Koans

Post questions or suggestions here.
Steven Coyle

Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

What David and Kevin never discussed...

Koans!

http://perso.ens-lyon.fr/eric.boix/Koan ... index.html
Elizabeth Isabelle
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Re: Koans

Post by Elizabeth Isabelle »

Excellent source Steven; thank you.
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Kunga
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Re: Koans

Post by Kunga »

jufa
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Re: Koans

Post by jufa »

Is koan any different than sitting quietly with ones self, slowing down all thoughts until a vaccum where no conditions can exist is formed so Spirit can enter where the matter of thought is not?

Movement in meditation is thought, and a vaccum cannot occur where movement of thought matter is. Speaking of believing one can clap with one hand here - thought movement.

Never give power to anything a person believes is their source of strength - jufa
Elizabeth Isabelle
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Re: Koans

Post by Elizabeth Isabelle »

jufa wrote:Is koan any different than sitting quietly with ones self, slowing down all thoughts until a vaccum where no conditions can exist is formed so Spirit can enter where the matter of thought is not?
Obviously a koan involves active thinking, and was originally used as a test to see if a student was a good fit with a Master.

That is quite different from creating a vacuous mind and waiting for spirit to enter without being impeded by thought.
Gurucharan S. Khalsa wrote:It is good to keep an open mind, but not so open that one's brains fall out.
There are plenty of people out there already who have a vacuous mind. Here, we encourage thinking.
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Diebert van Rhijn
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Re: Koans

Post by Diebert van Rhijn »

A senior traveling monk called "Coiled Steve" walked into the Buddhist temple of Tiān Cái Lùn Tán. He noticed the renowned Patriarch Solway and Ch'an master Quinn standing at the entrance looking at the Ta-pao Mi-Lei-Fwo. He approached them and remarked:"Sirs, why is it that you never employ the known Koans?". There was no reply though and the two masters just kept gazing at the Ta-pao. After Steve left the Patriarch said to the Ch'an master the following words: "How to stimulate people's brains and wake them up from the sleep of concentrating on things like their breath or their mantra? How to force people to think instead of just sitting?"*

Ch'an master Quinn replied:"One can ever only simply offer an expression of emptiness, couched in words.*. It is the novelty and unexpectedness of the skilfully-introduced Koan which unsettles the mind and does its magic. *".

A nearby junior monk cleaning the floor hearing the words while casually eavesdropping suddenly attained great enlightenment.
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

The life is ever-lasting through the pledge of a bum sailor
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

the 11th finder is a gone rabbit through the eternal equinox
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

The funny lax is gone through to the funny max

;-)
Carmel

Re: Koans

Post by Carmel »

Sproing! the killjoy rabbit goes down the hole...
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

The will leaps from the under tack
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Kunga
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Re: Koans

Post by Kunga »

it will leap from underpants
Carmel

Re: Koans

Post by Carmel »

Kunga:
it will leap from underpants

Carmel:
! ...and that's why the Buddha laughs at us!
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Kunga
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Re: Koans

Post by Kunga »

Buddha is a Koanhead /\
(. .)
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

New discovery:

Translation of color during a dream teaches which psyche sub-strata the translation is from; last night's was from a friend's terminal.

Also of note, one can also receive sent messages from a person's underground.
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Pincho Paxton
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Re: Koans

Post by Pincho Paxton »

be bop alula she's my baby, calling her name is driving me crazy!
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

New discovery:

"Up what scan"
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

reason for ketchup: "inner ask"

reason for honey mustard: "inner m"

(too much leads to too much coffee)
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Pincho Paxton
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Re: Koans

Post by Pincho Paxton »

Butterfly venture powderwing explosion, parallels chaos through flapping causality.
Steven Coyle

Post by Steven Coyle »

The under division for the ability to keyword sum:

"I think, therefore I am" = latin to english "sum division calculation" = calculus sum total

(key "so there, so there what")
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Jamesh
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Re: Koans

Post by Jamesh »

Like the word "emptiness" in the context used by the QRS, most Koans should be redundant.

To me, they were more for a time when people did not have the massive informational resources now available, so certain prompters were needed to get people thinking more laterally and broadly than they otherwise would.

The idea of some buddha cretin judging monks answers to koans to determine the level of enlightenment troubles me a bit. I'd betcha the judgers were quite inconsistent, otherwise the trainee monks would just learn what answers had already been accepted and say them.
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

How to enter a shape:

The leslie is a man who divides into a cadillac
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

I just solved Alex's dilemma!
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

what an avacado is for: reality is already perfect
Steven Coyle

Re: Koans

Post by Steven Coyle »

You gutted me at the graveyard!
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