Zen Filter

All In The Mind

2009-10-15T10:31:00.000-05:00

Interview with Thomas Metzinger:

"I don't deny that there is a self-y feeling. I certainly feel like someone, but there is no such thing. There is neither a non-physical thing in a realm beyond the brain or the physical world that we could call a self, but there's also no thing in the brain that we must necessary call a self."

Don't miss the discussion of this interview on Metafilter

Bigfoot Zen: Bigfoot, Big Boat, Big River, Big Zen

2009-10-05T10:12:00.000-05:00

From a post on new Zen blog "Bigfoot Zen":

"Picture yourself on this boat on the river. In that very moment, there is nothing other than the world of the boat. Just as your poling is what causes the aggregate to be a boat, the boat is also defined by the river, and the river is defined by the shore, and the shore is defined by the land just as the land is defined by the sky. In fact, everything in the universe is defining every other thing in the universe, and they are all defining the boat, and you are pushing the boat, and at the same time, the boat is carrying you."

Summer series links Zen and creativity

2009-07-20T06:18:00.000-05:00

"'What Zen does is basically take the flow state or the intimacy that happens at peak moments … and you learn how to take that moment and basically have it all the time. When I'm driving a car and talking with you, it's the same mental state that I have when I'm on stage.'"

Zen in their bedside manner - Los Angeles Times

2009-06-22T09:38:00.000-05:00

It's not clear in this article if they're actually talking about Zen Buddhism or just Buddhism: "According to the American Hospital Assn., about 68% of public hospitals have a chaplaincy program. But few have Buddhist monks, and none compares with the program at Beth Israel -- where more than 20 Buddhist chaplains and chaplains-in-training offer bedside meditation"

Zen Master Dogen

2009-05-25T20:51:00.001-05:00

Dogen was a great reformer of Buddhism, and the founder of the Soto Zen sect of Buddhism. I came across a blog entry about him. A small portion is excerpted below. If you click here, you can read the whole thing.

Dogen speaks clearly of the mind that seeks the way with clarity and how to maintain the intensity of practice over time. We couldn’t ask for a world of more distraction than the one we currently inhabit. To maintain our commitment to practice over 50 or 60 years requires that we find a way to refresh ourselves daily; there is no formula that works for everyone. We each find our own life koans to keep us awake. And we are not in monasteries where the routine is set up for us, responsibilities provided, and practice times reliable. One cornerstone of waking up is meditation and finding the strength of commitment to the Way to return to our practice daily.

However far we “stray” it is always good to remember

The key to cultivating the Way is knowing that your own mind is originally pure, that it is neither created nor destroyed, and that it is free of discrimination. The mind whose nature is perfectly pure is your true teacher and superior to any of the Buddhas of the ten directions you might call upon.

Zen At The Movies - Treeleaf Zen

2009-05-06T06:39:00.000-05:00

"'Awakening' though Zen Practice occurs when we come to see clearly that the show is just a show and we see the wondrous timeless light sweeping 'us' in too that arises from some half-hidden projector beyond our view and how the story is largely written by us too thus change the mind and radically change the movie script"

He takes this analogy interesting places. A good read.

The Gangster That Became A Buddhist Priest.

2009-04-07T11:29:00.000-05:00

Tadamasa Goto, one of Japan’s most notorious underworld bosses, is to enter the Buddhist priesthood less than a year after his volatile behaviour caused a rift in the country’s biggest crime syndicate.

As leader of a yakuza – or Japanese mafia – gang, Goto amassed a fortune from prostitution, protection rackets and white-collar crime, while cultivating a reputation for extreme violence.

Tomorrow, his life will take a decidedly austere turn when he begins training at a temple in Kanagawa prefecture south of Tokyo, the Sankei Shimbun newspaper said today, citing police sources.

The 66-year-old, whose eponymous gang belonged to the powerful Yamaguchi-gumi crime syndicate, was expelled from the yakuza fraternity last October after a furious row with his bosses over his conduct.

Wild Fox Zen: The Other Shore Arriving

2009-02-04T14:24:00.000-06:00

"Do not think practice leads to the other shore. Practice exists as the other shore arriving as our practice because this practice is always this arriving of the universe."

Tao Teh Ching

2009-01-12T08:53:00.001-06:00

"This web site is a tool for the study of how different English language translators rendered the ancient Chinese text of the Tau Teh Ching."

Of equal if not greater interest is the discussion this site sparked on Metafilter.com

Hipster Poem

2009-01-10T12:10:00.003-06:00

They run into eachother in the grocery store
by the cauliflowers
they just saw eachother down the street
She says hi, he says hi again
She asks him are you really tired?
He says why? do I look like I'm tired?
You look either really tired or just sad
Yea, he thinks:
It's january, and it's cold and I'm lonely
...but not for long
She has already walked the length of the brocolli aisle.

