Zen Master Seung Sahn: "You want to be enlightened as much as possible, and you have no idea what to do with enlightenment. This non-knowledge is your true self. As long as you cling to the desire for enlightenment, you could not attain enlightenment. However, this desire brought me here to practice Zen. Well, come and sit! This is one of the first steps.”
Many of us are looking for understanding, enlightenment, and that is really a good reason to practice zen. But what would we do with enlightenment? And how to achieve it?
Here is a conversation about enlightenment between the founder of our school, Zen Master Seung Sahn, and a student.
Zen Master Seung Sahn: Let me ask you this: If you could do anything your heart desires, what would you want to do most of all?
Student: Get enlightened.
Zen Master Seung Sahn: And after you get enlightened, what will you do then?
Student: I don't know.
Zen Master Seung Sahn: You want most of all to attain enlightenment. And you don't know what in the world you'll do with it. That not knowing is your true self. As long as you keep the desire to attain enlightenment, you'll never attain. But desire brings you here to sit Zen. So come and sit. That is a first step.
Strong sitting means not checking your mind and feelings. Everyone sometimes has many thoughts and feelings while sitting. This is correct. Don’t worry. But many people check themselves. “I am no good. What do other people think of me? I am always thinking. How can I cut off all thinking? How do you only go straight? How do you put it all down?” etc. This is being attached to thinking. Thinking itself is not bad or good. Just don’t be attached to thinking. Don’t worry about everything. Thinking is thinking; feeling is feeling. Only go straight—don’t know. That is strong sitting.
Zen Master Seung Sahn
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