Showing posts with label Zen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zen. Show all posts

Sunday, 31 August 2014

The Zen Mind

Zen Mind: A Personal View

by: Clive Taylor


Zen mind is the “Natural” state of our beings: No self, no identity, no memes, no beliefs.


Any idea of “what is” takes us away from what is – to be in the moment, all ideas need to be gone. There’s not even an “I” to have the ideas.


The natural being acts as an outcome of the movement of the universe, in the same way that an artist’s brush is moved by its “universe”.


All “teachings”, “spiritual” paths or “sacred” practices actually take us away from the moment, because it needs an “I” to do them, with an agenda of some kind, something to gain. All of which removes us from the eternal identity-free moment.


The only way that “what is” can be experienced is to lose all traces of self, in which case the “what is” can’t be experienced because there is no one there to experience it.


Any description of the state of the natural mind is false – it cannot be described and anyone who says they can is deluding themselves and/or you – to be described, there still has to be an identity there to describe it and if there is, that state can’t be real.


There is not even an “ultimate” state to gain, because the very idea that there is, takes us away from it.


All there is, is the operation of the universe in its all-ness. There’s no such thing as “enlightened” or “unenlightened”. These are just ideas of what is.


Even “bliss” or “transcendence” is a state of mind that needs an “I” to experience those feelings.


Thoughts are the glue of our belief structures. “I” is the creation of thoughts and beliefs.


What’s operating when we think we are functioning human beings is the operating system of the species brain, running sophisticated meme/belief structures that are the content of our identities/sense of self.


The only act consciousness can “do” is to let go of “self” awareness. Consciousness, to be fully there, needs to have no “I” attached to it – and then, who is there to be conscious?


The natural state is where everything is meaningful and meaningless – everything is part of the whole and no link in the chain can be more essential than another.


Action and thought, from this place, is an instantaneous, pure response to the call of the moment. It is the moment, the universe acting, not the person.


True peace is an absence of agitation, an absence of self-generated internal activity. So peace cannot be “done”, or created – it’s an absence of doing. This allows unadulterated “what is-ness” to be. All action out of this state is completely harmonious (even if there was anyone “there” to experience the harmony – there isn’t) and non-conflicting. There is nothing there to conflict with anything else.


A natural being feels the world cleanly, whereas an “I”, full of beliefs and ideas of self, overlays those unadulterated feelings with external content, imbuing them with emotional “charge”. This charge is reactive to the world around it, continually creating conflict as it attempts to dissipate.


(Modern research shows that there is a gap of approximately half a second between the body/mind’s initiation of a physical action and our conscious intention to do so. This suggests that the body/mind acts according to its belief instructions, not any conscious intention. The “I” is just along for the ride – late – while pretending to be in charge.)


What comes out of the moment relates only to that moment. It’s already past and non-existent as it is experienced. To hold to anything experienced or said in that moment, is to live in the dead past.


If you can’t touch it, show it, taste it, does it have any reality? That’s not to say it isn’t real, but it may not be real. It could be a construct of ideas.


Whatever is actual or real can only be there when all ideas, all thoughts, all belief, all traces of identity are gone – when there is no “I” left to take us out of the moment. If the eternal now moment is all there is, this is the only way to be in it.


Thought is only necessary, only of any use, when it is called for by the moment, for a particular task. To keep thinking beyond the particular call of the moment is the same as keeping your arm above your head all the time, or holding your stomach muscles tensed all the time.


If you took every real momentary experience of the natural being – the smell of a flower, a sunset, the death of a friend, a humorous situation, the movement of smoke on the wind – all of these in every moment, but with no self, no “I” there to even be aware of these things, this is the state of natural mind.


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Sunday, 24 August 2014

Learn Meditation

“The buddha-dharma does not invite us to dabble in abstract notions. Rather, the task it presents us with is to attend to what we actually experience, right in this moment. You don’t have to look “over there.” You don’t have to figure anything out. You don’t have to acquire anything. And you don’t have to run off to Tibet, or Japan, or anywhere else. You wake up right here. In fact, you can only wake up right here.


