What is Zen?

An Ancient Path to True Happiness

Who Am I? What is this all about? These are questions we, human beings often ask. If we try to answer them from the brain and thinking, we finally come to “Don’t Know”. This “Don’t Know” energy is wonderful. It is open to all possibilities.

Zen practice cultivates this “Don’t Know” mind open to all possibilities; open to “Just Now” mind, without knowing what this “Just Now” means. "No Meaning, is Great Meaning" said Zen Master Seung Sahn. Before thinking we already know what “Just Now” is. Moment by moment we ask “Just Now What?”. When we listen with clear ears, hearing appears; when we see with clear eyes seeing appears; when we taste with clear taste buds, taste appears; when we smell with clear nose, smell appears, when we feel with clear sensation, clear feeling appears. Zen is keeping this “Don’t Know” mind always and everywhere and "Just Doing It!"

Zen is not special, but, this not special is rare. Why? Because most of our lives we are trying to figure life out by thinking. Instead, can we keep the mind, "How May I Help This Moment" or “Right Now, What Is the Invitation of this Moment?”

A story goes that someone once asked the Buddha, what do you do? The Buddha answered, "We sit, we walk, we eat." "Oh" the person replied. "I sit. I walk. I eat." Responding to this the Buddha replied, "When we sit, we know we are sitting, when we walk, we know we are walking, and when we eat, we know we are eating."

Before our thinking we already know -- When walking, just walk; when standing, just stand; when lying down, just lying down; when speaking, just speaking; when still, just still. When driving, just drive; when eating, just eat; when working, just work.

At some point, “Don’t Know” mind becomes clear. When you see the sky, only blue; when you see the tree, only green. Your mind is like a clear mirror. Red comes, the mirror is red; white comes the mirror is white. A hungry person comes, you give them food; a thirsty person comes, you give them something to drink. Moment to moment, “Just Now What?” We call this Great Love, Great Compassion, the Great Bodhisattva Way.

It’s very simple! But, not so easy.