Karma exists within causality. It is three-dimensional. Free will exists outside of causality; it is not bound by karma.

Most people put the cart before the horse, which is an interesting way to go through life. They approach everything directly. In Zen we approach everything backwards or inside out.

How do you end a meditation session? It's nice to chant a mantra again. Maybe repeat it a few times. It seals the meditation. Do your best and then just give it to eternity.

In sanskrit they say: "Tat twam asi" - thou art that. You are God. The bubble of your awareness bursts and you're flooded with immortality.

Tragedy is the violation of love.

As I'm sure you know by now, most people aren't really very happy. Beyond their surface appearances, the smiles they wear for the rest of the world, most people are soul-sick.

I select people to work more closely when they are prepared to and I see that. They don't have to tell me. I know. I will give them a task of some type, and that task becomes the koan between us.