What is Zen?
Posted on Mar 19th, 2008
by 
Laurens
Laurens
What is Zen?
"Zen arises spontaneously,
naturally,
out of the human heart.
It is not a special revelation
to any person,
class,
or nation."
"Zen is the essence
of Christianity,
of Buddhism,
of culture,
of all that is good
in the daily life
of ordinary people."
"Zen is looking at things
with the eye of God,
that is, becoming the thing's eyes
so that it looks at itself
with our eyes."
"In speaking of Zen,
it is necessary always to bear in mind
the difference between Zen
as a "system" of paradoxes
evolved in India and China
during a period of three thousand years,
and Zen as Zen,
that is, the spontaneous,
individually created
timeless activity-in-time
of an undivided mind-body."
"Zen speaks only of this moment.
Indeed, Zen is this moment speaking."
R.H. Blyth
Zen and Zen Classics
Some quotes of this original and inspiring book with beautiful illustrations by the editor, Frederick Franck.
From the introduction by Mr. Franck written in 1974:
"Zen is no longer an exotic import. If there ever was a Zen fad, it wore off long ago in the fifties and sixties and has been succeeded by newer fashions. It has survived, however, as an ever-deepening influence. In some form or another - often completely unrecognized - Zen ideas and Zen values have percolated and deeply affected Western consciousness. They are exerting a powerful, pervasive influence on the world view, the spiritual attitudes and the quality of religious experience of innumerable people of different religious affiliations or none"
Reginald Horace Blyth was born in London in 1898.
As a young man he moved to India, and in 1924 from India to Korea where he became deeply interested in Buddhism. It is here that he started his study of Zen under Kaiama Taizi Roshi.The study of Zen would remain his central concern for the rest of his life, and in 1940 he moved to Japan.
He started out teaching English, but when the war broke out in 1941 he was interned as an enemy alien. When the war ended he moved to Tokyo and after several positions at colleges and universities he became English tutor to the Imperial Crown Prince.
He died in 1964 at the age of sixty-six.
All that we behold
Is full of blessings.
Wishing you a beautiful day,
Laurens
Access: Public
buddhism
August 2008 
Loved this, in poetry yes and especially haiku, they write themselves definitely zen.