It's AMA Season on /r/Zen. That wonderful time of year when everyone decides to do an AMA, and we get to know each other just a little bit better.
I don't proclaim to know much, but I do have my personal experience. And I feel that studying Zen is very important to my life currently, wherever I am in it. I haven't done an AMA in 3 years, and I don't think I've ever done a serious AMA that follows the reddiquette, so here goes (You may ask these questions of me a second time, or whenever / however much you like, if you feel my first answer was not sufficient)
Suppose a person denotes your lineage and your teacher as Buddhism unrelated to Zen, because there are several quotations from Zen patriarchs denouncing seated meditation. Would you be fine admitting that your lineage has moved away from Zen and if not, how would you respond?
If a person would say "seated meditation is the way to enlightenment," I would deny it. I would say, "one can be a sitting buddha or a walking buddha, a cooking buddha or a washing buddha, but there is no one way to enlightenment. However, sitting quietly and observing whatever it is that goes on in your mind and around you is very nice, and I have found that it helps me achieve a more peaceful mind (It is natural, and much nicer than staring at a computer screen, which makes me feel drained and empty)
What text, personal experience, quote from a master, or story from zen lore best reflects your understanding of the essence of zen?
I recently finished reading "Master Ma's Ordinary Mind" by Fumio Yamada. I thought this was a very good way of looking at things. Mind is Buddha. Everything is Just This. Vague statements like that, which might mean nothing to the everyday observer, but hold at least some understanding for me. Do I "get it"? Only for moments at a time. Most of the time, if I am talking or thinking about it, or reading it, I feel nothing other than ordinary mental stimulation. But every once in a while, I read a passage or have a thought about something that changes everything. I think Zen contains the essence of this active mind, but that it also contains the essence of the apathetic mind. I think the essence of Zen is all things, the waxing and waning of the moon, the coming and going of the tides, the swelling and diminishing of emotional and mental statuses of human consciousness. I have a lot of thoughts about what Zen is and isn't, and I do know that they are pale ghosts.
What do you suggest as a course of action for a student wading through a "dharma low-tide"? What do you do when it's like pulling teeth to read, bow, chant, or sit?
I used to say "if you don't like it, don't do it," but now I think that only applies some of the time. Sometimes it may actually be more beneficial for you to persist through hardship and learn what it means to work without validation. In this you can learn a particular self-motivation, a mindset of production without affirmation. I think so many people rely on the affirmation of others in the tasks of doing what they are doing - and I do think that spending time with like-minded people (as in a sangha) can boost your practice. It is not necessary, though, and sometimes it is nice to relax and not think about pushing yourself. Use your best judgement. At this point, if you were to look to me and ask this question, I would only offer the gentle push of few inquiries.
Submitted July 14, 2017 at 11:58AM by Archaeoculus http://ift.tt/2ta2dAh
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