Following the Scent of flowers (BCR36)
KOAN:
One day Changsha went wandering in the mountains. Upon returning, when he got to the gate, the head monk asked, “Where are you coming from, Master?”
Changsha said, “From wandering in the mountains,”
The head monk asked, “Where did you go?”
Sha said, “First I went pursuing the fragrant grasses, then I returned following the falling flowers.”
The head monk said. “How very much like the sense of springtime.”
Sha said, “It even surpasses the autumn dew dripping on the lotuses.”
—The Blue Cliff Record, Case 36
Free & Easy Wandering Series: Meditation
A guided koan meditation with John Tarrant, recorded Sunday May, 2021. PZI Zen Online. 6 minutes.
Free & Easy Wandering Series: Following the Scent of Grass
John Tarrant begins with a wild Daoist story from the Zhuangzi, about a giant fish named Kun. The freedom is in your own breast and the koan path opens the way. Includes meditation segments, music from Michael Wilding, vows from Jordan McConnell & Amaryllis Fletcher, Cantor. PZI Zen Online. As recorded May 2, 2021.
Following the Scent of Flowers
So, there’s a spaciousness inside all situations, is what I’m saying. We’re walking through them, and underneath our feet there’s space and light around us—and we’re walking through space and light. And knowing that then is the source, I think, of empathy and love—but we accompany each other. And we don’t have to take ourselves or each other so seriously. We don’t have to advocate for the direness of the human condition, which is something we find a lot of. [laughs]
Following the Scent of Flowers
Audio: John Tarrant reminds us to enjoy the moment of “now” just as it is. There is empathy and delight even in dark days. The dark feminine endures, there is a spaciousness and transparency in all situations. The Way is open and does not depend on “me.” As recorded, with music from Jordan McConnell and Amaryllis Fletcher, on May 3 2020. PZI Zen Online.