A(RTHUR) KOESTLER, BRICKS TO BABEL — Zen... teaching is... in the form of parables as ambiguous as the pebbles in... [a] rock-garden. ... When a disciple asks "What is Zen?", the... traditional answer is "Three pounds of flax" or "A decaying noodle"... or a whack on the pupil's head.
| A. | Founding member of the Group f/64 (2 wds.) | ANSELADAMS |
| B. | Year-end festival observed since 1966 | KWANZAA |
| C. | Curt and cavalier; extempore | OFFHAND |
| D. | "Saturday Night Live" tag line delivered by Steve Martin (2 wds.) | EXCUSEME |
| E. | Long-necked lute with movable frets | SITAR |
| F. | Apple polishers | TOADIES |
| G. | Survival equipment at sea (2 wds.) | LIFERAFT |
| H. | Brain | ENCEPHALON |
| I. | Sporting event started in 1927 by a British seed merchant (2 wds.) | RYDERCUP |
| J. | Enclosed system supporting life | BIOSPHERE |
| K. | Big name in Bordeaux | ROTHSCHILD |
| L. | To the max (2 wds.) | INSPADES |
| M. | Cheek, effrontery | CHUTZPAH |
| N. | Arjuna's advisor in the sacred Hindu text Bhagavad-Gita | KRISHNA |
| O. | Jurassic giant with a walnut-sized brain | STEGOSAUR |
| P. | Jazz Age decade | TWENTIES |
| Q. | Island where karate was developed | OKINAWA |
| R. | Flower named after a French patron of science | BEGONIA |
| S. | Escapee from a fiery furnace, in the Bible | ABEDNEGO |
| T. | Manic-depressive | BIPOLAR |
| U. | Disruptive phenomenon linked to the southern oscillation (2 wds.) | ELNINO |
| V. | Form of entertainment that's often psychedelic (2 wds.) | LIGHTSHOW |