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Koans |
The Zen practice of contemplating a question or statement, the answer to which transcends dualistic thinking |
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Green Koans Case 41: The Meaning of Suffering
CASE #41: The Meaning of SufferingShakyamuni asked, “What is wisdom?” and when no one could answer, added: “It is the ability to perfectly understand and patiently accept the truth of suffering.”BACKGROUND:Perfectly understand To understand a thing holistically, from beginning to end, rather than merely in terms of its parts—the latter constituting only knowledge.Patiently accept To accept without reservation—that is, without any attempt to alter the reality of a given phenomenon.The meaning of suffering Refers to the foundational teaching of Buddhism—the Four Noble Truths: More » -
Green Koans Case 39: The Great Natural Way
CASE #39: The Great Natural Way Masanobu Fukuoka once wrote: “The more the farmer increases the scale of his operation, the more his body and spirit are dissipated and the further he falls away from a spiritually satisfying life. A life of small-scale farming may appear to be primitive, but in living such a life, it becomes possible to contemplate the Great Way.” BACKGROUND: More » -
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No Words
You’ve said that you were once a poet who practiced Zen but over the years became a monk who practices poetry. Could you say more about this? My interest in Zen started in high school, but it wasn’t until I was in graduate school that I learned how to meditate. It was then that I met my teacher, Joshu Sasaki Roshi. I vividly remember my first sanzen [private interview] with him. He asked me, “What do you do?” I stupidly replied, “I’m a poet.” He laughed, rang his bell to dismiss me, and said, “You’ll never be a poet.” Soon after this exchange, Sasaki Roshi gave me a koan that took me several months to answer. When I did finally answer it—without the use of any words—he said, “Now you become poet!” More »
