Entering the stream means that we have at least loosened the fetter of belief in an independent self, we no longer have much doubt in the teachings of the Buddha, and we doubt that rites and rituals lead to enlightenment. The Buddha said that stream enterers have at most seven lifetimes to go before entering into Nirvana.… Continue reading Stream Entry Zen Part One
Category: Nirvana
Zen Mindfulness of Mind Objects
Venerable Ajahn Sumedo When our Zen (meditation) practice reaches the super-advanced stage of mindfulness of mind objects, we can start bragging that we are advanced, highly skilled practitioners (that is a hilarious joke so I hope you don’t break your ribs laughing; bragging about anything is something a practitioner at such an advanced level would… Continue reading Zen Mindfulness of Mind Objects
Zen, Words And Nirvana
Mahamati asked the Buddha: “What do you mean by ‘nirvana’?” The Buddha answered the question but he prefaced his answer with definitions of nirvana propounded by “followers of other paths.” These “wrong” answers are instructive because we can see that some of them seem to be correct! For followers of some paths, the Buddha said, nirvana is:… Continue reading Zen, Words And Nirvana
The Zen Way To Nirvana
Let’s suppose you are the Master of a Buddhist sangha, or in Western terminology, an Abbot of a Buddhist monastery or convent. A student comes to you and asks: Is the world eternal or not eternal? Is the world finite or infinite? Is the soul the same as the body or is the soul one… Continue reading The Zen Way To Nirvana
Zen Mindfulness or Forgetfulness
What, really, is mindfulness? It is perhaps best understood by contrasting it with its opposite, which is forgetfulness. Most of us are robots, performing most of our daily activities while thinking about something else. We don’t need to pay attention to brushing our teeth, taking a shower, grocery shopping, because these chores are handled automatically. We can instead ponder what… Continue reading Zen Mindfulness or Forgetfulness
The Zen Bell Tolls For No One
If there is no independent self, what is there? Buddhism teaches that nothing exists independently of anything else. Everything we see, hear, smell, taste or touch is connected to something else. Nothing exists in a vacuum. John Donne’s Meditation XVII, published in 1624, includes the passage made famous by Ernest Hemmingway: No man is an… Continue reading The Zen Bell Tolls For No One
Zen Practice And Enlightenment
The Ten Ox-Herding Pictures provide a framework for the How To Practice Zen program. Although they were not intended by their artist to be used as a guide, they provide a good outline for building an authentic, daily Zen practice. The pictures appeared in the twelfth century. They were based on The Sutra of the Ten… Continue reading Zen Practice And Enlightenment
Rebirth of a Hillbilly #Zen
It is not hard to imagine that after we are dead and gone, some other life form will appear. After all, we appeared after Ben Franklin and a lot of other people were out of here. After we are gone, an earthworm will be born. So will a fish. And gazillions of bacteria and people… Continue reading Rebirth of a Hillbilly #Zen