Why I Do and Don’t Practice Zen

May 23, 2012 by Jonalyn

I saw the painter at our (nearly finished!) house before he saw me. His hat read “Bikes not Bombs.”

I complimented his work and he talked about how painting was like baking bread, his previous job.

“It is so easy, it’s hard,” he said. I made an unusual step for a Christian apologist and said,

“But you’re finding your Zen, right?” He looked up appreciatively.

“Exactly.”

Zen Mantras

Zen is a practice of being present always, noticing everything.

Not a bad mantra. Sort of reminds me of Jesus command “Don’t worry about tomorrow, today is enough to worry about” (Matt 6).

Zen Buddhism heavily draws from the ancient Chinese philosophy of Daoism or Taoism. In Cha Dao: The Art of Tea, Tea as Way of Life by Solala Towler I learned that Daoism is “a way of living in the world–being intensely engaged with life yet not being attached to the outcome of any endeavor. People who follow Dao have chosen to develop naturally rather than be programmed by anyone or any group.”

Not a bad mantra either.

In today’s spiritual climate I can see why the most attractive aspect of Zen is the “non-reliance on scripture.” Zen is doing the thing, not studying ancient texts or adhering to a creed (For a practical example read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance).

Zen Awanas would never make it.

Zen is about being in the present, welcoming the distractions because it’s far better to meditate in activity than to meditate in stillness. Zen reminds me of Father Lawrence worshipping God through scrubbing the pots and pans.

And yet, I cannot be totally Zen about Zen.

For instance, take these Daoist/Zen mantras:

Let things take their course (How to blend this with fighting for justice? Micah 6:8)
To yield is to become whole (or to yield is to become a victim of abuse)
Give deep reverence and fierce attention to the moment at hand (Where does this put the future-oriented virtue of hope?)
Find the path of least resistance (How to blend this with “Take up your cross and follow me”?)

Every religion has good mantras, even “boutique spiritualists” have their mantas (read more about designer spirituality in Chapter 1 of my book, Coffee Shop Conversations).

A few secular mantras I love “Always kiss me goodnight,” and “Live well, love much, laugh often.”

Such good ideas.

But about as helpful as a placard that says, “Get a million dollars.” Also a good idea, but a little more clearly unhelpful.

Because we don’t know how or we would get a million dollars.

We humans all want the same things, but we all find it’s harder than the mantras make it look.

How do you have the stamina to want to kiss the man you married every cotton-picking night?

How do you love much when you feel the day is best spent in bed with chocolates and 30 Rock reruns?

Daoism teaches us to find beauty in our world of woe and worry, rather than push beyond it as illusion (as Buddhists teach).

Lots of good ideas here, but where do you get the energy to follow all these mantras.

Daoists recommend meditating on nature. But what if you can’t even get out of bed?

I Don’t Get It

Each religion has recommendations for making life better and suggestions of how to get there. Meditation, wisdom, comparisons to water or grass appear in both Laozi (or Lao Tzu, author of the Daoist text Tao Te Ching) and Jesus’ words.

But how do you make good on all these maxims?

Remember Jesus’ last words, “I’m with you all the time, even when this world has frosted over and you have to ski to hell.” Okay that’s my paraphrase of Matthew 28.

Laozi cannot be personally present with me nor can Buddha. Allah must remain transcendent from his worshippers. Followers of Baha’i do not worship Jesus of Nazareth as any more Godlike than Moses or Mohammad.

Jesus said we cannot enter the kingdom of God unless he bears us into spiritual life (John 3). That’s more than good, wise mantra talk. Jesus is fully invested in the moments of our lives, he’s not dead, he’s not pre-occupied with managing the rest of world history or enjoying nirvana. Jesus is not “Embracing the One” which leaves him free

to be

at our elbow.

Jesus isn’t in us like as our Buddha self. Jesus is distinct as the second person in the Trinity, but he’s as near as our earlobes. His work in us is as engaged as a painter running the fourth coat of porcelain white on my bookshelves.

That’s intimate.

That’s Zen involvement in us.

That’s the part of Zen that makes the most sense to me.

Instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you.

I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.

