Hi @Maniac Craniac - are KOANS what you were asking about? The things you were trying to remember in the now-closed thread? The "J and K "jaiku?" things, as you remembered them? They were popular years ago - and in addition to real Buddhist ones, there were children's ones, Christian ones and yes, humorous, Muslim and Jewish ones too. Some were pretty funny. And some were a bit off-colour too. I can't remember anyone being offended. I remember "What is the Sound of Sh* Happening?" on T-shirts. There were all sorts of funny ones on greeting cards. Nobody I knew got upset -- and I knew some Buddhists back then. The original Zen Koans had a purpose. I believe they were conundrums that could not be answered by logical thinking. An example was "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there, what sound does it make?" The idea was to show the new initiate that there are things that cannot be solved by linear, logical thinking. I guess they were an encouragement to try meditating. Anyway, the genuine ones had an instructive purpose. So did some of the non-Zen ones. Some were just funny. I hope these were the things you couldn't remember the name of. I first ran into koans in the 1960s.
Ah, sorry for hijacking, this Koans/Zen related tread reminds me of meditation, I do that often after I wake up, and before I go to sleep. It's a good way to keep the mind fresh for the next day. Not only should you meditate, but also do adequate exercise daily.
Good advice - but hardly original. I prefer to do both while I'm asleep. Less effort. Or you could keep your mind in the refrigerator overnight.
