Meditation & Creativity: Practices that Free the Mind with John Tarrant, Roshi

"What is Zen? Snow in a silver bowl."

This program has been canceled.


A koan is a way of meditating that brings curiosity to the whole range of experience. Koans are said to reflect the enlightened or awakened state, and can short circuit the habit of discursive thought or shock the mind into awareness. In this retreat, we will use koans to cross any gap between ourselves and the lives we live and the life we know is possible. This practice is based on epiphanies and creative leaps—the small shifts that have large effects. Koans also have a connection with peak performance, allowing us to act while in touch with the depth of life, before we explain the world. As we look at things in our lives that seem to be walls, they turn into gates.



Hear John Tarrant talk about this program:

Click here to download MP3 file

John Tarrant, Roshi, directs the Pacific Zen Institute, which is devoted to koans, the arts, and finding awakening in the midst of American life. One of the most original American Zen teachers, he holds a PhD in psychology and teaches at Duke Integrative Medicine. He is author of Bring Me the Rhinoceros—and Other Zen Koans That Will Save Your Life and The Light Inside the Dark: Zen, Soul & the Spiritual Life.

Please arrive between 2 and 5pm on Thursday, June 18. Program ends with lunch at 12:30pm on Sunday, June 21. View Detailed Program Information.