Zazen Notes

“What in the world does the ‘cessation of happiness apart from equanimity’ mean–that happiness ends when equanimity does? And what does that have to do with just letting yourself breath?”

The equanimity referred to is equanimity with respect to the multiplicity of the senses. So the cessation of happiness apart from ...  read more

I should mention that although the one-pointedness I experience in the location of my awareness occurs as a necessity of breath, there is a feeling of well-being.

There’s a description in the Pali Canon of two “cessations” that I think summarize how a feeling of well-being can arise in connection with a necessity of breath: ...  read more

(On November 12, 2016, Adia said)

I am sitting, experiencing stress and pain, is that normal?

(On 11 7 2017, Mark said:)

There’s a trick to being really good at sitting zazen, especially in the lotus: be born to a father who is the abbot of a Zen monastery in Japan, learn oriyoki at age three, and wrestle with ...  read more