Los koan (Public case, «Public cases») They have often been described as enigmas or paradoxes, But they are not puzzles for the logical mind. They are sparks that turn on a direct and living understanding, A call that arises from the background of who practices: One way to point out the unnamed.
The term koan It comes from the Chinese gong’an, originally used in legal jargon to designate exemplary sentences that served as a reference. In chan Buddhism this word went on to name the dialogues, gestures and silences of teachers who manifested their awakening. These exchanges were considered authentic expressions of the Dharma, With sufficient authority to illuminate future generations; They were not doctrinal explanations, but living incarnations, "Open and Operating Lighting Law".
During the Song dynasty (centuriesX–XIIId. C.) Chan lived a flowering that deeply influenced other Chinese Buddhist schools. An extensive literature based on conversations between monastic arose then, often recorded by disciples who appreciated the value of each word, Unexpected gesture or silence. Those stories were compiled in bulky collections and, later, In commented anthologies to facilitate your study. Among the most famous are the Mumonkan («The barrier without door») and the Hekiganroku («Chronicles of the blue cliff»). In these texts the koan Always point, without surroundings, to the heart of who practices.
An essential aspect is that koan They are not designed to be intellectually understood. In Zen the language is a vehicle of transformation; That is why many koan They are disconcerting or even absurd. When breaking the discursive norm they push us beyond dual thought: towards the "living word" that transcends the symbol and touches the direct experience. Sometimes that word is a cry, A gesture, An unanswered question; If you welcome it in the silence of practice, can knock down the walls of duality.
In the Rinzai school the practice of kanna‑zen («Contemplation of the key phrase»): The meditating person immerses himself in an expression of koan until it is unified with her, guided with rigor by regular interviews with the teacher. The Soto tradition adopts another approach. Eihei Dogen knew the koan And he quoted them profusely in the Shobogenzo and in him Shinji Shobogenzo, But not as exercises with goal, but as manifestations of the practice -realization already present. Para Dogen, zazen It is the koan: When sitting, without adding or removing anything, We are in contact with the mystery that the koan Express.
To the previous collections, the Denkoroku ("Light transmission record"), Compiled by Keizan Jokin in the Century. It consists of fifty -two stories that present each ancestor, From Shakyamuni Buddha to dogen, emphasizing how the light of awakening is transmitted from teacher to disciple. In the Soto school the Denkoroku fulfills a double function: on the one hand, states the continuity of the lineage; on the other, It offers koanescas narratives that illustrate the experience of lighting in varied contexts, underlining that awakening is always personal and relational. Your study, next to Shobogenzo, nourishes the understanding of the living inheritance that each practitioner embodies.
Example taken from Shinji Shobogenzo (case33):
Dongshan and Shenshan were on a pilgrimage when they saw turnip leaves dragged by the current of a mountain.
Dongshan said: "Surely someone practices Buddhism here".
They searched until a hermit. Dongshan asked: «Where did you enter the mountain?».
The hermit replied: "I didn't follow the clouds or water course".
«Who came here first, You or the mountain?».
"Don't know".
«And why don't you know?».
"Do not come for human beings or by the gods".
"So, Why did you come?».
«I saw two clay oxen, Raise a cloud of dust and sink into the sea; Since then I have not heard them again ».
Each phrase opens its own world. It is not about interpreting it, but of allowing it to resonate inside. Zazen It is our answer without words. In this koan especially the final image, los Two clay oxen: force figures that, when faced, They lift the dust cloud of duality - I and not - I, win and lose, Advance and go back. But the oxen are clay: As soon as they touch the sea (VASTEDAD WITHOUT FORM) They dissolve, And the rumble of combat ceases. So, The passage indicates The end of the internal struggle. Not because a part venza, but because both, so solid, apparently, They are illusory manufactures. When clay returns to the ocean, The simple peace remains of what has always been there, Beyond the categories of achievement and failure. Practice zazen It is staying with that sea, letting every new "ox" dissolve on its own.
In the Soto Zen Camino Medio Community Following Dogen's teachings we do not deal with koan as riddles that must be resolved, but as living expressions of Dharma. Either in a teisho, When reading classic texts or in everyday life, and koan can rise as a mirror that returns an image of who we are. It is not necessary to understand it, It is enough to live it, Breathe it, let out. It is not necessary to understand it. Just be with him. Breathe it.