Jesus, Matthew 28:19-20, The Message

And for a sneak peak, our home is nearly finished. A few pictures for you to savor the anticipation with me.

My son offered several on site inspections

Inspecting his first bathtub, our excellent contractor, Tarn, on left.

Helping Mr. Nick with his cubby crawl space

Before the white stucco makes the tudor trim pop

The stucco began this week

Knock, knock

Mandy

I think this is one of the best short easily understandable summaries I have read on the truth in Zen, while balancing with Scriptures. I started reading about Zen a while ago and was struck with the truth in it – something missing from a lot of beleiver’s lives – while also being struck with the ideas in it that are antithetical to Scripture.
- Jonalyn
  
  Thank you, Mandy. What books on Zen have you read?
http://theradicaljourney.com/2012/05/18/only-kill-the-bad-man/ Tim

The other thing that makes Christianity more attractive than other belief systems is that it is completely based on reality. Jesus wasn’t just blowing smoke when he said he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Paul pointed out in 1 Corinthians 15:19 that if the whole thing is just nice thoughts (or pleasant mantras) without real and eternal consequence, then we Christians are to be pitied more than anyone else.

Cheers,
Tim
- Jonalyn
  
  Tim,
  
  While I do agree with you that Christianity is based on reality, I believe Daoists would say the same thing.
  
  They believe that being, for instance, as flexible as a new sapling and not imitating the calcified ways of ancient things (brittle trees) is the way of nature and reality (though they would call this the Dao).
  - http://theradicaljourney.com/2012/05/18/only-kill-the-bad-man/ Tim
    
    You’re right, Jonalyn. It’s like Proverbs 21:2 says – “All a man’s ways seem right to him.” Daoists think they have it right, and so do all the other religions you allude to in the article.
    
    But when it comes to all these ways people think about God or faith or lack of either, not everyone is right, are they?
    
    Cheers,
    Tim
http://www.pamhogeweide.com Pam Hogeweide

Surprise!!!! I am subscribing to your blog today! I have to stay connected to you and blogging one surefire way to do so (besides twitter!).

LOVE seeing pics of your family and your Rocky Mountain life. I am relieved to hear that you will not be indefinitely living in a one room cabin!

Still glowing from meeting you a week ago. Wow, that flew by.

Enjoy the weekend!
- Jonalyn
  
  Hi Pam,
  
  I’m honored you’re here. I’m working today on a post on the beauty of egalitarianism catalyzed by a comment at your Unladylike event two weeks ago, Friday.
  
  Hope to hear some feisty comments from you.
thinker

I’m uncomfortable with what seems like mischaracterization in this post. Let me share a few thoughts.

Let things take their course (How to blend this with fighting for justice? Micah 6:8)

The person who practices the Tao does not sit back when injustice occurs. Thich Nhat Hanh is an excellent example of this, practicing engaged Buddhism with an emphasis on compassion (actually, I believe he considers himself a Buddhist Christian). Zen has a long history of social service. Note the Dalai Lama: “Our first responsibility as Buddhists is to work towards creating a better world for all forms of life.”

To yield is to become whole (or to yield is to become a victim of abuse)

The person who practices the Tao does not yield to abuse when it is in their power to get up and walk away. Yielding in this sense is much more likened to the martial art of aikido, where the yielding is more like an artful bend when the abuser comes in for an attack, the person working with the attacker’s force in a way that yields to the force instead of fighting it with an opposing force.

If you’ve ever seen aikido in action, this generally results in a very loud boom as the would-be attacker hits the floor. The attacker’s force is deftly and almost invisibly “allowed” to attack the attacker themselves. This is yielding. It is not passive submission. It is proactive movement.

Give deep reverence and fierce attention to the moment at hand (Where does this put the future-oriented virtue of hope?)

By practicing the presence of God in the now, the future is secured (think Brother Lawrence). By not being able to dwell in the now, we never experience the future (because we are not able to live in it when it becomes the present moment).

Find the path of least resistance (How to blend this with “Take up your cross and follow me”?)

This makes it seem like the Zen practitioner is living a life of ease…when it is widely acknowledged that the practice of meditation is NOT easy, but very much going against the flow of taking the easy road.

