Meditation within Zen Buddhism
• The main aim is the sudden awakening of Buddha nature to enlightenment (satori)
• This happens in an instant
• It is the in – depth understanding and insight into the emptiness (sunyata) of all phenomena
Meditation within Zen Buddhism
• There are two main styles we need to concentrate on:-
• 1. Rinzai
• 2. Soto
Soto Meditation - intro
• First introduced into Japan from China by the monk Eisai (1141 – 1215) and was successful with Samurai
• Soto Zen had more popular appeal through Dogen who remains one of the greatest figures in Japanese Buddhism
Soto Meditation - intro
• As a Tendai Monk Dogen confronted the problem that if people already have a buddha nature why do they need to exert themselves in religious practice to attain buddhahood
• He advocated a strict and simple life of monastic discipline and ZAZEN or sitting meditation
Soto Meditation - intro
• He used the Mahayana sutras to support the practice but he emphasised practices rather then study
• He was impressed by the personal example of the historical Buddha and interestingly, under Dogen’s tradition, the Buddha became a more human like teacher again rather then a glorious heavenly figure
Soto Meditation - intro
• Dogen advocated zazen sitting meditation as a return to the true Buddhism of the Buddha and he criticised the Rinzai schools reliance on the koan as too focussed on mental processes
• He encouraged a natural and straightforward method open to all and encompassing all other practices
Soto Meditation – How does it work?
• Posture is strictly defined
• Full lotus position• Precise placing of all
parts of the body• Sit in zazen with
constant awareness• Have faith that you are
already a buddha• Engage in the process
of ‘self forgetting’• Mokusho or silent
illumination is good because it uses the koan sparingly
Rinzai Meditation – Intro
• Rinzai ( birth date unknown – died in 867)
• He was noted for his more audacious forms of Zen training e.g. shouting, howling and beating methods!
• Also for his dynamic exchanges between him as a master and his disciples centring on the koan
Rinzai Meditation – Intro
• Rinzai wanted the role of a master to bring about a crisis in a student called ‘The Great Doubt’ so that in a moment of realisation or ‘satori’, the student makes a great breakthrough
• This enlightenment will then be evident in the students every activity whatever form it may take
Rinzai Meditation – How does it work?
• Rinzai emphasises seated meditation
• It focuses on a koan (unanswerable riddle)
• A student will then go through a first enlightenment experience known as kensho
• He or she will wrestle mentally with the enigma of a koan
Rinzai Meditation – How does it work?
• Hakuin (1685 – 1768) revitalised Rinzai Buddhism
• Haiku poems became part of the established focus for students whilst
meditating• Maybe even a mondo
( a recorded collection of dialogues between a pupil and a rōshi or Zen Buddhist teacher) will be used as a technique
So…is meditation essential to Buddhism or not?
• Yes it is! – the focus is on the nature of consciousness as the ultimate source of truth and knowledge
• The most powerful way of understanding consciousness and change is through meditation
So…is meditation essential to Buddhism or not?
• Meditation also gives clear understanding of one’s own nature and the ability to cultivate higher levels of consciousness and knowledge
• Without meditation, one could argue that wisdom could not develop
So…is meditation essential to Buddhism or not?
• No it isn’t ! – The Buddhist path has many forms and aspects and for some traditions, the bodhisattvas are essential as well as rituals and chanting
So…is meditation essential to Buddhism or not?
• For all forms of Buddhism, morality is the essential basis of the faith
• Without morality, human nature cannot develop in a positive way so this is clearly more essential to Buddhism than meditation.
