Search Koans?

So I have been revisiting my interest in koans on this blog a while back.  Actually I haven’t really paid much attention to that interest for many years. Life presented enough of it’s own koans to keep me going.   One of these days someone is going to come out with one of those koan-a-day desk calendars with cartoons to boot. But this has gotten me thinking about new sources of koans.  And my answer would be in the Google search results.

faith boobs forum-the milk of human kindness discussed

chocolate and the enlightenment – a rather weighty way to go

soup packaging forum-is that creamy soup or clear soup?

porn for charity-that’s pretty heavy.

repetitive violence becomes habit -repeat anything enough and it becomes a habit

computerized chicken – for what purpose?

whitebelt cattle-in a new reality show they will be fighting the computerized chickens

where is lakmi’s beauty parlour-turn left at Green Restaurant in Kulri Bazaar Mussoorie India

tulku hollywood – see Steven Seagal

escaping self zen-there is no escape

is buddhism correct?-works for me

facebook enlightenment-some new app that takes all your information and your friends information and connects it together in a new way

vicara boobs – “Vicara (Sanskrit: Vicāra) means the way mind maintains attention toward any object.”  “(slang) Plural of boob, usually the breast meaning; boobs meaning “breasts”. Generally inoffensive.”  Seems to be a lot of boobs mentions lately. Must be beach season.

so many spiritual gurus bullshit-see last entry on this list

guy with buddist beads-looking to meet girl with slightly used cushion

practice like a fool-works for me

depeche mode and buddhism-that should be depeche mode and enlightenment. You know I fetishize that band ridiculously.

drikung kagyu porno-I’ve heard that anything is fodder for the porno mill but this is a bit far fetched

sexual practice of nuns-see above

enlightenment porn – see Brad Warner (or my own indulgence in the same a couple of posts back)

extreme exercise to reach enlightenment-not to be confused with Extreme Buddhism-another one of those pseudo-mystical get enlightened quick schemes-they won’t even tell you who teaches it. Check out their reading list-sounds like a first year college liberal arts text list. (They have The Prophet by Khalil Gibran listed as Christian Mysticism. He was a Muslim and the title refers to The Prophet Mohammed.)(In comments James Ford states:

A small quibble. I agree Gibran’s “The Prophet” is not an example of Christian mysticism. But, also, he wasn’t a muslim, nor do I think the prophet of the “The Prophet” is meant to be Mohamed. Gibran was raised a Lebanese Maronite who in his adulthood was heavily influenced by the Bahai faith. I think of him as a “freelance” mystic.

It is good to have knowledgeable readers. I feel his poetic style is greatly Sufi influenced as well. And his association with the Nationalist movement in Syria and the pan-Arab nationalism that seemed to engender and that most of his early writing in Arabic maybe led me to the wrong impression.  Though I do think Prophet is a reference to the Muslim figure as it is such an archetype. In the book it is not messianic (in a Christian sense) but more divinely inspired rather than embodying divinity itself.  (OK this is not a literary discussion). But I am glad James has brought up the actual facts of the situation. Thanks.