Why Zen?

"Ob La Di, Ob La Da" - The Beatles

Since the title of this blog is 'Zen and the Art of Software Development' and Zen plays a great part in the way the ideas have been put forward, then it is appropriate that I say something about it. The first thing I must point out is that I am not a student of Zen. However, I have read a great deal on the subject (a statement that you will realise by the end of this post is incredibly ironic) and I admire its philosophies. What are the attributes of Zen that have given it a place in the title of this blog?

And, What is Zen?

Zen cannot be learnt from a book. Zen relies on experience and personal tuition. So, why have more books been written about Zen that perhaps another 'religion' in the world? All books on Zen suffer from a major disadvantage, and that is that it is impossible to describe it, it must be experienced. It is a similar problem to the one I face, can you really describe the feeling involved in building a system. Well you may not be able to learn Zen from a book but you can smile at the Humour, you can nod with understanding at the wise statements, and you can be mystified by its illogicality (I may have just invented a new word).

So ...

What is the objective of Zen?

ENLIGHTENMENT

Or “ Nirvana” (not the grunge band that came from Seattle).

Which is when you realise yourself and the entire universe completely.