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Koan Talks
A kōan ( KOH-a(h)n; Japanese: 公案; Chinese: 公案; pinyin: gōng'àn [kʊ́ŋ ân]; Korean: 화두; Vietnamese: công án) is a story, dialogue, question, or statement from Chinese Chan Buddhist lore, supplemented with commentaries, that is used in Chan, Zen, Seon and Thiền Buddhist practice in different ways. The main goal of kōan practice in Zen is to achieve kenshō (Chinese: jianxing 見性), to see or observe one's buddha-nature.
Extended study of kōan literature as well as meditation (zazen) on a kōan is a major feature of modern Rinzai Zen. They are also studied in the Sōtō school of Zen to a lesser extent. In Chinese Chan and Korean Seon Buddhism, meditating on a huatou, a key phrase of a kōan, is also a major Zen meditation method.
| Title | Speaker | |
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Living Zen: Embodying Unity NowSerial: RB-00877 Sesshin Koan, Practice, Bowing |
Apr 02 1994 Crestone Zen Mountain Center |
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Entering Samantabhadra's Door EffortlesslySerial: RB-00876A Sesshin Practice, Koan, Practice Period |
Mar 26 1994 Crestone Zen Mountain Center |
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Obaku's Address to the MonksSerial: BZ-00628B There Are No Zen Teachers in This Realm, Sesshin Day 2 Obaku, Koan, Bell, Bowing, Dragons, Non-discrimination, Rinzai |
Sep 05 1993 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Participation and Poetry in the New TestamentSerial: NC-00061 Part of "Spirituality in a Secular World: Poetry and Wisdom" 3. Participation and Poetry in the New Testament Archival Photo OSB Cam, Enlightenment, Forgiveness, Conversation, Koan |
1993 3 of 4 New Camaldoli Hermitage |
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Hands, Horns, and Hidden Dragons Koan, Time, Pain |
Nov 23 1992 |
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Embracing Zen's Messy Truths Priest, Buddha Nature, Silence, Hate, Koan |
Nov 08 1992 |
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Zen in Everyday Life Unveiled Silence, Priest, Buddha Nature, Hate, Koan |
Nov 08 1992 |
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Embodied Zen: Beyond Words and Mind Koan, Meditation, Instruction |
Nov 06 1990 |
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Seeing Through the Gateless Path Doubt, Koan, Time |
Oct 15 1990 |
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Words, Action, and Dharma's Dance Faith, Karma, Koan |
Oct 08 1990 |
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Sun Faced Buddha/Moon Faced BuddhaSerial: BZ-00505A Saturday Lecture Buddha, Koan, Subject-and-Object, Buddha Nature, Constancy, First Principle, Observe... |
May 19 1990 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Zendo Talk Practice, Koan, Buddha |
Nov 22 1989 Unknown |
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Mumonkan Case #25 Buddha, Koan, Time |
Oct 03 1989 Unknown |
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Awakening Through Huineng's Koan Practice, Koan, Zazen |
Sep 11 1989 Green Gulch Farm |
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Transcending Duality Through Zen Paradoxes Daily Life, difficulty, Koan |
Sep 11 1989 |
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Five-day Sesshin Koan, Suzuki Roshi, Buddha |
Aug 30 1989 Unknown |
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Beyond Duality: Unveiling the Original FaceSerial: SF-04067 Duplicate Practice, Zazen, Koan |
Aug 11 1989 Green Gulch Farm |
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Mind Refresher CakesSerial: BZ-00376A Sesshin Day 1 Koan, Deshan, Dragons, Lineage, Gratitude, Passions |
Jun 21 1989 Berkeley Zen Center |
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June 12th, 1988, Serial No. 00299Serial: BZ-00299 Sunday Lecture Ordinary Mind, Doubt, Attachment, Koan, Daily Life, Intuition, Soto Zen, confusion,... |
Jun 12 1988 |
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Genjokoan ISerial: BZ-01501B Sesshin lecture Anger, Attachment, Birth-and-Death, Heart Sutra, Koan, Observe, Sixth Patriarch, Soto... |
Jun 03 1987 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Zen Mind, Peaceful Presence Bodhidharma, Koan, Tozan, Peace, Composure |
Sep 07 1986 |
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Blue Cliff Record Case #3: Sun Face Buddha, Moon Face BuddhaSerial: BZ-00409A Saturday Lecture Buddha, Koan, BCR-3, Buddha Nature, Commitment, Cultivation, First Principle, Greed,... |
Feb 02 1985 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Engaging Directly with Suffering Greed, Hate, Koan, Vow |
Apr 10 1984 |
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Awaken to Each Present Moment Koan, Non-discrimination, Practice Period, Thich Nhat Hanh |
Feb 01 1984 |
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Camaldolese HistorySerial: NC-00515 Camaldolese History Class. Conference #1 (Dec 7, 1983) & Conference #2 (Dec 14, 1983) OSB Cam, War, Study Period, Politics, Lineage, Koan |
