Meditation

[xkatz]

In Zen buddhism, is are there any rules for meditation? Is it okay to do meditation in ANY posture?

 

[Rainbow Mage]

No, you meditate using Zazen. Zazen is the style I use myself when I meditate. You sit on a floor cushion or mat. Sit straight up and push your chest out. When you meditate, you look at the wall, concentrate on the wall of a room, trying to shut out all else.

 

[koan]

Yosef, that is the Soto way. There is also Koan work. Depending on ones physical limitations. It is better to sit i.e. on the floor, however, one may meditate anwhere anyhow.

 

[wmjbyatt]

To hell with the rules. Meditate however you want. There are certain postures which have demonstrated usefulness in meditation, but meditate however it works for you. Meditation also doesn't have to be done by sitting and staring at a wall. To quote another thread on this site: "When you stand, stand. When you walk, walk. When you sit, sit." That is meditation.

Zen Buddhism, as an organized religion, has established practices, yes. But Buddha himself told us to be our own lamps in the darkness. Question everything. The way of a temple is not the only Way.

 

[DreadFish]

Well, regarding zazen and soto zen practice; you dont have to sit one the floor in the lotus or half lotus position. Also, it is regarded that with the proper understanding, everything we do is 'zazen' (not to be understood literally as 'sitting meditation' in this context, but something deeper). Also, as Dogen has stated, the practice of zazen has nothing to do with with sitting or standing or any of the other postures. When sitting zazen, the highest form is Shikantaza, which literally means "just sitting"; it is sitting with your entire being and nothing else. There are no expectations as there is nothing to achieve by sitting zazen, when sitting zazen we are assuming and expressing buddha nature.

SO, sitting on the floor in the lotus or half lotus position is for the purpose of taking up an unconditioned posture. When one is tired or upset, one assumes certain posture; so this is an unconditioned posture, a posture which is assumed purely to express our true nature.

Basically, as there is nothing to achieve by zen practice, the idea is that by assuming the behavior of a buddha (awakened one), then we return to our true nature, or our true nature resumes itself.

The concept of shikantazaa can also be applied to everything, where it deosnt mean "just sitting" but "just doing" anything that we are doing. IT means doing what we are doing with all of our mind and body, but also doing it without and gaining idea, with nothign to accomplish and with no particular special effort. It is 'just doing'.

This is from the perspective of Dogen Zenji's soto zen. Its different from Rinzai zen, and different from the other schools of zen in china.

I have personally found Dogen's zen practice beneficial (as far as it could be said to be anything.)

As long as I am blabbering on about it, here:

Dogen's instructions on the practice of zen, the Fukanzazengi:
BZC: FUKANZAZENGI

I recommend Dogen's writings to anyone, he shows a deep mind, theres nothing flashy, its just simple.

Peace

 

[DreadFish]

No, you meditate using Zazen. Zazen is the style I use myself when I meditate. You sit on a floor cushion or mat. Sit straight up and push your chest out. When you meditate, you look at the wall, concentrate on the wall of a room, trying to shut out all else.

That is not proper zazen practice, there is no shutting out anything in zazen. In fact there is an opening up to, and becoming more sensitive to everything. The point of looking at a wall is simply because, when your looking at a wall, there is nothing in particular to look at and closing the eyes can lead someone to become sleepy.

It is good to focus on breathing, I like to use 'focus' rather than 'concentrate' because to me 'concentrate' implies some effort akin to flexing a muscle and trying to keep it held, so 'focus' feels lighter to me, akin to placing your gaze on a light and just keeping it there.


Peace

 

[Flow]

That is not proper zazen practice, there is no shutting out anything in zazen. In fact there is an opening up to, and becoming more sensitive to everything. The point of looking at a wall is simply because, when your looking at a wall, there is nothing in particular to look at and closing the eyes can lead someone to become sleepy.

It is good to focus on breathing, I like to use 'focus' rather than 'concentrate' because to me 'concentrate' implies some effort akin to flexing a muscle and trying to keep it held, so 'focus' feels lighter to me, akin to placing your gaze on a light and just keeping it there.


Peace

I would say that real Zazen takes place only when the focusing or concentration has dissapeard. Real meditation, in my view, is just sitting. When you sit and just sit and become the sitting, that is Zazen. So, anything can be Zazen. And I would agree with you here DreadFish, focus is a better word, it does sound lighter and concetration sounds like too much effort is being used and then the meditation becomes hard and you want to stop.

 

[koan]

As Koan practice is also Zazen, I would think one should be careful with this term. In Soto Zen, Zazen is usually taken as Shikantaza, however Zazen just means seated meditation, not Shikantaza.

 

[joea]

There are no correct or wrong ways to meditations...different ways works for different people. Others meditate while walking, running. focusing on objects etc..but my main posture though when I'm tired, is sitting on a chair........then bingo, I've disappeared, lol.