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Bodhidharma's Vast Emptiness (BCR1)(BS2)

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KOAN:

Emperor Wu asked the great teacher Bodhidharma,
“What is the first principle of the holy teaching?”
Bodhidharma said, “Vast emptiness, nothing holy.”
“Who are you, standing here in front of me?” asked the Emperor.
“I don’t know,” said Bodhidharma.
The Emperor didn’t understand.

—Blue Cliff Record Case 1 & Book of Serenity Case 2

(translation by John Tarrant & Joan Sutherland,
titled: Bodhidharma, the Buddha-Heart Emperor, and the Magical Duke)

Video April 1, 2023

Winter Sesshin – Trusting in the Dao

John Tarrant

Koans
Bodhidharma's Vast Emptiness (BCR1)(BS2), If You Get It the First Time (BS76), Mazu's Purpose of Your Life, Solitary Boat, The Moon Sets at Midnight (BS76), The Valley Spirit Never Dies (DDJ6), Yunmen Says It Upside Down (BCR15), Yunmen's Give Me the Reaching
Tags
2023 Winter Sesshin, Bodhidharma, Daodejing, Daoism, February 3 2023, Laozi, Mazu, moon, Mother Deep, solitary boat, Valley Spirit, vast emptiness, Yunmen
Category
Video

Explanations of Zen, or of anything, are not it. Zen does not try to make you pure—it tries to make you whole. We can trust in the Dao, but by explaining it, we move away from it. Something deeper is going on, carrying us.

22' 33"
Video September 30, 2022

Hanging from a Branch by Your Teeth

John Tarrant

Koans
Bodhidharma's Vast Emptiness (BCR1)(BS2), Hanging by Your Teeth (GG5)
Tags
Koan Curriculum, Predicament Koan 2, Predicament Koans, PZI Online Temple, September 11 2022
Category
Video

Predicament koans give a nod to the perilous, loony nature of life right now. It is the dangerous situation of being alive—anything can happen. Linji said, “We can’t stay here long,” so relish it! Even in the middle of a disaster you can have a marvelous time. What constitutes a predicament? You oppose what is happening, by overlaying what should be going on. Music for meditation from Jordan McConnell & Michael Wilding. Recorded in the Sunday Temple on September 11, 2022.

74' 47"