The teaching in Kanshoji

In Sôtô Zen, the teaching is transmitted from person to person.

At Kanshoji, it is given by Taiun Jean-Pierre Faure, who received the Dharma transmission from Dônin Minamisawa Zenji, abbot of Eiheiji zen temple.

Taiun Jean-Pierre Faure’s teaching is based on that of Shakyamuni Bouddha rewritten at each period. It takes the different traditional forms of sôtô zen (see page “Sôtô zen buddhism“). All the teachings are translated into English.

Kusen

Oral teaching given during zazen

Kusen is the oral teaching given by the teacher during zazen.

It is not literature. Sentences are simple, short and straightforward. The kusen speaks to the deep part of the brain, to the heart of the disciple, who should not try to grasp it intellectually.

Buddha’s Peace

Some people mistake what the practice taught by Buddha actually is: they are looking for peace, certainly; but peace at any price is not peace. Some seek peace by cutting themselves off from others, believing that others are the cause of their suffering. This kind of peace, achieved by fleeing the world, is not the peace taught by Buddha. Peace obtained by inhibiting certain mental functions is not authentic peace. Peace obtained by taking drugs or medication is not the peace taught by Buddha.

As for those who practise their own idea of Zen—one might call it a ‘crawling Zen’, a Zen that doesn’t elevate us to the dimension of Buddha, where all we do is crawl around, looking for happiness everywhere, taking advantage of everything, not bothering about the means we employ, ready for anything, even crime—this peace, peace at any price, including crime, is not Buddha’s peace; this is not the peace Buddha taught.

The elevation of which the Buddha’s teaching speaks is realised by observing the precepts. In the zazen transmitted by the buddhas—where we remain beyond sleep, beyond mental agitation—the precepts are automatically observed. Body and mind in unity leave no room for selfishness, no room for selfish strategies. When body and mind are in unity they are regulated; they follow the laws of the universe. So, Zen and the precepts are one and the same thing: in Japanese, Zen kai ichi nyō. As soon as we let go of our impulses of greed and aversion, as soon as we abandon our self-centred strategies, as soon as we give ourselves wholeheartedly to reality, the precepts are observed, the Way is realised.

In the 60s, when the scent of the Orient reached the West, spiritual practices were very popular among the young—but in a party spirit, a spirit of unrestrained pleasure-seeking, the spirit of being free in one’s egoism, rather than being free from one’s egoism. We didn’t want to hear talk of precepts. Some became hooked on Zen as though it were a drug, when in fact the use of drugs is the opposite of the liberation taught by Buddha.

Buddha’s teaching aims at liberation from the three poisons, not at the unbridled satisfaction of the three poisons.

Peace at all costs is not Buddha’s peace.

Taiun JP Faure, September 2026

October 5, 2026/0 Comments/by Gemmon Casimir Ostyn

Kusen

A universe of resonance

In the 1960s, there was a craze amongst young people for things from the Far East. They set out for India, for Kathmandu. They opened up to the world of resonance. The idea started to spread that the flutter of butterfly’s wings above the…

Kusen

Our greatest blindness is to think that we do nothing wrong

A sutra says that taking care of living beings requires us to see our mistakes and to give them up. We make all sorts of small mistakes without seeing it, without knowing it. We have all sorts of bad habits that we don’t question. The sutra…

Kusen

All forms of existence support one another

Fully sitting, to the exclusion of all else, we practice patience in the face of reality as it is. Whether what we see is pleasant or unpleasant, we remain unmoved by what is. Through this repeated, profound practice, the eye of wisdom opens.…

See all the kusens

Chosan

Meeting with the abbot

The teacher expounds the Dharma freely in the presence of his disciples, around a cup of tea.
The teaching relates to real-life situations.

A monastery is not great because of its many disciples.
It is great because chosan is practiced daily.
Master Dôgen

Chosan

Chôsan on engaged Buddhism

The premise of this chôsan is a film, The Venerable W, about a Burmese monk who encourages racism towards Islam. I have reservations about engaged Buddhism that shifts towards politics. That monk, pointing the finger at crimes committed…

Chosan

Zen and psychoanalysis

" [...] Zen is different: its purpose is not to fix the ego, to make it compatible with society or the others. Zen deals with issues having to do with a whole other nature [...]"

