I've been reading about koans but didn't come to understand what they are. Care to explain?
Koans are profound riddles to test someone's understandings of Buddhist concepts. They have orthodox answers that can be hard to understand because they can be very complex and pretty much require a cultural background in Buddhist philosophy and history, which obviously many people don't. The Western world interpretation of Koans is a bit more superficial. They're seen as something that's there to help you expand yourself, by finding your own answer with your personal understandings and worldview. You can often come to a deep self discovery through seemingly very simple statements. Because your answer is yours and it has been brought about by personal discovery, it can often feel very profound.