The Meditation Essence of Zen Chapter 7

Relax and relax

　　The first condition of the meditator is to relax the mind and body.

　　Relax your mind, relax your nerves, relax your muscles. After you relax, use your methods to focus on your energy.

　　When using the method, don’t be nervous, but intentionally or unintentionally focus on the method, so that you don’t consume too much physical energy.

　　During meditation, it is enough to have five or six hours of sleep a day. In addition, there will be some faintness after a meal. It is because the stomach is digesting and the blood is not enough. Please don’t worry.

　　I have a book “Catching a Feather on a Fan” published in London, England. It means to pick up the feathers with a fan, not anxious, and be very careful. When your heart is placed on the method, it is like putting the feather on the fan, instead of fanning the feather, but using the fan to lightly follow the feather and move slowly, so that the feather on the fan will not move. of. When you don’t use the method, it is like holding a fan to catch up behind the feathers. Then, the feathers will always fly in the air and will not stay on the fan. Therefore, if you use the method with a nervous attitude, you will become more and more tired and mournful. The more, the heart can’t settle naturally. Please take a good look at how you use your attitude.

　　You should use your leisurely mood to work hard; these two mentalities are different. However, Zen practice is practicing patience. If you use the method in a relaxed and natural way, you will soon enter a stable state. State, when using the method, don’t worry about delusions and faintness. When you know that there is delusion and faintness, it is good to return to the method.

　　Although there is no mourning in the mind of meditation, there must be righteous thoughts, and that is no way to leave. Pay attention to your righteous thoughts anytime, anywhere, body and mind, forget the body and mind and only the method.

　　Close six

　　We have eyes, ears, nose, mouth, body, heart, but during meditation, in addition to breathing through the nostrils, eating with the mouth, watching the demonstration with the eyes, listening to the teacher with the ears, using the body to meditate, care Except for thinking, everything else is not needed.

　　Six don’t be disturbed by the six dusts, six don’t go to the outside world, always use your mind to see how you use your own methods, always listen to yourself when you are talking, or in the count, or the silent voice of the Buddha.

　　Buddhism calls itself the study of Inner Ming, and we want to use our quiet heart to look into the depths of our hearts.

　　The first step in working inward is to use the six senses of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind instead of six. If you can only use the sixth knowledge, you will not be affected by the environment; the outside scene, sound, body pain, itching, uncomfortable, etc., will not bother you.

　　When the heart is outward, only a few things can be seen and heard. When the heart is inward, you will experience endless long time and unlimited space.

　　Four methods

　　There are four ways to meditation:

　　First, interest rate, interest rate

　　With the interest of the nose and the breath, with the nose only pay attention to the feeling of breathing from the nostrils, do not pay attention to the length of the breath, do not pay attention to other things; with the stomach is to pay attention to the lower abdomen with the natural peristalsis of breathing, do not control Breathing, do not mind to command the abdominal crawling. However, with the breath and the stomach, you can’t use both, you can only focus on one of them. There is also a depth in the law of the body. When you are in the deep, you will be determined. If you are in a shallow time, you will not be aware of the mourning. At the same time, you will be trapped in a faint, but you can calm down the floating heart.

　　The number of interest is the difference between the breathing of the number of holes, which can be counted or counted, usually a number, because the income of ordinary people is slow and the income is fast. How to count the law? One time, count a number, from one to ten, and then from the beginning, when the income, what is the number of paying attention only? If you still have a lot of delusions, you can also count them backwards, from ten to one, or twenty to two. However, the number of ten to one is one by one, twenty to two, is a number one by one, even the double number is interleaved, the first number is twenty, eighteen – two, the second time Nineteen, seventeen… One, because of the busy counting, the mourning is naturally reduced.

　　Some people forget to count as many as three, four, five, and six, and some may have counted their heads. It doesn’t matter. When you forget or count the mistakes, go back quickly, don’t lose your heart and lose your heart. This is practice. When a mathematics doctor learns to meditate with me, it is not too few or too much. He feels very annoyed and helpless. He is a little disappointed. Said: “I have a problem with this mathematics doctor.” I said to him: “Digital interest is not a paper on mathematics. It is ok to count back to five. Don’t be disappointed, as long as the mourning in your heart is less and less. it is good.”

