An Essay on Shikantaza that 'Get's Sit Right!' by Lou Richmond Roshi

[Ryudo]

Thank you


Gassho/SatToday

[Anchi]

Thank you Jundo.

Ghasso

[Hoseki]

Thank you Jundo!

Gassho

Hoseki
Sattoday

[Seishin]

Wonderfully perspective. Thank you for sharing.

Sat

[Kyonin]

Marvelous essay. I think I'll read it often. Thank you Jundo.

Gassho,

Kyonin
Sat/LAH

[Jakuden]

Wonderful!
"Zazen practice is the practice of the whole hand." That's lovely.

Gassho,
Jakuden
SatToday/LAH

[jgotthart]

Absolutely wonderful. Thank you Jundo.

Sat Today Lah
John

[Bokugan]

Appreciate this very much! I am reading Opening the Hand of Thought right now and this article is a great supplement to that material.

For a time, I was certainly in the mindset the author mentions some practicioners falling into; that Zazen was about "stopping one's thinking."

I also found this to be well said:

That understanding is a little too much back-of-the-hand. Zazen is not to reject one side of the hand or the other, but to equalize both sides so that the basis of our life has some deep compassionate support, some backdrop. We’re not trying to suck the joy out of our experience and live a drab, black-robed life, but to round out our life so it can become deeply and authentically compassionate and joyous. This includes everything—joy, sorrow, birth, death, delusion, enlightenment.

Right now, what I get is that it is not an effort to attain/experience or not attain/experience, it's a practice that seeps into all life, encouraging compassion and joy that can benefit all beings.

Gassho

Ryan
Sat Today