Meditation, Zazen, and Enlightenment
If you insist on playing with yourself, play with your mind.
It is unheard of for me to post two Substack essays within 24 hours. And yet, here we are.
Before I touch on the subject of this didactive puddle of words, however, I have something less important to say. Social Media sucks. Have you ever stumbled on TRUTH SOCIAL? What a load of turds. I’ve been expelled for life from X. Facebook is for idiots, Quora is for those who want to say the same thing over and over, and, sad to say, Substack has devolved into those who have a compulsion to tell their life stories or to re-post articles from other sources which are inevitably horror stories about World War III.
I will concede that there are dedicated Christians here that post about their faith and those who encourage us to live quiet lives and to be happy. These writers often post pictures of flowers and dogs. That’s nice & I really appreciate those sweet individuals that want to share their love.
In the past 18 months or so, Substack writers have been encouraged to monetize their insights and beliefs. It is no longer a site for fun and games. Now, we are expected to pay our hard-earned money on mediocre writers and paranoid children who cannot accept reality. In the days of newspapers, people paid for news. Now, we have to subscribe to Substack to read words of wisdom (and quite a lot of disinformation and rumors). FYI it costs $1.27 per issue to subscribe to the weekly WASHINGTON EXAMINER. Imagine that I subscribed to the six or eight writers that I enjoy on Substack. That would cost me between $42.00 and $56.00 per month. My CBD, Voltarin, Atorvastatin, and Celebrex cost that much.
Now that my ventilating has passed, I hope you are still reading.
This will be my first and last offering which is partially autobiographical.
I have been a meditator for 55 years. It started with the book PSYCHO-CYBERNETICS by Maxwell Maltz. Friends of mine in the barracks turned me on to an LP of Dr. Maltz describing his process.
After serving in the Army, I returned to college and, in GVSC’s “experimental college” the Thomas Jefferson School, I took a class in meditation. Since it was only a one semester course, we learned simply to be aware of the air going in and out of our noses.
For those interested in the practice of meditation, if you are nowhere near a Retreat, I recommend Jack Kornfeld’s MEDITATION FOR BEGINNERS. For those Christians who believe all other beliefs are Satanic, Kornfeld has also written JESUS AND BUDDHA: the Parallel Sayings. Jack Kornfield’s meditation retreats often take place at Spirit Rock in Woodacre, California. The center is located at 5000 Sir Frances Drake Blvd, Woodacre, CA, United States. Spirit Rock offers a diverse and inclusive community dedicated to Insight Meditation, Dharma teachings, and mindfulness. If you’re interested in practicing with Jack Kornfield, you can explore their upcoming programs and retreats on their website.
Here’s an aside:
The Middle Way in Buddhism, also known as the Noble Eightfold Path, emphasizes finding balance and moderation in all aspects of life. It serves as a path to enlightenment, avoiding extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification. The eight steps of this path are:
Right view (right understanding): Clearly seeing our direction before we begin.
Right intention: Resolving to follow this path.
Right speech and right action: Ensuring our words and deeds don’t harm others or ourselves.
Right livelihood: Living in a way that avoids causing harm.
Right effort: Focusing our energy on the task at hand.
Right mindfulness: Being aware of mind and body with discernment.
Right concentration: Engaging in dedicated practice, such as meditation or chanting.
The Middle Way encourages us to avoid extremes—neither self-indulgence nor total self-denial—leading us toward well-being and awakening.
There is nothing in the Middle Path that encourages Christians to deny their faith or to commit the Seven Deadly Sins.
So, I meandered through life with only one thing that was consistent: I meditated.
I learned qi gong’s Small Circulation and Kong Jing. It was great fun and I practiced these exercises for years.
Then I discovered what is, to me, true meditation.
Sit upright or lie down. Inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth. Hold each inhalation for a couple seconds before exhaling. Once into the experience, I always, always just breathe through my nose.
Zen Buddhists count their breaths up to ten and start over, over and over again. It may be that there is more to it, but the repetition causes the mind to slow down. In your efforts to meditate, regardless of the style or your intentions, you will have distracting thoughts and disturbing thoughts; but keep focusing on not focusing. In time, your thoughts will fade away like clouds, leaving you in a beautiful space somehow between our waking lives in the illusion of physical existence.
I cannot say I have achieved Enlightenment, yet I have had moments of bliss that come and go like the wind. Those moments give my life meaning and allow me to not be caught up in the controversies and hate that have led us into World War III.
Substack’s own Mr. Ma has a ‘stack entitled MINDCUROLOGY. He teaches his own style of meditation and, if I’m not mistaken, it causes the Kundalini to swirl around the spine until it reaches the 7th chakra and then it slides back down to the lowest chakra. It’s calming and probably very healthy.
In closing, I’d like to invite all of my Christian Substack friends to comment. This could lead to meaningful conversations.
If there is one other thing that I enjoy nearly as much as meditation, it is remembering the grace and skill of the Russian Five during the Detroit Red Wings’ brief time as the greatest NHL team of all time.
God bless you, one and all. You’ll be hearing from me again in 32 days.
By the way, I’ve heard Dollywood is quite delightful.
Don’t be so sure about 32 days; I’m likely to encounter Chuck withdrawal before that