I am a newbie in zen and meditation. I am halfway through P.Kapleau's Tree Pillars of Zen (great book BTW) and have the following question.
It seems that the fundamentals are pretty much the same between the two sects (Soto and Rinzai) of Japanese Zen, with Soto Zen placing more emphasis on zazen and removal of all attachments, while Rinzai focusing on koans. I have the feeling (not the certainty) that both sects accept both approached but just emphasizing more one way than the other.
[of course these have further ramifications, e.g. the way that the enlightened person is acknowledged/certified as one but this is not the focus of my question]
My question is whether there is a contradiction when attempting to "fix the mind" intensely on a koan and its "meaning". Wouldn't that intense concentration constitute an attachment? Wouldn't this attachment go against the aim to remove all attachments?
While this intense concentration is more commonly considered a feature of Rinzai Zen, essentially it is the same (to a lesser degree) for Soto Zen as well.
Since in the remote place I am, I don't have access to a qualified Zen center, I would like to ask for advice from more experienced practitioners of zazen. Should I fixate on a koan when meditating or should I leave the mind (not even try) to still itself?
Submitted January 15, 2020 at 02:08PM by BlackFalconKing https://ift.tt/2NvDzm2
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