Buddhism and the Practice of Zen

A brief comparison between Zen and Pure Land Buddhism, both of these are very popular amongst the Vietnamese community. The word Zen has been used many times in the West, due to the hard work of Japanese culture; Zen Buddhism does not have a strong influence as that of the Pure Land Buddhism. Also in the school of Zen, "they reject claims of scriptural authority and embrace many different practices". Zen Buddhism rests on claims to an exclusive lineage that has been passed down from teacher to disciple in a succession from "Shakyamuni", or the historical "Buddha", all the way to the present day.

The aspiration of all sentient beings is to reach enlightenment; to realize their Buddha-nature and ascend to Buddhahood. The path and method to reach enlightenment, however, differs depending on the perspective from which one views Buddhism. Dogen, in his teachings on Zen Buddhism, promotes the practice of zazen to reach enlightenment. Shinran and the Pure Land sect are devoted to Amida Buddha, who they believe will bring them to the Pure Land, and enlightenment. The ways espoused by Dogen and Shinran are similar in some aspects, but differing enough in others to warrant the separate sects of Buddhism in Japan. For the purposes of this examination, the two sects can be summarized by how they look at reaching enlightenment: Zen Buddhism focuses inwardly, while Pure Land focuses outwardly. By examining their own words on how one is to reach enlightenment, the similarities and differences in their methods can be seen, allowing a better understanding of the teachings of their respective sects.

It's all well and good to explain Zen Buddhist doctrine, but Zen is a much more abstract idea. A British researcher and Buddhist, Christmas Humphreys, says it is hard to relate Zen within time and space also, “[f]or Zen is not a new thing but a new way of looking at things. It is a new vision with the old eyes.” (Humphreys 99) Zen is best seen through the actions of those who practice for those who wish to gain a basic understanding, and Matthew is my nearest and dearest example of a practicing Buddhist.

The goal of Zen Buddhism is to look towards the future, searching to attain satori (awakening). Through jiriki nembutsu (self-power chanting) the person is hakarai (calculating) their spiritual and material profit. Thus, Zen is an individual practice. Ultimately, Zen places a strong importance on embodying emptiness and not becoming attached to words said by the masters. For instance, in the koan, master Yanmen’s story shows that Zen is both verbal and actional, teaching his students that instead of getting attached to words, one must embody them. This was seen when one of his disciples asked if the dog has a Buddha nature, and the master replied: “no because he has the nature of karmic delusions” (Li 18 March 2016). In this example, the master was mocking the disciple’s lack of discipline because he got attached to the words. The master’s iconoclastic approach teaches its practitioners that one must embody the koan and zazen meditation. As in Zen, it is through embodiment that one reaches the Mahayana level of emptiness in order to reach their final goal- satori.

A boy is the heir to the throne of a great tribe. His father, the current king, wants his son to be king too but is warned that he will either be an outstanding king or an extraordinary sage, so he must act before his child can be affected. The young prince is kept away from any forms of negativity that this cruel world could possibly show him. Unfortunately for his father, the boy witnesses the exact things that the king has attempted to keep him from, and he leaves all the riches behind so that his journey to enlightenment can begin. This is the story of how Buddhism began.

The very first thing that happened in the book is that San the main character has to go to a new school but would rather stay and present his project to his class in Texas. Also as he gets his way his father ends up getting busted for having invalid licenses and working to get money illegally.

The journey of becoming a Zen Buddhist Monk is long and difficult. Those who work their way through the many trials it takes to reach this stature are held to the highest regard. Living a life of humility as well as living a life of labor, are two of the steps of becoming a Zen Buddhist Monk. Both challenge the body and mind, and help them reach their full potential.

Zen, also known as Ch’an Buddhism in China, is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that was established in China about 1500 years ago. Zen is a form of religious practice of mainly concentrating the mind to a single point in which then results in self-realization and/or enlightenment. Zen philosophy is interpreted that all humans are capable of reaching enlightenment, which is generally blocked by ignorance. The idea emphasizes enlightened masters over forms of scriptures, and is the least “academic” of all the Buddhist schools.

The religious Buddha was originally a prince, Siddhartha Gautama, born in 623 B.C. into a regular, royal life. For years, his father “protected” him and Siddhartha was shielded from the truth and harshness of the world. When he was older, he married Yasodhara and finally went out to the real world. When he did, Siddhartha found something that disturbed him: suffering. He found war, disease, and death. Finding this suffering, he desperately wanted to stop it. Siddhartha wanted to find a way to cure the suffering he saw, because how he saw it, there was no point in life if there was so much suffering. At age 29, Siddhartha set out into the world to find enlightenment. After a 6 year journey, after meditation, starvation, and torture, Siddhartha finally received his enlightenment. He was meditating under the Bodhi Tree in Bodh Gaya, India, and said he would not move until he gained perfect enlightenment. Devaputra Mara, demon of all demons brought an army of his kind to disturb Siddhartha during his meditation. When that did not work, he brought his three daughters to try and distract him. Siddhartha concentrated even harder that he already was, and successfully ignored the demons and girls. From this, Siddhartha had gotten so deep into his concentration, that he was able to receive the enlightenment he was looking for. The enlightenment was there is a state of suffering that had to be lived by everyone, until their death and ultimate release from the

