Online Reference For Body, Mind & Spirit

Term: Koan

DEFINITION:

A concept found in Zen Buddhism. Although it may be formed as a story or a statement, it is usually presented in the form of a question. A Koan cannot be answered by the logical thinking of the rational mind. It may not have a logical answer at all. The purpose of a Koan is not to challenge a person to think, but to move beyond logical thinking. Solutions to a question or concept come from the intuition and can lead to deep spiritual insights. The best known Koan is, “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” A better translation of the original version would be, “Two hands clap and there is a sound; what is the sound of one hand?”