--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Zen is less the study of doctrine than a…" description: "\"Zen is less the study of doctrine than a set of tools for discovering what can be known when the world is looked at with open eyes.\" — Jane Hirshfield" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/jane-hirshfield-2649_discovering_zen-is-less-the-study-of-doctrine-than-a_3088729.png" --- # Zen is less the study of doctrine than a set of tools for… ![“Zen is less the study of doctrine than a set of tools for discovering what can be known when the world is looked at with open eyes.” quote by Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/jane-hirshfield-2649_discovering_zen-is-less-the-study-of-doctrine-than-a_3088729.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/jane-hirshfield-2649_discovering_zen-is-less-the-study-of-doctrine-than-a_3088729.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/jane-hirshfield-2649_discovering_zen-is-less-the-study-of-doctrine-than-a_3088729.png) > “Zen is less the study of doctrine than a set of tools for discovering what can be known when the world is looked at with open eyes.” [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Zen offers practical tools rather than rigid doctrines, encouraging open perception. **In simple terms:** Zen is practical, not just theory. Key Takeaway Use Zen practices to see clearly. Themes mindfulness perception spiritual practice Mood contemplative inspirational Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - meditation - creative problem solving - conflict resolution - learning new skills Key Concepts Zen Buddhism cognitive openness Questions to Reflect On - What tools do you use to see the world? - How can open eyes change your assumptions? A Different Perspective Tools may not replace deep study for complex issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doctrine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctrine/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Meditation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meditation/) [Tools](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tools/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The study of doctrine and the teaching of doctrine will change behavior more than the study of behavior will change behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyd-k-packer/the-study-of-doctrine-and-the-teaching-of-doctrine-will-change/) [Boyd K. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyd-k-packer/) > [Zen is the study of mind in all of its manifestations. The purpose of Zen is to be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/zen-is-the-study-of-mind-in-all-of-its-manifestations-the-purpose-of/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The study of Zen is the study of energy, power, knowledge and balance. It is the science of energy conservation and control. We use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-study-of-zen-is-the-study-of-energy-power-knowledge-and-balance/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [In Zen we study the will. We learn how to cultivate it, to accumulate will. 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Once you’ve seen, you can no longer act like you don’t know. Open your eyes to the truth. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vashti-quiroz-vega/don-t-turn-your-face-away-once-you-ve-seen-you-can-no-longer-act-like/) Vashti Quiroz-Vega > [My mother says I didn't open my eyes for eight days after I was born, but when I did, the first thing I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/my-mother-says-i-didn-t-open-my-eyes-for-eight-days-after-i-was-born/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) ## More by Jane Hirshfield > [I don't have a cell phone (though for years I've kept saying, "soon").](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-don-t-have-a-cell-phone-though-for-years-i-ve-kept-saying-soon/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [I once was asked to contribute to a mushroom poem anthology. I didn't have anything, and so instead ended up writing the introduction. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-once-was-asked-to-contribute-to-a-mushroom-poem-anthology-i-didn-t/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Everything has two endings- a horse, a piece of string, a phone call. Before a life, air. And after. As silence is not silence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/everything-has-two-endings-a-horse-a-piece-of-string-a-phone-call/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [A certain amount of housekeeping also goes on in my poems. 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The hot chili peppers in them explode in the mouth and the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/metaphors-think-with-the-imagination-and-the-senses-the-hot-chili/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Your fate is to be yourself, both punishment and crime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/your-fate-is-to-be-yourself-both-punishment-and-crime/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Near even a candle, the visible heat. So it is with a person in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/near-even-a-candle-the-visible-heat-so-it-is-with-a-person-in-love/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [At some point I realized that you don't get a full human life if you try to cut off one end of it, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/at-some-point-i-realized-that-you-don-t-get-a-full-human-life-if-you/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Immensity is always there, but we so often become numb to it, or deceive ourselves into thinking our own lives and selves are what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/immensity-is-always-there-but-we-so-often-become-numb-to-it-or/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) [Explore all 156 Jane Hirshfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) ## More Discovering quotes > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. 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You have to keep going and going and going.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-nolan/tv-is-as-i-m-discovering-now-a-marathon-you-have-to-keep-going-and/) [Jonathan Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-nolan/) > [ “d\] One speaks in a language one doesn't understand, uses money whose worth one does not know, and wanders down streets for the very… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/d-one-speaks-in-a-language-one-doesn-t-understand-uses-money-whose/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [We can go up or we can do down. I think generally the world is going on an upward swing. 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