🆉Week 2025-22: On Zazen

"You students, are you trying to learn zazen or are you trying to learn sitting Buddhahood? If you are learning zazen, Zen is not sitting and lying down. If you are learning sitting Buddhahood, Buddha is not a fixed form. According to the teaching of non-attachment or non-settling down, you should not adopt this or reject that. You students, if you try to become a sitting Buddha you kill the Buddha, and if you become attached to sitting you will not reach that principle." (Koun Ejo,  "Shōbōgenzō Zuimonki" ["The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Record of Things Heard"], cca. 1239)

"You students! Are you trying to learn zazen or are you trying to become a Buddha? If you are trying to learn zazen, you must not be taken up by the form called 'sitting' because Zen is something beyond sitting and lying down. Again, if you say you are trying to become a Buddha, you cannot become a captive to the one set form called 'sitting' because Buddha is something absolute." (Koun Ejo, "Kōmyōzō Zanmai" ["Absorption in the Treasury of Light or Samādhi of the Treasury of Radiant Light", 1278)

"Bodhisattvas who study prajna-wisdom must first have deep compassion for all beings and a deep longing to save all of them. They must practice samadhi meditation with great care. Refusing to practice zazen only for their own emancipation, they must promise to ferry these sentient beings over to the other shore." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)

"First awaken your compassionate mind with a deep longing to save all sentient beings. You must practice samadhi meditation with great care, and promise to ferry these sentient beings over to the other shore, refusing to practice zazen only for your own emancipation." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)

"Zazen is something which makes us want to sit in zazen." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)

"Just stop your wandering, look penetratingly into your inherent nature, and,
concentrating your spiritual energy, sit in zazen and break through." (Bassui Tokusho, "Deishūshō" ["Mud and Water"], 1386)

"It cannot be helped that your thoughts arise and perish. Doubt your own mind thoroughly in accord with your thought. It is in order to be aware of the truth of being that you doubt profoundly. When you try to know what is unknown, your wandering mind will lose its way, and you will be at a loss. It is then that you are said to be in zazen. They say that to doubt in this way is kufu. In kufu you are to doubt thoroughly, whether you are on your feet or not, and whether you are asleep or awake, for you are well aware of your own unenlightenment." (Bankei Yōtaku, "Dharma words" ["Kana Hogo"], 14th century) 

"Beginners should by all means strive for Truth. You must not force yourself to train or do zazen too vigorously before you realize the Truth. If you forcefully let out energy and practice Zen in violent ways, you will become fatigued, lose your energy, and it will all be of no use." (Suzuki Shosan, "Fumoto no Kusawake" ["Parting the Grasses at the Foot of the Mountain"], 1636.

"Since you cannot do real zazen no matter how much I teach you, I think I’ll show you from now on how to use the vigorous energy you have when you are angry." (Suzuki Shosan, "Fumoto no Kusawake" ["Parting the Grasses at the Foot of the Mountain"], 1636)

"You seem to practice 'Empty Shell Zazen' and think that not thinking of anything is 'no-thought, no-mind'. You even start to feel good sitting vacantly. But if you do that kind of zazen you’ll lose your vigorous energy and become sick or go crazy. True 'no-thought, no-mind' zazen is just one thing - to have a dauntless mind." (Suzuki Shosan, "Roankyō" ["Donkey Saddle Bridge"], 1648)

"If we know how to practice Zazen without actually sitting,
What obstacles should there be,
Blocking the Way to Buddhahood?" (Shido Bunan, cca. 17th century) 

"Because zazen is training to realize the One Mind of yourself, it is a mistake to set up an aim outside of yourself [...] Not setting up an aim is the true aim." (Kawajiri Hogin, "The Shortcut to Zazen ["Zazen no Shokei"], 1904)

"These people outwardly appear to sit in zazen, but actually they are confused in mind, being over-filled with wild imaginations. This kind of zazen is called the zazen practiced daily just to kill time." (Kawajiri Hogin, "The Shortcut to Zazen ["Zazen no Shokei"], 1904)

"To begin with, most people who practice zazen consciously try to make themselves empty. This is a grave mistake because you have thoughts about becoming empty, and it is futile to sit however long you may try to do so. For instance, suppose there is a bowl of rice. However long you may stare at it wishing it to become empty, the rice will never disappear. And the more you think of some clever way to make it disappear, the harder will it become for you to do so. While you keep on staring at it anticipating its disappearance with increasing impatience, evening will come. On the contrary, however, if you eat the rice right away according to the Dharma instead of wondering whether you should get rid of it or not, it will disappear as quickly as you wish. The same is true of zazen. As long as you are conscious of your wish to be empty, you will never succeed in becoming empty." (Kawajiri Hogin," The Shortcut to Zazen ["Zazen no Shokei"], 1904)

"What is called zazen is sitting on a zafu [pillow] in a quiet room, absolutely still, in the exact and proper position and without uttering a word, the mind empty of any thought, good or wicked. It is continuing to sit peacefully, facing a wall, and nothing more. Every day." (Taisen Deshimaru, "The Zen Way to the Martial Arts", 1977)

"Don’t pick up tea leaves, but practice zazen.
Don’t read sutras, but practice zazen.
Don’t clean the house, but practice zazen.
Don’t ride on horseback, but practice zazen.
Don’t make fermented beans, but practice zazen.
Don’t sow tea seeds, but practice zazen." (Ikkyu Sojun)

"During zazen, brain and consciousness become pure. It's exactly like muddy water left to stand in a glass. Little by little, the sediment sinks to the bottom and the water becomes pure." (Taisen Deshimaru)

