Zen Wisdom for Your Everyday Life

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Most of our lives we are searching for something we haven't quite found. The search goes on endlessly, and others tell us, "Not Yet", or "Keep Searching," - one day you'll make it. Yet, seated on a donkey, we search for a donkey, do not see that all we are searching for is right here, where we are. Once we stop searching, life changes and we can enjoy the ride..

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We all long to be close to someone we care about, belong to a group of place of meaning. An endless search goes on in our lives to be welcomed and invited in. To find the person, teaching or place which will put our longing heart at ease. But when a monk finally found a great teacher, inside a hut and begged to come in, the teacher wisely said, "You Are Not Outside." 

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It's easy to get caught in the whirl of changing conditions, one minute we're praised, the next blamed. We receive wonderful gifts and then they're taken away. But a wonderful teaching from the great Zen Master Hakuin, shows us how to receive whatever comes wholeheartedly, and not get caught in the pain of change. Whatever happens, he remarks, "Is that so?"  He takes a moment to see the full array of life as it comes and goes. He does not ascribe the usual meaning to passing events, just remains centered, cares for what comes and asks, "Is that so?" 

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We are all so incredibly impatient to get where we’re headed, (even though we have no idea what is waiting for us there). Our days, actions and attention are deeply focused upon where we’re headed.  Some days we Pass, other days, Fail, in our estimation. Nevertheless we keep rushing uncontrollably, piling up one task after the next. 

But, there is a larger timing in which everything is done, all is cooked naturally. When it’s soup, it’s soup. When you’re cooked, you’re cooked. When you’ve digested your life, you’re nourished. When you let things have their own energy and timing, all works out naturally with great satisfaction. 

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We all search for answers relentlessly, hoping to be guided about what our problem means, how to procede, what's right or wrong to do.There's no end to the instruction we look for. And yet, none of this brings the true insight and aliveness we crave. After one problem seems to be solved, it pops up again in a different form.

As we discover a totally different way of approaching difficulties that come our way, not only do we enjoy each seeming problem, but amazing possibilities and contentment appear all by itself.

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When we're hungry and go into a restaurant, no matter how long we read the menu, it does not fill us up. We must order the food, eat it and be satisfied. Same with our lives, just thinking  about life, fantasyzing, analyzing, hoping, imagining, leaves us empty and alone. Instead, Zen practice leads us to taste our lives directly, receive the nourishment and discard the waste.

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It's easy to go over the same inscrutable problem or question, again and again. Doesn't seem to have an answer. These are called koans. Using our logical mind, we create plans, strategies and hopes that only bind us further. By embarking upon the great art and joy of Zen Play, we learn not only how to engage with koans, but how to make our entire life a Zen koan, discover new perspectives and solutions, and live with delight.

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These days there is so much confusion and what is true and real. Yet the more we think and dwell upon it, the more confused we can become. There is another way to find our direction and live clearly with that which is beneficial for all. As we learn to throw away thoughts of imaginary things, the real appears all by itself. 

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We love what is beautiful and reject what is ugly, not realizing that all appearances are flashes across the sky of our lives. But, instead of grappling with what happens, trying to change and fix it, make it benefit us, if we step back and see the vastness of the larger pattern a miraculous thing happens, we see the beauty and perfection of all.

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Night and day we strive for perfection, fear making a mistake or doing something wrong. These fears can freeze us in our tracks, stop us from moving forward and living a fulfilled life. But Zen practice shows us how to make friends with our mistakes, how important and precious they are. Wrong turns to right and the other way around. And ultimately we see the great harmony of our lives, where nothing was ever wrong or out of place.

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