Superficial Urgency

The Nirvana Sutra says, 'To get rid of your passions is not Nirvana; to look upon them as no matter of yours, that is Nirvana.' - Senhui

When you read the words 'meditation' or 'practice,' do you feel any tension in your body?

What about 'samadhi'? Or, better yet, 'zazen samadhi'?

It's ok if those tensions rise, of course. But do you see them as a matter of yours?

An r/zen-er I respect deeply, u/surupamaerl2, once wrote:

In the same way, "Samadhi" does not just mean concentration, nor does it necessarily mean the same to a modern Ajahn as it does to, say, Foyan, when either uses it. It is Samadhi, according to them who writes it.

Sometimes, people here want to give the impression that certain discussions constitute "real Zen study," while others do not, but just understanding what a particular author means when they say a word like "Dharma," or even just "flower" takes careful attention.

No matter how much want it to be true, there's no black-and-white when it comes to this tradition. We cannot, and should not, put rigid lines around words like 悟, often translated as "enlightenment" or "awakening." Yet folks continue to build castles out of this sand.

Someone in this sub once wrote, "Meditation has never worked for anyone." Do you take statements like this seriously?

The brilliant Greg Graffin wrote:

See, it's only entertainment
Superficial urgency
Poster board mentality
Only entertainment
Tightly constrained
The buzz that remains
It's the story of how we run our lives

Humans are gonna human. But, IMO, it can be helpful if we see this black-and-white thinking for what it is: superficial urgency.

A monk asked Daowu, "Master, what is your deepest point?"

Daowu got off his meditation bench, curtseyed, and said, "Thank you for coming from afar, but there's nothing to entertain you with."

Are you here for more than entertainment?

Submitted March 01, 2023 at 04:45AM by FingersTyping https://ift.tt/9zGWDQs