\u201c\u2026<\/em>perhaps closer to \u2018gnosis\u2019 (\u2018knowledge of spiritual mysteries\u2019), \u2018awareness,\u2019 and in some contexts \u2018cognition\u2019; the term has the general sense of accurate and precise understanding, but is used most often to refer to an understanding of reality that transcends ordinary comprehension.\u201d<\/p>\n\u201cWisdom\u201d as an understanding that transcends ordinary comprehension has nothing to do with age. So a very young person could be a Zen teacher if what you\u2019re looking for, and I hope to Buddha this is foremost for you, is someone who has had this wisdom experience and who can help you realize this prajna too. In Zen, we generally call this wisdom experience \u201ckensh\u014d.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, in our day, after an initial\u00a0kensh\u014d, years of subsequent k\u014dan study are devoted to the tangled thicket of thorns we refer to in our system as \u201cthe Harada-Yasutani K\u014dan Curriculum.\u201d This period is really important. And then after \u201ccompleting\u201d the training, some additional time just shutting up is also a good idea. James\u2019 post points this out too.<\/p>\n
So even if a person were to start at twenty-one, establish their zazen seat, find a teacher, kensh\u014d at about twenty-five, complete the curriculum by thirty-five, and have some \u201cunder the bridge time\u201d for at least a few years \u2013 well, they\u2019ll be forty by the time they begin.<\/p>\n
By the way, as Tetsugan has pointed out, we see this follow-up digestion time in most of the ancients\u2019 biographies too, including for D\u014dgen and Hakuin.<\/p>\n
In my case, I received my first transmission from Katagiri R\u014dshi when I was just a boy of thirty-three, having had some kensh\u014d, but not being well-cooked by any means. I then went to Japan and did some monastic practice, then waited for all of about a year before starting to teach. Way too soon! Subsequently, I learned the way I\u2019ve learned most everything \u2013 through the school of hard knocks. Fortunately, due to the generosity and kindness of a handful of clear teachers, especially James, I\u2019ve been able to continue bumbling along.<\/p>\n
These days in the American Zen scene, the whole \u201cwisdom\/prajna\/kensh\u014d\u201d criteria for being a teacher has receded in importance, especially, it seems to me, in the just-sitting S\u014dt\u014d lineages. Often, in these lineages, long-practice and affiliation (finding someone who will do the ceremony) seem more important, with the former sometimes being much less important than the latter. So \u201cconsumer beware!\u201d The wisdom you are being offered by a Zen teacher might be more of the ordinary variety.<\/p>\n
What seems to have been Hakuin\u2019s view?<\/p>\n
Hakuin is very clear and repeats himself often. First, realize kensh\u014d as clear as the palm of your hand. Then clarify and refine this kensh\u014d by working through the old, hard-to-pass-through k\u014dans and the sutras in order to have the dharma-clarity and way-power to benefit others. Hakuin emphasizes many times that in his view our \u201c\u2026own enlightenment is but the first step in [our] career of assisting others to attain theirs.\u201d<\/p>\n
And, finally, some advice from Hakuin that I wished I received and actually followed (for a change):<\/p>\n
\u201cStudents who have not yet penetrated to the source should not be troubled if their entrance into enlightenment is slow in coming, but they should worry if their practice is not pure and\u00a0genuine<\/span>. Students who have already penetrated to attainment should not be troubled if people fail to revere them, but they should be concerned about the difficulty of achieving practice that is pure and\u00a0genuine<\/span>\u201d (Complete Poison Blossoms in a Thicket of Thorn<\/em>, 187. To Layman Ishii).<\/p>\n________________<\/p>\n
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Currently, there is much talk in the Zen blog world about how old one needs to be to teach Zen. See\u00a0James Myoun Ford\u2019s post here. I\u2019ll only get into a part of the issue, of course, because I\u2019m doing a \u201cHakuin-focus blog year.\u201d In that spirit, I\u2019ll get around to what seems to have been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":182,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
How Old Does a (Real) Zen Teacher Have To Be?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Currently, there is much talk in the Zen blog world about how old one needs to be to teach Zen.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Old Does a (Real) Zen Teacher Have To Be?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Currently, there is much talk in the Zen blog world about how old one needs to be to teach Zen.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Wild Fox Zen\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dosho.port\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-03-30T18:34:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-01-26T01:52:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/88\/2018\/03\/c-hakuinspot-56a0c4445f9b58eba4b3a349-300x280.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dosho Port\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dosho Port\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html\",\"name\":\"How Old Does a (Real) Zen Teacher Have To Be?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-03-30T18:34:25+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-01-26T01:52:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/45224391b7690e99673782337bd0eabd\"},\"description\":\"Currently, there is much talk in the Zen blog world about how old one needs to be to teach Zen.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2018\/03\/4366.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How Old Does a (Real) Zen Teacher Have To Be?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/\",\"name\":\"Wild Fox Zen\",\"description\":\"Living the Dream\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/45224391b7690e99673782337bd0eabd\",\"name\":\"Dosho Port\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7b9712e98924dea6c08d55890403352f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7b9712e98924dea6c08d55890403352f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dosho Port\"},\"description\":\"Dosho Port began practicing Zen in 1977 and now co-teachers with his wife, Tetsugan Zummach, with the Vine of Obstacles Zen. 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Currently, there is much talk in the Zen blog world about how old one needs to be to teach Zen. See\u00a0James Myoun Ford\u2019s post here<\/a>.<\/p>\n