an old writer and his words

  • An Invitation for the Patriarch

    You may wrap yourselfwith all of the sutras,drink dharma with a straw,look carefully for teachers. You will drown in the conditionsyour breath swallowedbut unending thoughts. The answers are always withinteacher is studentstudent is teacherthis momentonly moment. A reflection on Case 3 of the Book of Equanimity

    Lou Faber

  • Bodhidharma’s Vast Emptiness

    When teacher and studentsit face to face,mat to mat, looking deeplyone at the other,which is the teacherand which is the student? You are wrong.There is no teacher,there is no student,there is only the silenceof the momentin which all dharmais made obvious. A reflection on Case 2 of the Book of Equanimity

    Lou Faber

  • KEICHU THE WHEELMAKER 無門關 八

    A collection of sticksand boards is Keichu’s cart Keichu’s cart no morethan a pileof sticks and boards not Irides no horsepulling no cart a hundred spokesdance in ten directions. A reflection on Case 8 of the Mumonkan (Gateless Gate Koans)

    Lou Faber

  • WASH YOUR BOWL 無門關 七

    There is no stick, no shoutwe go uninstructedon a full stomach. We do not see waterin the midst of an ocean. We are given a sinkfull of breakfast bowls, plates,cups and spoons. Handlessly we performour task and sitto lunch with Joshu. A reflection on Case 4 of the Mumonkan (Gateless Gate Koans)

    Lou Faber

  • NANSEN CUTS THE CAT 無門關 十四

    Thirty blows of the stickif right, thirty blowsif wrong, or Namsen’s swordand a severed cat a half to eacha whole to none Be thankful youdidn’t argue about a manfor with a shoeon the head, your feetmay touch the sky. A reflection on Case 14 of the Mumonkan (Gateless Gate Koans)

    Lou Faber

  • CALLING THE MASTER 無門關 十二

    Each morning ask yourselfif it is you who is thereand answer: “Of course.” Remind yourself“Do not be madea fool of today”and assure yourselfyou will not Each morningfour selves,each deluded, eachthe fool, of one selfwhich is no selffree of all delusion. A reflection on Case 12 of the Mumonkan (Gateless Gate Koans)

    Lou Faber

  • A BUFFALO PASSES 無門關 三十八

    Staring out, watch the bullwalk slowly pastalong the old road.Marvel at his horns,the flare of his nostrilsin his massive head,his breath hangingin the early morning chill. Mark each leg, itsmuscles rippling, as it passes.You feel you know the beastbut only if you close your eyescan you grasp its tail. A reflection on Case 38 of…

    Lou Faber

  • HUANG PO’S GOBBLERS OF DREGS

    You have heard that whenthe student is ready the teacher appears,and you believe you are ready,but no teacher has appeared.I can tell you that you are ready,that you will never be ready,that I am not the teacher,that the teacher is here,and that the teacher will never appear.But the path you seek to findwith a teacher…

    Lou Faber

  • YUN MAN’S EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY

    Pause and consider why so many questionsrequire you, you feel, to consult your watch,to call up a calendar, to appoint time.Time has no appointments, time is notan arrow, though we strive always to aim it,to send it flying in our desired direction.Time is a point in space, surrounded byall ten directions, going toward none of…

    Lou Faber

  • BODHIDHARMA’S VAST AND VOID

    You want holy teachingsboiled down, synthesizeddigestible in bites so dine on the holesnothing, emptinessis sustenanceenough look at me, at a windowas you do a mirrorno knowing,a familiar facebut whose the face will departyours or hisyou will awakento endless absence learn nothingnessoverflowing void A reflection on Case 1 of the Hekiganroku (Blue Cliff Record)

    Lou Faber