Zen Buddishm and Meditation
Zen Buddhism and Meditation Zen Buddhists place an emphasis on learning about the nature of human existence and learning to cope with it. It may be hard at times to live in this difficult world but Buddhists try to accept the world for what it is. At the heart of accomplishing this task is the art of meditation. Meditation is the act of relaxing one’s mind and body to comprehend the nature of life on Earth and being at peace with it. With much practice, meditation can help one live a more peaceful life on Earth.
The first key to learning how meditation can help someone live a less stressful life is to understand the techniques of meditating. There are several techniques necessary to have a successful meditation session. According to the Buddha, by meditating, “one should with clenched teeth, and with tongue pressing on the palate, subdue, crush and overpower the mind by the mind, just as if a strong man, having taken a very weak man by the head or shoulders, were to subdue him, crush him, and overpower him”(maxinumbliss.com/meditation%20techniques.asp). By this, all negative thoughts related to our human emotions, such as greed, envy and jealousy, can be safely removed. Meditating requires a safe, quiet environment that is free of any disturbances that can unbalance our thoughts. After this is done, the individual can meditate in the way Zen Buddhists meditate. Learning Buddhist chants will help quite a bit. This of course, requires much practice, and may take a long time to fully get down.
The first helpful act of meditating is discipline. Since meditating is all about concentrating on getting the mind clear of as many negative thoughts as possible, it can help one concentrate on being a more disciplined individual. The Buddha once said “We do not learn by experience, but by our capacity of experience”(maximumbliss.com/zen%20quotes.asp). What the Buddha meant by this is that experience is not enough for us to learn something, but by how much experience we have. With intense practice of how to meditate properly everyday, one can become disciplined with enough time. When an individual becomes hardened enough with this knowledge, everyday tasks can be done easier, especially for a person who has never had much discipline in his/her life. Patience is the reward for having discipline, and with this gift, you have more room for knowledge. To possess great patience is the ability to be able to tolerate stressful situations with ease and not let our flaws create an even worse situation. This is a blessing no amount of money can buy, since Earth is full of stressful situations almost everyday, with many of us not knowing how to control our emotions during these times. As the Buddha said, “one who conquers himself is greater than another who conquers a thousand times a thousand on the battlefield” (maximumbliss.com/zen%20quotes.asp).
Another helpful act of meditation is helping one understand the world we live in and how we can live better in it. One of the first rules of Buddhism is that to live is to suffer, along with desire and attachment causes suffering. When one meditates, he is calming the mind to gain insight into this world and why it is the way it is. “To observe the inner nature in perfect calmness is called meditation”(dailyzen.com) A Zen Buddhist cannot understand how to live a better life without having complete peace of mind and knowing what is causing him/her suffering. Once the individual figures out what is causing him/her trouble, that person must seek wisdom by getting into a peaceful state of mind and understand that getting rid of anything giving him stress will be a wise way to live a more harmonious life. As Zen teaches, “The excellent student of Zen goes directly to the ultimate truth. The fair or good ones like to learn from others but have no steady faith. Once you strip off the tattered clothing of prejudice you will see your true self”(dailyzen.com/zen/zen_reading0604.asp).
Perhaps the most underrated way of how Zen meditation helps us is that it helps people realize how much that life itself is spontaneous. Zen itself “is a transformation of our consciousness. To transform the way we experience right nowâÂ?¦right here”(yakrider.com/Buddha/zen/zen.html). A lot of people react the same to every stressful situation, whether it be cursing loudly or throwing a temper tantrum. Some can even get violent when it is unnecessary. Zen meditation helps us learn that not every situation in life is the same, and that we have to look at each encounter on a one by one basis. For example, if someone hits your car, that doesn’t mean that it was totally his or her fault. Maybe you are to blame as well, so just analyze the situation calmly before you decide to yell at the driver in a derogatory manner. Just because you may have been hit by a drunk driver last year, doesn’t mean you were hit by a drunk driver this time around. Life is very spontaneous, and every encounter we have with different people will be different in several ways. Zen forces us to be awakened spiritually and to always keep an open mind, no matter the situation.
In my opinion, Zen meditation is a great practice that people of all religions can follow. Although I am a Muslim, I fully appreciate the ways of Zen meditation, and I feel I would benefit greatly if I was to follow through its ways of achieving a peaceful mind. I work and go to school, so naturally I deal with high amounts of stress on any given day, depending on how much homework I receive. I honestly feel I am going to implement some aspects of Zen meditation into my life from now on.
