Zen lesson

[Dogen Z]

While searching for a haiku suitable to welcome the advent of autumn, I discovered a fine lesson in zen. I will share it with you.

Shunryu Suzuki writes in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind:

"Zen practice is the direct expression of our true nature. You do not meditate to gain enlightenment, you meditate because you are enlightened.ﾂ"

"When we inhale, the air comes into the inner world. When we exhale, the air goes out to the outer world. We say 'inner world' or 'outer world' but actually there is just one whole worldﾂ… The air comes in and goes out like someone passing through a swinging door. If you think, 'I breathe,' the 'I' is extra. There is no you to say 'I.' "

 

[Dogen Z]

2nd lesson

After digesting the lesson shown above, I think you should move on to the next lesson from the same author.

"Try not to force your idea on someone, but rather think about it with him. If you feel you have won the discussion, that is the wrong attitude. Try not to win in the argument, just listen to it; but it is also wrong to behave as if you had lost. Throught this kind of communication we can develop our way.

 

[Dogen Z]

Next lesson

The next lesson from the same author.

Zen is not some kind of excitement, but concentration on our usual everyday routine.

Do not be too interested in Zen. When young people get excited about Zen, they often give up schooling and go to some mountain or forest in order to sit. That kind of interest is not true interest.

Just continue in your calm, ordinary practice and your character will be built up. If your mind is always busy, there will be no time to build, and you will not be successful, particularly if you work too hard on it. Building character is like making bread--you have to mix it little by little, step by step, and moderate temperature is needed. You know exactly what you need. But if you get too excited, you will forget how much temperature is good for you, and you will lose your own way. This is very dangerous.

 

[Ewok85]

I think it is important to remember the core of Zen - your day to day attitude and how you interact with other people is as important as any koan or performing zazen. Understand the concept of shitai, act within the hasshodo - its the simple things like this that you start from, and from there you can start showing off by quoting koan

 

[Dogen Z]

I think it is important to remember the core of Zen - your day to day attitude and how you interact with other people is as important as any koan or performing zazen. Understand the concept of shitai, act within the hasshodo - its the simple things like this that you start from, and from there you can start showing off by quoting koan

You're probably correct but Suzuki doesn't mention this. He says:

"Each one of us must make his own way, and when we do, that way will express the universal way. This is the mystery. When you understand one thing through and through, you understand everything. When you try to understand everything, you will not understand anything. The best way is to understand yourself, and then you will understand everything. So when you try hard to make your own way, you will help others, and you will be helped by others. Before you make your own way, you cannot help anyone, and no one can help you. To be independent in this true sense, we have to forget everything which we have in our mind and discover something quite new and different moment after moment."

 

[pugtm]

some things in zen are really useful. I prefer zazen to jewish meditation and i think buddism is presently closest to judaism as a religion in spirit and in the way you are supposed to live your life. but im going to agree with Ewok85 and say just quoting wont get you anywhere.

 

[Dogen Z]

I'm not sure Buddhism is a religion since Buddha is not a god, just someone who gained enlightenment and passed his technique to others. As for koans, the answer to most is, "Mu." Or so I was told by someone a long time ago. But I suspect the real answer is a little deeper.

 

[Dogen Z]

Right Attitude

From the same book and author.

"Nirvana, the waterfall. 'Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this fact, we have no fear of death anymore, nor actual difficulty in our life."

Much of zen is anti-intuitive.

 

[Dogen Z]

From the same source.

"Someday you may laugh at yourself, discovering how selfish you are."

"99.5% of your thoughts are selfish thoughts."

 

[Ewok85]

I think you need to return to the source and stop with the nice little meaningless quips.

Suffering exists in life
Suffering is caused by craving
To eliminate suffering, eliminate craving
To eliminate craving follow the Eightfold Path; right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration

 

[Dogen Z]

No Trace

What a coincidence! I thought should stop about this point, too.

However, the little quips have more meaning than you think. For example, if you don't know yourself completely and can't see things from an unselfish point of view, you cannot really find the right view, the right intention, the right etc.

There's one more quip that I want to post before I end this thread.

"When you do something, you should burn yourself completely, like a good bonfire leaving no trace of yourself.

In order not to leave any traces, when you do something, you should do it with your whole body and mind; you should be concentrated on what you do. You should do it like a good bonfire. You should not be a smoky fire. You should burn yourself completely. If you do not burn yourself completely, a trace of yourself will be left in what you do. You will have something remaining that is not completely burned out. Zen activity is activity which is completely burned out, with nothing remaining but ashes. This is the goal of our practice."

[In other words: Do or do not. There is no try. ]