General
ZEN is an attentive and meditative path to self-awareness, through which extensive liberation can be gained in the here and now. ZEN meditation is a form of mental training, which has been proven over thousands of years. It serves relaxation and especially trains attentiveness.
Moreover, ZEN is a contemplative, spiritual training, which was originally derived from Buddhism. On this page, ZEN is mostly explained by way of the Buddhist concept with the corresponding terminology. Basically, it can be explained with any other spiritual model or concept.
Thus, ZEN is not viewed as a religion, but as a philosophy of life, a special type of meditation and a universal training of the mind.
Since ZEN uses no dogmatic teachings or tools, it is referred to as the essence of all spiritual paths. Regardless of his confession or belief, everyone can practice ZEN.
In the essential ZEN teaching, there is not a God, a Buddha, Bodhisattvas, or any imaginary saint who is worshipped. There is only the continuous, freed life in the here and now. In ZEN, this is traditionally designated with the Buddhist concept of Nirvana.
To experience Nirvana, one must first reach this liberated condition. In ZEN, this is characterized by the Buddhist concept of enlightenment. A spiritual awakening precedes this enlightenment, which is referred to as Satori.
In ZEN it is assumed that spiritual awakening (Satori), enlightenment and Nirvana can be reached here and now, quickly and directly in this life.
However, it seems unavoidable that the fast and direct path to liberation demands much courage, zeal and engagement. To the individual, ZEN can indeed appear challenging.
How does ZEN "function"?
The teaching of ZEN says that the strength and wisdom exists in each of us to experience Satori (awakening), enlightenment, and Nirvana. We no longer need to search outside of ourselves or develop or achieve a condition of enlightenment. In ZEN, we do not meditate to visualize an object or to produce a feeling.
“Quite simply”, we must just allow the rational-thinking spirit to become still, in order to break through to the broad liberation in the here and now. But we are hindered by our unconscious thoughts, feelings, concepts, ideas on morality, and patterns of thought and behavior.
Through meditative training in attentiveness, in which the ego (often referred to philosophically as the "ego" feeling) is transcended and the true reality of the world is observed through strong concentration without assessment, a condition of “being one with all” is experienced in ZEN.
In this condition, we try to recognize the concepts, patterns, barriers, and limitations in ourselves- as well as to accept and transform them. In this way, we can gain distance, let go and gradually live more freely. With continuous training, we succeed in transferring this inner letting go to the external world. So we learn that all people suffer from the same “disease”- the ego, which produces the feelings, thoughts, and ideas about ourselves and the world.
What remains is freedom, true empathy, deep self-awareness, and the world as it really is, free of all that which our rational spirit leads us to believe.
So we awaken to the immortal essence, which, in the universal ZEN, is described by the concepts true nature, truth, freedom, no-mind, emptiness, or, in the Buddhist ZEN, Satori or Buddha nature.
When we have experienced this spiritual awakening (Satori), we have a firm foundation for the further path and have overcome death.
The subsequent phase of mental purification leads us to enlightenment and back to the unity in ourselves. It leads to the infinite, to non-duality, to the Buddha nature, and to the emptiness, which lives in us and in each living being. If we have realized this unity through continuous practice, Nirvana can take place.
Conveying the teaching
The original ZEN is the “teaching of emptiness” and points to the emptiness of being.
Here emptiness is not to be understood as nothing or negation. Rather, it is a principle, basis or foundation - one that is full of joy, peace, happiness, and calm. These conditions of being arise from themselves and never run dry.
For this reason, the universal ZEN teaching is difficult for interested parties and students to understand. Thus, the ZEN teaching uses Buddhist concepts and techniques to better portray this special type of teaching.
Buddhism always points to the significance of a spiritual teacher or master. This person helps someone to see through self-deception and orient himself in the maze of Buddhist teachings and those of Zen. Such a personal relationship with a teacher or master can be important and should be used, when it appears helpful for the individual.
Many of those interested in ZEN, as well as those practicing and students, shy away from the attachment to a spiritual teacher or master for various reasons. They want to practice ZEN alone and without outside help.
The book “The Secret Book of Zen” was conceived for such readers. With this book, it is possible to successfully follow the ZEN path without the help of a personal spiritual teacher or master, since all the “secrets” and techniques of ZEN are revealed in it.
It is up to you alone to apply these secrets and techniques. This is the only way Nirvana will be possible.
You will find more about me and my understanding of ZEN HERE.
