THE TEN OXHERDING PICTURES | 十牛図 | A JOURNEY TO DISCOVER AND MANIFEST OUR TRUE NATURE

The Ten Oxherding Pictures is a metaphoric description of the stages of the spiritual journey. We're all fond of our uniqueness. As such, we tend to think of our own spiritual journey as an individual quest with little parallel to our fellow seekers. As the origin and essence of all is One, however, there are many tell-tale signs that are common to all on this search. The Ten Bullsdistills the essence of the message of these guideposts and helps put words to this sublime undertaking. As such, we can use a common language to discuss the path of the Bodhisattva and gain perspective on the Way.

There have been many iterations of this guide to the stages of the Way. The first version surfaced over 1,000 years ago - and some had more or fewer stages. Experientially, there are no fixed 'steps', so any number of illustrations could be used. For this study, we'll focus on one with ten stages that describe not only the path to enlightenment but the return to society to manifest wisdom and compassion. Popularized by Master Kuoan in the twelfth century, only copies made by Japanese Rinzai Zen monk Shubun in the fifteenth century still exist.

Although it is nice to shed some light on spiritual matters, the ultimate arbiter of the path chosen is you. This adventure into the boundless unknown is yours to discover, and you must press on to appreciate the wonder therein...