Buddhism, Taoism and Zen
What happened: there were some Buddhists in India and there were some Taoists in China. Buddhists liked to go around the world, telling people about Buddha. Well, the number-one Buddhist in India sent some heavy-duty Buddhist to China, to do that. Some years later number-one got some reports about that guy's progress. He didn't like the reports, it seems that the guy was getting real heavy into RITUALISM. Not enough REALISM, thought number-one. So he sent another heavy-duty buddhist to China. And this guy, to make the point clear, gave the Chinese ZEN. Well, Zen became popular, and even emperors studied with their personal Zen teachers, trying to gain that hard-to-come-by enlightenment.. So... to make a long story short: heavy-duty Buddhism(Indian Zen) mixed with Taoism and became known as Chan Buddhism(Chinese Zen). Then it made it's way to Japan, where it became Zen. In Japanese, the word 'Zen' means 'meditation'.
How it happened: the one who brought Zen to China from India was called Boddidarma. Or something a lot like it. The Chinese Emperor gave him an audience and, wishing to show off his good Confucianism, said to him: "I've built many new roads and bridges, cleaned up crime in many cities and opened up many schools and temples. How much progress have I made in getting closer to Heaven?" "None, whatsoever.", answers our main man Boddi. Well, what do you know? Boddi gets the boot. So to show the Emp he meant business, Boddi went and spent the next 10 years meditating in a cave. The Emperor found out and was impressed ( 10 years in a cave, that's nuts, if you think about it. ) And so... let's just say the story has a happy ending.
Here's a little difference between Taoism and Zen - Taoism: "The Tao that can be spoken(or written) is not the True Tao", Zen:
Buddha is a human who has gained enlightenment. Can only humans do that? I have only heard stories of human buddhas. Do they really exist? It is difficult to say: in all my life I've never met one ( to my knowledge ). Buddhism emphasizes such qualities as wisdom and compassion. Put those two together and one becomes a real nice fellow, or femellow, as the case may be.
The experience of becoming enlightened is called Satory in Japanese ( I think ). One Zen master in Japan was asked what that experience was like. He said: "Like any ordinary everyday experience, only about five feet off the ground." Well! No wonder it's so hard to learn enlightenment from them. They're out there!
Professor of Zen and master of Zen: There was a professor in Japan who studied philosophies. He went to see a Zen master who lived in the hills outside the city. The Zen master greeted him and made some tea. Later, when he served the professor freshly made tea, he poured it into his cup, and continued to pour after the cup became full. Tea spilled to the floor. The professor watched, then, unable to restrain himself, he said: "Stop. It is full. No more will go in." "Like this cup, your head is already full. No more will go in. How can I tell you anything about Zen?" answered Zen master. "Wait a minute", said professor, "The head is not like any cup. There is no known limit to how much information, or intelligence, a human being can have." "You see", answered Zen master, "already you don't understand."
I've read a couple of books about Zen. I think this little story is my all-time-favorite: A monk traveling to a temple stopped to ask a woman for directions. "Which way to the temple?" "Straight ahead!"
Yin and Yang
Yin and Yang, Dark and Light, Light and Heavy, Small and Big, Low and High, Sugar and Salt, Female and Male. Understand? Join the club.