Tag Archives: Zen

No “There” There?

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Touch2Touch

Coming up dry for ideas, I had invited three improv challenges from blog viewers and received them in short order. My first two responses were On NOT Borrowing Trouble and Taking the Plunge. (As always, readers’ comments go beyond my posts … Continue reading →

Posted in Definitions, Etcetera, Flowers, Personal Essay, Quotes, Writers, Zen | Tagged , , , , | 35 Comments

ARE YOU AN EXPERT?

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Touch2Touch

Socrates was famous for, among other things, saying Gnothi Seauton. (He said it in Greek, because he was. If you are not, you may recognize it quicker as “Know Thyself.”) Recently John Weeren, in his always-interesting blog, About Zen, posted … Continue reading →

Posted in Challenge, Etcetera, Quotes, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , | 51 Comments

Plus or Minus?

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Touch2Touch

A thought for today: Knowledge is learning something every day. Wisdom is letting go of something every day. A Zen Proverb What will today bring?

Posted in Challenge, Definitions, Enlightenment, Etcetera, Quotes, Wisdom | Tagged , , , | 20 Comments

Enlightenment?

Posted on July 21, 2011 by Touch2Touch

Here’s another light to shine on the previous post, In Praise of Doubt. The conversation unfolding in the comments is lively, varied, and well worth eavesdropping on. Maybe you’d even like to to join in? Meanwhile, Roshi Kennedy’s perspective on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Doubt, Enlightenment, Etcetera, Mindfulness, Quotes, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

A Paradox, Now In Plain English —-

Posted on June 12, 2011 by Touch2Touch

Something’s been bothering me about my previous post — I think I haven’t been clear and direct enough. The post isn’t about the quote — nor is it really about spices. It’s about the grabbing and grasping and selfishness that’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Mindfulness, Photography, Quotes, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Paradox

Posted on June 10, 2011 by Touch2Touch

One may only get that which he is willing to let go of. The cool water of the running stream may be scooped up with open, overflowing palms. It cannot be grasped up to the mouth with clenching fists, no … Continue reading →

Posted in Mindfulness, Photography, Quotes, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Just-Sitting in the Desert

Posted on May 1, 2011 by Touch2Touch

The birds have vanished into the sky, and now the last cloud drains away. We sit together, the mountain and me, until only the mountain remains. —-  Li Po (Meditation has been a subject on sister blog A View from … Continue reading →

Posted in Desert, Etcetera, Nature, Photography, Poetry, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , , , | 11 Comments

On Paying Attention

Posted on April 11, 2011 by Touch2Touch

It seems like so little to do, doesn’t it? Just look. Just watch. Just pay attention. Of course it isn’t easy at all, nor is it little. It isn’t only in Zen that it’s one of the things that are … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry, Quotes, Wisdom | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Just Sitting Still —

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Touch2Touch

“You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, be quite still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Etcetera, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

Show Me Your Original Face (III)

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Touch2Touch

Third try at the challenge of this Zen koan, a kind of riddle with no logical answer: “Show me your original face!” Before you come up blank, and the Zen master rings his little bell and you’re out, a third … Continue reading →

Posted in Etcetera, Photography, Wisdom, Zen | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments