Since its original publication in 1953, Zen in the Art of Archery has become one of the classic works on Eastern philosophy, the first book to delve deeply into the role of Zen in philosophy, development, and practice of Eastern martial arts. Wise, deeply personal, and frequently charming, it is the story of one man's penetration of the theory and practice of Zen Buddhism.Eugen Herrigel, a German professor who taught philosophy in Tokyo, took up the study of archery as a step toward the understanding of Zen. Zen in the Art of Archery is the account of the six years he spent as the student of one of Japan's great Zen masters, and the process by which he overcame his initial inhibitions and began to look toward new ways of seeing and understanding. As one of the first Westerners to delve deeply into Zen Buddhism, Herrigel was a key figure in the popularization of Eastern thought in the West, as well as being a captivating and illuminating writer.

奥根·海立格尔，1884年3月20日，生于德国。1913年，获海德堡大学哲学博士学位，此后数年，在第一次世界大战期间从军。1922年，任海德堡大学讲师。1924—1929年，远赴日本，任东京大学讲师，讲授哲学及古典语文学。1929年之后，任埃朗根大学教授。1930年，获得日本东京大学博士学位。1951年起，隐居于德国加米施。1955年4月18日，因肺癌逝世。主要著作有：《拉斯克（Eugen Herrigel）文集》、《原质料和原形相》（Urstoff und Urform）、《形而上学的形相》（Metaphysische Form）、《箭术与禅心》（Zen in der Kunst des Bogenschiessens），遗稿有《禅之路》（Der Zen-Weg）等。