Read Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism

Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism

Albert Low

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Description:Because words can no more hold the truth than a net can hold water, we use koans. Koans are sayings, or doings, of Zen masters, the patriarchs and Buddha. Take for example the koan: The Sound of One Hand clapping. In its entirety it reads: “You know the sound of two hands clapping. What is the sound of one hand clapping?” The obvious, intellectual answer is, No sound at all! But then what is this No sound? In other words, is it just silence?If one is to work on this koan, indeed on any koan, one must demonstrate its meaning. Explanatory words - such as “the two hands represent duality, the one hand is unity” or “the sound of one hand is the sound of the true self” - are useless. A teacher of Zen would reject them out of hand, all the while demanding a real response. Words talk about true nature and, as it were, hold it at arm’s length. One must become the sound of one hand to be able to give a real response, and in this way see for oneself that the sound of one hand is the full expression of the master’s and one’s own awakened state.We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism. To get started finding Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
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ISBN: 0986631833

Description: Because words can no more hold the truth than a net can hold water, we use koans. Koans are sayings, or doings, of Zen masters, the patriarchs and Buddha. Take for example the koan: The Sound of One Hand clapping. In its entirety it reads: “You know the sound of two hands clapping. What is the sound of one hand clapping?” The obvious, intellectual answer is, No sound at all! But then what is this No sound? In other words, is it just silence?If one is to work on this koan, indeed on any koan, one must demonstrate its meaning. Explanatory words - such as “the two hands represent duality, the one hand is unity” or “the sound of one hand is the sound of the true self” - are useless. A teacher of Zen would reject them out of hand, all the while demanding a real response. Words talk about true nature and, as it were, hold it at arm’s length. One must become the sound of one hand to be able to give a real response, and in this way see for oneself that the sound of one hand is the full expression of the master’s and one’s own awakened state.We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism. To get started finding Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

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Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism

Working with Koans in Zen Buddhism

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