What is a Zen koan?

0:45 Welcome to Philosophy is not boring by kidopoly.com. I'm Mira. And I'm Finn. If you haven't already, tap follow wherever you're listening so you never miss an episode.

0:58 Hey Mira, I have a riddle for you. What has to be broken before you can use it? Oh, I know this one. An egg. Yep. Okay, I have another one. What is tall when it's young and short when it's old? Hmm, a candle. You're too good at this. Okay, your turn. Give me your best riddle.

1:21 Alright, Finn, but what if I gave you a riddle that actually had no logical answer at all?

1:27 Like a broken riddle? Why would anyone make a riddle with no answer? That just sounds like a trick.

1:34 That's exactly what we're talking about today. We are exploring one of the most famous, brain-twisting questions ever asked in human history.

1:42 Oh, I am so ready for this. Lay it on me. I bet I can solve it anyway.

1:48 Okay, you know the sound of two hands clapping, right?

1:52 Yeah, of course. It's just clap clap clap. You put two hands together and they make a smacking noise.

1:59 Exactly. So here is the question. Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand?

2:07 Wait, one hand? That doesn't make any sense. You need two things hitting each other to make a clapping sound.

2:15 I know, and yet people have spent months, sometimes even years, sitting in quiet rooms trying to answer that exact question.

2:24 Years? Just to answer a question that makes no sense. That is wild. Yep. This kind of unanswerable question is called a Zen Kohen. A cone? Like an orange traffic cone. Or an ice cream cone.

2:41 No, a koan. It's spelled K-O-A-N. It is a very special kind of puzzle used in Zen Buddhism, especially in a tradition called Rinzai Zen.

2:54 Rinzai Zen? Where did that come from?

2:57 Zen Buddhism has roots in China, but the Rinzai school grew really strong in Japan. And the person who made this specific one-hand koan famous was a Japanese Zen master named Hakuin. Hakuin? That's a cool name. When did he live? He lived a long time ago, mostly in the 1700s. Hakuin was an amazing teacher, but he was trying to solve a really specific problem with the way people were thinking.

3:27 What was wrong with how they were thinking? Were they just getting bad grades?

3:33 No, it wasn't about school. Think about what happens when you get a really tough math problem, or you're trying to win a strategy game. What does your brain do?

3:44 It goes into overdrive. It works really hard. I crunch all the numbers, I try different ways to solve it. I think and think and think until I finally get the right answer.

3:56 Exactly. Our brains are absolute problem-solving machines. We always want to figure things out, label them, and put them in neat little boxes.

4:07 And that's a bad thing. I thought being smart and logical was good.

4:12 It is really good for math, or building bridges, or doing science. But Hackoin and other Zen teachers believed that this busy, noisy, thinking mind can actually get in the way of living a peaceful life. Get in the way of what, exactly? Of just experiencing the world exactly as it is, right here and now.

4:35 The thinking mind is always worrying about the past, or planning for the future, or judging things as good or bad.

4:42 Huh. So the thinking mind is almost like static on a radio. It's just constant noise playing in your head.

4:50 That's a brilliant way to put it. Yes, constant noise. So, Hakouin wanted a way to turn that static off. To turn the busy mind off, Hakuin would give his students this koan. He would ask them, what is the sound of one hand?

5:08 But wait, how do they actually solve it? Like, what are the rules of the game? Can I try?

5:14 Go for it. Imagine I and the Zen teacher, Hakuin, and you are my student. What is the sound of one hand?

5:22 Okay, what if I just snap my fingers? Look, I'm doing it right now. Snap, snap. That's a sound made by only one hand.

5:33 Good guess. A student might actually try exactly that. They would go into a private interview with the Zen teacher and snap their fingers very proudly. And the teacher says, Great job, you pass. Here is your gold star? Nope. The teacher would look at them and say, That is the sound of fingers snapping.

5:55 That is not the sound of one hand. Go back and try again.

5:59 Oh man, really? Okay, what if I wave my hand through the air really fast, like a karate chop?

6:08 Whoosh! The teacher shakes his head. That is the sound of wind being pushed by a hand.

6:14 Go try again. Okay, I've got it. What if I just sit there and say absolutely nothing? Total silence. Because one hand makes no noise.

6:25 Silence is just the opposite of noise, the teacher says. You are still thinking too much. You are trying to be clever. Try again.

6:34 But that's so frustrating. It's totally unfair. No matter what I say, you're going to tell me it's wrong.

6:42 Exactly. Now you are feeling exactly what the Zen students felt. The student might sit on a meditation cushion for weeks, getting more and more frustrated. Because every single answer they bring is wrong. Yes, because every answer they bring comes from the thinking, problem-solving mind. They are trying to use logic to solve something that logic cannot fix.

7:05 But if the thinking mind can't solve it, how do you ever win? This just sounds like a recipe for a massive headache.

