30 min of PURE GENIUS - Alan Watts on 'The Gateless Gate' (RARE)

In this video, Alan Watts discusses the ancient Zen Text "The Gateless Gate", a foundational set of 40 zen stories -Koans- that impart the Buddhist Wisdom in a very unique way to achieve the sudden awakening or Satori.
In these 30 Min of PURE Genius , Alan dives into the Zen philosophy and practice through the lens of the Gateless Gate reviewing 4 of the 40 stories.

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Title: The Gateless Gate (Review)
Source: Early Radio Talks (1960 - 1961)
▶FOOTAGE & SOUND:
Licensed Through Canva Pro (Getty, Pixabay, Epidemic sound)

This video has no negative impact on the original work. The speech soundtrack has been used under fair use, repurposed with the intent of EDUCATING and MOTIVATING others.
Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, commenting, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

Alan Wilson Watts (6 January 1915 – 16 November 1973) was an English writer, speaker and self-styled "philosophical entertainer",[2] known for interpreting and popularising Japanese, Chinese and Indian traditions of Buddhist, Taoist, and Hindu philosophy for a Western audience. Born in Chislehurst, England, he moved to the United States in 1938 and began Zen training in New York. He received a master's degree in theology from Seabury-Western Theological Seminary and became an Episcopal priest in 1945. He left the ministry in 1950 and moved to California, where he joined the faculty of the American Academy of Asian Studies.[3]

Watts gained a following while working as a volunteer programmer at the KPFA radio station in Berkeley. He wrote more than 25 books and articles on religion and philosophy, introducing the emerging hippie counter culture to The Way of Zen (1957), one of the first best selling books on Buddhism. In Psychotherapy East and West (1961), he argued that Buddhism could be thought of as a form of psychotherapy. He considered Nature, Man and Woman (1958) to be, "from a literary point of view—the best book I have ever written".[4] He also explored human consciousness and psychedelics in works such as "The New Alchemy" (1958) and The Joyous Cosmology (1962).

After Watts' death, his lectures found posthumous popularity through regular broadcasts on public radio, especially in California and New York, and more recently on the internet, on sites and apps such as YouTube[5] and Spotify. The bulk of his recorded audio talks were recorded during the 1960s and early 1970s.

[Cheese-is-its-own-food-group]

I really appreciate Alan Watts’ teachings being presented without annoying music behind it. It’s perfect this way.

[kaymakesthings]

Japanese is not my first language, but I studied it for some years and lived with a Japanese roommate in college. I had an experience one day where all the corners of my mind were talking to each other, and on contemplating the idea of awakening or the 'point' of meditation or being here now. I was having an internal experience; I was in a different incarnation, as a person who was born and lived in Japan my whole life, waiting for the train to arrive for my commute to school or work. The impression of a bird flew across my vision, and very absent-mindedly, I said to myself out loud' saaa, tori.' In Japanese, ’さあ、鳥’ means 'hmmm, a bird'. I pondered on it for a moment and started to laugh pretty hysterically. Now, any time I see a bird, I have a little echo of that moment, and I smile.

[keithdallman]

As a teenager living 75 miles N. Of San Francisco, radio station KSAN would broadcast Alan Watts lectures at night, I would fall asleep listening to his fabulous lectures.

[ananamu]

I love the quote " there is no key to the universe but that's OK the door isn't locked " beyondananda

[Aussie]

There is something so exquisitely sublime about Alan's voice. And coupled with the most entertaining and scholarly way he articulates concepts and truths, he is a delight to listen to.
A man of a bygone era - a more genteel, simple, and in some ways superior age. Alan represents something quintessentially English, but without the stuffiness. I wish I had someone like him as a friend. He is a rare breed. One of a kind really.

[x-Musashi-x]

The insight comes to you when you aren’t looking or trying to gain the insight. It’s Satori- a flash of lighting across your consciousness. Sudden enlightenment.

[kieranjohnston]

Many years ago I was watching a freight train roll by in Indianapolis. On the last box car some wag had painted the words “Obvious but unseen.” I have never forgotten that.

[maryberon]

I had a friend who mistankely wandered onto Alan Watts' houseboat in Sausolito in 1970.
He was high on MDMA but was welcomed to have a discussion. We are all one.

[johnsammers]

Great teachers are rare these days - they seem to be more opinion mongers, podcasters, and influencers. Alan Watts was a gift to mankind. I'm grateful to him and Youtube for what we gain from his teachings.

[maximelagace]

Short, but deep quote: "Become what you are." -Alan Watts

[wilma]

The gate symbolizes the perceived self that one seeks to overcome in order to arrive at 'awakening'. But that self does not really exist and realizing that is the awakening. The gate turns out to be gateless✨✨✨

[cacophonic]

I love when you can find an Alan Watts recording where he talks in this more intimate, quieter tone. It’s like a warm blanket to my ears!

Such a great talk too.

[sylvaindescoteaux]

its not the reading or the logic that gets you to deeply understand something, but the aware and conscious experience and feeling that trancends and enlightens you

[davidcossu]

He is as present as ever
A mind for all times

[innercalmjourney_meditations]

Alan Watts has a remarkable knack for unraveling complex philosophical concepts and making them relatable to everyday life. In this talk, he beautifully explores the depths of Zen and the wisdom contained within "The Gateless Gate." His explanations of satori, that moment of enlightenment and profound awakening, are truly captivating. I highly recommend this video to anyone seeking inner peace and a deeper understanding of the profound teachings of Zen. Watts' unique perspective will leave you feeling inspired and ready to embark on a transformative journey of self-discovery.

[GenericInternetter]

You know you're listening to quality when 30 minutes feels like 3 minutes.

[lilgorgor]

I have had one out of body experience. I had been meditating for weeks. I tried to meditate for at least an hour at a time. Suddenly I lost all the heaviness of life. There was a lightness and.joy that flooded me. Everything became humorous. There was no seriousness. I felt completely free.
It only lasted for a flash but I had a taste of transcendence.

[RawanShenasi]

The most relaxing voice ever, listen to it while sleeping

[anatolydyatlov]

I had this revelation after three years of practising mindfulness meditation. It took me long enough, but the best way I can explain it, even though it technically defies description, is that when we encounter something - whether through our senses or as thoughts and emotions - there is no entity "experiencing" it. We actually ARE the experience itself. It's comparable to picturing oneself as a boat floating on a river, yet in reality, there is no boat, only the river. What's amusing is that this realization cannot be gradually learned; it's more like a sudden switch. There are two things I still fail to understand, though. The illusion of my ego comes back whenever I relapse to the norma" way of thinking, i.e. not being aware for lack of a better word. I don't think it's possible to work, have a family and socialize while constantly maintaining the state of being disillusioned. This, in turn, results in having desires, even though there's no one who has them, so it would be more appropriate to say to become desires instead of to have them, but I digress. My point is that this realisation isn't as life-changing as I expected it to be.

[TyDyck]

I love when you find new rare allan watts speeches especially in different tones and ages