Zazen for Beginners Series: THREAD for QUESTIONS, COMMENTS

[Mushin-O]

I feel like I should already have found this. But are there any service (samu) opportunities?

Gassho,
Mushin
sat today

[Bion]

I feel like I should already have found this. But are there any service (samu) opportunities?

Gassho,
Mushin
sat today

Samu is mindful work, so really, you can engage in samu at any point throughout your day to day life, whether washing dishes, mopping floors, folding clothes, raking leaves etc .. During our Rohatsu retreat, in December, we have various opportunities to practice samu together, as it is included in the schedule of the retreat! Within Treeleaf itself, there are always opportunities for service. I'd say that for example that showing up to regularly sit with a group, supporting it and keeping it active is a service offered to the sangha, getting involved in the book study, engaged corner, contributing by welcoming folks, being present at zazenkai whenever possible, being present at tea houses, all these things are service to the sangha.
I hope that answers your question

Gassho
sat lah

[Green Ben]

Just watched Zazen for Beginners (18), and one line in particular struck a chord with me.
I'll paraphrase, but it was about understanding Shikantaza through seeing the instant, the moment of sitting as sacred.

Suddenly all the ritual and Zendo etiquette made perfect sense. I've been meditating for decades, with a healthy respect for how that practice has helped me in all sorts of spiritual and psychological ways. But my practice has always been casual.

But when I heard that line, the purpose of gassho, and all these other new-to-me aspects of Soto practice, became clear.

These gestures are not vestigial dogmatic gestures, they are behaviors recognizing that what we are about to do, or what we have just done, in sitting Zazen, is sacred. It would be boorish and foolish to act in a manner which diminishes that.

Gassho

stlah

[Green Ben]

Zazen for Beginners (21) - The True 'Quiet Room' reaction

My little home zendo is in my basement, and as fortune would have it, eldest daughter is doing some laundry tonight. Washer and dryer are 20 feet from where I sit. I was procrastinating sitting, hoping her dryer load would finish, and it started getting late, so I figured I'd at least watch a talk or two to get ready, and maybe dryer would finish.

Next video in the queue was this one. So, I listened to the talk, and sat for twenty-five minutes. Gassho'd, and sat down to write this react. The dryer is still going.

This was new, and not new to me. I have meditated on college campuses, at music festivals, and in parks. Sitting meditation, maybe close to zazen, but certainly not Shikantaza. Anyway, I'm comfortable with the concept. Just this last summer I sat waiting for my lady outside a merchant's tent, on the busiest market night of a historical reenactment, and found it quite pleasant.

Tonight however, was the stormiest mental weather I've encountered in a long time. Like probably since the first year I started meditating. And I did the worst job at just letting the thoughts go. Mostly the intrusive thoughts were subjectively "good", good ideas, good insights into various situations in my life, the beginnings of good plans begging to be considered and followed to their logical end. Returning to following my breath was not always getting me back to where I wanted to be, so I went to reciting the Heart Sutra Mantra, which usually works quite well to quiet my mind. Even that did not completely keep me from chasing after some of the more enticing thoughts.

It was a stormy, churning session... BUT, within all that, there were glimpses of a really clear crystal blue sky, and fleeting feelings of a deep and abiding peace.

It was a really bad good zazen, as well a really good bad zazen session. Don't know how much came from the thumping of the dryer, and how much was just ego seeking attention. Weird, nonetheless.

Dryer has stopped now.

Gassho

stlah

[Jundo]

It was a really bad good zazen, as well a really good bad zazen session. Don't know how much came from the thumping of the dryer, and how much was just ego seeking attention. Weird, nonetheless.

Some days rain, some days sunny, some days snow ... all good Zazen.

The sky is always blue even on the cloudy and stormy days.

It is as foolish to wish to always be "clear" in Zazen as it is foolish to which the sky to always be sunny and blue, never a rainy day. Appreciate the clear days and skies, appreciate and bow to the clouds.

Better is to know the blue sky always present, clouds or not. The clouds are never other than the blue sky as clouds.

Gassho, J
stlah

[Shinshi]

Thanks for sharing your story Green Ben. I find that, like in life, it is the doing of the hard thing that leads to greater insight. The difficult sits are the ones where I can more clearly see my attachments or "monkey mind". Sort of like when I run. Easy runs are fun but they don't advance my fitness as much as the hard ones.

Gassho, Shinshi

SaT-LaH