What happened to Doggone? Zen koans (TED)

TED Ed; Doggone, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

Zen enso (zero)

(TED Ed) What's a koan? "Zen kōans: unsolvable enigmas designed to break your brain," explains Puqun Li.

Questions answered with animation: Let’s begin. How do we explain the inexplicable unexplainable?

What in the heck do I think I'm doing?

This question has inspired numerous myths, spiritual practices, religious rituals, and scientific inquiries.

But Zen Buddhists practicing throughout China from the 9th to 13th century asked a different question: Why do we need an explanation?

Puqun Li details the bewildering and ambiguous philosophical "thought experiments" these Buddhists called Zen kōans. More

• Zen kōans: unsolvable enigmas designed to break our brain

If it can't be done, don't do. Allow instead

I will kick Zen Meditation's ass.

Doggone (not to be in any way confused with Dōgen) thought he could muscle his way to "meditation" (zen, jhana, dhyana).

He had to find out the hard way, the American Zen way, that efforting is no way to arrive at the subtle, sublime, and effortless bliss of letting go and letting reality realize itself.

The ego is an illusion.

Ajahn Chah is very wise.

It only gets in the way since, ultimately-speaking, there is no self, no doer, nothing but ignorance (delusion, the opposite of enlightenment) that gets in the way of Truth.

Of course, try to tell that to Doggone. H*ll no! He's going to kick ass, achieve, attain, and win the stream of the wisdom, the Dharma, do-it-your-self-realization.

You'll see, you bunch of sitting sissies!

Yoga is easy when you've got the muscles for it...and core strength for Upward Facing Dog.