Zen Talking

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/famous_cases

Post Summary:

Cases that frequently address modern misconceptions about Zen.

Zen Teaching:

Post Cast Overview: Absolutely no Zen background… what about the violence? What about enlightenment? What about...

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/11i4yik/what_did_vimalakirti_say/

Post Summary:

This is the 48th case from Wansong's Book of Serenity,

Vimalakirti asked Manjusri, "What is a Bodhisattva's method of entering nonduality?" Manjusri said, "According to my mind, in all things, no speech, no explanation, no direction and no representation, leaving behind all questions and answers—this is the method of entering nonduality." Then Manjusri asked Vimalakirti, "We have each spoken. Now you should say, good man, what is a Bodhisattva's method of entry into nonduality?" Vimalakirti was silent.

-So many people have commented on this case, including Wansong, Tiantong, Xuedou, Yuanwu, Baofu Congzhan, Langya Jiao, Tianyi Yihuai, Baiyun Duan, Yangqi, Dahui, HuangBo, and Dongshan Chu. Why?

Zen Teaching: Wansong's Book of Serenity, translated by Cleary

Post Cast Overview: Why? So much… I just can't even. Entrances. Questions. Answers. Dongshan.

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/z8jssd/can_anyone_explain_wumens_quote/

Post Summary: Wumen's Rule #2: https://www.reddit.com//r/zen/wiki/warnings

Doing what you like in every way is heresy and being among the devil's army.

Zen Teaching: Wumen's Checkpoint, aka the Gateless Barrier or Gateless Gate.

Post Cast Overview: (under construction)

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/11b8tog/nondiscriminatory_discriminating/

Post Summary:

You must find the nondiscriminatory mind without departing from the discriminating mind; find that which has no seeing or hearing without departing from seeing and hearing.

Zen Teaching: Dahui's Original Shobogenzo, Foyan from Instant Zen

Post Cast Overview: Discrimination, chair as object, preferences, life death chocolate. Not sticking to your teeth and lips. Breakfast. Huangbo. Where's my lemon.

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/11behbs/what_zen_master_would_you_most_want_to_meet/

Post Summary: What Zen Master would you want to meet?

Zen Teaching: the Zen Canon starting with Get Started

Post Cast Overview: Easy question to answer? Some people can't. Thich Hahn. Ikkyu was icky. Who is your first choice? Why? What about the precepts? What can you get away with? Who is your second choice?

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/4us6c3/blyths_translation_of_faith_in_mind/

Post Summary:

Remaining in movement or quiescence, How shall you know the One? Not thoroughly understanding the unity of the way Both (activity and quiescence) are failures. If you get rid of phenomena, All things are lost; if you follow after Void, You turn your back on the the selflessness of things.

Zen Teaching: Faith in Mind, Blyth trans. There are a couple dozen translations out there under the title Faith in Mind, Trust in Mind, even The Trusting Mind (as I recall)

Post Cast Overview:

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://old.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/116v10p/the_revenge_of_zhaozhous_tree/

Post Summary:

Master Zhaozhou said,

This matter is clearly evident - even immeasurably great people can't get out of here.

When I went to Guishan, I saw a monk ask, "What is the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West?" Guishan said, "Bring me a chair." If one is a real Chan master one has to deal with people on the basis of one's own state.

At that time a certain monk asked, "What is the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West?"

Zhaozhou said, "The cypress tree in the yard."

The monk said, "Don't use objects to teach people."

Zhaozhou said, "I'm not using objects to teach people."

"So what is the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West?"

"The cypress tree in the yard."

Later Fayan asked Master Guangxiao Jiao, "Where have you come from most recently?"

Jiao said, "Zhaozhou."

Fayan said, "I hear Zhaozhou has a saying, the cypress tree in the yard. Is this so?"

Jiao said, "No."

Fayan said, "Everyone who passes through here says a monk asked Zhaozhou what the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West is, and Zhaozhou said, The cypress tree in the yard. How can you deny this?

Jiao said, "The late teacher really said no such thing. Please don't slander the late teacher."

Zen Teaching: Recorded Sayings of Joshu (Zhaozhou)

Post Cast Overview: three people test

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/10sebu9/antimasters/

Post Summary:

I was thinking about how to characterize Zen texts by saying the main thing the texts were against. I don't think there's a right answer, but there are answers that aren't really reasonable.

1. Zhaozhou - anti philosophy
2. Huangbo - anti Buddhism
3. Foyan - anti-teachers
4. Wumen - anti noobs
5. Yuanwu - anti lazy
6. Wansong - anti ignorance
7. Mingben - anti- conceptual

Zen Teaching: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

Post Cast Overview: Against authority, what is authority, do Masters have authority? Do Buddhas? What is rank, bridging the cultural gap, bridging enlightenment. Pho versus ignorance.

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/10xfaeg/zen_under_the_gun_just_the_hits_please/

Post Summary:

Daian (1347-1403)

We are at the end, and it's Daian's poetry. He does the traditional thing (unlike Wumen) and includes only one body blow per poem.

Here are the blows from three poems, minus the poems:

If not for my dharma-nephew, how would I open my old mouth to discuss it?

.

In the treasury, the light of the wish-granting jewel is shining bright;

Pick it up and it melts away everyone's doubts.

.

Well... it's hard to show this one without context:

In an empty house, gazing like a wall

Speaking or silent, never setting foot in the city streets

Just bringing up the seal of the patriarchs

before my own mental impulses start working

Following the secret spirit talisman the Zen patriarchs wore

In the mirror, my beard, a thousand snow-white strands

At the corner of the bench, a rattan cane, seven feet of black

My only fear is that a summons will arrive from on high

With an imperial grant of a golden robe to chase me to court

Zen Teaching: Zen Under the Gun, Cleary trans.

Post Cast Overview: Talismans… worn on the elbow, what about the seal? Huangbo's warrior jewel, buddha born with wheel mark on his hand, used wheel metaphor to describe causality, people use wheel talisman's to ward off bad luck. Amulets that hold written blessings from priest. Getting old versus getting famous. What it means to get a call from an Emperor.

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted

r/zen is a reddit forum about Zen scholarship, study, and practice.

Reddit Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/110vec7/zen_under_the_gun_why_bother/

Post Summary:

Daian (1347-1403)

The Natural Real Buddha (A verse to a Buddhist layman:)

The true self in every person is the natural real buddha. Through every hour of the day and night it is always emitting light.

If you can manage to see it personally as you lift your eyebrows,

Why bother making special trips all over to pay your respects

to Zen masters?

Zen Teaching: Zen Under the Gun, Cleary trans.

Post Cast Overview:

Zen Lineage: www.reddit.com/r/zen/wiki/getstarted