New to Zen
Buddhas aren’t something we make of ourselves, but something we can realize as our very life.
The way I present Zen meditation here, is to simply let our minds be. From the very beginning, we are all perfectly fine. What is there to add? However, when we first look inward, it doesn’t seem that way, more like chaos actually. However, if we simply let ourselves be still, and don’t roil the waters, we find that over time the relentlessly grasping and dissatisfied mind calms down. With this, we can actually see. We can finally realize that, from the very beginning we’ve been open and clear.
Well, there are a lot of ways to go about this. The tradition I come from Soto Zen often practices a way of meditation called “Shikan Taza” or just sitting. The when mind free of all activity and control, can finally manifest as itself, perfect and vast. Another technique is Koan practice. You may have heard of such koans as “Show me your true face before your parents were born”, or “What is the sound of one hand”. Sitting with these can drive us deeper into the practice seeing places in ourselves, we’d never have considered before. The White Plum Lineage I come down from through my teacher Genpo Roshi, uses both these techniques of meditation.
When you come to our center you’ll experience meditation in a rather informal environment. On Sundays from 10:00 till 11:30am we usually have about 30 minutes of sitting followed by a talk on a koan, practice or life in general.
Come join us, we often go down to a restaurant for a meal afterwards.