Dec 07 1983 1 of 6 New Camaldoli Hermitage |
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The First Grave Precept: Not Killing Precepts, Peace, Koan |
Aug 04 1983 City Center |
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Unveiling Christ in Sacred TextsSerial: NC-00398 Monastic Theology Series Set 1 of 3 Thoroughness, Patience, Realization, Pain, Koan |
Apr 14 1983 |
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Blue Cliff Record Case #43: How Can We Avoid Heat and Cold?Serial: BZ-00006B Saturday Lecture BCR-43 Koan, Suffering, Pain, Anger |
Mar 05 1983 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Importance of Attention to Form in Zen PracticeSerial: BZ-00049B Sesshin Day 2 Koan, Shikantaza, Practice |
Feb 20 1983 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Mumonkan: Case #35 -- Seijo's Soul Separated: Unifying Body, Mind and the WaySerial: BZ-00046B Saturday Lecture MM-35
Koan, Work, Practice, Study |
Jan 22 1983 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Blue Cliff Record, Case #35: Manjushri's "3's" and "3's"; NondiscriminationSerial: BZ-00034A Saturday Lecture BCR-35
Non-discrimination, Koan, Manjushri, Practice, Buddhism |
Jul 03 1982 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Mumonkan Case #19: "Nansen's Everyday Mind is the Way"Serial: BZ-00036A Saturday Lecture MM-19
Nansen, Absolute-and-Relative, Koan, Practice, Ordinary Mind, Nansen |
Jun 26 1982 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Blue Cliff Record, Case #17: “Sitting Long and Getting Tired”Serial: BZ-00029B Sesshin Day 5 BCR-17
Composure, Zazen, Koan, Samadhi, First Principle, Time |
May 23 1982 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Effort, The Fourth Paramita (Virya): Blue Cliff Record: Case #44, "Beating the Drum"Serial: BZ-00009A Saturday Lecture
Virya, Koan, Practice, Buddha, Time |
Apr 24 1982 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Charismatic Leadership in Monastic LettersSerial: NC-00690 Monastic Spirituality Set 5 of 12 Instruction, Transmission, Letting Go, Demons, Koan |
Oct 21 1981 |
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Eternal Devotion: A Sacred ResponseSerial: NC-00697 Monastic Spirituality Set 4 of 12 Commitment, Mahayana, First Principle, Koan, Enlightenment |
Jun 11 1981 |
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Stability as Freedom's AnchorSerial: NC-00874 Monastic Spirituality Set 3 of 12 OSB Cam, Ceremony, Commitment, Koan, Vow |
Apr 24 1981 |
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Obedience and Redemption UnveiledSerial: NC-00795 Monastic Spirituality Set 2 of 12 OSB Cam, Hate, Koan, Liberation, Transmission |
Feb 18 1981 |
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Knowledge of God & Trinity Transmission, Emptiness, Buddhism, Lineage, Koan |
Feb 1981 4 of 14 |
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Sun-Faced Buddha, Moon-Faced BuddhaSerial: SR-00009 Sunday, March 9, 1969 Koan story of sun-faced buddha, moon-faced buddha. Practicing while well or while sick. Accepting what we don't like.... Baso, Koan, Blue Cliff Record, Attachment, Composure, Discrimination, difficulty,... |
Mar 09 1969 Sokoji |
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Bring Me The Rhinoceros FanSerial: SF-05086 ===== Awakening the Archive - Tape #21, by Shundo David Haye ===== For whatever reason, there are few talks existing from the summer of 1968. At... Koan, Freedom, Faith |
Jul 28 1968 Tassajara |
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Because I Was Not WellSerial: SF-05143A SR023 Track 1 Suzuki Roshi's afternoon sesshin 4-23-68 copied [there are also photographs of hand-written notes on missing portions of Q&A - per tape operator's... Sesshin, Koan, Ordinary Mind, Everyday Mind, Faith, Composure, Doubt, Religion... |
Apr 23 1968 A Tassajara |
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On Chanting, Sokei-AnSerial: SF-01131B Tape 4 copy 1 Time, Dharmakaya, Koan |
Mar 01 1966 Kyoto |
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On Chanting, Sokei-AnSerial: SF-01135 Tape 4 copy 2 - duplicate Time, Chanting, Koan |
Mar 01 1966 Kyoto |
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On Nanzenshi, Nanshin-KenSerial: SF-01136 Tape 1 copy 1 Time, Koan |
Feb 22 1966 Kyoto |
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Living the Koan Experience Delusion, Practice, Koan |
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Divine Being Beyond WordsSerial: NC-00212B Archival Photo Buddha, Koan, Buddhism, Lotus Sutra |
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Eliot's Timeless Dance of ParadoxSerial: NC-00834 1980s OSB Cam, Emotions, Emptiness, Koan, War |
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Being-Time: Uniting Self and Moment Doubt, Emptiness, Koan |
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