The Koan Brothers
@thekoanbrothers.bsky.social
On the path of Rinzai Zen
#rinzai #zen #bodhidharma #buddhism #hakuin
#rinzai #zen #bodhidharma #buddhism #hakuin
"When sitting in Zazen, I become nothing, and everything becomes nothing.
That is to say, I and everything melt into one. So when I see a flower, the flower is I. When I see the moon, the moon is I. All things become I. There is no greater love than this."
- Yamada Mumon Roshi
That is to say, I and everything melt into one. So when I see a flower, the flower is I. When I see the moon, the moon is I. All things become I. There is no greater love than this."
- Yamada Mumon Roshi
April 2, 2025 at 11:23 AM
"When sitting in Zazen, I become nothing, and everything becomes nothing.
That is to say, I and everything melt into one. So when I see a flower, the flower is I. When I see the moon, the moon is I. All things become I. There is no greater love than this."
- Yamada Mumon Roshi
That is to say, I and everything melt into one. So when I see a flower, the flower is I. When I see the moon, the moon is I. All things become I. There is no greater love than this."
- Yamada Mumon Roshi
Practice doesn’t mean that you have to manifest continuity like a string connecting beads — you just have to become each bead, in each moment.
March 5, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Practice doesn’t mean that you have to manifest continuity like a string connecting beads — you just have to become each bead, in each moment.
All beings are primarily Buddhas,
Like water and ice,
There is no ice apart from water,
There are no Buddhas apart from beings.
- Hakuin Ekaku, Song of Zazen
March 5, 2025 at 8:37 AM
All beings are primarily Buddhas,
Like water and ice,
There is no ice apart from water,
There are no Buddhas apart from beings.
- Hakuin Ekaku, Song of Zazen
Zen Master Myocho:
February 25, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Zen Master Myocho:
How is that I am only today
realizing the striking similarity
between the words
Confucian
and
Confusion
?
realizing the striking similarity
between the words
Confucian
and
Confusion
?
February 23, 2025 at 2:26 PM
How is that I am only today
realizing the striking similarity
between the words
Confucian
and
Confusion
?
realizing the striking similarity
between the words
Confucian
and
Confusion
?
"The Niō (Vajrapani) is a menacing God. He wields the kongōsho (vajra) and he can crush your enemies. Depend on him, pray to him that he will protect you as he protects the Buddha. He vibrates with energy and spiritual power which you can absorb from him in times of need."
Suzuki Shosan
Suzuki Shosan
February 17, 2025 at 8:09 PM
"The Niō (Vajrapani) is a menacing God. He wields the kongōsho (vajra) and he can crush your enemies. Depend on him, pray to him that he will protect you as he protects the Buddha. He vibrates with energy and spiritual power which you can absorb from him in times of need."
Suzuki Shosan
Suzuki Shosan
The mummy of the Sixth Patriarch, who died 1300 years ago, is still intact.
It is kept in Nanhua Temple in northern Guangdong).
It is kept in Nanhua Temple in northern Guangdong).
February 14, 2025 at 7:52 PM
The mummy of the Sixth Patriarch, who died 1300 years ago, is still intact.
It is kept in Nanhua Temple in northern Guangdong).
It is kept in Nanhua Temple in northern Guangdong).
"Zen without the accompanying physical realization is empty discussion."
- Omori Sogen Roshi
- Omori Sogen Roshi
February 8, 2025 at 6:22 PM
"Zen without the accompanying physical realization is empty discussion."
- Omori Sogen Roshi
- Omori Sogen Roshi
Not today, Nansen! Not today.
February 7, 2025 at 8:17 AM
Not today, Nansen! Not today.
"It goes without saying that the method of melting the ice of our egos into water, as they originally are, lies in samadhi."
Omori Sogen Roshi
Omori Sogen Roshi
February 3, 2025 at 5:45 PM
"It goes without saying that the method of melting the ice of our egos into water, as they originally are, lies in samadhi."
Omori Sogen Roshi
Omori Sogen Roshi
The great matter is achieved in the same way that a red-finned carp butting its way upstream plunges through the hundred leagues of black-cloud barriers blocking off the Dragon Gate* to become a dragon.
