Joe et al... This is what I think of Yaoshan's comments below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Eqjttpl3peI <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Eqjttpl3peI> ...Bill! --- In [email protected], "Joe" <desert_woodworker@...> wrote: > > Group, > > Regarding the relative quietness here lately, I post a contribution that to me seems apropos, or appropriate to this situation. > > Old D.T. Suzuki introduced the West to much about Zen through his ESSAYS in the 1950s, and emphasized the Lin Chi, or Rinzai sect's teaching. > > This made all the Beats of the era (1950s) try to talk in riddles or quizzical and even disrespectful-sounding rejoinders to questions, or to make ridiculous-sounding assertions. > > Unfortunately, they had no practice under their belts, only Wine. > > They were aping only 1/5 of the remaining schools of Zen practice. > > Suzuki is not to be faulted; only the readers who read only as far as Suzuki, and who never practiced, are to be faulted. > > Here's a snippet from the record of a T'sao Tung (Soto, J.) Ch'an master, Yaoshan. > > Someone asked Master Yaoshan: > > "I'm not quite clear about what I'm doing, so please give me some instruction". > > Yaoshan said: > > "It isn't difficult for me to say something, but it's only good if you understand what I say just as soon as I finish saying it. If my words make you think further, it will be my mistake, so it's better if we both keep our mouths shut." > > --Joe >
