an old writer and his words

  • USER’S MANUAL

    In my dreams last night I thought I came across the Buddha while off wandering somewhere I could not recognize. I thought long and hard about following Linji’s proscription and killing the Buddha, but while lost in contemplation the Buddha took up his keisaku, said “if you cannot follow the simplest of directions, if you…

    Lou Faber

  • PURE DHARMA BODY 正法眼蔵 二十六

    Standing at the foot of the mountain, what side do you see. Standing atop the mountain, what side do you not see. Close your eyes and you will see that the mountain has no sides. Close your eyes and you will find that there is no mountain. A reflection on Case 26 of the Shobogenzo…

    Lou Faber

  • RINZAI’S ENLIGHTENMENT 正法眼蔵 二十七

      If you ask your question you will find an answer but ask another and the stick will respond each time. If you seek another teacher will you change the question or the answer, and does it matter. Take up the stick, who will you strike, your teacher or yourself, and is there any real…

    Lou Faber

  • JIZO PLANTS THE FIELD

    If you truly want to walk in the footsteps of the Buddha stand perfectly still and unmoving. If you truly want to comprehend the whole of the Dharma put down all of your books and scrolls, roll up your sleeves and plant the barren fields, clearing away rocks and stones. If you want to taste…

    Lou Faber

  • TAKE WING

      There comes a moment when, if our backs are turned, it will arrive and if we notice it will withdraw and hide in corners. We may see it in the periphery and sneak up on it. If we move quickly enough, we can snatch it up and watch it fly off into the morning.

    Lou Faber

  • UMMON’S TWO SICKNESSES

      If you truly believe that you will soon enough meet your teacher you must gather together all of your questions concerning the Dharma. Carry them with you at all times in a satchel thrown over your shoulder, for you will be allowed only a single meeting with the master. When you meet the master,…

    Lou Faber

  • ISAN’S QUESTION 鐵笛倒吹 二十九

    Gather each single leaf from the stones of the garden and place it neatly in a bushel. It will take weeks or months to gather them all even if you have windless days, but this is important work. When the last leaf is gathered take up the bushel and throw the leaves into the garden,…

    Lou Faber

  • MIND THE GAP

      Tomorrow none of this will matter. Yesterday it was only a promise, unfulfilled. Today slipped by and I failed to notice it. It is how things go in life, living in the gaps.

    Lou Faber

  • KEMBO’S TRANSMIGRATION 鐵笛倒吹 六十七

      Awakening in the morning when you first see the sun and the dew resting on thee leaf which eye are you using. When you stare into the mirror through what eye do you see, and what eyes stare back at you. When you see the deer lying in the road which eye do you…

    Lou Faber

  • OH, NOAH

    None of us can remember what was here before. We can search for clues, develop elaborate surmises and find telling relics from which we can conclude this or that, with a certitude the gods would surely mock. But our field of vision is restricted, our memories equally so, and we are left with one certainty,…

    Lou Faber