After the death of the historical Buddha occurred and his lineage had ended with Buddha Sakyamuni, his teachings spread in two main directions, southward (Theravada tradition) and eastward into China, Vietnam, Korea and Japan (Mahayana tradition). In East Asia, these teachings developed into ten different schools, several of which remain important to this day: Zen, Tantric and Pure Land (Li 4 April 2016). These schools of thought differ in many ways but also have overlapping similarities. In my essay, I will explain three underlying differences and similarities between Zen and Pure Land Buddhism and its relation to emptiness and compassion. The differences the reader will encounter will be the role of language, the role of practice, and approaches towards life and death. While there are many differences, there also lay similarities, including śūnyatā (emptiness), bodhisattva’s compassion and ono-mama or sono-mama (isness or suchness).

Monastics and lay followers are both essential in ensuring that the Buddhist community, the Sangha, is run smoothly. A lay follower may be looked at as someone who isn’t completely devoted to Buddhism because they aren’t living the monastic lifestyle, obeying all the strict rules set forth in the Sekhiya Dhamma, such as “with downcast eye will I take a seat amidst the houses” and “not with too large balls will I make (up my food)…” but the Sangha would not thrive without the vital help of lay followers who provide the actual food and resources that monks need to even obey these rules as well as function and practice Buddhism. Even though lay followers are not nuns or monks, they are still Buddhists and strive to live by and understand teachings and avoid doing major things that are frowned upon in the Buddhist world. Being a monastic is taking on a serious role that takes an immense amount of commitment and dedication and not all people who practice Buddhism can do that, which is okay because lay followers are necessary in the Sangha. Along with supplying resources for the Buddhist community, they also spread teachings and knowledge to others.

As he describes so well in An Introduction to Zen Buddhism, Suzuki's own realization of who he really was, his grasping of the fundamental principle of existence, came when he was only twenty-six years old. He had been studying Zen for some years but without much success, and was increasingly demoralized by his failure to reach the enlightenment he so fervently sought. Then, in 1896, he was selected by his renowned teacher, Soyen Shaku, to go to North America to help translate the classic text, the Tao Te Ching, into English. (Suzuki 54)

I hesitated when I saw Zen at his job... there was so much I wanted to confess to him ever since middle school ended. However, my mouth wasn't quiet cooperating with me, my words seemed to be tangled in my mouth. They wanted to escape, but couldn't help to give into my hesitation and anxiousness. Time seemed to stand still, making it unbearable to approach him or even look at him, it drove me absolutely insane. My heart fell into a downward spiral of hopelessness once I saw him with a beautiful woman. The way he gazed at her seemed so powerful, their gaze was everlasting. For some odd reason, I began to furiously flip through the newspaper at the coffee table causing the mug of coffee to fall. As soon as the mug hit the ground, everyone looked my direction, I quickly put my sunglasses on and apologized for the disruption. Zen looked in my direction, then exchanged a few words with his lover and was walking straight towards me. I quickly looked down and began to pick up the fragments of glass on the floor. "Do you need help?", Zen said, barely recognizing me. I scoffed and spoke in a low tone so he wouldn't know it was me, "No, Sir I don't need help. Thank you very mucho." What the hell am I

Buddhism is a philosophically-religious study, that concentrates on people’s life, their bodies, and minds, and promotes harmony between them all. It is crucially different from all other world religions in the way that it puts people in the center of everything and offers to achieve the better reality, Nirvana, through meditation and acceptance of four noble truths. Vipassana meditation, as one of the branches of Buddhism, can be understood as secular, not religion. To understand Vipassana, better, we should go back to exploring what Buddhism is, how it connects body and mind, and the ways to achieve Nirvana.

Buddhism stands as a philosophy and a religion founding itself on the theory of a possible eternal soul. Until awakening is achieved, this eternal soul is locked in the vicious cycle of rebirth (Samsara). According to the Four Noble Truths preached by the Buddha, life is a perpetual suffering caused by desire and attachment, and freedom from suffering is only possible by practicing the Eightfold Path. The World is suffering in a succession of temptations and negative experiences from birth to death. Therefore Buddhism advises on searching to go beyond suffering, and only aspire to rest, nothingness, and liberation, into a final state called Nirvana. Happiness or Nirvana can eventually be achieved in a hereafter, another life, if man abandons any desire or perspective of action within his present life, in order to go past suffering.