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The Sound of the One Hand
2 recommendations

The Sound of the One Hand

281 Zen Koans with Answers

by Yoel Hoffman

Recommended by Kevin Kelly

Recommended by Kevin Kelly

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Should I read this?

Recommended by 2 sources and appears in Most Recommended Books, Philosophy, and Social Sciences.

When The Sound of the One Hand came out in Japan in 1916 it caused a scandal. Zen was a secretive practice, its wisdom relayed from master to novice in strictest privacy. That a handbook existed recording not only the riddling koans that are central to Zen teaching but also detailing the answers to them seemed to mark Zen as rote, not revelatory. F...

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Recommended by 2 sources and appears in Most Recommended Books, Philosophy, and Social Sciences.

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Kevin Kelly

Recommended this book

Appears In

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
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Consider The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy. Recommended by 8 sources.

Soft-spoken, heavily illustrated fable built from short dialogues and watercolor sketches. Each spread pairs a spare line of text with a loose drawing, so the pleasure is visual and aphoristic rather than narrative; readers collect felt-true sentences more than plot. Most useful when you want quick consolations, a prompt for conversation with a child, or a pause during a rough day. Limiting if you want sustained argument, concrete advice, or tightly plotted storytelling: the repetition of gentleness can feel sentimental or thin after a while.

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The Sound of the One Hand

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