The Zen
Absurdist.

September 22, 2026 / 4 min read

For most of my adult life, I have been intellectually aware of sweat. I have seen sweat. I have heard people complain about sweat. I have watched athletes on television drip onto basketball courts and runners finish races looking as if…

September 21, 2026 / 7 min read

This morning I had the strange pleasure of reading someone else articulate an idea I have been circling for more than a year.Not in the someone stole my idea sense. Jack Clark, cofounder of Anthropic, has almost certainly never encount…

September 20, 2026 / 4 min read

Yesterday I posted the thirteenth case of The Gateless Gate, “Tokusan Holds His Bowls,” without commentary. That was intentional.Usually, when I share something that matters to me, my instinct is to engage with it—to turn it over, conn…

September 19, 2026 / 1 min read

Tokusan came into the dining hall carrying his bowls. Seppō, the cook, said, “The bell hasn’t rung and the drum hasn’t sounded. Where are you going with your bowls?”Tokusan immediately returned to his room.Seppō later told Gantō about …