I want to add that Zen Buddhism and the Tao are not the same thing. It is also important to note that the Tao (as a book) does not support Taoism. The Tao describes universal truth and is not a religion or intended to be a religious practice. What the Tao describes fits very easily with the words of Christ. I recommend reading the Stephen Mitchell translation of the Tao (very inexpensive via Kindle version).
- Jonalyn
  
  Hello thinker,
  
  I am ready to admit novice status for Zen. Buddhism and Daoism I know more about, but am not an expert.
  
  I’d love to hear how you think the Tao fits very easily with the words of Christ. I’d love to interview you about that and even do a separate post on that here. Feel free to email me or share in the comments and we can go from there.
  
  I cannot find evidence of Thich Nhat Hanh sharing that he is a Buddhist Christian. I’d like to read more about that if you know a source.
  
  I’ve read the Tao de Ching, but I don’t see that it fails to support Taoism. Why wouldn’t Taoists (or Daoists) be considered followers of the Dao? Because the Tao de Ching says it’s not a religion, but just stating reality? You could say something similar that Christians are not to be considered followers of Jesus, because jesu wasn’t starting a religion, just stating reality.
  
  But isn’t that confusing?
  
  Or are you saying Taoists have polluted or misunderstood the Tao, as many Christians have misunderstood Jesus?
  
  It was good to read about these challenges to my difficulties blending Jewish thought with the Dao. A few thoughts in response:
  
  Let all things take their course and justice in Micah 6:8. I agree that many Buddhists pursue justice and the Dalai Lama’s teaching which you’ve quoted indicates Buddhists value making this world a better place. My question is more to “What guides a Buddhist about when to pursue justice and when to let things take their course? How does a Buddhist determine when to let go and when to engage? If the two goals are in conflict how does a Buddhist know the best path?” It seems that in Jewish thought, justice is in a hierarchy of value superior to letting things take their natural course. I know Buddhism also has a hierarchy of value, and in Zen in seems allowing things to take their natural course takes precedence over justice in it’s various forms. Do you disagree? For instance, I would like to know more of the history of Buddhists fighting for freedom for slaves, Buddhists fighting to emancipate and elevate women’s status, Buddhists overturning the caste system in India. I’m sure there are instances of these, but I’d like to know more.
  
  To yield is to become whole (or to yield is to become victim of abuse) I have seen aikido and have interviewed a sensei who explained it. A clever use of the opponent’s weight against them. I appreciate the way you’ve explained yielding as actually an intelligent force of movement. I agree that yielding can become an attack (I think of passive resistance, as well here). However, what tells helps a Daoist woman who wants to leave her husband and his physical abuse when she has been taught from a young age “to yield is to become whole.” I’d like to get the Daoist teaching, practice or instruction, not an eastern martial art practice, that would empower this woman to leave her husband. What other principles could she lean on and not forsake the Dao? I am ignorant if the Dao can be taken out of context or if Dao principles as key as this one can be overturned by a sort of doctrine of abrogation (the Islamic doctrine where later texts supersede earlier ones). I realize Daoism doesn’t rely on a holy book like Judaism, Christianity or Islam, but Daoists still have essential beliefs that define the parameters of who follows and lives by the Dao and who does not. For example to become hardened and refuse to change is against the Dao, to be supple and open to change is living within the Dao.
  
  Give deep reverence and fierce attention to the moment at hand (Where does this put the future-oriented virtue of hope?)
  I value and practice this attention to the moment as Brother Lawrence practiced. But I’m not convinced you’ve answered my question. Since hope is a Christian virtue, where is hope in this practice of attention in the present?
  
  Find the path of least resistance (How to blend this with “Take up your cross and follow me”?) I do not think Zen Buddhists have an easy life. I didn’t mean to assume this, nor that meditation is easy. But, I still think the competition of values is at stake here. At best this is confusing. How are we to know when we’re supposed to take the difficult road or the path of least resistance? You’ve shared that meditation is a key part of Zen Buddhism. I agree. But how do Zen Buddhists explain their dedication to difficult meditation time when they also seek the path of least resistance? What teaching am I missing that corrects of supersedes this one?
  
