Zen meditation: What is Zazen?

Add to Spiritual Diary

Zen meditation is Japanese Buddhist style of meditation. And, one of the core aspects of Zen meditation is Zazen.

What's appealing about Zazen is that it involves understanding oneself. One begins to understand oneself by studying oneself.

Zazen is inspired by the great Zen Master Dogen, who said, "To study the Buddha Way is to study the self, to study the self is to forget the self, and to forget the self is to be enlightened by the ten thousand things."

The final step in self-discovery is: To be enlightened by the ten thousand things is to recognise the unity of the self and the ten thousand things.

Usually, one thinks of the body, breath and mind as separate entities. But zazen persuades you to see them as one. It asks you to observe your body - how it appears to the world. Is it in calm repose or ready for a fight? Is it friendly or does it discourage others from even approaching near?

Believe it or not, how we position our body has a great effect on how we use our mind and what kind of thoughts we have.

Our body, the first step: So, the first step is to make the body stable. So, in Zazen, one is asked to sit the way the Buddha sat when he achieved enlightenment. It is symmetrical seating, preferably on the floor, or on a small pillow, known as zafu. This accessory helps to place the knees on the ground comfortably.

If you can't sit on the floor, try sitting in similar pose on the chair.

From body to breath: If you keep your back straight and centered, rather than slouching or leaning to one side, your diaphragm will be able to move freely. That is the first step to managing your breath.

As the breath gets steadier, it gets deeper as well. Then, it becomes as easy and pure as an infant's breath, something we lose as we grow older and more stressed. The smoother our breathing becomes, the less tense our body muscles become.

As we all know, our breath is our vital force. It’s the centre-most activity in our bodies.

As you breathe, you also foucs on the "hara", a place two inches below the navel, what is also known as "kundalini" in Indian yogic philosophy. Hara is our centre of gravity.

From breath to the mind: Once our breath is stable, let's empower our mind to think what it should. That comes with concentration, or what is known as "joriki". The internal dialogue ceases and we become aware of what is actually happening around us.

When you achieve single-pointedness in your thought processes rather than a scattered mind, it is the ultimate step in Zazen.

0 COMMENT

Write