Mondo

Questions and Answers

The mondo is the opportunity, for the disciple, to ask the teacher a question on some aspects of the teaching and how to realise them in daily life.

Mondo

Question: What is the “self” D.T. Suzuki refers to?

Mondo

Question : I often hear that zen is rigorous.

Mondo

Question : What is the difference between rebirth and reincarnation?

Teisho

Lectures

Teisho - Lectures

The commitment of a nun in the city (Hosetsu Laure Scemama – IZA seminar)

The commitment of a nun in the city (Hosetsu Laure Scemama) There exits several styles of life for a Zen monk or nun. I would like here to present an account of the style of life of a nun who is totally engaged in city life. In Japan,…

Teisho - Lectures

Personal experience: the monastic life (Yashô Valérie Guéneau – IZA seminar)

As you can see, it is possible to live in a monastery for a number of years and remain quite normal! In our Sangha of the AZI certain members imagine that monks and nuns live in a monastery like “extra-terrestrial” beings – austere,…

Teisho - Lectures

Zen monk, bodhisattva : the-vows of the candidate for Awakening (Taiun JP Faure – IZA seminar 2014)

Human beings are religious animals. The Absolute is present at the heart of all phenomena of the universe. The entire universe practises the Way, naturally, unconsciously, and automatically. That gives rise to the question that Master Dogen…

See all the teishos

Frequently Asked Questions

Ask questions

You are welcome to feed this page with questions. So, please feel free to send them to webmaster@kanshoji.org

Question: What does “body and mind unified” mean?

There is no mind without a body, no body without a mind. They are two aspects of a single reality. When body and mind are unified, we can remain present to ultimate reality, like Buddha Shakyamuni says so well: “The sound that is heard and the one who hears it are instantly forgotten”
That is what we get into the habit of doing in zazen. In other words, regardless of the situation, we are totally open to it, totally available. When we let go of everything that appears on our consciousness, without running away from or rejecting anything, nothing separates us from reality. Body and mind in unity, we become one with all existences in the universe. Being in unity with all existences, we can respond to them with wisdom and compassion.

Question: Is zazen the means to an end, the end being experiencing the nature of the self?

Zazen is not at the service of anything. Zazen is simply the manifestation of ultimate reality, which has no end per se. Bringing this ultimate dimension within us has the power to change our life… We realise then that our points of view, our conceptions, our interpretations are relative, and that in no case should they be confused with ultimate reality.

Question: Ignorance, waywardness,”the true nature of life”, “the true nature of all things”, “reality as it is”… Can you explain?

A wrong vision of reality leads us to believe that all things in life are permanent, solid; that they have their own existence, independent from the rest. But the opposite is true.
In reality, all things in life are impermanent: they exist in interdependence with all other things, and have no separate existence.

Question: Could you explain what the three poisons are?

Buddha teaches that we are the cause of our suffering, which comes from our ignorance, greed and aversion. However, he also asserts that we can put an end to our suffering, if we free ourselves from those three defilements, the three poisons.
Ignorance (waywardness):
Not seeing the true nature of life, the true nature of all things, that is to say, Buddha nature. Ignorance stops us from leading our life the right way, harmoniously, because we do not see reality as it is.
Greed (envy):
Neglecting our true nature and that of all things, we do not have access to the satisfying feeling of peace and plenitude. Consequently, we are in a state of frustration and lack, which leads us to look for happiness in material possessions, social status, fame, recognition, etc.
Aversion (anger, violence, hatred…):
Oblivious to the state of awakening, we accuse others; we feel aversion for everything that bothers us; we feel anger and hatred towards the outside world.
It is because we follow the three poisons – often unknowingly – that we entertain relationships with the world which are not right, which prevents our fulfillment and that of others

Question: Could you tell me about compassion and the relationship to dana - giving?

To practice the Buddha way is to show wisdom and compassion. This can be realised when we become free of the three poisons — ignorance, greed and aversion — and of all the resulting toxic flows. Then, we are no longer locked up in our selfish thoughts, and consequently, no longer separate from other beings. We see the others as they are, with their joys and their sorrows. We feel the desire to help them with their sufferings. Being compassionate is being in unity with the others. The river of giving then flows naturally and freely between all existences. When we are free of the three poisons, the virtue of giving arises naturally. It’s a characteristic of Buddha’s functioning.