Elegant Failure: A Guide to Zen Koans

by Richard Shrobe

Zen koans are stories of exchanges between Zen masters and their disciples at the moment of enlightenment or near-enlightenment. These stories have long fascinated Western readers because of their wisdom, humor, and enigmatic quality. Drawing on over thirty years of practice and teaching, Richard Shrobe (himself a recognized Zen Master) has selected twenty-two cases from The Blue Cliff Record and Wu-men-kuan that he finds deeply meaningful and helpful for meditation practice. In Elegant Failure, he provides a wealth of background information and personal anecdotes for each koan that help to illuminate its meaning without detracting from its paradoxical nature. As Shrobe reminds us, "The main core of Zen teaching is the bare bones of what is there. In a certain sense, embellishing a story takes away from the central Don’t embellish anything, just be with it as it is."

Genres: Zen, Buddhism, Meditation

256 pages, Paperback

First published March 27, 2010

Reviews

[Joseph Boquiren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book for understanding the core teachings of Zen Buddhism. Koans (Kong-ans in Ch'an Buddhism) are statements of public record that document moments of insight that occur between teacher and student, between students, and sometimes between Zen masters. The author does a pretty good job of explaining the often inscrutable nature of koans, writes a brief history of each koan's origin, and talks about how koans are relevant in today's fast-moving society.

[Malik Salam · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful and clear exposition of some classic Koans. I have so much gratitude for Zen Master Wu Kwang’s (Richard Shrobe’s) teaching. He is able to give the reader enough details so that the context and external meaning is clear without ever giving so much away that the internal mystery is revealed. If you’re interested in Zen, have read some stories and Koans, and found them baffling, this book is for you, they will still be baffling but with an added clarity.

[Frank Jude · Rating 4 out of 5]

Richard Shrobe is affiliated with the Kwan Un School of Zen, a dharma heir of Seung Sahn, another Zen "Master" who apparently couldn't keep his hands to himself nor his cock in his pants. However, Shrobe seems clear of any such abuse and his approach to the koans presented in this book is clear, penetrating and often quite humorous.

I think there's a built-in potential to misuse koans, so I'm not the biggest fan of the way they are used in much of the centers in the Rinzai tradition, but I do appreciate them as vehicles to prod us in directions we would generally not go. Approached less as "puzzles" to "solve" and more as such prods to envision in new ways, they can be incredibly valuable. So, Shrobe offers the koans and some pointers for contemplation and leaves it at that. For a Zen book, it's refreshingly free of the typical obfuscation one finds in many such tomes.

[Milou · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Highly recommend.

[Geri Meiho · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant modern experience of the ancient koans of the Blue Cliff Record. I will be reading and rereading.