You and Your Research

2009-01-05T09:08:00.000-06:00

Interesting article:

"There's another trait on the side which I want to talk about; that trait is ambiguity. It took me a while to discover its importance. Most people like to believe something is or is not true. Great scientists tolerate ambiguity very well. They believe the theory enough to go ahead; they doubt it enough to notice the errors and faults so they can step forward and create the new replacement theory. If you believe too much you'll never notice the flaws; if you doubt too much you won't get started. It requires a lovely balance."

What has this got to do with Zen? Perhaps nothing.

Obama’s Zen State, Well, It’s Hawaiian - NYTimes.com

2008-12-25T16:57:00.000-06:00

A bit off topic, but a good read none the less:

"“He gives off a little oasis of calm,” said Mr. Abercrombie, who is spending the Christmas holidays in Hawaii. “He is peaceful water in the maelstrom, which will serve him very well in these circumstances when there happens to be a crisis.”"

Learning to meditate was never so easy, and odd

2008-12-09T12:32:00.001-06:00

Well, it's not every day a cowboy/crocodile teaches you to meditate with a song. But this seems to be that day:

Buddha's Path in San Francisco

2008-10-26T19:29:00.002-05:00

A BLOCK off Grant Avenue in San Francisco’s Chinatown — beyond the well-worn path tourists take past souvenir shops, restaurants and a dive saloon called the Buddha Bar — begins a historical tour of a more spiritual nature.

Broken Koans and other Zen debris

2008-10-15T13:18:00.001-05:00

If you know your Koans, these will give you a good laugh:

"Not Dualistic
Three Zen students came out of a Dharma talk.
'What did you think of Roshi s talk today ' one of them asked. 'When he talked about true and false practice I thought that was kind of dualistic wasn t it '
'Ah ' said the second 'but your even saying that is dualistic itself don t you see '
'Look who s talking ' said the third. 'I m glad I m not dualistic like you guys '"

Buddhism And The Zen Of Punk Rock : NPR Music

2008-09-29T14:35:00.000-05:00

"What does punk rock have to do with Buddhism There's a disdain for authority. There s a strong sense that the individual is responsible for herself or for himself says Brad Warner a bonafide punk rocker and ordained Zen master. The former bassist of Ohio-based punk rock band Zero Defex is also the author of two books on the subject Sit Down and Shut Up which promises Punk Rock commentaries on Buddha God truth sex and death and Hardcore Zen which explores Buddhism and punk s overlapping approaches to rebellion."

Western Buddhist Culture

2008-09-07T20:22:00.002-05:00

One of the great things that I find about Buddhism is how the common thread of peace, truth and liberation of mind are present in all forms of Buddhism. Vajrayana(Tibetan being one example), Theravada, Mahayana(Zen being one example) are the 3 major schools, though there are many others. The basic principles are the most important thing, that the core teachings to do not change. It does not matter what coat of tradition you flavor it with, in fact, over the centuries, Buddhism has worked its way into the lifestyle of the culture where it sits and does not become the culture.

Its like flavoring water I think. You can have lemon water, coffee, Tea, tonic water or anything in between. As long as the at the basic level, water is the key ingredient and is not diluted too much, we have no problem. I study and follow a Soto Zen tradition, which has taken a most definite Western flare here in the States. However, I see it difficult for many western people to get past the traditions and hang-ups on conceived ideas about bald monks bowing to golden Buddha statues. This is why I think it is important, that we as Westerners find our own path. It is a great opportunity we have to build something new, that threads through the fabric of our culture, much like a yellow string sewn into a black shirt.

Here in America, especially, the teachings of Anatta(emptiness of self) are extremely difficult for many to understand. Where we raise our children based on pride and self worth, breaking down the illusion of self is much more difficult than in many Asian cultures where ego is not as ever present. We drive our big trucks, climb the corporate ladder and revel in our pride. This is obviously a generalization, relative to all other things, but if we can find a new way, using the strengths of what we do have, conceptual understanding and breaking things down to see how they work, maybe we can break through the ignorance of ego......slowly.

My 7 year old son saw the Dalai Lama on the TV a few days ago, pointed at him then pointed at me. I said to him, "He is a Buddhist man, Tibetan, but he is me and you as well. Zen and Tibet, same thing, just different flavor of man" To which he quickly replied, "No! TV! Turn to Blue's Clues!."

"Sweeping Changes" - Zen Under the Skin

2008-09-05T15:17:00.000-05:00

Interesting blog post:

"Last week, I listened to audiobooks while cleaning. My earbuds kept falling out while I was cleaning the bathroom, and I was reminded of something I read or heard someone say about listening to dharma tapes while driving. I wish I could remember the source and share it, but it escapes me in the moment. But in a nutshell, it was suggested that when we drive, we could just drive. Maybe it is not the time to listen to anything... maybe it is a gift of time with ourselves where we can be quiet and focus on the wheel beneath our hands and the pedals beneath our feet and the road ahead. As my earbuds kept falling out I thought about this... how I was trying to make cleaning 'not cleaning'"

Tassajara Zen Monks Practice Firefighting

2008-07-13T20:03:00.001-05:00

Tassajara monks practice Zen of firefighting

Matthai Kuruvila, Chronicle Religion Writer

Thursday, July 10, 2008

(07-09) 19:24 PDT -- Fires snaked through ravines Wednesday in the Ventana Wilderness to within 3 miles of the oldest Soto Zen monastery outside of Asia, forcing the evacuation of firefighters and threatening the only access road.

