Hello My Friend!
I’m going to start by strongly suggesting you read the book “The Three Pillars of Zen” by Philip Kapleau; it has already changed my life, and I’m only on page 60. In this book, Kapleau essentially translates much of his Zen master's teachings, thus giving a broad overview of Zen and Zen Buddhism philosophy as well as many practices followed by Zen students that one can do on their own.
One of the most impactful things that I learned is that Zen Buddhists utilize both static and dynamic zazen. Essentially, students sit in zazen (which is, in my opinion, a type of meditation, although the author disagrees on this point) for anywhere between 20-45 mins, following which they practice kinhin, which entails walking around the room while continuing their practice of zazen. The rationale is that after a long period of sitting, the body and mind will begin to get drowsy or stray, so to keep the mind sharp throughout the practice, it’s important to incorporate movement as well. As a result, zazen practices include multiple rounds of sitting in zazen followed by kinhin.
To go further, Zen Buddhists also emphasize living a life of activity, mindfully; whether it is walking around the village seeking alms, working in the garden, cooking, cleaning the chambers, or anything else, apart from 3 hours dedicated to zazen practice, the rest of the day is dedicated to various other activities focused on service, health, and maintaining the temple/living spaces.
This surprised me, but upon reflection, along with the asana practice and meditation, Yoga also emphasizes performing one’s karma mindfully and with good intentions; essentially, to continue external activity (work) with the proper mindset.
Once I made this connection between the two philosophies, it didn’t take long to figure out why an active life is as important as keeping time aside for dedicated mindfulness. Since it is difficult for those who have not achieved self-realization to stay thought-less in single-pointed concentration for hours at a time, beginners’ minds eventually wander significantly or we get drowsy during longer meditation sessions, and the intent of meditation (or zazen) becomes pointless. Instead, our zazen/meditation/Yoga asana practices are to help bring our mind consciously to a centered point, from where we can continue to act in the rest of our daily lives. Once our mind becomes calm from our practice, we can approach our activities much more intentionally and will find increased focus on our work; conversely as well, our work allows us to engage our mind in various fields of activity, enabling our minds to stay rejuvenated throughout our day.
While I’ve already restarted bringing movement back into my daily life, I have still been spending my break lazily. This realization that a full, busy day is not only productive for me/my family/community, but also for my spiritual growth, has motivated me to keep my days busy and mind engaged in various activities that allow me to be mindful and allow me to grow. I personally pivoted to artwork because painting and sketching allow me to grow my skills in art, observation, and creativity, but it also gives me a space where I fully zone in and can practice mindfulness throughout my day.
While it’s super refreshing to be spending time doing creative, mindful activities, what I’m realizing is that the mindless scrolling on Instagram or YouTube, and the instant gratification my mind has gotten used to, have significantly reduced my mind’s endurance in terms of concentration/focus. As someone who spends more time reading or listening to podcasts or talking to people compared to my time using tech, this speaks enormously to the impact these platforms actually have on our minds. Having realized this, I’m really grateful I’ve recognized early the significant weakening my mind has undergone, and that I have the steps already in place that are allowing me to strengthen my mind and advance my spiritual journey.
So, I ask you now to reflect: do you spend your days in earnest, mindful activity? how much of your day can you recollect in detail and how much do you live out of habit? and have you put yourself into any scenarios recently where you’re able to gauge the strength of your mind? I know my answers to these questions, along with my reading, have caused a vital shift in my daily life; hopefully, these questions, and this letter as a whole, can guide you in the direction of your highest self as well, whatever that may be.
Until next time <3
Shreya
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