Episode Description: This third teisho of the summer sesshin explores Case 17 in the Book of Equanimity. Hogen’s: "If there only is a hairsbreadth of difference, it is the distance between heaven and earth."    Henry discusses notions of heaven, the tiny size of a “hair’s breadth” and the concept of separation.  Drawing on his wide knowledge of the Chinese Zen Masters, he tells stories of Nansen, Echu, Sosan,  Hogen and Jizo; and he quotes humorous yet insightful commentary by Koun Yamada, all to explore the apparent dichotomies of heaven and earth, of emptiness and form, and how the arising of a single thought gives birth to the myriad things. In closing Henry stresses the importance of continuous practice without attachment to experience, a steady practice that helps us over time to become more and more settled in who we really are.

Post Image Credit: Form ist Leere, by Hartwig HKD, CC BY-ND 2.0.

Featured Image Credit:  Deep Meditation, by Hartwig HKD, CC BY-ND 2.0.