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Zen: Difference between revisions
Revisions to second to last paragraph, addition of picture of Zen garden.
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D. T. Suzuki says that while Zen professes to be the spirit of Buddhism, “in fact, it is the spirit of all religions and philosophies.”<ref>D. T. Suzuki, quoted in Laurence G. Boldt, ''Zen and the Art of Making a Living: A Practical Guide to Creative Career Design'' (New York: Penguin, 1999), p. xix.</ref> | D. T. Suzuki says that while Zen professes to be the spirit of Buddhism, “in fact, it is the spirit of all religions and philosophies.”<ref>D. T. Suzuki, quoted in Laurence G. Boldt, ''Zen and the Art of Making a Living: A Practical Guide to Creative Career Design'' (New York: Penguin, 1999), p. xix.</ref> | ||
How do we awaken to our inner reality and discover our Real Self? Zen teaches that we have to “pass beyond the intellect,” writes Humphreys. “The process of Zen is a leap from thinking to knowing, from second-hand to direct experience.”<ref> | How do we awaken to our inner reality and discover our Real Self? Zen teaches that we have to “pass beyond the intellect,” writes Humphreys. “The process of Zen is a leap from thinking to knowing, from second-hand to direct experience.”<ref>Humphreys, ''A Popular Dictionary of Buddhism'', pp. 180, 182–83.</ref> | ||
== Methods == | == Methods == | ||
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Zen’s encouragement to bypass the intellect does not, however, exclude an initial study of the scriptures. Thich Thien-An explains that for Zen, the scriptures “are not the truth but only guides to the truth. But once we know the direction, we have to leave the scriptures behind and experience the truth for ourselves. The scriptures are no substitute for our own experience. They are of value insofar they give us a notion, insofar as they give us a notion of what the truth is like and of where it is to be found. In Zen Buddhism experience counts for everything.”<ref>Thich Thien-An, ''Zen Philosophy, Zen Practice'' (Emeryville, Calif.: Dharma Publishing, 1975), p. 22.</ref> | Zen’s encouragement to bypass the intellect does not, however, exclude an initial study of the scriptures. Thich Thien-An explains that for Zen, the scriptures “are not the truth but only guides to the truth. But once we know the direction, we have to leave the scriptures behind and experience the truth for ourselves. The scriptures are no substitute for our own experience. They are of value insofar they give us a notion, insofar as they give us a notion of what the truth is like and of where it is to be found. In Zen Buddhism experience counts for everything.”<ref>Thich Thien-An, ''Zen Philosophy, Zen Practice'' (Emeryville, Calif.: Dharma Publishing, 1975), p. 22.</ref> | ||
[[File:Cherry blossom at the rock garden of Ryōan-ji Temple in Kyoto, Japan.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Zen garden at the Ryōan-ji Temple in Kyoto, Japan. The garden dates to the 15th century, in its current form to the 18th century. Such gardens are intended to be aids to meditation, portraying the inner essence of the natural world, beyond the outer form.]] | |||
== Zen in daily life == | == Zen in daily life == | ||
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== The essence of Zen == | == The essence of Zen == | ||
For those with an exoteric understanding, the term ''Zen'' must always remain simply a word conveying the thought of the discovery of Self and the contemplation of that reality which is the foundation of every illusionary nature. However, we don’t find Zen through study. We achieve Zen through the process of becoming it. Zen is not a teaching to be understood; it is communicated as a state from those who possess it to those who are capable of receiving it. | |||
In the practice of Zen is the perfect balance of cosmic forces. The teacher becomes the polarity of Alpha. As Alpha gives of himself to Omega, so the teacher of Zen gives to his disciple. In the process of the giving of Alpha, as it is passed over the figure-eight pattern through the nexus of the mind of God, the Zen becomes the Omega in the disciple. | In the practice of Zen there is the perfect balance of cosmic forces. The teacher becomes the polarity of Alpha. As Alpha gives of himself to Omega, so the teacher of Zen gives to his disciple. In the process of the giving of Alpha, as it is passed over the figure-eight pattern through the nexus of the mind of God, the Zen becomes the Omega in the disciple. | ||
== See also == | == See also == | ||