What is Zen Buddhism and Its Aspects
Zen Buddhism is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that emphasizes meditation, intuition, and direct experience rather than doctrinal study or ritual. Originating in China during the Tang dynasty as Chan Buddhism, it was strongly influenced by Taoist philosophy. Zen Buddhism later spread to Vietnam, Korea, and Japan, where it became known as Zen.
Key aspects of Zen Buddhism include:
Zen is a universal existence
Zen is an indescribable inner experience. It is not a substantial or tangible phenomenon, but it is also the phenomenon that can be touched, discovered, or felt by you. In other words, if you have not experienced Zen, then nothing is true; if you have experienced Zen, then it is everywhere.
Zen is the unity of inside and outside
The so-called unity of inside and outside is the harmony of the whole. This can be achieved in three steps:
First, when you sit in meditation or do massage, the so-called Daoyin of Taoism, or the asanas of Indian yoga, you can make the body’s qi and meridians unblocked, and feel relaxed and peaceful as the body and mind are united.
Second, by sitting in meditation, praying, etc., we can experience the external environment and the inner mind as one, which is the so-called state of unity between heaven and man.
Third, use the effort of Zen meditation to concentrate on the focus of the practice method, and gradually make the previous thought and the next thought continuous and unchanged, without any distracting thoughts. That is the state of concentration, being fixed on one state or one thought, and it becomes an inner unity.
Zen is inner freedom
The experience of Zen enlightenment is subjective, while the feeling of liberation is internal. If the mind is confined, attached, or tied to something, it will be affected by the environment. Otherwise, it will be liberated. Therefore, Zen Buddhism attaches great importance to the training of the mind. Refining the mind is also called refining the devil, and the purpose of refining the devil is called choosing the Buddha. The effort of Zen meditation is called peace of mind. As long as the mind is concerned, it cannot be at peace. You must have no mind to use, so that you can have no mind to be at peace, which is true liberation. Even if a liberated person is in prison, tied up with ropes, and has an axe on his neck, he can still talk and laugh. This is the inner freedom, which belongs to the spiritual level and cannot be shared or experienced by outsiders.
Meditation (Zazen):
Central to Zen practice is sitting meditation, known as zazen. Practitioners sit in a specific posture and focus on their breath or a koan (a paradoxical question or statement used as a meditation tool) to quiet the mind and attain insight.
Koans:
These are riddles or paradoxical statements used in Zen practice to provoke deep thought and insight, helping practitioners transcend rational thinking and reach a more intuitive understanding.
Direct Experience:
Zen places a strong emphasis on direct, personal experience of enlightenment (satori or kensho) rather than theoretical knowledge or doctrinal study.
Zen is the wisdom of selflessness
The Zen Buddhism talks about no self, no form, and no mind, which all refer to wisdom. “No” does not mean nothing, but refers to the self-liberation of the mind without dwelling on anything. It has no self-attachment, but has the function of intelligence. Its function, from a subjective perspective, is liberation, and from an objective perspective, it is compassion. If you only leave the attachment to the self, but cannot produce the function of compassion, then it is definitely not true liberation. Liberation is wisdom, and compassion is bodhicitta. The relationship between the two is like the two wings of a bird, the two wheels of a car, they must develop in parallel and neither is indispensable.
Zen is a life without attachment
The phenomenon of life can be divided into the continuity of one life and the continuity of many lives and many kalpas. The life of ordinary people is drifting with the flow of karma, and the cycle of life and death continues. The life of saints and bodhisattvas is the power of compassion and vows, going back and forth in the endless sea of life and death, and saving countless sentient beings. There is also birth and death, but ordinary people are helpless, while bodhisattvas are natural. Ordinary people suffer, while bodhisattvas save people from suffering. The key to their difference lies in whether the mind has attachment or not.
Zen is a lively life
In ancient times, the life of a Zen practitioner was even simpler than that of a scholar. No one even provided firewood and water, so they had to be self-sufficient. Therefore, everyone needed to work, and in the daily routine, there would definitely be “slope work” such as carrying water and firewood. Therefore, in Zen language, there is a saying by lay Buddhist Pang Yun: “Supernatural powers and wonderful uses, carrying water and carrying firewood.” This is a portrayal of the life of a Zen practitioner. This means that for a Zen practitioner, there are Zen opportunities everywhere in daily life, and there is Zen in everything when dealing with people.
Zen is carrying water and firewood
The state of Zen cannot be explained through language, words, or thinking, so it is called the heart method that does not rely on words, points directly to the human heart, and is passed on outside the teachings. The past, future, and present in time, and the front, back, left, right, and up and down in space are all symbols, without a definite meaning, and do not represent real things. However, the existence of the universe, apart from these, becomes an empty concept. But it depends on how we experience it. If it is, it is everywhere, and if it is not, it is not everything. This can also be seen in many examples in the public cases of Zen Buddhism, that is, the state of Zen practitioners who do not leave the direction, but do not attach to the direction; do not leave time and space, but do not attach to time and space.
Simplicity and Mindfulness:
Zen promotes a simple, mindful approach to life, encouraging practitioners to be fully present in each moment and to approach everyday activities with mindfulness and attentiveness.
Teachers and Lineages:
Zen practice often involves a close relationship between student and teacher. Teachers guide students in their meditation practice and help them work through koans. Zen lineages trace their teachings back to the historical Buddha through a succession of masters.
Zen has had a significant influence on various aspects of Japanese culture, including art, tea ceremony, martial arts, and garden design, all of which reflect Zen principles of simplicity, mindfulness, and direct experience.
