Koan study

[Snark]

Thank you all for your thoughts on koans. I don't actively use koans but I read a book a few months back which gave the instruction to use the question "who am i". I understand the possibly mystical idea of these questions and I am not into "mysticism". My practice is based around Shikantaza. But the question "who am I" finds its. way into my conscious thoughts many times each day. I am now able to approach my vanity, contempt, jealousy, etc. And I have the faith that I will become the person I believe I should be. I guess this is passive koan study.

Gassho,

dan.

[Jishin]

Thank you all for your thoughts on koans. I don't actively use koans but I read a book a few months back which gave the instruction to use the question "who am i". I understand the possibly mystical idea of these questions and I am not into "mysticism". My practice is based around Shikantaza. But the question "who am I" finds its. way into my conscious thoughts many times each day. I am now able to approach my vanity, contempt, jealousy, etc. And I have the faith that I will become the person I believe I should be. I guess this is passive koan study.

Gassho,

dan.

Jundo once told me to look at my driver's license to find out who I was when I was all wrapped up in emptiness questions such as who am I?

:-)

Gassho, Jishin, __/stlah\__

[Jishin]

Hi,

I am sorry if this has been asked before, or this in the wrong board.

I have been working with the question "who am I" for a few months now. Is anyone else working with a koan? If so how do you use them? Are you searching for an answer or set of answers? When is it time to move on?

Gassho,

dan.

From Zoolander:

https://youtu.be/TWFgNi_pUYs

:-)

Gassho, Jishin, __/stlah\__

[Rich]

I love their school of thought.

My only problem is the time spent on getting to "things are just as they are."

The time spent is gone forever on What is this? Don't know...

Gassho, Jishin, __/stlah\__

What is this? Is just a method towake you from your dream.
Time to waste?? There is no time

Sat

[Jakuden]

Koan study

What is this? Is just a method towake you from your dream.
Time to waste?? There is no time

Sat

Ha! Jishin’s statement and Rich’s reply gets to the heart of my own daily Koan. Thank you for the teaching guys!!

Deep Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Jishin]

What is this? Is just a method towake you from your dream.
Time to waste?? There is no time

Sat

Not 1 not 2.

If If I whack a what is master over the head he/she will wake up quickly to the fact that there is time and not just 1.

The time that it takes to completely drop 2 is wasted effort and this is the harmful part of koans, even the Korean ones, that I am talking about.

Gassho, Jishin, __/stlah\__

[Jishin]

Another way to look at the who am I question is the truth of the Heart Sutra.

Things have no bounderies yet a thinking thing with boundaries thinks about the Heart Sutra.

This is the fallacy of the Heart Sutra that is better addressed by not 1, not 2.

Gassho, Jishin, __/stlah\__

[Jundo]

Jishin,

If you write 4 posts but back to back ... each less than 3 sentences, not 1 not 2 ... is that a technical infraction of the "3 Sentence Rule"??

Always pushing boundaries and testing the rules, my friend, yes?

This is how we start with a simple rule, and need to cover exceptions until we have the IRS Tax Code!

Gassho, Jundo

STLah

[Jishin]

[emoji1][emoji120]

[Risho]

**Thank you to Rich, Jishin and other contributors to this post, and thank you Dan for asking this question (note: this is a meta-sentence to the thread and does not count as part of my 3 sentence limit lol)

In my humble opinion, the answer to this question is not what we say but what we do. Who are you? You show others and yourself by how you act, think, treat others and treat yourself. There is no answer, but the striving to answer that, adhere to the precepts (being a good human), getting better and better, refining over time with age like a fine wine is how we answer this koan; our practice is the answer to this question and, as long as you have a pulse, you will never stop working on this koan; it's how we engage with life.

Gassho

Risho
-stlah

[Rich]

Not 1 not 2.

If If I whack a what is master over the head he/she will wake up quickly to the fact that there is time and not just 1.

The time that it takes to completely drop 2 is wasted effort and this is the harmful part of koans, even the Korean ones, that I am talking about.

Gassho, Jishin, __/stlah\__

Ok thanks, i get it. You think koans are harmful.

I once felt the same

Sat

[Jundo]

**Thank you to Rich, Jishin and other contributors to this post, and thank you Dan for asking this question (note: this is a meta-sentence to the thread and does not count as part of my 3 sentence limit lol)

In my humble opinion, the answer to this question is not what we say but what we do. Who are you? You show others and yourself by how you act, think, treat others and treat yourself. There is no answer, but the striving to answer that, adhere to the precepts (being a good human), getting better and better, refining over time with age like a fine wine is how we answer this koan; our practice is the answer to this question and, as long as you have a pulse, you will never stop working on this koan; it's how we engage with life.

Gassho

Risho
-stlah

I'm sorry, I see no stated exceptions in the Code for "meta sentences" ....

... and your second paragraph both has a strange way of counting "4" as "3" and is an abuse of semi-colons!

"You show others and yourself by how you act, think, treat others [and so] the striving to [] adhere to the [Three Sentence Rule] is how we engage with life."

Gassho, J

STlah

[Snark]

**Thank you to Rich, Jishin and other contributors to this post, and thank you Dan for asking this question (note: this is a meta-sentence to the thread and does not count as part of my 3 sentence limit lol)

In my humble opinion, the answer to this question is not what we say but what we do. Who are you? You show others and yourself by how you act, think, treat others and treat yourself. There is no answer, but the striving to answer that, adhere to the precepts (being a good human), getting better and better, refining over time with age like a fine wine is how we answer this koan; our practice is the answer to this question and, as long as you have a pulse, you will never stop working on this koan; it's how we engage with life.

Gassho

Risho
-stlah

Risho, your humble opinion really hits the spot. The question "who am i" is the syntax of my conscience. Regardless.of my situation there is always a constant.

Gassho,

dan.

[Jundo]

Risho, your humble opinion really hits the spot. The question "who am i" is the syntax of my conscience. Regardless.of my situation there is always a constant.

Gassho,

dan.

Apparently SOMEBODY understands the meaning of the "Three Sentence Koan." You pass this one, Dan.

Gassho, J

STLah

[Risho]

Apparently SOMEBODY understands the meaning of the "Three Sentence Koan." You pass this one, Dan.

Gassho, J

STLah

hahahaahahhah