　　Second, the Buddha, the number of Buddha

　　Some people are not accustomed to using the number method, and when they breathe, they become controlled to breathe, thus causing hair swelling, chest tightness, tired body, muscle tension, and very painful. At this time, teach yourself how to use the method of reading Buddha. You can read “Southern Amitabha Buddha” or “Southern Worldless Bodhisattva”. You can read a holy number and count a number, for example, “South without Amitabha, South without Amitabha II…”, from From the number to the tenth number, from the first, don’t count too much or over the head. If you make a mistake, you don’t have to mind. Just start from the beginning, don’t cooperate with your breathing, and count too slowly. If you count too fast, your breathing will be short.

　　Third, the confession, participation in the case

　　”The head” is a sentence. This sentence has no meaning in itself. It is just a question of what is meaningless. The “public case” is a story of the rewards of the founders and their disciples in the history of Zen. These stories seem to have some unreasonable circumstances. “Participation” is a constant question, ask the public case, what exactly does that statement mean? What is the experience of the protagonist of the case?

　　The head of the conversation is to ask a meaningless word, such as: What is “none”? What is “none”? What is the underwriting of the case? Just like someone once asked Zhaozhou to read from the Zen master: “Does the dog have buddha?” Zhaozhou Zen teacher replied: “No!” and the Buddha said in the “Great Nirvana Sutra”: “All living beings have buddha.” Zhaozhou wants to say that dogs have no Buddhahood? Therefore, this public case became the answer without a answer. Whether it is a confession or a referendum, it is meaningless in itself, it is just a way to enlighten the meditator.

　　When there is any answer in the work of participating in the talks or in the case of the referendum, you must prompt yourself: “This is not what I want”, in order to participate in the doubts, and have the opportunity to participate in the doubts.

　　It is called meditation to participate in the speech or to participate in the case. However, those who are meditation should not be eager to enlighten themselves. They should use the work of meditation to be dense and dense, and one sentence after another, one sentence and one sentence.

　　People who have just started to talk and participate in the case often have answers. In fact, it is a mourning, not a real message. When you go to the public office, you must first participate in the suspicion, and gradually form a doubtful group. When the suspect group explodes or smashes the doubt group, it is discovered that the world is too peaceful, but the fans are looking for troubles.

　　Everyone is available, but there are four levels: reading, counting, asking, and talking. To read the words is like reading the Buddha number. The number of words is like the number of Buddhas. Asking the words is like asking questions. When you talk, you must wait for doubts. Suspicion is not a suspicion, but a conviction that in the depths of the words or before the words appear, there must be a realm that you can experience. When you first use the words, it is probably not easy to have doubts. You can also start with words, such as: What is it? What is it? … gradually, I feel that this “nothing” is very interesting. What is it? I really want to know it! At this time, there will be doubts, and that is to talk to the head. However, when the mood is unstable or the mind is chaotic, it is better to read the Buddha number and the number of Buddha numbers. You can also read a few words. When you are in a calm mood, you can talk to the head again. If you are a Buddhist, you can read “Who is the Buddha?” If you are a singer, you can refer to “Who is the singer?” “Who is it?”

　　Fourth, just meditate and meditation

　　Just meditation is devoted to the body in the “sitting”, sitting posture, sitting feeling, do not make other delusions in the heart, only know that it is sitting. If you find a mourning, you can quickly return your thoughts to “sit,” and the mourning will become less and less, and it will no longer appear. The feeling of the body will gradually disappear. However, the mind clearly knows that he is still meditating. At this time, the beginning of the silent work, “silence” is not moving, “photo” is very clear; what is clear? I know that there is no distracting thoughts and no delusions in my heart. For a long time, it is the same as enlightenment. I don’t want to mourn, but only “silent photos” and “silent photos.”

　　When practicing the method of meditation, keep paying attention to your posture, because you are working hard, not sitting and resting. In addition to knowing that you are meditating, there should be no other thoughts, you should not be slack, you must be brave and daring.

　　The above methods are very useful for treating you. Don’t think which method is the best. My suggestion is: It is the best for you. You can’t change the method often, so that each method is not used, and each method is not useful to you. It is best to be able to go deeper. If the same method has been used, or how to use it, you can try another method. Don’t let this incense buddha, and then scent the scent, then sip the fragrant scent or Just meditate, you can’t play toys like children all day long. This is annoying to change one more. The method of changing the method itself is a vain thought.

