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 It is not quite the paradox which it seems to say that Zen training can begin only when it has been finished,
 for this is simply the basic Mahayana principle that prajna leads to karuna,
 that awakening is not truly attained unless it also implies the life of the bodhisattva,
 the manifestation of the marvelous use of the void for the benefit of all sentient beings.
 At this point, the Roshi begins to present the student with koan which ask for impossible feats of action or judgment, such as,
 "Take the four divisions of Tokyo out of your sleeve," "Stop that ship on the distant ocean,"
 "Stop the booming of the distant bell," "A girl is crossing the street, is she the younger or the older sister?"
 Such koan are rather more obviously tricky than the basic introductory problems,
 and show the student that what are dilemmas for thought present no barriers to action.
 A paper handkerchief easily becomes the four divisions of Tokyo,
 and the student solves the problem of the younger or older sister by mincing across the room like a girl,
 for in her absolute suchness the girl is just that.
 She is only relatively sister, older, or younger.
 The continued practice of Zazen now provides the student with a clear, unobstructed mind
 into which he can toss the koan like a pebble into a pool and simply watch to see what his mind does with it.
 As the work goes on, crucial koan alternate with subsidiary koan, which explore the implications of the former
 and give the student a thorough working acquaintance with every theme in the Buddhist view of the universe,
 presenting the whole body of understanding in such a way that he knows it in his bones and in his nerves.
 By such means he learns to respond with it instantly and unwaveringly in the situations of everyday life.
 Koan training comes to its conclusion in the stage of perfect naturalness of freedom
 in both the absolute and the relative worlds.
 However, because this freedom is not opposed to the conventional order,
 but is rather a freedom which upholds the world, Loka Samgata,
 the final phase of study is the relationship of Zen to the rules of social and monastic life.
 The koan system was developed in the Lin Chi, Rinzai school of Zen, but not without opposition.
 The Soto school felt that it was much too artificial.
 Whereas the koan advocates used this technique as a means for encouraging that overwhelming feeling of doubt,
 I Ching, which they felt to be essential as a prerequisite for Satori,
 the Soto school argued that it lent itself too easily to that very seeking for Satori
 which thrusts it away, or what is worse, induces an artificial Satori.
 To say that the koan system has certain dangers or drawbacks is only to say that anything can be misused.
 One drawback can arise from the opposition of Satori to the intense feeling of doubt
 which some koan exponents so deliberately encourage.
 For this is to foster a dualistic Satori.
 To say that the depth of the Satori is proportional to the intensity of seeking and striving which precede it
 is to confuse Satori with its purely emotional adjuncts.
 In other words, if one wants to feel exhilaratingly light-footed,
 it is always possible to go around for some time with lead in one's shoes and then take them off.
 The sense of relief will certainly be proportional to the length of time such shoes have been worn
 and to the weight of the lead.
 This is equivalent to the old trick of religious revivalists
 who give their followers a tremendous emotional uplift
 by first implanting an acute sense of sin and then relieving it through faith in Jesus.
 But such uplifts do not last.
 For the Soto school, this suggests that such a Satori has a dualistic character
 and is thus no more than an artificial emotional reaction.
 Thus the Soto view was that proper dhyana lay in motiveless action, wu-wei,
 in sitting just to sit or walking just to walk.
 The two schools, therefore, came to be known respectively as Kan-Hwa-Zen,
 observing the anecdote Zen, and Mo-Chao-Zen, silently illumined Zen.
 The Rinzai school of Zen was introduced into Japan in 1191 by the Japanese monk Eisai.
 The Soto school was introduced in 1227 by the extraordinary genius Dogen.
 Both Rinzai and Soto Zen, as we find them in Japanese monasteries today,
 put enormous emphasis on Zazen or sitting meditation,
 a practice which they follow for many hours of the day,
 attaching great importance to the correctness of posture
 and the way of breathing which it involves.
 To practice Zen in Japan today is, to all intents and purposes, to practice Zazen.
 It may seem both strange and unreasonable that strong and intelligent people
 should simply sit for hours on end.
 The Western mentality feels that such things are not only unnatural
 but a great waste of valuable time,
 however useful as a discipline for inculcating patience and fortitude.
 Although the West has its own contemplative tradition in the Catholic Church,
 the life of sitting and looking has lost its appeal,
 for no religion is valued which does not improve the world,
 and it is hard to see how the world can be improved by sitting still.
 Yet it should be obvious that action without wisdom,
 without clear awareness of the world as it really is,
 can never improve anything.
 Furthermore, just as muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone,
 it could be argued that those who sit quietly and do nothing
 are making one of the best contributions to a world in turmoil.


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