BOOK OF EQUANIMITY, case 9

[Kevin]

Nansen's cat is dead.

Long live Nansen's cat!

Gassho,
Kevin *slice!* Joko

[alan.r]

It's a war on war
It's a war on war
It's a war on war
There's a war on

You're gonna lose
You have to lose
You have to learn how to die...

You have to die
You have to die
You have to learn how die
if you wanna learn to be alive.

-from one of my favorite poets, Jeff Tweedy.

Cut the cut. Even still sometimes I miss that cat so much.

gassho,
a

[Thane]

Hi everyone

I too struggled with this koan. On first reading, it is shocking to me, with the violent act apparently described. However, Taigu, you point out that this is a sharp and witty way to point out dualistic thinking. That helps Although confusing this is what the koan said to me. The monks, could be me or anyone, are caught up in their opinions about right and wrong and fixing in their minds how the world should be through concepts and ideas. Nansen's challenge to them, is deliberately shocking, to make them think and shake them out of their/our nested enclosures. I think they could have said any word, shirt, food, sand, to make Nansen stop. The point was not to think it through, conceptualise it, just act? The next line really confused me when Joshu puts his sandals on his head. Is it another example , to shock us out of our cosy thinking? His actions again showing that there is no intellectual answer to this, and tries to show we have to live our practice and just be here in the moment? Hence why Nansen says he could have saved the cat, because he just responded and did not intellectulise the question put to him?

Well that's what it said to me. I think!

Gassho

Thane

[Gary]

Chop cat, carry sandals.

[Taigu]

Hi Gary ...

gassho


T.

[Hans]

Hello,


I'm in too much of a pseudo-poetry mood these days, which is why I will use a bit of intentionally blunt and slightly sexist prose this time.

When asked to act in a decisive way, the whole sangha failed. Long before the poor cat was cut in two, the members of that congregation had cut off their own balls. They probably kept them next to the out house. If the questions and the authority of an abbott paralyse you so much, best to burn that robe with the cat's corpse. Waking up has nothing to do with pleasing anyone. Scream at Nansen, kick him in the nuts, grab that cat whatever....just don't get stuck in the swamp of trying to please another.

When the going gets tough, the tough get going, or so they say.

One cat and loads of pussies.


Gassho,

Hans Chudo Mongen

[Jundo]

Hello,


I'm in too much of a pseudo-poetry mood these days, which is why I will use a bit of intentionally blunt and slightly sexist prose this time.

When asked to act in a decisive way, the whole sangha failed. Long before the poor cat was cut in two, the members of that congregation had cut off their own balls. They probably kept them next to the out house. If the questions and the authority of an abbott paralyse you so much, best to burn that robe with the cat's corpse. Waking up has nothing to do with pleasing anyone. Scream at Nansen, kick him in the nuts, grab that cat whatever....just don't get stuck in the swamp of trying to please another.

When the going gets tough, the tough get going, or so they say.

One cat and loads of pussies.


Gassho,

Hans Chudo Mongen

This pleases the Abbot.

Gassho, J

[Rich]

This is a living functioning reality. Do something, say something to help all beings live, which includes the cat and yourself.

[RichardH]

Ha...was already going to post this, but now it looks like a bid to please the Abbot.



...Then, just as Nansen was about to draw his blade across the frightened cat, the thickest monk in the room stood up and said. "Master, put down the cat. We will bicker this morning , then go for our midday meal.... you can have a nap". Nansen complied without a thought.


Gassho.

[Rich]

We are often like the monks. Stuck, not knowing what to do or say. Stuck in our ego or fear. Between a rock and a hard place. How do we deal with this? How can we live with this? Examine this in the present moment. Sometimes action is non action.

[Mp]

Hello,


I'm in too much of a pseudo-poetry mood these days, which is why I will use a bit of intentionally blunt and slightly sexist prose this time.

When asked to act in a decisive way, the whole sangha failed. Long before the poor cat was cut in two, the members of that congregation had cut off their own balls. They probably kept them next to the out house. If the questions and the authority of an abbott paralyse you so much, best to burn that robe with the cat's corpse. Waking up has nothing to do with pleasing anyone. Scream at Nansen, kick him in the nuts, grab that cat whatever....just don't get stuck in the swamp of trying to please another.

When the going gets tough, the tough get going, or so they say.

One cat and loads of pussies.


Gassho,

Hans Chudo Mongen

Hans ...

Your pseudo-poetry mood is beauty ... wonderful!

Gassho
Michael

[galen]

My take is that all the monks were so caught up in their intellectual games, searching for that one magic word that would impress Nansen. So, they cut the cat just as much as Nansen. Instead, like Andy said, the best "speech" would have been rushing forward and grabbing the damn cat out of his hands! No intellectualization, just direct action. Save the cat by saving the cat, not with empty words.

I dunno!

Matt..... does that save the damn cat?

[Kaishin]

Matt..... does that save the damn cat?

I dunno!

Show me your speech.

[galen]

Thank you Taigu.


Just stay with the cut.

As there could have been a shout to cut, there could have been a shout to not cut.

Just stay with the cut.. infinitely. No indecision decision. No judgement by the mirror of projection, judgement.

Totally immersion into the cut seemingly Is the Way. The rest is thinking and not breathing. To cut or not to cut, to speak or not to speak. Nothing is needed... just be the cut!


Now getting back to my projection.........




galen

[Kaishin]

P.S. Welcome to Treeleaf, galen! Please do take a moment to share a bit about yourself with everyone (if you haven't already, I might have missed it): http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...ew-folks-(July)
_/\_