Aug 19 – 25

Phenomena  of superficial samsara don’t exist — yet appear! Great Wonder! 

– Milarepa, Drinking the Mountain Stream

Announcement

Retreat! On 2012 Sep 27-30, Zen Teacher Valerie Forstman will be leading a retreat at the Gainesville Retreat Center. More info at the Retreats page.

Practice Meetings

Tuesday Aug 21, 8:30am
Friday Aug 24, 7:00pm

This Week’s Reading

Thich Nhat Hanh, Old Path While Cloud, Chapter 8, “The Jeweled Necklace”.

This Week’s Koan

Blue Cliff Record #44: “Kasan’s Beat the Drum”

Kasan, giving instruction, said,

“Practicing and learning — it is called ‘hearing’ (mon); completing learning — it is called ‘being next to the fact’ (rin).

When you have passed through these two, it is called ‘true passing’ (shinka).”

A monk stepped forward and asked, “What is the ‘true passing’?”

Kasan said, “Beat the drum.”

He asked again, “What is the true Reality?”

Kasan said, “Beat the drum.”

He asked again,

“I do not ask about the sentence, ‘Mind itself is Buddha.’ What does ‘Neither Mind nor Buddha’ mean?”

Kasan said, “Beat the drum.”

He asked once more,

“When someone who knows the ultimate Truth comes, how should we receive him?”

Kasan said, “Beat the drum!”

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