Posted inBlue Cliff, Koans, Meditations, Videos

Atomic Acorn: Talk Four of Zen Basics Retreat, Valerie Forstman and Henry Shukman

June 6, 2021

Valerie recaps the last three talks of the Zen Basics retreat and says all leads to Bodhidharma. She looks at Case 1 from the Blue Cliff Record in which Emperor Bu asks Bodhidharma, What is most holy? Bodhidharma replies: Vast and void, no holiness.

Valerie explores how this koan is a koan for a lifetime asking us, how can it penetrate, how can it seep into our practice? Where would you find anything like holiness in the vast and void?

Henry then asks, What about giving up truth, the need to know truth? “The term truth casts a shadow of violence”

Dharma talk recorded on May 23 from the Zen Basics Retreat.
Featured Photo by Joshua Woroniecki on Unsplash
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