Encouragement for Zazen

Practicing zazen can be dull.  One sits and sits, and waits for what?  The great teacher from the Hindu tradition, Nisargadatta, was asked in one of his talks, “What am I to wait for?”  Nidargadatta replied, “For the centre of your being to emerge into consciousness.” 

So what is “the centre of your being”?  Teachers of recognized spiritual attainment tend to speak in the same way about spiritual life, so I can move away from Nisargadatta for an answer to this question.  Ajahn Chah, Jack Kornfield’s teacher from Thailand, has a very down-to-earth answer.  He says, “The serene and peaceful mind is the epitome of human achievement.” 

How does one get to “the serene and peaceful mind”?  According to Zen Buddhism, the answer is the practice of zazen.  When the practitioner is one-pointedly focused on breathing, he or she is already sitting in this mind.  Since thought has been laid aside, he may not even be aware of this mind.  However, with faithful practice, he will eventually come to serenity and peace in his daily life.