Sublime

In the West, we learn mostly through explanations and specific instructions. In Zen and its arts, space is created for the process of discovery to take place. They are primarily taught through “body teaching.” The teacher becomes a tangible manifestation of the teachings.The students bring awareness to the moment and try to embody the example

The spiritual descendants of Huai-jang and Hsing-ssu live on today as the two principal schools of Zen in Japan, the Rinzai and the Soto. In the two centuries following the death of Hui-neng the proliferation of lines of descent and schools of Zen is quite complex, and we need do no more than consider some of the more influential individuals.24 The

As well as the multitasking that the universe seems to be so fond of, there is the thusness of common things, the way that, when you look at objects without prejudice, they seem to carry a brightness inside. There is a Tibetan meditation in which you imagine yourself to be that Bodhisattva of Great Mercy with all those arms—and eleven heads to

for the artist of shodo—whether in China, Japan or Korea—the traditional style of kanji is still used.

We have to kill off any notion we have that there is something to attain, something to hold on to, something special we can become once and for all. Enlightenment is not a “thing” we “get” from practice. Anything we think we’ve gotten—even if it’s made of gold—can only get in the way. Only when there is nothing and nobody left to obstruct it will

The first is the teaching of the Middle Way. The Buddha wanted his five friends to be free from the idea that austerity is the only correct practice.

However, an academic approach amounts to nothing more than examining the framework of Zen and speculating about it. It is not living Zen.

This koan resists the totalitarian impulse in spiritual paths.

Shobogenzo