  In Christian thought and practice the interaction of my will with the Creator’s will is part of becoming more appropriately human. If we are broken from the Fall, from our parent’s, from our friends and experiences, we need more than just good commands and directions, we need power and wisdom (adaption of good commands with real life situations). Christians rely not merely on their own spirits bearing witness of the truth, but on the Spirit of Truth guiding them into all truth. Do Zen Buddhists rely on their spirit without interacting with a personal Creator? What has your experience been?
  
  I appreciate your mind engaged with me on this one. So far this has been helpful to get to know more accurately the ways Zen and Christianity dovetail and diverge. I’d like to hear more about the dovetailing from you.
I’Ching

What an interesting discussion – on Daoism, Buddhism and the Christian faith. For someone who was converted to the Christian faith from Doaistic Buddhism (i.e. a harmonized version of Buddhism, Daoism and Confucianism) this has been most enlightening (pun intended!). So much can be said but I would like to briefly add my two cents’ worth:

First, I agree with Thinker that Zen Buddhism and Daoism are not the same. In fact, Zen Buddhism is not the same as Tibetan Buddhism, nor the same as Nichiren Buddhism, nor the same as…the list goes on. I’m not trying to add more players into the discussion here but my point is no two forms of Buddhism is the same. And their differences is not just a matter of practice like the various Christian denominations. Rather, they differ in terms of doctrine, sacred texts and even what ultimate enlightenment would look like. Hence, to have a discussion on Zen Buddhism and pull in a quote by Dalai Lama would be almost irrelevant. In short, it would be impossible to discuss about Buddhism in general without first specifying which form of Buddhism we are talking about and only bring in relevant examples and quotes.

I have noticed a certain fascination with Buddhism (and even Daoism) in the West which is almost always presented and packaged for the Western audience and tend to be more New Agey than the original teachings are. For example, I find it odd that a discussion of Daoism hasn’t made any reference to the yin-yang which features significantly in the Daoist conception of life, its purpose and meaning.

Jonalyn, you asked – what tells helps a Daoist woman who wants to leave her husband and his physical abuse when she has been taught from a young age “to yield is to become whole.” Well, she doesn’t! It is rare that she does. I think there’s more to just Daoist teachings going on here – there’s the whole gender dynamics within the worldview of which Daoism originates from. Sad but this patriarchal view of gender relationship is deeply entrenched in the Asian/Oriental worldview. I know of women who will never leave their abusive husbands because they decided that to yield is the right thing to do in order to preserve the balance/order of things and to preserve the harmony within the family (a Confucianistic idea). This may not be the case for a subscriber to Daoism in a Western society. Good question to ask…

There is a lot of that is true within the teachings of Zen and Daoism as are within Islam, Hunduism, etc BUT there is also a lot within these worldviews/philosophies that sound good and profound to the ear but completely unlivable for humans.

I am think another reason why it is difficult to reconcile the actions of Buddhists, Daoists, etc with the teachings of their beliefs is because we are ALL ultimate made for a certain purpose in the image of a certain Being. We cannot escape bearing the characteristics of this Being regardless of what our philosophical leanings are. In other words, we cannot help but want to seek justice, goodness, peace, hope because that is how we are made.

Finally, I think a Buddhist Christian is an oxymoron. It would be impossible to live as one as the basic conceptions of these two religions are on two polar ends. One can only truly serve one Master.
thinker

http://www.amazon.com/Living-Buddha-Christ-Thich-Nhat/dp/1573225681

It depends on what one believes the Master wants.
thinker

(Confucianistic teachings seem almost impossible to harmonize with the Tao! Wow! I’m amazed)!

Yes, “Sad but this patriarchal view of gender relationship is deeply entrenched in the Asian/Oriental worldview. I know of women who will never leave their abusive husbands because they decided that to yield is the right thing to do in order to preserve the balance/order of things and to preserve the harmony within the family (a Confucianistic idea).”

And this has also been very true in Western cultures and the highly patriarchal Roman world that much of Christian thought was born of.
- Jonalyn
  
  Thinker,
  
  Do please share some ways you say the Tao and Jesus’ words dovetailing!
I’Ching

Kung Tze’s philosophy is absolutely “harmonizable” with Taoism. We have been living this harmonized worldview since circa 800AD – especially the Chinese!

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