Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Word of the Day - Koan

koan \KOH-ahn\, noun:

A nonsensical or paradoxical question to a student for which an answer is demanded, the stress of meditation on the question often being illuminating.

Koan is Japanese, ko "public" and -an, "matter for thought." It enters English through Zen Buddhism before achieving a more general sense.

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