We have all experienced that one moment of pure clarity of mind, even if we can only see it retrospectively. It might have been when we were in a foreign country, driving on the other side of the road, through a busy city. It may have been when hanging over the precipiceof a mountain rock … Continue reading Thought
Tag: empty mind
Mind-Body
Mind-Body We cannot separate mind from body nor body from mind in this realm within which we dwell. When we are hungry we feel it in both, just as when we are angry our mind flares with the emotion as our heart race quickens and our stomachs clench. When we train our bodies, we train … Continue reading Mind-Body
Breathing
Using Zen's paradoxical logic, great importance must be attached to the way of breathing, while at the same time one is merely the observer. Breathing is a process in which both control and spontaneity, voluntary and involuntary action, exist. We need to breath, to stay alive, and most of the time we forget we are … Continue reading Breathing
Tiger in the room
When you're sitting za-zen and you find that your mind has been wandering, bring your attention back to your posture and the mind will follow. If, when we were to sit za-zen, we faced the wall but knew a wild, loose tiger padded up and down the room behind us, our mind wouldn't wander. If … Continue reading Tiger in the room
Zen musings 