{"id":4565,"date":"2017-08-09T17:21:00","date_gmt":"2017-08-09T21:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/?p=4565"},"modified":"2017-08-09T17:21:00","modified_gmt":"2017-08-09T21:21:00","slug":"buddhist-wisdom-living-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/2017\/08\/buddhist-wisdom-living-today.html","title":{"rendered":"Buddhist Wisdom for Living Today: Zen and Buddhism 101"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ZenAn unexpected book arrived in the mail the other day. A gift from my friend\u2019s at Wisdom Publications. Zen Master Raven: The Teachings of a Wise Old Bird.<\/em><\/a> by Zen Master human form, Robert Aitken.<\/p>\n

Here the koans are told by and to animals of the forest: raven, porcupine, owl, woodpecker, badger, black bear, and more. Master Raven is irreverent, mischievous, and obtuse much like traditional Zen masters.<\/p>\n

In the new forward by Nelson Foster, we learn that Aitken had some initial trouble getting this published. One might be able to appreciate why. Zen can be recondite and this collection, animals notwithstanding, is no exception. But if you can get past the entries that are inscrutable, there is much to mine here.<\/p>\n

Here is a playful entry entitled \u201cThe Spirit of Practice\u201d<\/p>\n

Relaxing with the others after zazen one evening, Owl asked, \u201cWhat is the spirit of practice?\u201d Raven said, \u201cInquiry.\u201d Owl cocked his heart and asked, \u201cWhat do I inquire about?\u201d Raven said, \u201cGood start.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Some of entries like \u201cBrown Bear\u2019s Purpose\u201d remind me of Jane Hirschfield\u2019s poem, \u201cWhy Bodhidharma Went to Howard Johnsons\u2019<\/p>\n

“Where is your home,” the interviewer asked him.\u2028\u2028Here.\u2028\u2028”No, no,” the interviewer said, thinking it a problem of translation,\u2028”when you are where you actually live.”\u2028\u2028Now it was his turn to think, perhaps the translation?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Of course, Zen itself is a contradiction–at once iconoclastic and iconic. The original practices were a reaction against orthodoxy and intellectualization and that remains the spirit of Zen although sometimes hard to achieve through the cultural lenses it has come to us by. Raven seems to be committed to freedom rather than confinement and that sometimes takes the form of what appears to be non-sense.<\/p>\n

The more inscrutable passages function have the same effect as damaged electronics in the movies. We see sparks, smoke, and shorting-out. The koan does this to the mind–discombobulates it, confuses it, so it lets go of conceptualization.<\/p>\n

These koans can be read much like poetry<\/a> and can be a meditation in themselves.<\/p>\n

Too Busy: Owl said, \u201cI notice that some students go from teach to teacher. What do you think of this? Raven said, \u201cBusy.\u201d \u201cAfter all,\u201d Owl said, \u201cpractice is a matter of settling in.\u201d Raven said, \u201cStill too busy.\u201d Owl said nothing.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Buddhism 101<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019d like a more concrete treatment of Buddhism, including Zen, check out my latest book Buddhism \"Buddhism101.\u00a0This book is based on indomitable The Everything Buddhism Book<\/em>\u00a0(2nd Edition). This version is an attractive non-dustjacket\u00a0hardcover edition with brief chapters to make the material accessible. It’s a portable resource for Buddhist wisdom, tradition, and practice. You can order directly from Simon & Schuster <\/a>or anywhere books are sold (support your independent bookseller!)\u00a0Order on Powells >><\/a>\u00a0or IndieBound >><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An unexpected book arrived in the mail the other day. A gift from my friend\u2019s at Wisdom Publications. Zen Master Raven: The Teachings of a Wise Old Bird. by Zen Master human form, Robert Aitken. Here the koans are told by and to animals of the forest: raven, porcupine, owl, woodpecker, badger, black bear, and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":268,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,12,15,9,13,14],"tags":[1157,1155,1156,96],"class_list":["post-4565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-shelf","category-buddha-101","category-media","category-mindfulnesss","category-poetry","category-recommended","tag-buddhism-101","tag-koan","tag-robert-aitken","tag-zen"],"yoast_head":"\nBuddhist Wisdom: Zen Master Raven and Buddhism 101<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Enhance your understanding of Buddhism through Buddhism 101 by Arnie Kozak and Zen Master Raven by Robert Aitken Roshi. 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Dr. Kozak's ability to translate ancient healing traditions into pragmatic applications suitable for modern lifestyles through the use of metaphors have made him a strong voice in healthcare and business. Beginning with a journey to India in the 80\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s where he took the Bodhisattva vows from His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Arnie Dr. Kozak began his lifelong practice in mindfulness meditation. Intent on finding a way to bring the practical healing attributes of mindfulness he began incorporating these techniques in his private practice. In 2002 Dr. Kozak created Exquisite Mind in Burlington, Vermont as a vehicle that could expand his wisdom to larger audiences beyond individual psychotherapy to professionals and corporations, health care providers, public groups and, most recently with Exquisite Mind Golf, amateur and professional golfers. His award-winning new book, Wild Chickens and Petty Tyrants: 108 Metaphors for Mindfulness (Wisdom Publications, 2009) is a thoughtful, funny, and inspiring translation of mindfulness practice through the inventive use of metaphor applicable to our daily lives. In addition to his work with Exquisite Mind, Arnie Kozak, Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist\u00e2\u20ac\u201dDoctorate has been a Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Vermont and is a Clinical Instructor in Psychiatry and Medicine, University of Vermont College of Medicine. He has studied and practiced clinical psychology, meditation, and yoga for more than 25 years. He has studied with several meditation masters, including S. N. Goenka, Larry Rosenberg, Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. After receiving his bachelors degree with honors from Tufts University, he was awarded a Presidential Fellowship to get his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University at Buffalo. He completed his training as a Psychological Fellow at the Harvard Medical School. Prior to founding the Exquisite Mind in 2002, Arnie worked ten years in the private sector for the PKC Corporation consulting on mental health content for this revolutionary software company.","sameAs":["http:\/\/exquisitemind.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/author\/akozak"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/268"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4565"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4565\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4570,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4565\/revisions\/4570"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/mindfulnessmatters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}