Jules Shuzen Harris teaches Zazen, the meditation practice at the heart of Zen Buddhism.
There are many forms of meditation that offer you the opportunity to
cultivate stillness and open up space in your life. One such form,
zazen, has both outward and inward instructions in how to engage your
awareness in the immediate, uninterpreted experience of the present
moment. Zazen is being awake but letting go, experiencing your present
moment awareness without thought or story.
As a central form of meditation in Zen Buddhism, zazen is usually
coupled with study and teaching to help develop greater clarity in our
practice. Zazen often includes a specific practice, such as counting
your breaths, to focus your attention and develop your powers of
concentration.
There has been a lot of attention recently on the many practical
benefits of meditation. It reduces stress, lowers blood pressure, and is
effective in working with depression, anxiety, and anger. These are all
good reasons to meditate, but ultimately Buddhists practice zazen and
other meditations to realize what Buddhism calls our true nature, which
is beyond self-identity with its self-imposed limitations. From a
Buddhist perspective, our main problem is attachment to our deluded idea
of who we are, and what we need to do to maintain this delusion.
To make real progress in zazen, we must make a genuine commitment to
practice. We may not recognize dramatic changes in our lives right away,
but that’s okay. One aspect of relating to our practice is to approach
it with a balance of effort and patience. To find that which is beyond
our ideas of self, we need to engage in our own experience of practice.
Books and articles, however well written, are no substitute.
You should preferably sit in the morning, starting with ten minutes a
day for the first week. As your practice develops, gradually work up to
20-30 minutes a day. Here are some simple instructions to get you
started:
Space
Find a quiet space to sit. It may help to create an uncluttered
space, free of as many distractions as possible. Working to create an
outwardly clear, calm space reflects our care for our practice and also
supports the interior aspects of our zazen. A zabuton (soft mat) and zafu (cushion) will offer support for upright sitting.
Posture
Give careful attention to your body and posture. If you are just
starting out, try a number of different ways to sit in order to find one
that’s comfortable for you. There are several options. Sit with both
legs crossed so each leg rests on the opposite thigh (full lotus); sit
with one leg resting over the opposite calf (half lotus); sit on your
knees with your legs folded under you, straddling a cushion like a
saddle; sit on a low bench with your legs tucked under the bench; or sit
in a straight-back chair.
Comfort
The sitting position that works best for you will depend in part on
your flexibility. Stretching prior to each sitting will help alleviate
tightness and discomfort. As your meditation practice evolves, the pain
you may experience at the outset will become less of an issue. Though
there may be some discomfort as the limbs stretch in unfamiliar ways,
gradually the body adjusts.
Attention
Whatever position you choose, your back and head should be erect.
Your ears should line up with your shoulders and your chin should be
slightly tucked in. Sit quietly with your eyes open and unfocused. Lower
your gaze to a 45-degree angle. Bring your attention to your breathing.
First, inhale and exhale through your mouth while rocking right to left
three times. Bring your hands together forming a zazen mudra (left hand
resting on right hand with the palms facing up and the tips of the
thumbs just touching).
Breath
Now you are ready to concentrate on your breath. Focus on the inhale
and count one, then focus on the exhale and count two. Inhale again,
counting three, and exhale again, counting four. The goal is to get to a
count of ten without thoughts crossing your mind. If thoughts come up,
start over at one. Breathe through your nose in a natural, unforced
rhythm.
Thought
Refrain from trying to stop your thinking—let it stop by itself. When
a thought comes into your mind, let it come in and let it go out. Your
mind will begin to calm down. Nothing comes from outside of mind. The
mind includes everything; this is the true understanding of the mind.
Your mind follows your breathing. While you are following the breath,
drop the notion of “I am breathing.” No mind, no body—simply be aware
of the moment of breathing. Drop the ideas of time and space, body and
mind, and just “be” sitting.
Published in: https://www.lionsroar.com/how-to-practice-zazen/
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