I found it interesting in the Dokusan room if I got
off-topic how he brought the conversation back to the point of the koan that I
was working on at the time.
For example, I said that in zazen I had the sensation of
being surrounded by golden light. He asked, “What is the age of Mu?” – that is
the koan I was working on at the time. Sometimes he put in something like, “That
must be encouraging” or “that resonates.”
I believe this came from his deep faith in koan, and
an understanding that words can go on forever and be all over the place, as
well as, of course, to retain some kind of order and focus for himself and for
me.
To my eye, Aitken Roshi and Michael Kieran Roshi - the current
master at the Honolulu temple - are the clearest manifestations of the Kensho
experience I have seen. I mean, something that is visible even before they
speak.
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