What Is a Zen Koan?

with Karen Maezen Miller • 4 Sessions • 21 mins

Discover how ancient Zen koans can awaken you to present-moment awareness and free you from mental confusion through guided practice with experienced teacher Karen Maezen Miller.

Session 1

Introduction to Koans

Learn what Zen koans truly are beyond common misconceptions - not riddles or puzzles, but powerful teaching tools designed to open your eyes to reality.

1:07
Introduction to Koans
Session 1

Introduction to Koans

Learn what Zen koans truly are beyond common misconceptions - not riddles or puzzles, but powerful teaching tools designed to open your eyes to reality.

1:07
Understanding Koan Practice
Session 2

Understanding Koan Practice

Explore the history and purpose of koans while discovering how to move beyond intellectual thinking into direct, embodied wisdom through becoming one with practice.

7:12
Working with "Wash Your Bowl"
Session 3

Working with "Wash Your Bowl"

Experience authentic koan practice firsthand as you learn to embody the famous "wash your bowl" teaching and discover enlightenment in everyday actions.

8:43
3:22
Session 4

3:22

Understand how koan practice extracts you from mental commentary and worry, guiding you into awakened presence where clarity and direction naturally emerge.

3:22

About the Teacher

Karen Maezen Miller is a priest in the Soto Zen lineage of Taizan Maezumi Roshi and a student of Nyogen Yeo Roshi. In daily life, as mother to daughter Georgia and as a writer, she aims to resolve the enigmatic truth of Maezumi's teaching, "Your life is your practice." Miller is the author of <em>Momma Zen: Walking the Crooked Path of Motherhood</em>, and most recently, <em> Paradise in Plain Sight: Lessons from a Zen Garden</em>.