The Philosophy of Modern Standup: Lesson 5

Chase fun, not success

Linji Yixuan (d. 866) was a Chinese Zen (Chan) Buddhist master and founder of the Linji (Rinzai) school, known for his direct, often shocking teaching style aimed at cutting through illusion.

Lesson 5: Have fun. It is the only thing you can control.

“If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.”
— Linji Yixuan (Rinzai), The Record of Linji (Linji Lu), Tang Dynasty, 9th century

The following lesson can be boiled down into this one simple paragraph: