Mokusho Zen, Part One: Shikantaza

With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,

Mokusho Zen, Part One

Zen itself is the Way, walking its path, a delusion.

Shikantaza is not just sitting. It is “just” sitting, “just” walking, “just” eating, “just” talking, and “just” lying down. It is “just” seeing, hearing, seeing, tasting, touching, and thinking. The shikantaza of the ancients is the gateway, the beginning practice of practitioners. It was a tool to aid us in the development of every moment buddha. Somehow, we got stuck, though, and every moment buddha was left in the Zendo. The practice of shikantaza is actually an invitation to every moment practice.

The ancients thought of Shikantaza as the highest practice of Zazen. Shikantaza, which means, whole-heartedly hitting the mark while sitting, was the way Zazen was taught by Master Dogen. He learned it in China as “Silent Illumination” practice. We teach it today as Mokusho Zen, the upright practice of living with what some call “the third eye” open. It is here that all six sense organs are just awake to the present moment. It is here that they function naturally. It is the practice of what Uchiyama-roshi called “Opening the Hand of Thought”.

We say, when sitting, sit; when walking, walk; above all, don’t wobble. Wobbling is life without Zen. Wobbling is multi-tasking. Wobbling is doing this, while wishing to do that, and in the meantime, doing something else entirely. How often do we get lost in our day, miss something delicious whether a picture, a sound, or a moment with a loved one, because we are “inside” somewhere else? Wanting to be present is just a thought, being present is being there without the thought hanging around as window dressing.

My next series of teachings will be on this practice, the practice of Every Moment Buddha or Mokusho Zen.