Kensho: The Heart of ZenKensho is the transformative glimpse of the true nature of all things. It is an experience so crucial in Zen practice that it is sometimes compared to finding an inexhaustible treasure because it reveals the potential that exists in each moment for pure awareness free from the projections of the ego. Among the traditional Zen works are a number of important texts focusing on the profound subtleties of this essential Zen awakening and the methods used in its realization. The selections here are taken from: • Straightforward Explanation of the True Mind, by Korean Zen teacher Chinul (1158-1210), which provides the contextual balance needed to understand kensho by relating it to the broader teachings of the Buddhist scriptures and treatises. • Several works by Japanese Zen master Hakuin (1786-1769), whose teachings emphasize the techniques used in the cultivation and application of kensho and the importance of going beyond the experience itself to apply Zen insight to the full range of human endeavors. • The Book of Ease, a Chinese koan collection from the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, with commentary showing the practical dimension of classical koan practice. The translator provides extensive introductory notes and detailed commentary on each of the selections to help the reader understand the inner meaning of this essential experience of Zen. |
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Common terms and phrases
absolute ancient asked attain awakening birth and death Bodhidharma Buddha-nature Buddhas and Zen Buddhist causality Ch'an Chao-chou Chinul Chögyam Trungpa coarse manifestation cognition of equality complete enlightenment confused cultivation deluded mind direct perception doctrine Dogen eighty-four thousand leagues Ekayana empty enlightenment essence essential nature experience eyes faith fifty minor aeons Five Ranks flowers forty-two Ganges forty-two Ganges Rivers four cognitions Ganges Rivers grains of sand Hakuin inherent insight kensho knowledge koans Kuei-feng Lin-chi Lotus of Truth lunar eclipses Manjushri means mental mindlessness nirvana nonduality noumenon objects pass patriarch practical cognition principle Pure Name Scripture reality realization realm refers sages scripture scripture says seeker seventh consciousness Shariputra shine sitting spiritual stopping delusion storage consciousness substance and function subtle function subtle substance T'ien-t'ung teacher teaching Tendai things thirty-six Ganges Rivers Thomas Cleary thoughts tion transcendence true mind understanding universal mirror cognition verse Wan-sung says Zen masters
References to this book
Being and Becoming: Psychodynamics, Buddhism, and the Origins of Selfhood Franklyn Sills No preview available - 2008 |