In connection with Shambhala Sun’s new “How to Meditate” issue, I’m often asked to describe Shikantaza Zazen in a nutshell. Well, perhaps the simplest and most basic instructions for Zazen are neatly summarized in the verse “Faith in Mind,” traditionally attributed to the Third Patriarch in China, Sengcan:
.
- The Way of the supreme is not difficult,
- If only people will give up preferences.
- Like not, dislike not.
- Be illuminated….
- If you want to see Truth,
- Call no life experience favorable or unfavorable….
- There is nothing lacking, and nothing in excess.
- Only the discriminating mind
- Renders the All-Roundedness not whole….
Sit without likes and dislikes, aversions and attractions… even amid likes and dislikes. [Click through for more, and to "sit-a-long" with today's video.] 
Sit serenely in an action that is whole and complete, unhindered by the conditions of life, allowing all to be. One is spacious and content, unattached and ungrasping.
A simple, elegant, vibrant and complete practice.
Today’s Sit-A-Long video follows. Remember: recording ends soon after the beginning bells; a sitting time of 20 to 35 minutes is recommended.
To view all of Jundo and Taigu’s SunSpace posts, click here.
To subscribe to the RSS for the “sit-a-longs,” and be notified of new postings, click here.
6 Comments
Thank you Jundo.
gassho
At the end of the day, aint it just sitting around? :D
Elegant, simple ,vibrant, and complete. It's off to the zafu with that description tucked into my brain, heart, and body. Thank you Jundo. Gassho
Gassho
There is a certain symmetry to this offering which did not escape me, Sensei; the teaching of acceptance and non-resistance linked with ice cream. Heavenly Hash ice cream for instance. I could enter Zen from there!
Gassho,
Gassho
Nigel