　　Missing is new

　　Life is impermanent, but time is continuous. When we do evening classes every day, we will sing the impermanence of the police: “I have already passed, and my life has been reduced.” It shows how limited the conformity of all beings is.

　　During these seven days, you will not enjoy the holiday vacation, but here you will be close to the training of meditation. There must be some reason for it. Traveling and vacationing is to relax the tired body and mind, change the environment of life, and breathe some fresh outdoors. The air, the practice of Zen seven, the experience of each day, is not in the same position, the same situation; every second, every breath, every thought, is fresh, and the body and mind are constantly enjoying new changes. . If you can always feel fresh, your meditation experience is very rich.

　　In the last Zen Seven, there was a female Bodhisattva in her fifties who said to me on the third day: “Master, all of them use the same method of counting interest, sit in the same place, and suffer the same leg pain, Back pain, the same is the same, it is boring, I don’t want to sit down again!”

　　Because she is a very good volunteer in our Nongchan Temple, I asked her: “When you pick vegetables, cut vegetables, side dishes, cook dishes in the kitchen, do you make the same dishes? Impossible, Each leaf is new, every tofu is new, every sushi is new, every dish made is new, it is impossible to have the same, even if leftovers are cooked It is also reheated.”

　　After she heard it, I thought it was interesting. correct! Every time you cook, everything is fresh. Every knife cuts down. Every shovel shovel down the bottom of the pot. Every dish is served on the table, all new. So, when she re-entered her work, she was very happy: Ah! It is a new breath, a new number, and even new leg pain, new back pain, are living in a fresh feeling. Therefore, she sat a good scent.

　　Please choose the method that suits you best, then enjoy the fresh feeling and keep telling yourself: it is a new beginning and a new beginning…

　　Meditation must be useful

　　The purpose of meditation is enlightenment. The function of enlightenment is to eliminate one’s troubles and relieve the suffering of all beings. If someone thinks that they are enlightened, or they are considered enlightened, and their enlightenment is not functioning, it means false realization, not real understanding.

　　Zen talks about epiphany, so that the people who are promised to misunderstand that enlightenment is easy, and all problems can be solved as long as they are realized. In fact, many people have been meditation for decades, even meditation for a lifetime, can not be enlightened. Not enlightenment does not mean that it is useless. It is only in the process of meditation that you can use the correct method and the correct concept to reduce the helplessness, irritability, fear, depression, imbalance and so on.

　　The power of enlightenment is large and small, and the degree of enlightenment is deep and shallow. The realm of enlightenment is sanctified, and the effect of enlightenment is completely incomplete.

　　I have a student who has participated in the Zen Seven I have hosted more than ten times, and each time I have a new experience. What I didn’t know in the past is clear now. Every time I participate in Zen Bu, I have a better understanding of his own problems and methods of practice. He did not see sexual enlightenment, but his belief in enlightenment has deepened and strengthened again and again.

　　The revision of Zen Buddhism

　　”Empty”, “Yes” and “Empty” are three concepts and experience of spiritual practice.

　　It is an annoyance to hold “yes”, and it is an annoyance to hold “empty”. I am obedient to use it, I have no intention to use it, and I am not leaving.

　　Beyond the two kinds of obstinacy of “emptiness” and “having”, that is, the liberation of “there is nothing in the air” and “the emptiness”; beyond the two kinds of ambitions, it is the “Diamond Sutra”. Prajna wisdom that should be born without the heart. I realized that the self-sufficiency of the law was originally empty, that is, it was true that I saw the Buddha without sex.

　　The average ordinary person is the illusion for me; the general practitioner is the empty space for me, this is not the correct Dharma. Some philosophers and religious philosophers, the principle of the universe, the dominance of all things, the supreme god of the supremacy, or the united god of the pan-universe, as the first ultimate me, are not Dharma, still have my attachment, not Get liberated, how to surpass emptiness and prove that there is no me? By meditation, the revision of Zen Buddhism has a gradual change; the enlightenment of the Fa, but also the gradual repair; the gradual repair can be divided into the pre-enlightenment and the enlightenment, the pre-enlightenment as the addition, the enlightenment as the preservation, the basic method before the enlightenment It is a concentrated and scattered heart, can direct your own heart at any time, and then continue to use methods to achieve the unity of the heart. Unity is subdivided into three categories:

　　First, the unity of mind and body

　　This is the basic experience of meditation. At this time, there is no sense of physical and mental opposition, and there is no physical and mental burden.

