Opening the Hand of Thought - Chapter 3

[Onkai]

Thank you for this thread, Jundo and everyone!
I find that when I focus on the breath, my entire attention goes to the breath to the exclusion of everything else. When I spread my attention to my posture, I'm still aware of my breath, but I also become aware of the ringing in my ears, sounds around me, and thoughts coming up. Sometimes it is difficult not to get caught up in thoughts. It is like two extremes, a narrow focus or attention wandering and I'm trying to stay in the middle, where I am aware.

Gassho,
Onkai (Laurie)
SatToday

[AlanLa]

My posture is my anchor, but it's a pretty soft anchor. What I mean is I always come back to my posture, but I don't stay there exclusively. Thoughts come and go, and when I catch myself going, I come back to my posture before I get back to the objectless focus Jundo describes. I think of zazen as something your are as well as do, so I always think of it as being/doing zazen. To DO zazen is to BE zazen, and BEING zazen means you are DOING zazen; there is no separation between being and doing in zazen, because zazen is and does zazen.

[Jeremy]

I too love the clarity of this chapter. The emphasis on posture makes it clear that zazen is a physical practice, not just mental. The diagram around the line ZZ' makes it clear that some kind of samadhi is not the aim.

Jeremy
st

[AlanLa]

To borrow from an old sports cliche, there is no I in zazen. The less I get involved the more zazen can be and do zazen.

[Jishin]

ZZ' <====aa'
ZZ' <====bb'
ZZ' <====cc'

Gassho, Jishin, ST

[Jakuden]

Ha.... I like that even better than my rowboat in the waves analogy... be the Bouncing Buddha. I would like one of these for the dashboard of my car.

Gassho,
Jakuden
SatToday

[Kaishin]

-satToday

[Doshin]

All good to know, I always was concerned that I spent too much time not in "ZZ".

Gassho
Doshin
sattoday

[Washin]

All good to know, I always was concerned that I spent too much time not in "ZZ".

Same here. For me this chapter is very helpful. I noticed that quite often I have to remind myself to let go of
the sticky notion that achieving "ZZ" and abiding there is zazen, whilst the very action of returning to "ZZ" over
and over is zazen. This is a crucial point.

Gassho
Washin
sat-today

[Kyonin]

As I keep on reading and re-reading many paragraphs of this book, I stop, sit and watch my posture.

I try to craft it carefully. I check that my back is straight, that my knees touch the ground.

I have noticed that when I pay attention to posture at the beginning, I tend to sit longer and more profound.

Then I just forget it all and sit.

Gassho,

Kyonin
#SatToday

[Sozan]

Because of physical limitations my sitting posture is never perfect, and because of pain my posture is never constant, but I treat these issues like the passing thoughts that occur during Zazen. With this frame of reference , my practice is enriched, rather that hindered.

Gassho,
Sozan / john

s@2day

[CK732]

This is a very good read and I am getting a deeper understanding of the things that Jundo has been sharing. Thank you.

Gassho

Nando Sat2Day


Sat2Day

[Jakuden]

Hi Nando! Good to hear from you!

Gassho,
Jakuden
SatToday

[Ed]

Okumura roshi, in talking on OPENING THE HAND OF THOUGHT by his teacher Uchiyama roshi, says in Shikantaza our brain, which is always generating thoughts, doe not "engage" this thinking, much like a "car with the motor running but the transmission in IDLE."
The same as your:

"At Treeleaf, ... as our central "objectless" object of meditation, I recommend open, spacious sitting centered on everything and nothing at all ... sitting with open, spacious awareness" ... sitting I would add, with all sentient beings...that last one from Dogen Zenji.

Thank you, Jundo for that paragraph.

In gassho.

sattdy

[Roland]

It is funny that, by reading this chapter, I realized better that it really is about the returning to ZZ and by doing so realizing the fickleness of our thoughts. Of course that is what Jundo teaches us, but somehow it seems I needed to read it once again in this book.

Gassho

Roland

#SatToday