Non-Reviewed by JoAnn S.
How would a Zen Master write a review a book of Zen sayings for another reader? He or she would probably give the potential reader a blank sheet of paper which he (or she) had carefully left blank and advise the reader to gaze on it until he or she gains understanding. But since I have not received my inka (a Master’s official confirmation that a student has completed training), I’ll rush in where Roshis (venerable teachers) fear to tread.
The Companion is a little book (4 and 1/4 inches x 4 and 1/4 inches), but thick (387 pages). It is divided into sections (how unZennish) with intermittent explanations of history and concepts. Most of the pages contain one sentence and the author’s name, some of whom will surprise you.
I have listed some of the sayings that “clicked” (What is the sound of one brain cell clicking?) with me and some which confused me (the Masters love those). Please comment on any which cause an awakening click or any that baffle you. I recommend inhaling and exhaling as you read through the list. (This is a good Zen tip.)
1. “The only Zen you find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there.” Rober M. Pirsig
2. “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” Ursula LeGuin
3, ”If you want to understand Zen easily, just be mindless, wherever you are twenty-four hours a day, until you spontaneously merge with the way.” Ying-an
4. “When the student is ready, the Master appears.” Buddhist proverb
5.” Barn’s burnt down
now
I can see the moon.”
Masahide
6. “ One sees great things from the valley, only small things from the peaks.” G.K. Chesterton
7. “Zen is not some kind of excitement, but concentration on our usual everyday routine.” Shunryu Suzuki
8. “There is nothing good or bad but thinking makes it so. ” Shakespeare
9. “Attachment is the great fabricator of illusions; reality can be attained only by someone who is detached.” Simone Weil
10.” ur own life is the instrument in which we experiment with truth.” Thich Nhat Hanh
11. “In walking, just walk. In sitting, just sit. Above all, don’t wobble.” Yun-men
12.” I’m not young enough to know everything.” J.M. Barrie
13. ” I’m astounded by people who want to ‘know’ the universe when it’s hard enough to find your way around Chinatown.” Woody Allen
14. “Computers are useless. They can only give you answers.” Pablo Picasso
15. “When you can do nothing, what can you do? ” Zen Koan
It is not necessary to fill in your email address or website information in the reply area.
You may add to these comments below. It is not necessary to fill in your e-mail or web site information in the reply area.
October 10, 2008 at 6:12 pm edit”If you want to understand Zen easily, just be mindless, wherever you are twenty-four hours a day, until you spontaneously merge with the way.”My family believes I should have merged with the way years & years ago because I am obviously mindless 24 hours a day.
October 10, 2008 at 8:30 pm editI really love all these quotations. Woody Allen (#13) is a Zen master at bringing self-demeanment and humility to new heights.
JoAnn
October 11, 2008 at 10:53 am editI think I get most of them, except for maybe #3. Is #3 saying the opposite of #7?Oh well, I can’t worry about it. I need to focus on doing laundry. :O))
October 11, 2008 at 11:17 am editYvonne,
“Chop wood, carry water,” is a Zen principle. Doing laundry is very Zen. I assume you hand washed everything.Yes, the term “mindless” is confusing. I think it means being mindful without attachments and judgements.I included quotations most would understand. But there are many I can’t: for examples,
“If you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss gazes into you.” Nietzsche
and
“What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?” Bertolt Brecht
October 11, 2008 at 11:51 am edit“Zen is not some kind of excitement, but concentration on our usual everyday routine.”When I was younger I believe this was my natural approach to life, and I was a very satisfied, content person. But somewhere along the way, I felt the pulls of modern life and it seems like everything became a choice of the many things I needed to do and it was hard to appreciate any one task in particular because I was thinking, “What’s next?”
October 11, 2008 at 11:54 am edit“I need to focus on doing laundry.” ~Yvonne
“Doing laundry is very Zen.” ~JoAnnThis is how I see it. The process of ‘doing laundry’ can be Zen. ‘Getting laundry done’ is not.
October 11, 2008 at 12:04 pm editDear Fran,
Your comment on the laundry indicates that you really “get” the principle.Your comment about your “What’s next?” phase was interesting. Do you still feel this way? If not, what allowed you to change?
October 13, 2008 at 9:17 am editFran and JoAnn, This is interesting. One of the things I have been working on myself concerns that ‘what’s next’ feeling Fran mentioned.Sometimes I think I am just overloaded and other times I think I need to learn to survive in today’s fast moving society — i.e., life is throwing things at us at a faster pace than ever before and those of us who learn to deal with it will be the ones to survive — survival of the fittest sort of thing.Any thoughts? Anyone?
October 13, 2008 at 11:49 am editI don’t know, Yvonne. It just sounds like an anxiety overload to me. There are certainly things we *have* to be in the middle of to survive, but I just prefer to step back as much as possible.
October 13, 2008 at 12:03 pm edit“Your comment about your “What’s next?” phase was interesting. Do you still feel this way? If not, what allowed you to change?” ~JoAnnNo, I don’t feel this way but perhaps a bit more would serve me better. When I started having problems with anxiety I knew I would self-combust if I didn’t resolve some of the anxiety. So I don’t intentionally throw myself into stress except when I need to help others.My number one Zen approach is this: Do one thing at a time. Single-task, don’t multi-task. I have been practicing this as much as possible for years now, when I heard it from a friend of mine. He was referring to his business approach, but I’m sure he uses in his personal life as well.
This is a good topic for my own blog, JoAnn, but nobody likes a copycat.
October 13, 2008 at 1:09 pm editDear Fran,
It’s a good thing to get ideas from other people. Ideas are not copyrightable.
Editor
October 13, 2008 at 1:17 pm editDear Yvonne,
I agree that it is a challenge to balance one’s life. Learn too little, you get stagnant. Learn too much, you get stressed. If you work at it in your own way, I think it is possible to keep a balance much of the time.
JoAnn
October 14, 2008 at 7:09 am editThanks to you both! This is very helpful. :O))
October 17, 2008 at 3:08 pm editthe sentence before in the quote from Neitzsche throws more light onto the meaning.that is:Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.
October 17, 2008 at 5:28 pm editBarbUK, Thanks for your post. I understand the first part about monsters, but not the part about an abyss. Can you elaborate? :O))
October 17, 2008 at 10:13 pm editWatch carefully where you focus your attention (the abyss) because sometimes it begins to reflect back onto you that which you project.
October 17, 2008 at 10:59 pm editBarb,
In other words when you focus your attention, you should be careful to be seeking something with an open, receptive mind, rather than just intensely projecting your own egoist thoughts? Is that it?
October 18, 2008 at 7:50 am editMonsters are easy to comprehend, because you know what a monster is.
Think on about the nature of an abyss, and what dwells within. Those are monsters too and I really think Nietzsche is warning about being all consumed in fighting and gazing upon evil – you are in danger of becoming that which you abhorred.
October 18, 2008 at 11:08 am editOK, I think I’m seeing the meaning. Very interesting to think about.