　　Second, internal and external unity

　　This is the combination of the inner body and mind and the external environment, that is, the big self who enters the universe. I have experienced the unified and unique God of the universe. At this time, some people regard it as “empty”. In fact, it is “have”. There is a whole god, and all of me are there. It is already God and I. One has disappeared from the opposite of any phenomenon.

　　Third, the unification of the former and the later

　　At this time, there is no phenomenon of staggering and handing over the head; the superficial mind is unified, and it is a thought and a thought to be handed over before and after. For example, reading a Buddha, one thought and one thought are all in the same Buddha word, forming a group of unified thoughts; The deep mind is unified, but the thought is only on a Buddhist word, no longer change, set at one point, continue, this is a meditation realm that integrates into time and space, but there is still me, not enlightened, nor See Buddha nature.

　　Fourth, beyond the empty

　　This is what I saw after I realized that I didn’t stick to the above three levels of experience. Stay away from the four Zen meditations of “Operation and Elimination” as shown in the “Yuanjue”. In daily life, the heart does not move; in the face of the real environment, you can’t afford it; when you pick someone up, you are always compassionate; when dealing with affairs, it is well-organized. I often encourage everyone to learn to say: “There is something in your family. There is something in your family. Everyone has something. My family is fine. People who have nothing to do must help those who have not done anything.” This is the Buddha who continued to practice after the enlightenment. It is also the mentality that the Bodhisattvas who are beginning to learn should learn.

　　How can we reach the fourth level of transcendence? In terms of the method of Zen, it is based on the methods of speech, public case, and silent, and the effect is more remarkable. However, people who have a lot of thoughts and worries, or use the methods of counting, buddha, worshipping Buddha, repenting, etc., to lay the foundation.

　　Bodhidharma

　　Meditation is to enlighten into a Buddha, how can we enlighten into a Buddha? In addition to having a method of righteousness, righteousness, and correctness, we must have a sound personality and a stable state of mind.

　　In addition to the time on the seat cushion, it is better to use the environment to cultivate the mind and practice the situation. When the realm appears in front of you, you can still maintain a clean heart, equal heart, not to be moved, not to be controlled, but also to repair and repair the wisdom, it is a work time.

　　The soundness of personality needs to be cultivated with Bodhicitta. It is not for the sake of self-reliance. I hope that all beings will suffer from suffering. If they are not first, they will be the first heart of the Bodhisattva. The meditator will first give up the selfish heart. In order to let go of the greedy and ignorant heart; the thinner the troubles, the heavier the Bodhicitta, the higher the possibility of enlightenment and seeing sex.

　　Bodhisattva first born Bodhi, as the starting point of the four Hong vows: willing to all sentient beings, willing to break all troubles, willing to learn all Dharma, willing to become the Buddha. To use the Dharma to all sentient beings is to increase compassion and to use the Dharma to break the troubles. It is the wisdom of the heart, and the sorrow and wisdom to the fullness of Fuhui, and it becomes the supreme righteousness. The Buddha is the perfect person of personality, and the human being is the Buddha. Therefore, before becoming a Buddha, it is necessary to establish a sound personality. When the meditator borrows the wisdom of the Buddha, he learns the compassion of the Buddha, establishes his own position by caring for all beings, and then lays down the self to realize the Buddhahood.

　　Tightly fit

　　The meditator is eager to work hard, to be tight, and to loosen it, too tight and tired. When your body is very tired and your heart is very scattered, you may wish to close your eyes and keep your eyes. For the time being, you don’t have to use the method for a few minutes, or even a scent. After you have eliminated your fatigue, continue to work hard.

　　In the meditation period, when physical fitness does not continue, when you do not use force, you can use work as a game. For example, when you play hide-and-seek in childhood, you can find and find people who are hiding. It is interesting. People who are easily caught are not enough to make you happy. Working hard with this kind of mentality will make your practice a lighthearted thing, how tired and tired you are!

　　For those who can’t practice, Zen uses two sentences to describe two situations:

　　The first is “piling and rocking”, which means that the boat should be in the water. If it is piled on the land and framed, even if it is broken, it will always be in place without progress.

　　The second is “cold water stone”, which means that sitting on the futon, there is nothing in the heart, clean, quiet, neither mourning, no trouble, calm, and enjoy the blessing. In fact, this is not a hard work, not a time, the people here will be quiet and tired. Sitting in a quiet place, it seems to be rock solid, often sitting for a few hours, once in the trouble, it will be moved by the environment. Therefore, there is a warning that “it is better to stir up the river and not to touch the hearts of the people.”

