The abstract intellect goes even further by inference and the art of analogy, and our earlier consideration of this koan is a good example of such work. We exercise this art by freeing the mind of preconceived notions of who or what a Buddha is. We thereby allow all possibilities without judgment. The same approach can then be applied to the question, “What is ‘the road’?” as well as to the other questions posed above. Speculation is the key to inference and the art of analogy.
The key to an even richer experience of koans is to avoid using the intellect alone; even the abstract intellect can interfere. For instance, if one stretches the inference of this koan, then perhaps it is instructing us to kill not only the Buddha but also all those who hold the Buddha in esteem. Perhaps it suggests that one should simply ignore all Buddhists. Clearly this is where the use of intellect fails us; thinking has its limitations.
For some koans, the truly speculative approach of the abstract intellect can take a long time to coalesce. The individual pieces of the puzzle each float around while possibilities alight in the mind and commingle until they provide the satisfaction of an understanding. For others, understanding can occur without breaking something apart, without inference, and without the use of analogy. This is where we encounter the intuitive flashes that are so famous in the annals of Zen.
Intuition is the power or faculty of attaining direct knowledge or cognition without evident rational thought or inference. Sometimes we ask ourselves questions about things, and there is a mental pause, a brief moment of stillness or silence in which we seem to be opening to or searching for an answer. In that moment we aren’t really thinking about an answer or even examining the question; our minds are simply blank. At such moments we sometimes even say, “I’m drawing a blank” because there is nothing there. And then suddenly, as if from nowhere, the right answer simply pops into our minds without any conscious use of concrete or even abstract thought; we may even wonder how we knew it.
If you have had such an experience, then you know something about intuition. Two things might get our attention when we consider the experience of intuition: First, it’s clear that intuition comes from some “place” that is filled with knowledge and wisdom, sometimes in the form of memories and yet sometimes not. Second, that place and the processes of intuition transcend the intellect; the intellect can open to intuition, but it cannot command intuition. However, the ability to open to and receive intuition can be improved through the practice of meditation, as demonstrated by the practitioners of Zen.
When we contemplate koans, or the symbols and myths of Masonry, at some point we might allow our minds to become as still and quiet as possible, opening ourselves to the insights that only intuition can provide. Various koans even tell us stories about this very process, such as when one character asks a challenging question, to which the other quickly replies with a powerfully insightful and thought-provoking answer. In other koans, the lightning-flash reply seems bizarre, paradoxical or even entirely irrelevant. What is going on in these cases? Sometimes such replies are a demonstration of meaning that is very relevant, yet in ways that we simply have not yet grasped. In other cases, they can be the author’s attempt to get the reader to pause, to draw a blank, to abandon the crutch of the intellect and open to intuition. When we do this, the problem of the koan itself may be left behind in an immediate experience of that ineffable yet powerful void from which the lighting bolts of intuition flash. When we are aware of that, then we are at the gate of the enlightenment that cannot be concretely defined, adequately explained, or fully imagined. When we attain that, the koan may be tossed aside like the shards and dust from a stone being prepared for the Temple.
In the end, remember that a koan can be like a riddle with no logical or inferential answer or moral. Bridging the gap between the koan and an insight can be achieved in a number of different ways and can happen quickly or over a long period of time. The structure of the typical koan is such that the most beautiful bridge is rarely built with the tools of the intellect alone, but also requires the light of intuition, that light which shines brightest when we open the veils of our minds in meditation.
To begin working with koans, proceed to the ZenMasonry Koans & Parables page. For more information on the traditional koans of Zen Buddhism, visit the sites linked in the Zen section of the Resources page.