7:13 Well, here is where it gets really weird and really beautiful. You don't win by finding a clever reply. The koan is actually a trap for your busy mind.

7:24 A trap? How does a question work as a trap?

7:28 Think about it. The thinking mind tries every logical answer it can possibly think of. It tries physics, it tries jokes, it tries silence, it runs around in circles until it gets completely exhausted. It hits a brick wall.

7:45 I feel like my brain is hitting a brick wall right now, just talking about it.

7:49 And then, finally, because there is literally no way out, the mind just gives up. The student stops trying to figure it out. Wait, they just quit. Hakkawin wants his students to give up. They don't quit meditating, and they don't quit the practice. They just quit trying to use logic. And in that exact moment of giving up, the busy static stops.

8:15 Oh, and the radio goes quiet. The constant thinking just turns off.

8:20 Yes. When the brain stops trying to solve the puzzle, the student suddenly just notices what is actually happening right now. They feel their breath, they hear the birds outside. So, the answer isn't a word or a sound at all. Exactly. In Zen Buddhism, people believe the real answer is a shift in how you experience the world.

8:42 It's the feeling of pure awareness, without any words or labels getting in the way.

8:48 Wow! So Hakuin made up a riddle that breaks your brain on purpose.

8:52 That's exactly what Zen masters say. They believe we have to exhaust the mind to free it.

8:58 But wait, does it actually work? Like, is there any science behind this? Or is it just a really old trick?

9:05 Well, scientists who study the brain and meditation actually find that deep focused practices can calm down the parts of our brain that constantly chatter, plan, and worry.

9:16 That's amazing. So the Koan is basically like an ancient tool to hack your own brain.

9:22 It really is an amazing tool. And honestly, this matters for you. Right now, in your real life.

9:31 Really. Because I definitely don't spend a lot of time clapping with one hand.

9:36 No, but think about a time when you were super stressed out, trying to figure out a huge problem, and your brain just felt totally stuck.

9:45 Oh yeah. Like when I was trying to figure out why my remote control car wasn't working. I kept taking it apart and trying different batteries, and I was getting so mad I wanted to throw it across the room.

9:58 Exactly. Your mind was so busy, so frustrated, and so focused on fixing it that you were just making yourself miserable. What if, instead of trying harder, you just let the mind drop the problem?

10:12 Like, just take a breath, leave the car alone, and notice the carpet and the quiet room.

10:18 Yes. Sometimes realizing you can't think your way out of a feeling is the exact thing that makes you feel better. When you let the busy mind give up, you find peace.

10:30 Huh. Just dropping it when logic isn't working anymore. I actually really like that. It's powerful. Ready for some fun facts about all of this? Hit me. I love fun facts.

10:42 First, Hakuen didn't just teach with confusing words. He was famous for his bold ink paintings and calligraphy. He would paint pictures to help teach Zen, because paintings don't use words either.

10:54 Ooh, so he was a puzzle master and an artist. That's a great combination.

11:00 Yep. And here's another one. People have been wrestling with this exact same one-hand puzzle for nearly 300 years. Even today, students are sitting in rooms trying to answer it.

11:12unknown Haha.

11:12 That is a lot of very frustrated students over the centuries.

11:16 And there are hundreds of other koans too. Like, does a dog have Buddha nature? Or what was your original face before your parents were born?

11:25 Wait. What was my face before? Wait, I feel like my brain is doing the static thing again.

11:32unknown Haha.

11:32 Perfect timing. That means it's time for the quiz. Alright, Finn, quiz time! Okay, I'm ready. My brain is rested and the static is cleared.

11:42 First question. What is the name of the special puzzle used in Zen Buddhism that has no logical answer? Next one. Which famous Zen teacher made the one-hand clapping puzzle popular in the 1700s? Question 3. Which school of Zen Buddhism did this teacher help make strong in Japan? Here's number four. What happens to the busy thinking mind when it tries over and over to solve the puzzle?

12:25 Last question. Did the teacher want the students to find a clever, logical answer or just experience the present moment? Great job! Let's see how you did. The first answer is, the special puzzle is called a koan. For question two, the famous Zen teacher was Hakuin. Number three, the answer is it was the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism.

12:55 Question four, the busy mind gets completely exhausted and eventually gives up. And the final answer is he wanted them to just experience the present moment, without words.

13:08 You know, I'm never going to look at clapping the same way again. Next time I'm in an audience, I'm just going to wave one hand around.

13:17 Every time you clap, you'll wonder about the silent hand. It's perfectly okay if it still feels a little confusing. Honestly, that's literally the whole point of a Koan.

13:28 Yeah, it's kind of nice knowing some questions aren't supposed to be answered. Sometimes it's better just to wonder.

13:35 Exactly. We don't have to know everything. Hey, if you love wondering about big, unanswerable questions with us, please leave us a five-star review.

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14:14 We love hearing from you and wandering together. See you next time on Philosophy is not boring. Bye everyone.