- Hakuin, in a letter to priest Rempo of Keirin-ji
* Longmen waterfalls of the Yellow River
- Hakuin, in a letter to priest Rempo of Keirin-ji
* Longmen waterfalls of the Yellow River
February 1, 2025 at 10:22 AM
The great matter is achieved in the same way that a red-finned carp butting its way upstream plunges through the hundred leagues of black-cloud barriers blocking off the Dragon Gate* to become a dragon.
- Hakuin, in a letter to priest Rempo of Keirin-ji
* Longmen waterfalls of the Yellow River
- Hakuin, in a letter to priest Rempo of Keirin-ji
* Longmen waterfalls of the Yellow River
Every breath is an opportunity to slow down, release tension and change one’s state of mind.
What is your breath practice?
What is your breath practice?
January 31, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Every breath is an opportunity to slow down, release tension and change one’s state of mind.
What is your breath practice?
What is your breath practice?
There is no special principle in the study of the way; it's only necessary to see and hear directly. Directly seeing, there is no seeing; directly hearing, there is no hearing. You must fuse inside and outside into one solid, thoroughly peaceful state before you can do this.
Shido Bunan
Shido Bunan
January 16, 2025 at 8:20 AM
There is no special principle in the study of the way; it's only necessary to see and hear directly. Directly seeing, there is no seeing; directly hearing, there is no hearing. You must fuse inside and outside into one solid, thoroughly peaceful state before you can do this.
Shido Bunan
Shido Bunan
Fudo Myo-o, one of the five Lords of Light, holds the Sword of Wisdom in one hand and the Rope of Discipline in the other, well equipped to guide the spiritual traveler past temptation on the path to enlightenment.
January 15, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Fudo Myo-o, one of the five Lords of Light, holds the Sword of Wisdom in one hand and the Rope of Discipline in the other, well equipped to guide the spiritual traveler past temptation on the path to enlightenment.
Which mudra were you taught to use in Zazen?
The "dhyana mudra" seen in the Hakuin artwork below, or the "thumb in fist" mudra attributed to Bodhidharma.
The "dhyana mudra" seen in the Hakuin artwork below, or the "thumb in fist" mudra attributed to Bodhidharma.
January 14, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Which mudra were you taught to use in Zazen?
The "dhyana mudra" seen in the Hakuin artwork below, or the "thumb in fist" mudra attributed to Bodhidharma.
The "dhyana mudra" seen in the Hakuin artwork below, or the "thumb in fist" mudra attributed to Bodhidharma.
The snake symbolizes transformation, insight, and wisdom.
2025 is the year of the snake.
Embrace it!
January 6, 2025 at 5:18 PM
The snake symbolizes transformation, insight, and wisdom.
2025 is the year of the snake.
Embrace it!
There are many ways of cultivating ki, such as yoga, qigong, and tai chi. However, the ideal way to cultivate the all-embracing ki that informs our entire being is through zazen.
- Shodo Harada Roshi
- Shodo Harada Roshi
January 4, 2025 at 9:10 AM
There are many ways of cultivating ki, such as yoga, qigong, and tai chi. However, the ideal way to cultivate the all-embracing ki that informs our entire being is through zazen.
- Shodo Harada Roshi
- Shodo Harada Roshi
crystal covered fields
heading south, a rabbit leaps
out of the briars
December 29, 2024 at 7:16 PM
crystal covered fields
heading south, a rabbit leaps
out of the briars
I received my very own Mokugyo today! It served for what looks like decades in a Buddhist temple in Nakano, Tokyo.
Chanting while doing Mokugyo is a whole different ballgame. Helps me be more in the body and less in the mind.
Chanting while doing Mokugyo is a whole different ballgame. Helps me be more in the body and less in the mind.
December 5, 2024 at 7:35 PM
I received my very own Mokugyo today! It served for what looks like decades in a Buddhist temple in Nakano, Tokyo.
Chanting while doing Mokugyo is a whole different ballgame. Helps me be more in the body and less in the mind.
Chanting while doing Mokugyo is a whole different ballgame. Helps me be more in the body and less in the mind.
This is why we do Zazen.
November 20, 2024 at 6:26 PM
This is why we do Zazen.