I Have No Time To Practice

A student once asked Su Bong Zen Master at a dharma talk: his friend wanted to come to the Zen center to practice but he had no time, because he had a family, he had a job, he did volunteer work and he had to attend the functions of his company. What could he do?

Su Bong Zen Master said: “A Zen-style answer means put it all down, that’s all. I am this, this, this. I want this, this, this… but I cannot this, this, this … what shall I do? That’s not necessary. Put it all down and what? Just do it. Without checking: ‘Should I be doing this or this? Which one is more important?’ Then, when you are doing something and just do it, you would have time for everything. I do my job but should I be doing something else? So your job takes twice as long.”

“You all understand by your experience, without me telling you, how much time you waste wondering should I be doing this or that. But if you just do it, it would all be finished. There would be no extra baggage. That name is meticulous, meticulous and complete. So I said put it all down, that means your checking mind.”

“Many of our teachers don’t have time. They are laymen just like you. They have very important positions and they have families and they must work very hard to make everything come together. But they only try and they got it. So this try mind is necessary. You cannot get anything with excuse mind.”

Zen Master Su Bong

(From The Kwan Um School of Zen)

Clear Mind Is Like The Full Moon

Clear mind is like the full moon in the sky. Sometimes clouds come and cover it, but the moon is always behind them. Clouds go away, then the moon shines brightly. So don’t worry about clear mind: it is always there. When thinking comes, behind it is clear mind. When thinking goes, there is only clear mind. Thinking comes and goes, comes and goes. You must not be attached to the coming or the going.

Zen Master Seung Sahn

From Dropping Ashes on the Buddha

(From The Kwan Um School of Zen)

Thought Itself Is Buddha

When we are really stuck, when we don’t know, when we have this “Don’t Know” completely, then everything, whatever you hear, whatever you see, whatever you touch, everything becomes Buddha. Everything is like what it is. There is nothing to add, nothing to take away. Everything is okay. So we sit. We sit, looking, perceiving how the thoughts are coming, going, coming, going. This is actually all that we are doing. Our work during sitting time is to sit and watch as thoughts are coming and going. And don’t touch this; then the thought itself is Buddha.

Zen Master Gu Ja

(From The Kwan Um School of Zen)