CloudWater Zendo, the Zen Center of Cleveland

• 1: Home
• 2: About Us
  • 2.1: History
  • 2.2: Contact Us
    • 2.2.1: Map to CloudWater Zendo
  • 2.3: Calendar
  • 2.4: Regularly Scheduled Activities
  • 2.5: Affiliate: Dragon Flower Ch'an Temple
  • 2.6: Affiliate: Golden Wisdom Zen Meditation
  • 2.7: Affiliate: Mountain Wind Zen Meditation
  • 2.8: Photos
• 3: Ch'an (Zen)
  • 3.1: Ch'an (Zen)
  • 3.2: Our Chan Lineage
  • 3.3: Meditation Basics
• 4: About Buddhism
  • 4.1: What Is Buddhism
  • 4.2: The Buddha
  • 4.3: Key Buddhist Teachings
  • 4.4: Taking The Vows of Refuge
  • 4.5: FAQ
• 5: Pure Land Buddhism
  • 5.1: What Is Pure Land Buddhism
  • 5.2: The 5 Elements School
  • 5.3: The Pure Land Sutras
  • 5.4: History of Meditative Pure Land Practice
  • 5.5: Comparing the Paths
  • 5.6: 5 Elements Practices
    • 5.6.1: Sutra Study
    • 5.6.2: Recitation Practice
    • 5.6.3: Atonement & Veneration
    • 5.6.4: Visualization Meditation
    • 5.6.5: Meditation Practice
• 6: Internal Arts
  • 6.1: Internal Arts Practice
  • 6.2: Simple Energy Work
• 7: Library
  • 7.1: Our Library
  • 7.2: Texts
  • 7.3: Audio
  • 7.4: Video
  • 7.5: Links
  • 7.6: Suggested Readings
• 8: Ask a Monk
  • 8.1: Ask a Monk
  • 8.2: "Public Cases"
• 9: The Begging Bowl

What Are Public Cases?

In ancient times, "Public Cases" were records of dialogues involving Ch'an masters, their fellow masters and their students.  These records were known as kung-ans (J. koans) and remain a vibrant part of today's study of Ch'an and Zen, having been passed down and studied for many centuries.  With the dawning of the Internet age, a new category of Public Cases has emerged: answers to questions that have been emailed to Ch'an, Zen and Buddhist teachers.  The great 12th century Ch'an master Ta-Hui Tsung-Kao wrote many letters answering laypersons' questions on Ch'an and Buddhism, and this format is now known as the "Ta-Hui Method."

The questions which are listed below come from our Ask A Monk page and were answered in the traditional fashion by Ven. Shih Ying-Fa, Abbot of CloudWater Zendo.

If you would like to ask a question and receive an answer from Ven. Ying-Fa or a member of the Nien-Fo Ch'an Order, please click here.

Questions on Ch'an

• Beyond Craving
• Don't Tune In, Don't Tune Out
• What About Rebirth?
• Is It a "Calling?"
• Stop Pushing
• On "Digestion"
• The Great Matter
• Balancing Practice
• Ch'an and Dying
• Too Much Information
• What Is Vast?

Questions on Buddhism

• Enlightened or Addicted?
• Dealing With the Internet
• The Proof Is In YOUR Pudding!
• Balancing Compassion and Wisdom
• Not Driven by Purpose
• Hermit or Non-Hermit
• About Gay Marriage
• Wanting a Peaceful Life
• Peace In the Midst of Chaos
• On Prayer
• Reconciling Religious Views
• A Bit More On Religions

Questions on Karma

• Not Good, Not Bad, Just Karma
• Helping the Children
• Cutting the Grass

Questions on Pure Land Buddhism

• Pure Land Is Pure Mind
• Pure Land Cause and Effect
• Place or No-Place?
• Language of Recitation
• What's "Faith" Based On?