"Zen is not a particular state but the normal state: silent, peaceful, unagitated. In Zazen neither intention, analysis, specific effort nor imagination take place. It's enough just to be without hypocrisy, dogmatism, arrogance - embracing all opposites." (Taisen Deshimaru)

🆂Week 2025-21: On Self

"Hope and fear are both phantoms that arise from thinking of the self. When we don't see the self as self, what do we have to fear?" (Lao Tzu, "Tao Te Ching", cca 400 BC)

"Knowing others is wisdom;
Knowing the self is enlightenment;
Mastering others requires force;
Mastering the self needs strength." (Lao Tzu, "Tao Te Ching", cca 400 BC)

"The Sage sees the world as an expansion of his own self
So what need has he to accumulate things?" (Lao Tzu, "Tao Te Ching", cca 400 BC)

"By enlarging one's mind, one can enter into all the things in the world [to examine and understand their principle]. As long as anything is not yet entered into, there is still something outside the mind. The mind of ordinary people is limited to the narrowness of what is seen and what is heard. The sage, however, fully develops his nature and does not allow what is seen or heard to fetter his mind. He regards everything in the world to be his own self. This is why Mencius said that if one exerts his mind to the utmost, he can know nature and Heaven. (1) Heaven is so vast that there is nothing outside of it. Therefore the mind that leaves something outside is not capable of uniting itself with the mind of Heaven. Knowledge coming from seeing and hearing is knowledge obtained through contact with things. It is not knowledge obtained through one's moral nature. Knowledge obtained through one's moral nature does not originate from seeing or hearing." (Chang Tsai, "Zhengmeng" ["Correcting Youthful Ignorance"], 1076)

"There can be no self in practising the path of the unfabricated, the Treasury of Luminosity, or views of self at all. Self and views are different names for the same thing, the face of a ghost or the face of a spirit. There is just this luminosity. It is not a matter of establishing any opinions about anything at all, from the views of self and what belongs to self or to ideas about the Buddha and the Dharma." (Koun Ejo, "Kōmyōzō zanmai" ["The Practice of the Treasury of Luminosity"], cca 13th century)

"There are myriad different methods of practice, but essentially they amount to no more than overcoming thoughts of yourself. The source of suffering is ego, the thought of self. To know this is reason. Once you know the reason for suffering, your sense of duty evokes effort to extinguish the thought of self with a genuine courageous mind. Fools can’t understand the source of misery and happiness; people without a sense of duty cannot break the bonds of life and death." (Suzuki Shosan, cca. 1630)

"As for the ordinary man of little capacity, he tries to empty himself and see his own empty self. He is intent on staring at himself only." (Kawajiri Hogin," The Shortcut to Zazen ["Zazen no Shokei"], 1904)

"The higher nature in man always seeks for something which transcends itself and yet is its deepest truth; which claims all its sacrifice, yet makes this sacrifice its own recompense. This is man's dharma, man's religion, and man's self is the vessel which is to carry this sacrifice to the altar." (Rabindranath Tagore, "Sādhanā: The Realization of Life", 1913) 

"There is in the body a current of energy, affection and intelligence, which guides, maintains and energizes the body. Discover that current, and hold onto it unswervingly. Be aware of the spark of life that weaves the tissues of your body and stay with it. It is the only reality that the body has. It is like looking at a burning incense stick; you see the stick and the smoke first; when you notice the fiery point, you realize it has the power to consume mountains of sticks and fill the universe with smoke. Timelessly the Self actualizes itself, without exhausting its infinite possibilities. In the incense stick simile, the stick is the body, and the smoke is the mind. As long as the mind is busy with its contortions, it does not perceive its source. The Guru comes and turns your attention to the spark within."  (Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, "I Am That", 1973)

"Ultimately, physical, psychological and spiritual mastery are one and the same. The egoless self is open, flexible, supple, fluid and dynamic in body, mind and spirit." (Kisshomaru Ueshiba, "The Spirit of Aikido", 1981)

"Perceiving your own voice means perceiving your true self or nature. When you and the sound become one, you dont hear the sound; you are the sound." (Seungsahn Haengwon, [Interview] 1985)

"When we see beyond self, we no longer cling to happiness. And when we stop clinging, we can begin to be happy." (Ajahn Chah, "No Ajahn Chah: Reflections", 1994)

"Love creates a communion with life. Love expands us, connects us, sweetens us, ennobles us. Love springs up in tender concern, it blossoms into caring action. It makes beauty out of all we touch. In any moment we can step beyond our small self and embrace each other as beloved parts of a whole." (Jack Kornfield, "The Art of Forgiveness, Lovingkindness, and Peace", 2002)

"We realize - often quite suddenly - that our sense of self, which has been formed and constructed out of our ideas, beliefs and images, is not really who we are. It doesn't define us, it has no center. [...] The way they perceive the world suddenly changes, and they find themselves without any sense of separation between themselves and the rest of the world." (Adyashanti, "The End of Your World: Uncensored Straight Talk on the Nature of Enlightenment", 2008)

"Narrow mindedness prevents one from seeing the truth. Your mind must be wide open. Observing reality from one’s standpoint will only reveal half the truth because one’s ego obstructs the view. The self must be discarded to be able to see the true nature of reality. Discarding the self requires skill." (Kazumi Tabata, "Mind Power: Secret Strategies for the Martial Arts", 2010)

"[...] in Zen one awakens to one’s True Self and takes firm hold of it." (Omori Sogen, "Introduction to Zen Training", 2012)