Adult practice: Part 18 Stop being mindful!

DaltheJigsaw

Second question:

"2. Outside of zazen practice, in our daily life when we walk, talk, eat, sit, lay down or work, should we keep being mindful of, or following anything specific? For example, like the Rinzai students who keep the koans on their minds at all times, should we be mindful of our breathing any time other than during zazen? Or when we take a regular walk, should we keep being mindful of our steps like in kinhin?"

We should always try to be active coming out of samadhi. For this, we have to forget things like "I should be mindful of this or that". If you are mindful, you are already creating a separation ("I - am - mindful -of - ...."). Don't be mindful, please! When you walk, just walk. Let the walk walk. Let the talk talk (Dogen Zenji says: "When we open our mouths, it is filled with Dharma"). Let the eating eat, the sitting sit, the work work. Let sleep sleep. Kinhin is nothing special. We do not have to make our everyday life into something special. We try to live in the most natural and ordinary way possible. So my advice is: Ask yourself why you practice zazen? If it is to reach some specific goal, or to create some special state of mind, then you are heading in the opposite direction from zazen. You create a separation from reality. Please, trust zazen as it is, surrender to reality here and now, forget body and mind, and do not DO zazen, do not DO anything, don't be mindful, don't be anything - just let zazen be and follow along.

To drive a car well and savely you need long practice and even then you still have to watch out very well not to cause any accident. Nobody can teach you that except the car itself, the action of driving the car itself.

Take care, and stop being mindful!

http://antaiji.dogen-zen.de/eng/adult18.shtml

SimpleWitness

@LeonBasin

That is well communicated, LeonBasin, and has clarity. Mindfulness is not who "I am"; it is not what "I do"; mindfulness is not "my self".

While as a witness as neither self nor other, allow the mind to be mindful; allow the heart to be compassionate; allow awareness to be inter connected to the simplicity of being.

Your opening discussion is an impressive way of right speech towards right understanding, LeonBasin.

LeonBasin, thank you very much for sharing this.

Respectfully:
SimpleWitness
:thumbsup:

pegembara

[We should always try to be active coming out of samadhi. For this, we have to forget things like "I should be mindful of this or that". If you are mindful, you are already creating a separation ("I - am - mindful -of - ...."). Don't be mindful, please! When you walk, just walk. Let the walk walk. Let the talk talk (Dogen Zenji says: "When we open our mouths, it is filled with Dharma"). Let the eating eat, the sitting sit, the work work. Let sleep sleep.]

"Then, Bahiya, you should train yourself thus: In reference to the seen, there will be only the seen. In reference to the heard, only the heard. In reference to the sensed, only the sensed. In reference to the cognized, only the cognized. That is how you should train yourself. When for you there will be only the seen in reference to the seen, only the heard in reference to the heard, only the sensed in reference to the sensed, only the cognized in reference to the cognized, then, Bahiya, there is no you in terms of that. When there is no you in terms of that, there is no you there. When there is no you there, you are neither here nor yonder nor between the two. This, just this, is the end of stress."

Bahiya Sutta

cosmicyogisattva

:thumbsup:

andyZ

Since this is posted in the "beginners" section the advice given above is more for when you're already at some advanced point in your practice. In beginning you have to be mindful. There's a famous koan:

12. Zuigan Calls "Master"
KOAN

Every day Master Zuigan Shigen used to call out to himself, "Oh, Master!" and would answer himself, "Yes?" "Are you awake?" he would ask, and would answer, "Yes, I am." "Never be decieved by others, any day, any time." "No, I will not."

http://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/tyamashi/zen/mumonkan.htm

federica

(Moved to 'Advanced Ideas').

SimpleWitness

@federica

(Moved to 'Advanced Ideas').

How much more advanced does one require, federica?

Supposedly, it depends upon the context in which it is meant.