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Overview of Hwadu Meditation AKA "What is this" "Who am I", etc.
seeker242
ZenFlorida, USA Veteran
Hwadu meditation is used extensively in Korean Zen traditions. It is quite similar to koan practice but not exactly the same but it serves the same purpose. Hwadu is a questioning technique that is used to cultivate insight. Example questions are "Who am "I, "what is this", etc. are Hwadu questions.
A brief intro by one of the teachers:
There are many methods for meditation. In Korean Buddhism the traditional method called “Ganhwaseon” is used. Korea is the only Nation where the traditional meditation using hwadu (usually translated as “head of speech” which means “true speech”) is generally practiced. Used by many enlightened masters of the past, the practitioner endeavours to suspend logical thinking so that the Original Nature becomes clear through a direct transmission from mind to mind. As we are all Buddha by nature, it is only necessary to clear away ignorance and delusions for our true nature to come forward.
A human being is composed of a body and a mind. A body without a mind is just a dead corpse. A mind without a body is just pure spirit. Someone who, although endowed with both a body and a mind, only knows the body but not the mind is called a sentient being. In general, a sentient being is understood as any being possessing conscious life. Birds flying in the sky, animals walking on the ground, fish swimming in the water, as well as the tiniest organism, are all sentient beings.
The purpose of practicing Zen meditation is awaken to the mind. Such practice does not involve just sitting quietly and trying to calm and pacify the mind. Nor does it entail contemplating the breath. Instead it involves direct into a hwadu. An example of a hwadu would be a question such as “What is this?” or “What is this mind?”. What you are searching for can be called by many different names: mind, spirit, soul, true nature and so forth. But such designations are merely labels. You should put aside all of these names and reflect on the fact that the true master of the body is more than just the label “mind”. The master of the body is not the Buddha, for it is not yet awakened. Nor is it anything material, because it cannot be physically given or received. Nor is it simply empty space, for empty space cannot pose questions or have knowledge of good and evil.
Having negated these four possibilities, a question will arise as to what this master really is. If you continue inquiring in this way, the questioning will become more intense. Finally, when the mass of questioning enlarges to a critical point, it will suddenly burst. The entire universe will be shattered and only your original nature will appear before you. In this way you will awaken.
- from The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim
There is lengthy instruction on how to properly practice this particular meditation technique for anyone who is interested.
Lots of it can be found here. http://www.buddhism.org/board/main.cgi?board=Hwadu
A brief intro by one of the teachers:
There are many methods for meditation. In Korean Buddhism the traditional method called “Ganhwaseon” is used. Korea is the only Nation where the traditional meditation using hwadu (usually translated as “head of speech” which means “true speech”) is generally practiced. Used by many enlightened masters of the past, the practitioner endeavours to suspend logical thinking so that the Original Nature becomes clear through a direct transmission from mind to mind. As we are all Buddha by nature, it is only necessary to clear away ignorance and delusions for our true nature to come forward.
A human being is composed of a body and a mind. A body without a mind is just a dead corpse. A mind without a body is just pure spirit. Someone who, although endowed with both a body and a mind, only knows the body but not the mind is called a sentient being. In general, a sentient being is understood as any being possessing conscious life. Birds flying in the sky, animals walking on the ground, fish swimming in the water, as well as the tiniest organism, are all sentient beings.
The purpose of practicing Zen meditation is awaken to the mind. Such practice does not involve just sitting quietly and trying to calm and pacify the mind. Nor does it entail contemplating the breath. Instead it involves direct into a hwadu. An example of a hwadu would be a question such as “What is this?” or “What is this mind?”. What you are searching for can be called by many different names: mind, spirit, soul, true nature and so forth. But such designations are merely labels. You should put aside all of these names and reflect on the fact that the true master of the body is more than just the label “mind”. The master of the body is not the Buddha, for it is not yet awakened. Nor is it anything material, because it cannot be physically given or received. Nor is it simply empty space, for empty space cannot pose questions or have knowledge of good and evil.
Having negated these four possibilities, a question will arise as to what this master really is. If you continue inquiring in this way, the questioning will become more intense. Finally, when the mass of questioning enlarges to a critical point, it will suddenly burst. The entire universe will be shattered and only your original nature will appear before you. In this way you will awaken.
- from The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim
There is lengthy instruction on how to properly practice this particular meditation technique for anyone who is interested.
Lots of it can be found here. http://www.buddhism.org/board/main.cgi?board=Hwadu0
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