ZEN: NOTHING SPECIAL
John Daido
Loori Roshi (1931-2009),
a genuine Zen master for the 21st Century
a genuine Zen master for the 21st Century
In the
modern world, we are encouraged to be special, to be different and stand out
from everyone else. Zen Buddhism has a different approach, encouraging us
instead to be "nothing special". Daido Roshi declares that our lives are fine
exactly the way they are. Zen is not about adding anything to our lives, it's
about seeing the inherent perfection we already possess. Zen practice is a
process of getting to that perfection, a means of uncovering the layers of conditioning,
from families, schools, the media, that prevent us from seeing who we really
are. But once we understand our true nature, we don't need to hide in a
monastery or become a hermit. Zen is not about separating ourselves from the
world around us, Zen is about manifesting compassion in our everyday lives,
whether we are talking to our boss, planting a garden, or raising a child. The
more we open up to our true nature and experience life with moment-to-moment
awareness, the more we see that being ordinary is something truly
extraordinary. Zen Buddhism emphasizes zazen, or seated meditation, as the
means to study the self and understand who we truly are. Dharma talks are an
essential aspect of Zen training and take place in the context of zazen. Said
to be "dark to the mind and radiant to the heart", a dharma talk is one of the
ways in which a teacher points directly to the heart of the teachings of the
Buddha. In our meditation practice, it is easy to get lost in self-doubt,
fantasy, numbness, and emotional agitation. Dharma talks help to ground our
practice, providing inspiration and an essential recognition of exactly where
we find ourselves, so that we can learn to face difficulties and obstacles with
a free and flexible mind.