So you don’t have to do the long search, the frantic chase, the painful quest. You’re already right where you need to be. “


— Steve Hagen , Buddhism Plain and Simple


Understanding how to meditate is incredibly easy. The practical act of constant meditation, however, is incredibly difficult. This seeming contradiction will become clearer after a few weeks of maintaining meditation practice.


There are many differing types of meditation techniques. This is an explanation of zazen or “just sitting”. The form of meditation practiced by Zen Buddhists:




  • Half close your eyes so that you don’t have to blink, but don’t close them fully or you’ll risk falling asleep.



  • Cup both hands, and place the right on top of the left just below your navel.



  • Straighten your back and hold your shoulders upright.



  • Breathe in and out, focusing your whole attention on your breath. Focus only on your breath in this moment. Don’t consciously make yourself breathe, just be aware of the sensations involved in breathing.


Eventually, your mind will start to wander. When you find yourself doing this, acknowledge that it happened and go back to the breath. As this continues to happen again and again, don’t get disheartened. Continue to acknowledge your wandering mind and return yourself to the breath.


If you’re finding it difficult to stay focused, count along with each breath in and out, counting up to ten and back down to one, and so on.


If you hear a dog barking or car tires screeching, don’t let it interrupt your meditation. Simply accept it as another sensation and continue to focus. This goes for discomfort as well, which will be inevitable given the position of your body. Don’t let yourself make a judgement of “This pain is bad”, simply accept the sensation and continue to meditate.


Try doing this everyday for around ten minutes. Set yourself a time of day, ideally before mealtimes when your stomach is not full, when you can set aside ten to fifteen minutes to meditate.


Buddhists recommend meditating in this fashion four times a day, with at least twice as a bare minimum. However much you can manage is fine, however, and you shouldn’t get yourself down about not meditating more. That’s a great way to ensure you become sick of meditating altogether.


This is the actual practice of meditation in its strictest sense, but meditation doesn’t end there. Meditation is really just about paying attention to the present moment, about mindfulness, about being aware to the here and now. Try this right now. Be aware of yourself reading these words, aware of the sensations in your body, the feeling against of your body against the chair, the temperature of the room, your breath and your emotions. While you aren’t cross-legged with your eyes half-closed, this is still meditation. Ideally, we should be meditating in this way all the time.


So that’s it! There’s really nothing special to meditation, and that’s actually the point. There should be no thoughts of goals of enlightenment distracting your attention away from the present. If there are, simply accept them, then go back to focus on the breath.


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Thursday, 31 July 2014

The Zen Mind

Zen Mind: A Personal View

by: Clive Taylor


Zen mind is the “Natural” state of our beings: No self, no identity, no memes, no beliefs.


Any idea of “what is” takes us away from what is – to be in the moment, all ideas need to be gone. There’s not even an “I” to have the ideas.


The natural being acts as an outcome of the movement of the universe, in the same way that an artist’s brush is moved by its “universe”.


All “teachings”, “spiritual” paths or “sacred” practices actually take us away from the moment, because it needs an “I” to do them, with an agenda of some kind, something to gain. All of which removes us from the eternal identity-free moment.


The only way that “what is” can be experienced is to lose all traces of self, in which case the “what is” can’t be experienced because there is no one there to experience it.


Any description of the state of the natural mind is false – it cannot be described and anyone who says they can is deluding themselves and/or you – to be described, there still has to be an identity there to describe it and if there is, that state can’t be real.


There is not even an “ultimate” state to gain, because the very idea that there is, takes us away from it.


All there is, is the operation of the universe in its all-ness. There’s no such thing as “enlightened” or “unenlightened”. These are just ideas of what is.


Even “bliss” or “transcendence” is a state of mind that needs an “I” to experience those feelings.


Thoughts are the glue of our belief structures. “I” is the creation of thoughts and beliefs.


What’s operating when we think we are functioning human beings is the operating system of the species brain, running sophisticated meme/belief structures that are the content of our identities/sense of self.


The only act consciousness can “do” is to let go of “self” awareness. Consciousness, to be fully there, needs to have no “I” attached to it – and then, who is there to be conscious?


The natural state is where everything is meaningful and meaningless – everything is part of the whole and no link in the chain can be more essential than another.