　　Those who truly meditate must know how to use their experience to continuously improve their experience and make good use of the method instead of “piling and shaking.” At the same time, the work of quietness is to apply to the dynamic environment, to take a photo in the stillness, and to take care of it in the middle of the movement; although it is not a dream, it is not hiding in the shell without any work; therefore, in the stillness, and Not equal to “cold water soaked stones”.

　　Do not invest in the flow

　　Because the beginner meditator does not know how to relax while he is working hard, he is easy to become lazy and even sleepy when he relaxes his body and mind. When he is working hard, he is easy to become physically and mentally nervous and even exhausted. Those who truly meditation work, at any time, have a relaxed body and mind, and are often in a state of brave and sturdy, not rushing and rushing.

　　When you talk to the head, you should listen to your own silent voice. However, don’t force your body, don’t be nervous, or you will be tired soon. As a result, every time I work hard, my doubts are not born, and my doubts are not completed, I have already lost my breath.

　　Mediators should always practice combining body, mouth and mind, the same time, the same place, body and mind, doing the same thing; meditating while meditating, eating while eating, working at work, See you when you are a guest, talk when you speak, sleep when you sleep. Don’t be physically and mentally separated, the soul is not at home, making you think when you meditate, and thinking about meditating when you are visiting.

　　Some people think that they are very smart and can do a variety of things at the same time. The meditator does not advocate this, but wants us to do everything, even in any one action, to be fully committed to the whole body.

　　When meditation, you should not look at the image of the eye in the way you use it. When you use your heart to look inward, you can’t listen to your voice. When you listen to your voice with your heart, listen to the sound of silence. If you look at the image with the eyeball, it will cause head swelling; listening to the sound with the eardrum will easily produce tinnitus. For example, when you are counting, you only need your heart to feel the breath of your nose. Don’t look at your eyes and breathe with your eyes, and don’t listen to your ears.

　　I have never thought of it for a long time.

　　San Zuyu’s “Confidence in Confidence” speaks of “One Year of Thought”, “Hua Yan Jing” and “Shu Yan Jing” all say that all the Buddhas of the Ten Commandments have turned to the Falun Dafa. The length and shortness of time, the size of the space, and the smallness of the space can be different due to the different experiences of each individual. If you can say “the right and wrong, the right and wrong, and the one-off,” Innocent, you can experience it. Although it is only at the tip of a circle, it is like crossing the ten squares. Although it is only at the moment of one thought, it is like a vertical and a poor. As long as the mad heart rests, the thoughts are all empty, and the thoughts are all in the heart of the three Buddhas.

　　When you hear this, you must feel that I am too deep and too mysterious. This kind of realm has nothing to do with you.

　　In fact, don’t be disappointed, don’t be self-effacing, when you are fascinated, you feel that it is difficult to enlighten yourself. The distance is far, and Wu Shi is only the time between the fingers. You must have had similar experiences in your normal life. When you are looking for it, you can’t find it when you are looking for it. When you don’t find it, you are in front of you. This so-called “breaking the iron shoes innocent, it takes no effort.” Once a Zen master was meditation, he found that his nose was gone. When he was together, his heart was very anxious. He immediately got up, looked around for his nose, and muttered to himself: “My nose? My nose? “Because I was rushing to find his nose, I ran into the wall with a nose in a hurry, so I whipped my nose and shouted: “The nose is sore, it turned out to be here!” In this way, the moment is enlightened.

　　As long as you let go of all the attachments that are fascinating and imagining, that is, “One heart is not born,” you will see the original face before the birth of the mother, and the original Buddhas of the Third Party are no different. You can call it Nirvana, clean body, and true Buddhahood. In fact, it is a big wisdom that is empty, non-empty, and free.

　　How can I let go of my heart? First, we must take care of our hearts. For example, “The Buddha’s Religious Scriptures” said: “It is a sorrow, etc., and it is a good heart.” He said: “The heart is awesome, more than a viper, a beast, a thief. The fire is more “It’s not enough.” He said: “In this way, the person who mourns the good deeds, the system, has nothing to do.” To confuse the scattered, the focus of a method is to condense the effort By condensing and then letting go, you will be innocent.