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In Zen Buddhism we have a practice that is called “zazen” which literally means “sitting.” But unlike when we sit on a park bench and watch the people go by or sit in the car waiting for our food at the fast food pick-up window, “our sitting” is a form of meditation.
For the beginner I would not fret over the moment by moment challenges that may arrive as a new person “sitting.” Nor would I want you to get upset when your thoughts interrupt your “sitting.” With patience and dedication your sitting will produce exactly what you need for that exact moment in time.
Kaz Tanahashi writes this about meditation (zazen or sitting): “This meditation is a source of creative engagement in life. While life is viewed as a continuation of birth, moment after moment, meditation is a total experience of this ‘birth’ at each moment. Thus a person no longer lives a moment as a segment of life or takes life passively but is fully engaged in an active and creative way. Dogen explains this experience by using the metaphor of a boat: Birth is like riding in a boat. You raise the sails and row with the oar… You ride in the boat and your riding makes the boat what it is (page 13).”[1] Where has your riding taken you?
There have been times in your life when you were so engrossed in a task, a book, or a movie that no one or nothing could get your attention. In that moment you were in a “meditative” state. You were so fully one with it that there was no separation between it and you. It may only happen for a nano second at first, but the more you practice and the longer you sit the more often those “oneness” experiences will appear.
The goal is simple—so don’t make a mountain out of a mole hill as they say. Simply allow yourself to take some time for yourself. To find a quiet place to sit where you will not be disturbed (even if the only place is the bathroom) and start slowly. Begin with 5 minutes and work your way up to 20 minutes.
Baby Steps Baby Steps. . .without pressure and condemnation! When you were a toddler just learning how to walk your parents didn’t scold you every time you got up and tried to walk and fell down! NO…they praised you and clapped their hands and smiled at you. And if you have children that is exactly how you helped them learn to walk as well!
Be kind to yourself and let the process expand and grow at its own pace. Allow yourself to have a “total experience” of each moment of your life whether you are “sitting,” reading, walking, or doing the dishes–you’ll be glad you did!
[1] Tanahashi, K. (1985) Moon in a Dewdrop Writings of Zen Master Dogen North Point Press: New York
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