Zen koan
Unanswerable meditation puzzle
A Zen koan is a paradoxical statement or question used in Buddhist meditation practice, designed to provoke insight by short-circuiting rational thought.
Classic examples include What is the sound of one hand clapping? and What was your face before your parents were born?
The point isn't to solve the riddle logically but to transcend ordinary thinking.
Outside Buddhist practice, koan describes any paradox that resists straightforward resolution.
- riddlePuzzling question to solve
- paradoxSeemingly absurd truth
- enlightenmentProfound spiritual awakening
- satoriSudden spiritual awakening
- meditationFocused attention practice
one hand · monk · master · bamboo · silence · mu · beginner's mind · empty cup · mindfulness · sitting · temple · awakening · puzzle · nonsense · clapping · emptiness · Buddha · dharma
Zen koanmathematical proof
Logical demonstration of truth
logic puzzle · syllogism · crossword puzzle · Sudoku · word problem
Zen koanEuclidean geometry
Study of flat planes
formal logic · scientific method · catechism · legal brief · technical manual