Definitions

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  • noun Plural form of koan.

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Instead of merely informing consumers, they often work as three-word koans: Made in Canada.

    The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010

  • Instead of merely informing consumers, they often work as three-word koans: Made in Canada.

    The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010

  • "Elizabeth delights in wrestling with difficult and juicy 'koans' that tend to plague modern day practitioners, while maintaining a deep respect for the tradition she comes from, '' organizers said in a news release.

    tcpalm.com Stories 2010

  • Ralph Eugene Meatyard's photographs are visual koans.

    Mother of the Unconventional William Meyers 2011

  • I will say that for any reader with the slightest interest in the subject, not to mention a love of poetry — Tom Montag speaks to you in this book — through the simple presence of a wise old farmer, who sounds a lot like a Zen monk, speaking in koans:

    norbert blei | the poetry of persona and the divided self « poetry dispatch & other notes from the underground 2009

  • Large chunks of the public discourse are played out in 140-character koans and pungent status updates.

    Sweating Ad Copy Like 'Mad Men' 2011

  • This Korean technique is akin to the Japanese Rinzai Zen training in koans Zen "cases", which is better known in the West, but Korean Ganhwa Seon developed prior to, and completely independently from, the Japanese Zen traditions.

    Robert Buswell: A Place For Doubt Robert Buswell 2011

  • Large chunks of the public discourse are played out in 140-character koans and pungent status updates.

    Sweating Ad Copy Like 'Mad Men' 2011

  • This Korean technique is akin to the Japanese Rinzai Zen training in koans Zen "cases", which is better known in the West, but Korean Ganhwa Seon developed prior to, and completely independently from, the Japanese Zen traditions.

    Robert Buswell: A Place For Doubt Robert Buswell 2011

  • Lance, This and the one above work beautifully as stand-alone prose-poems, Mannions own koans.

    Status report. June 27, 2009. 2009

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