The Lyric Self offers a precise and thorough examination of Zen, based on classical and contemporary scholarly works as well as the author's personal experience.Eight themes that are common to the practice of Zen Buddhism and the poetry of E.E. Cummings are compared and explored, with an emphasis on their respective value to contemporary psychology and education.It is the premise of The Lyric Self that both Zen and Cummings' poetry are profoundly concerned with individual awareness, and that they both employ an unorthodox use of words to break through the static structures of conventional language and thought. Michael Buland Burns is a published poet and a retired professor of psychology from Concordia University in Irvine, California. He has taught graduate courses on the philosophy of education at California Lutheran University and has an extensive background in early childhood development, including work at Pacific Oaks school in Pasadena, California. He retains doctoral standing at Claremont Graduate School, where he majored in the philosophy of education with emphasis in Asian studies. Rima Snyder is a composer, singer, and sound editor. She has a BA in music from Pomona College and an MFA in music composition from the California Institute of the Arts. She writes music for small ensembles and for choir. She has done audio post production for radio documentaries, music, and arts features, and sound effects editing for film. This is her first book project. She lives in Culver City, California, with her husband and their Australian shepherd, Merlin.