I do it daily by myself and irregularily with a group of friends of mine (sort of weekly our timetables permitting). I’ve also participated in a few day sesshins once or twice a year for over ten years.
I occasionally do counting/following breathing at start, especially if there is lots of “noise” in my head. Not sure that would count as actual anapanasati, but I guess that’s a line drawn on water in the end.
I do not find concentrative states offputting as such, just maybe not all that useful for me in the long run.
Concentration is of course the awesome power tool for handling that but shikantaza gets there eventually too.
The terms I’ve heard for that are “getting still”, “getting silent” and “getting peaceful”. I haven’t come up with a better one.
Shikantaza is just such a wondrous scifi revolution. It’s GENTLE.
Consider that in concentration you withdraw your awareness from the world. A shrinking. This is a blindness. And action taken while blind is … well you get the idea.
But Shikantaza is an expanding illumination. The invisible becomes visible. It’s a superior high too.
And that’s just babble of course and I don’t expect you to agree with me about their comparative virtues.
I do it daily by myself and irregularily with a group of friends of mine (sort of weekly our timetables permitting). I’ve also participated in a few day sesshins once or twice a year for over ten years.
I do it too. Pleased to meet you.
Do you do concentration meditation (anapanasati, samatha…) in preparation for shikantaza? (I used to, now I don’t).
Do you prefer the shikantaza state and find concentrative states distasteful? (I do somewhat)
Nice to meet you too.
I occasionally do counting/following breathing at start, especially if there is lots of “noise” in my head. Not sure that would count as actual anapanasati, but I guess that’s a line drawn on water in the end.
I do not find concentrative states offputting as such, just maybe not all that useful for me in the long run.
I know what you mean by noise.
Concentration is of course the awesome power tool for handling that but shikantaza gets there eventually too.
The terms I’ve heard for that are “getting still”, “getting silent” and “getting peaceful”. I haven’t come up with a better one.
Shikantaza is just such a wondrous scifi revolution. It’s GENTLE.
Consider that in concentration you withdraw your awareness from the world. A shrinking. This is a blindness. And action taken while blind is … well you get the idea.
But Shikantaza is an expanding illumination. The invisible becomes visible. It’s a superior high too.
And that’s just babble of course and I don’t expect you to agree with me about their comparative virtues.