"Zen Buddhism, as we know it today, began during the sixth century C.E. through the efforts of Bodhidharma, in his coming to China from India. It bloomed like a flower during the time of the sixth patriarch, Eno Daikan Zenji, and is now spreading all over the world. This is none other than a movement of cosmic energy.

The character that we pronounce as Zen is pronounced Ch'an in Chinese. In turn, this is a transliteration of the Sanskrit word dhyana. The difference among these three terms is not only in pronunciation, but in meaning as well. Dhyana literally means "deep, motionless meditation," not just physically but mentally still as well. When Buddhism was transmitted to China it became fused with the mentality and philosophy of the Chinese people. It evolved from an Indian metaphysical mind to a uniquely Chinese practical way of thinking. Through this synthesis, Buddhism was transformed into something different. Ch'an became more pragmatic, more dynamic, more "feet on the ground," as the saying goes.

When it came to Japan in the thirteenth century, it merged with samurai ethics and lifestyle and became known as Zen. Gradually, in time, it permeated Japanese culture and sunk deep into the very fabric of the nation. Now we are in the midst of it being transmitted to the West. Who knows what kind of Zen will develop in this country? It is my hope that in the decades to follow, Zen will become even more vital, alive and energetic, yet still keep its lucid stillness and elegance."

---Nail Implies Hammer, Eido T. Shimano Roshi

What is this sitting inside buildings made of dead trees? Is this all zen has become? breathing stale air? mortgages (mortgage, from: MORT=DEATH + GAGE=PLEDGE and so it means literally: A DEATH PLEDGE!!!!) and endless fund raising? what nonsense!

"It is futile effort to linger in thought over the action of a lighting bolt: when the sound of thunder fills the sky, you will hardly have time to cover your ears... Some people lower their heads and linger in thought, trying to figure it out with intellect. They hardly realize that they are seeing ghosts without number in front of their skulls." --from The Blue Cliff Record

The Buddha sat on kusha grass, attained enlightenment under the bodhi tree, continued to sit in bamboo groves...
the Ch'an people went out into the forests and cut down trees to build monasteries and thus began the period of schools and endless coercion, hierarchies and narrow approaches... 5 schools, 2 schools, NO MORE SCHOOLS!!! ... Nasty sophomoric types trying to maintain their authority through angry neurotic behavior? Don't fall for it!

Bodhidharma, The Bloodstream Sermon:

“If you envision a buddha, a dharma, or a bodhisattva and conceive respect for them, you relegate yourself to the realm of mortals. If you seek direct understanding, don’t hold on to any appearance whatsoever, and you’ll succeed. I have no other advice. The sutras say, ‘That which is free of form is the buddha.’ … The buddha is your own mind. Don’t misdirect your worship.”

“Buddha is the Sanskrit for what you call aware, miraculously aware. Responding, perceiving, arching your brows, blinking your eyes, moving your hands and feet, it’s all your miraculously aware nature. And this nature is the mind. And the mind is the buddha. And the buddha is the path. And the path is zen. But the word zen is one that remains a puzzle to both mortals and sages. Seeing your nature is zen. Unless you see your nature, it’s not zen…”

Tea ceremony? What a way to spoil a cup of tea! Just sit on a mat out under the stars and fix a cup of tea, enjoying it wholeheartedly! Or have some cowboy coffee fixed out over the campfire! What is all this artificiality and rigidity and cultural chauvinism? Ceremony and ritual is indicative of the loss of original mind! Just do it! Work within the context of your own cultural traditions! No need to import something extra!

From the **Record of the Dharma Treasure through the Generations**, the sayings of Wu-chu, a late 8th century transmission record:

One day when the master was drinking tea, thirty secretaries and imperial functionaries of the military government happened to come by for an audience. Having taken their seats, they inquired: "The Master has a great liking for tea." The master said: "it is so"." He then recited from the VERSES ON TEA;

"Luminous plants grow in dark valleys. Fit to be a catalyst for entering the path. Mountain Dwellers pick the leaves, And the exquisite flavor flows into the cups.

In the quietude it settles false thoughts, And the enlightened mind illuminates the platform of understanding. Without expenditure of human energy and strength, Immediately the Dharma gate swings open."

The secretaries at his point asked: "Why does the Master not teach people to read the sutras, practice Buddha-mindfulness, and engage in forms of worship? We disciples do not understand." The Master said: "I have realized the ultimate of nirvana, and I teach people to do likewise. I do not utilize the incomplete teachings of the Tathagata. I send around self-liberation in order to awaken novices. They are already people who have attained the true samadhi." Having finished speaking, the Master was stern and immobile. The secretaries and functionaries in unison said: "There has never been such a thing!"

“After Kakua visited the emperor he disappeared and no one knew what became of him. He was the first Japanese to study Zen in China, but since he showed nothing of it, save one note, he is not remembered for having brought Zen into his country. Kakua visited China and accepted the true teaching. He did not travel while he was there. Meditating constantly, he lived on a remote part of a mountain. Whenever people found him and asked him to preach he would say a few words and then move to another part of the mountain where he could be found less easily. The emperor heard about Kakua when he returned to Japan and asked him to preach Zen for his edification and that of his subjects. Kakua stood before the emperor in silence. He then produced a flute from the folds of his robe, and blew one short note. Bowing politely, he disappeared.” [from "101 Zen Stories", #68]

“The Rdzogs-chen (Great Perfection) is a branch of the Rnying-ma-pa (Ancient School), which flourished in Tibet and Tibetan-controlled areas during the late eighth and ninth centuries. The new Indian traditions that took hold in Tibet from the tenth century onward did not consider it a fully authentic expression of Buddhism. In fact, the orthodox scholastics of the new schools held that Rdogs-chen was utterly contaminated by the heretical teachings of Chinese Ch’an. Of the two Rdzogs-chen texts with Ch’an material, one is a recently discovered copy of a block print from eastern Tibet, and the other is a literary treasure (gter-ma), a well known genre of Tibetan literature. The latter purports to be an eighth century text hidden away in central Tibet and rediscovered in the fourteenth.”