Dharma Library

A large collection of articles, from past issues of New Chan Forum and more besides.

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No Path at All!

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

from the "Sermons to the Stones and Trees" tapes, Summer 1992

There comes a moment in Zen training, a moment both shocking and surprising, when one realises intuitively that there is no path at all.

Ho! What then is Zen practice?

Practice is the realisation that there is no path at all, yet one keeps on going, going on, going on beyond, always becoming being.

Listening to a talk on Buddhism on…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1992 , Dharma Talks , John Crook

Zen and Christianity, The Dialogue

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

Christianity lies at the root and heart of Western culture. Today intellectually rejected because of its failure to relate effectively with science, and sentimentalised by those who seek popularity within a world of adolescent values that last a lifetime, the traditional European religion none the less continues to stir the heart. Perhaps it is the story of Christ himself, rather than the…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1992 , Other Articles , John Crook

A Guestmaster's View

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

The role of guestmaster at a Chan retreat entails the responsibility for ensuring the comfort of the participants and visiting Master, the availability of necessary supplies and the organisation of affairs to ensure the even flow of the retreat programme. Together with Chief Cook and the Retreat Disciplinarian the work of the Guestmaster maintains the background quality of a retreat.

When I…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1992 , John Crook , Chan Retreat Reports , For Newcomers

Opening The Treasure House

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

from the "Sermons to the Stones and Trees" tapes, Summer 1991

"If you do these things for some time the treasure house will open naturally and you will enjoy it fully." These are the concluding words of a Soto Zen ritual. Remember: "The treasure house will open naturally."

In meditation, it is not that one has to work desperately hard to get somewhere. The practice of meditation should be…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1991 , Dharma Talks , John Crook

Everything is as it is - This in Itself is Remarkable

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

If one is attempting to go into Zen deeply, to understand the relationship between one's mind and the universe, then it becomes important to turn over and over again, going backwards and forwards, backwards and forwards, many times over, the same refrain, the same theme. Not with the analytical intellect, nor with the mind of one who seeks explanation, but within the context of zazen, wherein…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: For Newcomers , 1990 , Other Articles , John Crook

Winter Buddha

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

After midnight, when the still streets
drip from the trees audibly soft leaves
and I smile to hear sleepy voices
silenced by a closing window's sound,
I take a match to an incense stick
and set bright the dark candle in my private shrine.

With six slow breaths the pillared flame
sets this brooding throne aglow
where, pivoted upon some silent thought,
the golden face spans inwardly
the space between the…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1969 , John Crook , Poetry , For Newcomers

Maenllwyd

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

Arriving in the yard
I switch off the engine
and gaze at the view,
evening sun on the rolling hills
yellow fields, dark woods.
In the sudden silence
a buzzard mews,
distantly guiding sheep
dogs bark.

Entering the gate
I come home to my hermitage,
welcoming trees brood
and the old door creaks on rusty hinges
falling plaster needs sweeping from the floor,
softly on cold flags moisture gleams.

Lighting the fire
I…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1975 , John Crook , Poetry , For Newcomers

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