Chan / Seon / Zen

Law suit against reality, by Ken Jones

‘This’ versus ‘that’ is, I believe, the starting point for an understanding of Dogen. The theme that runs through the essays in his great collection the Shobogenzo is the unmasking of this delusive dualism, and demonstrating the Great Way of opening to a sense of duality which is freed of the self-neediness which drives dualism…

All The Keys, by Trevor Leggett

As enlightenment is approached keys to the locked rooms become available. At first it may take a good deal of courage to use even the smallest of them. Because the room has been locked we do not know what is in it and the mere fact that it has been locked seems to imply that what is in it, is terrible…

The Long Way Home, by Sun Shuyun

On my journey, I think I found the other side of Buddhism, predominately the role of the mind. Buddhism is not as criticised or attacked in the historical Marxist approach, the materialistic approach which maintains that the mind is really not important and that our material condition determines everything. Some of the monks in the monasteries laid down their lives to defend their faith…

Happiness in Solitude, by Beopjeong Sunim

Human existence is fundamentally about being alone. We’re born alone, live life as long as we can, and then eventually die alone. Although we may live our lives connected with others, we all maintain our own individual views and belief systems. Just as we each have different facial features, our individual karmic tendencies, which direct our lives, also differ…