koan (m-w.com)
Main Entry: ko·an
Pronunciation: ‘kō-”än
Function: noun
Etymology: Japanese kōan, from kō (public) + an (proposition)
a paradox to be meditated upon that is used to train Zen Buddhist monks to abandon ultimate dependence on reason and to force them into gaining sudden intuitive enlightenment

This entry was posted on January 31, 2006 and is filed under language, philosophy/religion.