As current director of the Pacific Zen Institute in Santa Rosa, California, Tarrant has a great reputation as a writer and poet. He has contributed to such books as Beneath a Single Moon: Buddhism in Contemporary American Poetry and What Book? Buddha Poems from Beat to Hiphop. Tarrant’s own books include his controversial book The Light Inside the Dark and the widely received Bring Me the Rhinoceros.

In addition to being an accomplished author, Tarrant has also become one of the most interesting and creative of North American koan masters. Through his many talks and essays published in periodicals and around the web, as well as through his book Bring Me the Rhinoceros: and Other Zen Koans To Bring You Joy, Tarrant has established himself as the leading koan expert.

What is a koan?

A koan is a paradoxical anecdote or a riddle that has no solution and that is used in Zen Buddhism to show the inadequacy of logical reasoning. Koans are said to reflect the enlightened or awakened state, and can short circuit the habit of discursive thought or shock the mind into awareness.

Tarrant has adapted koans in his meditation as a way to bring curiosity to the whole range of meditation experiences. In the John Tarrant meditation retreat offered by Shambhala Mountain Center, Tarrant will use koans to cross any gap between yourself and the life you live and the life you know is possible.

Want to experience koan meditation with John Tarrant? Join the Shambhala Meditation Center for Meditation & Creativity: Practices that Free the Mind with John Tarrant on June 18, 2009. Contact us today to learn more.