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**BoattyGonm** · 09-22-2010, 06:15 AM

(Not all Zen traditions emphasize sudden enlightenment)

Certainly,

It is because a wrong conception about Zen. Around Zen there is a lot of New Age garbage mysticism and one of it is the idea that zenners believe in sudden enlightenment. And it is very popular in lazy people who refuses practice, mostly meditation practice.

There is also an old legend about a debate between a Cha'an Monk and a Tibetan who discussed sudden enlightenment... some people tell the Tibetan won others the Cha'an. There is no such sudden v.s gradual. And for some Zen schools, mostly Soto, there is no such enlightenment to pursuit but just to actualize Right View through understanding, practice and result. In Zen, sudden means we have the capability of Right View; gradual means we need practice, understanding it as actualization.

Sudden and gradual are two ideograms that, depending on context, mean Concentration (Shi) and Observation (Ka'an); here Shi is of gradual nature and Ka'an is of sudden nature.

09-22-2010, 06:15 AM	#8
BoattyGonm Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 434 Senior Member	(Not all Zen traditions emphasize sudden enlightenment) Certainly, It is because a wrong conception about Zen. Around Zen there is a lot of New Age garbage mysticism and one of it is the idea that zenners believe in sudden enlightenment. And it is very popular in lazy people who refuses practice, mostly meditation practice. There is also an old legend about a debate between a Cha'an Monk and a Tibetan who discussed sudden enlightenment... some people tell the Tibetan won others the Cha'an. There is no such sudden v.s gradual. And for some Zen schools, mostly Soto, there is no such enlightenment to pursuit but just to actualize Right View through understanding, practice and result. In Zen, sudden means we have the capability of Right View; gradual means we need practice, understanding it as actualization. Sudden and gradual are two ideograms that, depending on context, mean Concentration (Shi) and Observation (Ka'an); here Shi is of gradual nature and Ka'an is of sudden nature.
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