I see many koans as nondual test prep. They flip a coin and if you are stuck seeing heads or tails (yes/no, good/bad, dark/light, self/other, past/future, real/dream, teacher/student, speech/silence, enlightened/diluted, knowledge/confusion, etc) you get nowhere fast. When you see the coin for what it is everything makes perfect sense

Ten hot minutes on the truth about koans. They are not irrational. They can be talked about and even understood. Thank you, Brad! I will now go read NIshijima's book on the Shijni Shobogenzo.

Hi Brad! I am a new subscriber and a new student to Buddhism. according to my teacher, I’m almost ready for Kai Sambo. i’m very excited I found your channel, you speak very much like my teacher. Look forward to getting and reading all your books! ❤️ P.S. you also have a new Patreon subscriber too! 😃

A video on the four philosophies would be great!

My favourite koan in Soto Zen: “Sit Down And Shut Up”.

Thanks 🌼 😊 Blessings from 🇦🇪( UAE) Blessings 🌷 🌷 🌷

Koans seem to deal with the delusion of separation between the knower (us) and the known (the other stuff) - or the observer and the observed (subject and object). At best the doubt that it creates in our mind may lead to exhaustion and surrender - this Psychological death being an Ah haa moment.

Hornswaggle! I'm adding that to my lexicon. ^^ And I actually misheard you the first time and I thought you said 'word swaddle', to which I burst out laughing. ^^ So my personal dictionary has 2 new entries. Thank you for that!

Thanks for this video! If I remember correctly, I thought the biography of Dōgen in the Tanahashi translation said that he had studied and excelled at “koan practice” but didn’t reach his goal so he continued searching and went to China. At any rate, thanks for the video and I am increasingly more interested in working with koans in the way you are talking about.

The master, who looks down to the ford, observes: Sometimes there are people, but no objects. Sometimes there are no people, but objects. Sometimes there are people and objects. Sometimes there are neither people nor objects. (--> Classic model of the "four senctences") The scene for "basic modes of sense-making" being set, one can, in principle, file certain public cases accordingly; and one can perform regulated improvisations. Some special "trick-moves" are also ready at hand: snatch away/aleanate/let (re)appear, de(con)struct/(re)construct, invert, contrast, negate, negation-negation-...-loops, (quasi-)repetitions, sudden changes of register, perspectives, and roles, and so forth. By courtesy of Master Rainzai, also featuring in the "Rinzai-roku".

A plug for the "discussion style" approach of working with koans, Dave Cuomo leads a Sit & Koan Discussion for ACZC on Wednesday Nights, 7:30 PM Pacific - I think you just need to contact ACZC to get the Zoom link (aczc.org)

I'm very glad to here koans talked about in this manner. In many zendos and groups around this wonderful country, koans are treated like they have no right answer and can be interpreted like Daido Loori did. At times, I think this is done this very way to keep the concept of the teacher in control of the situation and lead the student to an answer that is acceptable to the teacher; and, the teacher may not even have a clue either. It's very frustrating.

So much to like about this video. I also think the Loori(?) Commentary is annoying. I'd kill for a Nishijima translation. I find koans fascinating from a dramatic stand point. Since I'm reading them out loud to record them, I have to give each speaker a character, give them reasons to say what they say. It's challenging.

Does Dogen (or the Soto school) have an opinion on other "zen activities" done sincerely as meditation? (Like tea ceremony, flower arrangement, incense appreciation, shaolin, bonsai, gardening, landscape painting, rock gardening, etc etc, there are so many examples!)

"Sixty-nine, Dudes!" -- Bill and Ted "...inferior even to that of srāvakas of the Small Vehicle." Oof! That is another one of those statements about Theravada that I have trouble reconciling with my admiration and respect for Dōgen. I'm hoping it's just hyperbole, but yipes. By the way, you weren't kidding: Nishijima Roshi's book Master Dogen's Shinji Shobogenzo is very difficult to find.

So in Soto Zen, Koans are just straightforwardly explained?

That book is currently going for $130 used in Amazon 😲

Does Ziggy have buddha nature?