The historic Tassajara Zen Mountain Center was left in the care of a handful of monks and practitioners who have refused to leave and have been rigorously preparing for nearly three weeks for the oncoming fire.

Some Tassajara staff also decided they could do no more and left, said Capt. Chuck Dickson, an information officer for the Basin Complex Fire.

"They decided that they'd done all they could," Dickson said. "It was time to go."

The flight came as remaining Tassajara staff prepared themselves physically and mentally for fighting the fire directly. They were calm in the face of the latest evacuation order.

"We'll be moving more vigorously than usual," said the abbot, Myôgen Steve Stücky, as he watched staff practice rolling out new hose lines moments after firefighters fled. "And we'll be watching those tendencies to get overexcited. We'll stay calm and alert. We'll be ready."

Even as they stood at the fulcrum of two of California's largest wildfires - the Basin Complex and Indians fires - the staff at Tassajara saw the approaching blaze enriching their practice of Zen.

Indra's Net, a metaphor for the non-dual nature of all

2008-07-13T10:19:00.000-05:00

Interesting site discussing Indra's Net (or Indra's Web):

"The Net of Indra is a profound and subtle metaphor for the structure of reality. Imagine a vast net; at each crossing point there is a jewel; each jewel is perfectly clear and reflects all the other jewels in the net, the way two mirrors placed opposite each other will reflect an image ad infinitum. The jewel in this metaphor stands for an individual being, or an individual consciousness, or a cell or an atom. Every jewel is intimately connected with all other jewels in the universe, and a change in one jewel means a change, however slight, in every other jewel."

Chew, Chew, Chew

2008-06-18T06:11:00.000-05:00

A little "food for thought" from Seung Sahn:

"Digesting our understanding is very important. It's like a cow eating grass - eat, eat, eat, eat. A cow has two stomachs. The first stomach stores food and takes out the juice; later the cow chews her cud until the food is again swallowed to be digested and become energy. Not everybody digests their understanding in this style. They only eat, eat, eat. Then comes consciousness, questions, computing and thinking, thinking, thinking. Too much understanding. Everybody understands too much but they cannot use their understanding because it is not chewed and digested.

So what am I? Only meditate: what am I? Don't know. Chew, chew, chew. Then your understanding food becomes correct cognition. That is meditation; that is Zen. Complicated mind becomes simple mind."

More Zen Marketing: ZEN Green Tea Liqueur

2008-06-03T11:51:00.002-05:00

Finally, we can get drunk on Zen. But please remember, as the website warns: "Enjoy ZEN responsibly". And watch out for that Zen hangover, it's a doozy.

Notes on Contemporary Zen

2008-05-12T08:32:00.000-05:00

Some interesting thoughts from Fred Rossini on learning Zen, including this:

"It is fortunate that Zen is not dependent on 'things' as our lives are already cluttered with things."

Tell me about it.

Zen Habits blog

2008-04-09T20:54:00.001-05:00

First, I love Zen. I named one of my dogs Zen. I’ve read it, tried it, love its simple philosophy, love the meditation and love the aesthetics.

But I chose Zen Habits as the title of my blog because it describes the philosophy of the blog in a concise way.

This blog is really about setting and achieving goals, and the numerous goals that I want to achieve. But I believe that goals — especially ones that are worth reaching — are ultimately achieved through the building of good habits. Do I want to complete a marathon? Then I must cultivate the habit of running 4-5 times a week. I must cultivate the habit of positive thinking. It also helps to become an early riser, a healthy eater, and a non-smoker, as I’ve done.

These habits are not born overnight. You can’t tell yourself, “Hey, self, I am going to become an early riser, starting tomorrow morning!” Well, you can tell yourself that, but if you think that it’s going to happen so quickly, you are clearly delusional.

No, these habits must be cultivated through daily practice. It is my belief that you must practice a habit, as focused as possible, every day for a month. When I only do it for a week, it doesn’t take hold. But when I’ve done it for a month or longer, it does. And that doesn’t mean that I’m successful each and every day … but the important thing is that I try, and when I fail, I learn from those mistakes.

In addition to the habits, I hope to post Zen-related stuff now and then, just to give me a peaceful feeling and to justify the use of the cool blog name.

Oh, Woah We're Halfway There!

2008-04-03T16:57:00.000-05:00

Brad Warner rants about enlightenment:

"Enlightenment is always just over the next hill, available if only you’d just do this one more thing, and do it sincerely, cuz if you don’t do it sincerely it won’t work, but if you have trouble doing it sincerely send me your credit card number and I’ll help you out. That’s the nature of Enlightenment, that it’s just around the next bend. Or maybe the one after that. Or maybe after those three and a bunch of hills. But it’s always off in the distance. Not here.

And it will always be off in the distance because there’s nowhere else it can be. The very definition of Enlightenment might as well be “off in the distance.”"