As the Brits would say, ‘Let’s have a nice cup of tea!”

Zen Buddhist stories & Holistic Inquiry - A Nice Cup of Tea!

Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (1868-1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.

Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor’s cup full, and then kept on pouring.

The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. “It is over-full. No more will go in!”

“Like this cup,” Nan-in said, “you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?”

Zen Buddhist stories in their brevity and profoundity are brilliant quintesstial texts for HI - Holistic Inquiry. Holistic Inquiry is the name I give to seeking to deepen the understanding of ourselves, or those we teach, through combining the ‘Criticality’ of philosophical inquiry (as used in Lipman’s PFC Philosophy for Children) with the ‘Caring’ of action such a ’service learning’ and the ‘Creativity’ of subjective expression via one or more art media.

All three ‘Cs’ need silence, reflection and a sense of connection with the whole/Whole. All three emanate from the Whole. All three are gates to the transcendent, or finger-pointers to the Whole.

A good source of Zen Buddhist stories? click HERE