Read 48 koans, keep a private journal and sit with a meditation bell timer.
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Make room for a koan, a quiet sitting and a few words of your own.
Zen brings together all 48 cases of the Gateless Gate in original Arcadia retellings, a meditation timer with optional bells, and a private reflection journal. Read a case slowly, return to a question, or put the screen aside for a timed sitting.
FORTY-EIGHT KOANS
Browse the full collection, search its text, filter by theme and bookmark cases to revisit. Change the reading size as you go. Each case has an original reflection, a small practical exercise and a question for your journal.
The case numbering follows the Senzaki and Reps 1934 edition. Retellings and Arcadia commentary are identified separately so you can distinguish the encounter from its reading companion.
A DAILY READING
Today's case follows your local calendar date. Read the reflection, carry its question into an ordinary task, or mark a day of practice. Practice has no streaks, scores or rankings. Add the home-screen widget or choose an optional daily reminder.
A QUIET SEAT
Set a sitting from 1 to 120 minutes. Choose preparation time, optional interval bells and an ending bell, or sit silently. Pause, resume or end the session when you choose. Grant Android's Alarms & reminders access when asked so bells can ring with the screen off. Pause or end from the timer notification. A completed sitting is recorded once in Journal.
The practical sitting guide covers a stable seat, posture, breathing and returning attention. A chair is one of the supported options.
YOUR REFLECTIONS
Write, edit and delete notes linked to a koan. Review completed sittings in the same journal. Journal notes and sitting history stay on this device and are excluded from automatic backup and device transfer.
SHARE A READING
Share the day's reading as an image with its date, credit and Zen install link. The install link also travels in the share caption. You choose the destination in Android's share sheet.
READ OFFLINE
The koans, reflections and guides are bundled in the app. Reading, journaling and the timer work offline. Advertising, analytics, consent and Google Play purchases use network services.
All reading and timer features are free. Zen contains ads; an optional one-time purchase removes advertising only. Ads do not interrupt an active sitting.