"Zen teacher Norman Fischer proposes a two-week trial run to get your meditation practice started and looks at some of the obstacles that will come up."

Aren’t words and concepts the antithesis of enlightenment? In an essay published in the March 2007 issue of Shambhala Sun, Norman wonders why he is compelled to write, and concludes that all language is a form of prayer.

In this essay for Shambhala Sun magazine, Norman writes about the pain and bewilderment of losing his closest friend, and offers concrete advice and ways to work with loss. The title, "The Raw Spot," refers to the teaching by Chogyam Trungpa on embryonic compassion, which grows from the sore or raw or wounded spot in our bodies and hearts.

This is an introduction to Koan Study. Zoketsu discusses the history of Koans and their relationship to Zen practice in the Rinzai and Soto schools of Zen. He recommends Dogen’s Genjo Koan as a guide in making this very life our central koan.