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  1. Western Chan Fellowship
  2. Resources
  3. Retreat Reports
  4. Koan Retreat

Retreat Reports: Koan (Gongan) Retreat

We publish selections from retreat reports written after Western Chan Fellowship retreats, to illustrate the range of experiences people go through as they investigate themselves in silent meditation. These reports are printed anonymously and may be lightly edited.

  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    Retreat Report, Koan Retreat September 2022, a poem

    Anonymous | 2022-10-31

    Planting a great oak at Shawbottom
    and returning each year to say, “I did that”,
    that would be something.
    The sapling trees were ready in pots,
    the spade resting against the shed.

    I could only claim a short-lived success
    weeding between the paving slabs.
    About his many enlightenment experiences
    Sawaki Roshi once said,
    “they didn’t amount to a whole hill of beans”.

    In my secret koan, ‘Tokusan’s Bowls’,
    eg…

    Read more of: Retreat Report, Koan Retreat September 2022, a poem
  • Person sitting cross-legged overlookinglandscape

    Shattering the Great Doubt, Crosby Hall, August 2017

    Anonymous | 2017-09-02

    …Day two. Koan day. I eventually plumped for one that, rather arrogantly, I believed I could answer. Hah! Silliness. We sat, the Koan playing in my mind as I searched for an answer. After a few sessions, Simon brought in a communication exercise whereby each retreatant sits with another and takes it in turns to answer a question on their Koan. I was coupled with the most open and honest individual…

    Read more of: Shattering the Great Doubt, Crosby Hall, August 2017
  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    Great Doubt

    Anonymous | 2013-10-25

    Koan retreats with the Western Chan Fellowship have become a staple part of my dharma practice over the past few years since I have found a connection with this specific method. Coming to Wales for such retreats has become routine for me, and I had no expectations on booking it or on arrival.

    One day into the retreat it became clear that my practice was very different to previous retreats. On…

    Read more of: Great Doubt
  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    Finely Tuned

    Anonymous | 2012-12-20

    As I write this, two days after my return, I am fine tuned. My heart is brilliant, clear and unobstructed. Someone throws a ball for a dog, which charges across the park, a furry blur of mad energy with scampering legs, and I laugh out loud. The sky has a glow which takes your breath away. I respond to these things with delight and amusement. I hear about the school massacre and weep without…

    Read more of: Finely Tuned
  • Person sitting cross-legged overlookinglandscape

    Abide in the Unborn

    Anonymous | 2009-10-31

    Two experiences come to mind from the retreat:

    One morning as I walked outside the Chan hall, I observed 15 to 20 birds darting in and out of trees in unison as they flew up the hill. I felt a sudden jolt, like someone had thrust a knife into my heart. "Huh!" I gasped. But, it was not pain that I felt, it was pure, intense joy. I'm not exactly sure what happened but, in a way, I became those…

    Read more of: Abide in the Unborn
  • Person sitting cross-legged overlookinglandscape

    The Buddhas Do Not Understand!

    Anonymous | 2009-05-31

    A monk said to the Master "The Buddhas of past present and future don't understand. Cats and oxen do. Why don't the Buddhas understand?" Master Nanquan replied, "Before they entered the Deer Park they knew it. "The monk said, "How is it that cats and oxen do know it?" "How could you doubt that they do?" responded Nanquan.

    When I read the list of koans in this Koan retreat, I was intrigued by this…

    Read more of: The Buddhas Do Not Understand!
  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    Everything In Its Place

    Anonymous | 2006-04-30

    I approached the retreat with some trepidation owing to my being workmaster, my first time on a retreat of any size. Previously I had carried out this role, but only on smaller retreats and very much as an assistant. This time I had to get things organised and, most worrying of all, get up in the morning and get things started! Not only that, but make sure I didn't miss giving any signals and let…

    Read more of: Everything In Its Place
  • Person sitting cross-legged overlookinglandscape

    Why? Why? Why?

    Anonymous | 1992-04-30

    Physically, I did not find the retreat too difficult. Having regularly practised the one hour meditation sessions traditional in vipassana, sitting for half an hour at a time is not much of a problem for me. And the exercises offered during the breaks between sessions were enough to get the stiffness out of my limbs. Alternating between sitting cross legged and kneeling also helped me avoid any…

    Read more of: Why? Why? Why?
  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    Where's the Trick?

    Anonymous | 1992-04-30

    I was fortunate to be able to collect Shifu, Guo Yen Hse and Paul Kennedy from the airport. We broke our journey to Wales in Bristol in order to see my family for lunch. As we were leaving and my wife was wishing us well for the retreat, Shifu said, in reference to the retreat, "It's a trick!"

    "Yes," my wife replied, "But it's a very good one, and a very necessary one," looking pointedly in my…

    Read more of: Where's the Trick?
  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    Who is Dragging this Old Corpse Along?

    Anonymous | 1990-05-31

    Several times during my retreat at Maenllwyd I was reminded of the many weeks I have spent alone walking in the High Pyrenees. The aching legs, back neck and shoulders; the relentlessness of the load on my back; the near exhaustion and mental stupor; the gratitude for occasional breaks with their slow recovery of the determination to go on no matter what. The recurrent question in my mind "Why on…

    Read more of: Who is Dragging this Old Corpse Along?
  • Person sitting on stone block overlooking landscape

    A Moment in Dokusan

    Anonymous | 1990-05-31

    Dokusan:

    "I'm frightened!"
    "How big do you feel?"
    "Oh - small"
    "How old are you?"
    "Seven".
    "Be kind to the little boy inside you. Go and look into his fear."

    Back on my cushion, the little boy in me and I talked together.

    "Why are you hiding?"
    "I'm scared."
    "Why?"
    "Dad's going to beat me."

    And as we talked it through, and I cried with fear, my heart went out to the little boy in my memory. I comforted…

    Read more of: A Moment in Dokusan
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©Western Chan Fellowship CIO 2023. May not be quoted for commercial purposes. Anyone wishing to quote for non-commercial purposes may seek permission from the WCF Secretary.

The articles on this website have been submitted by various authors and the views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the Western Chan Fellowship.

Permalink: https://w-c-f.org/Q772

View our retreat programme

May 24th
Investigating Koans
Residential Retreat
7 Nights
June 8th
Kent Chan Day Retreat
Day Retreat
 
June 28th
Mid-Summer Silent Meditation Retreat
Residential Retreat
5 Nights
July 18th
Silent Illumination Retreat
Residential Retreat
9 Nights
August 23rd
Western Zen Retreat
Residential Retreat
5 Nights
September 7th
Kent Chan Day Retreat
Day Retreat
 
September 26th
Weekend Chan Retreat
Residential Retreat
2 Nights
October 4th
Investigating Koans
Residential Retreat
7 Nights
November 15th
Silent Illumination Retreat
Residential Retreat
7 Nights
November 29th
Western Zen Retreat
Residential Retreat
5 Nights
December 7th
Kent Chan Day Retreat
Day Retreat
 

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Sun icon by gravisio from Noun Project (CC BY 3.0)
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