Action and thought, from this place, is an instantaneous, pure response to the call of the moment. It is the moment, the universe acting, not the person.


True peace is an absence of agitation, an absence of self-generated internal activity. So peace cannot be “done”, or created – it’s an absence of doing. This allows unadulterated “what is-ness” to be. All action out of this state is completely harmonious (even if there was anyone “there” to experience the harmony – there isn’t) and non-conflicting. There is nothing there to conflict with anything else.


A natural being feels the world cleanly, whereas an “I”, full of beliefs and ideas of self, overlays those unadulterated feelings with external content, imbuing them with emotional “charge”. This charge is reactive to the world around it, continually creating conflict as it attempts to dissipate.


(Modern research shows that there is a gap of approximately half a second between the body/mind’s initiation of a physical action and our conscious intention to do so. This suggests that the body/mind acts according to its belief instructions, not any conscious intention. The “I” is just along for the ride – late – while pretending to be in charge.)


What comes out of the moment relates only to that moment. It’s already past and non-existent as it is experienced. To hold to anything experienced or said in that moment, is to live in the dead past.


If you can’t touch it, show it, taste it, does it have any reality? That’s not to say it isn’t real, but it may not be real. It could be a construct of ideas.


Whatever is actual or real can only be there when all ideas, all thoughts, all belief, all traces of identity are gone – when there is no “I” left to take us out of the moment. If the eternal now moment is all there is, this is the only way to be in it.


Thought is only necessary, only of any use, when it is called for by the moment, for a particular task. To keep thinking beyond the particular call of the moment is the same as keeping your arm above your head all the time, or holding your stomach muscles tensed all the time.


If you took every real momentary experience of the natural being – the smell of a flower, a sunset, the death of a friend, a humorous situation, the movement of smoke on the wind – all of these in every moment, but with no self, no “I” there to even be aware of these things, this is the state of natural mind.


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Thursday, 15 May 2014

Zen Art of Self Development

Using Zen and Self Development Books to Improve Your Life

by: Jackson Golde


girlmed 199x300 Zen Art of Self Development When speaking of Zen, the first thing that comes to mind is meditation, but the idea of Zen living has spurred a whole new avenue for exploration. One of the topics that are often discussed is Zen and self development books. It is only natural for this philosophy to flow in this manner. Today, we live in a society that is very high stress. More and more, we see households with both parents working, then after work time is spent running the children from one field to another so that they can play there various sports games, leaving very little time for true rest and relaxation. This is why we are searching out different ways to cope. Zen and self development books are teaching us how to use this philosophy to better ourselves and those around us.


These books teach us many things starting with how to control our breathing. This is one of the most essential activities. The reason for this is that it views breathing as a door that is opening and closing. One side is considered our inner world and the other is our outer world and according to Zen philosophy, both of these worlds are limitless. The main goal of breathing in this way is so that time just slips away. This creates instant karma amongst us and a sense of well being. Posture is also a very important in regards to achieving this state of mind.


zen stones and sand 300x199 Zen Art of Self Development This actually coincides with the activity of deep breathing. Standing up straight with shoulders pushed back and head held up high creates an environment that maximizes our ability to take in air, and with that we produce more oxygen in our blood streams causing us to be more physically alert to what is going on around us. Both of these lead into the last aspect that I will discuss and that is being able to give up control of our mind, even if it’s just fr a short period of time throughout our days. Doing this will enable us to have a calmness about us that is not possible otherwise.


Don’t think that you have to shell out a bunch of money to purchase these critical books. Most libraries contain a sufficient amount of books on the topic, from the classics to the new releases. All individuals need is a library card and the motivation to read and learn. Although individuals can save money this way, it may be beneficial to purchase books that are favorites in order to highlight important passages, make important notations in the margins, etc.


As a society we crave the sense of well being and sanity that can be brought about by Zen and self development books. This is why reading and studying about the lifestyle can bring about is so beneficial. Instead of constantly being on the go we can force ourselves not to escape reality, but we can use this to focus our attentions on what is really important. In a nutshell, it gives us the inner fortitude to not sweat the small stuff and focus our energies on the big picture.


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