens in the practice of the Way. Written for lay followers rather than the ordained clergy, Dialogues in a Dream has been one of Japanese Zen's most popular and enduring works, remaining in print throughout the nearly seven hundred years since it was first published in 1344. This moderately sized volume testifies to Muso's skill as a teacher, honoring Buddhist and non-Buddhist doctrinal traditions yet consistently emphasizing Zen as a "separate transmission outside the scriptures."« less