Many people who try to understand practice by adhering to terms used in Buddhist literature such as emptiness, not-knowing, oneness, impermanence or interconnectness of all things, are rapidly sucked into a quicksand of confusion. The effort to find meaning in what they read in books written by renown teachers keeps them in the same cage conceptual thinking has always kept them. Memorizing platitudes is not a sound learning method.
By Angel Roberto Puente
Meditation, mindfulness, Zen, and “sitting” are terms that are becoming increasingly common and are sometimes thought of as being the same thing.
Yet, in practice, they can be very different.
The personal reasons one may have for starting a practice haven’t changed much throughout history. Gueifeng Zongmi (779-841), a Tang- dynasty Chan master, classified Zen according to practitioner’s motive. I think the clasifications apply well to most contemporary practices. Those who were attracted to Zen for health or well-being, practice Bompu. This involves remaining in the usual mindset of wanting to make things “better.” Looking for advantages, the usual grasping mindset remains unchanged.
Gedo Zen is a category of pseudo- spirituality. The search for “higher states of consciousness” is not aligned with altruistic goals or self realization. It’s more of a power trip. Shojo zen is Buddhist, but was regarded by Zongmi as “selfish” because it focused on the self’s liberation, aiming for personal peace, quietude, and emancipation from the cycle of rebirth solely for oneself. In contrast, Daijo Zen aims to achieve insight into the true nature of reality (kenshō or satori) and to realize that all beings possess Buddha-nature.
The final category, regarded as the highest, is Saijojo Zen. In this “Supreme Zen,” one directly expresses from the outset that the mind itsef is Buddha-nature. This approach is central to the “just sitting” (shikantaza) tradition, where practice and enlightenment are unified.
There are no customer satisfaction surveys that show how many of the millions of people doing these practices achieve their original goals.
There is a movement in modern mindfulness towards a practice more attuned to the Daijo and Saijojo aspects of practice. It’s safe to say that, in general, lacking a higher altruistic motivation, a deep spiritual commitment, or a strong intention toward self-actualization—such as Carl Jung’s concept of individuation, (the lifelong goal to know yourself and blend all parts of the mind into a balanced whole), dedicated practice remains difficult.
Many types of people and practice modalities are born out of the necessity to adapt to the differences.
As Confucius observed, “Some are born with knowledge, some derive it from study, and some acquire it only after a painful realization of their ignorance. But the knowledge being possessed, it comes to the same thing. Some study with a natural ease, some from a desire for advantages, and some by strenuous effort. But the achievement being made, it comes to the same thing.”
Mindfulness of the breath provides a universal object of focus that is not dependent on having a particular temperament or cultural background.
Many people who try to understand practice by adhering to terms used in Buddhist literature such as emptiness, not-knowing, oneness, impermanence or interconnectness of all things, are rapidly sucked into a quicksand of confusion. The effort to find meaning in what they read in books written by renown teachers keeps them in the same cage conceptual thinking has always kept them. Memorizing platitudes is not a sound learning method.
Regardless of how one arrives at the practice or categorizes it, the method itself requires no intellectual gymnastics. The Buddha was neither ambiguous nor cryptic about the training, which is what meditation is. Nor was he confusing in explaining what was important. He said: first establish the primacy of attention (sati), bring it to the forefront. Then, anchor the attention on the breath. (Where the breath is first sensed is still debated. I locate it in the Hara, there is ample evidence of the positive outcomes of this.) Discernment is in the mix from the start. Know the quality of the breathing, whether it is long or short, where and how it is felt. Develope sensitivity to bodily sensations and relax.
A clear message can be seen from the start: this is an embodied practice.
Words originate as a result of discernment. No concepts are required for practice and will in fact hinder if held as a signposts to be searched for.
To become sensitive, aware of the changes in the body, the feelings, the mind and its qualities, will generate the genuine experience of those terms that are bandied about. We can then call the experience whatever we want in the effort to communicate, but we will realize that the experience and the words are not the same thing.
We must have one thing very clear: the objects one attends to are not the important piece of learning. What is called meditation is a training in the art of attention. Going back to the instructions, remember: attention always stays in the forefront. All perceptions occur in the space of attention. They originate in this space and disappear into this space. This field is inherently vast, “like a circle whose center is everywhere and whose circumference is nowhere,” our practice is to stop limiting the spaciousness by fixating on particular objects.
We do this by diffusing our attention, allowing the free flow of perceptions while maintaining our attention in an open mode. As the training advances, the more ingrained it becomes in our body/mind, the easier it becomes to be immersed in the space of attention. One notices that different perceptions can coexist simultaneously in this space without constricting it.
So again, forget all the terminology.
After practicing well for a while you will have the great satisfaction of recognizing your own experiences in the books. Done right, attention is its own teacher. Insights are naturally produced but no insight surpasses cultivating the space of attention. Abiding as pure attention is the source of bliss and happiness regardless of circumstances.
Photo: Pixabay
Editor: Dana Gornall
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El amor de Ángel Roberto Puente por la investigación comenzó desde su infancia cuando desarmaba los juguetes que recibía en Navidad. Lo único que consiguió después fueron juegos de montaje. Una experiencia temprana de lo no conceptual lo llevó a un viaje para reconciliar una educación cristiana con la práctica de Zazen y los estudios de Psicología. Habiendo logrado una solución cómoda, ahora se sienta con Morning Star Zendo. Un grupo zen dirigido por un sacerdote jesuita/Roshi. Como introvertido maduro, todavía separa las cosas, y ahora los conceptos y las creencias. Check out his site here.
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