Shikantaza (只管打坐) isDogen'sJapanese translation of theChinese phrasezhǐguǎn dǎzuò (只管打坐 / 祇管打坐),[1][web 1] "focus on meditative practice alone", although many modern Western practitioners have interpreted this very differently.[2][3] The phrase was used by Dogen's teacherRujing, a monk of theCaodong school ofChanBuddhism, to refer to themeditation-practice called "silent illumination" (Chinese:默照禅), or "serene reflection", taught by the Caodong masterHongzhi Zhengjue (1091–1157).[2] In Japan, it is associated with theZenSoto school, Dogen's offshoot of Caodong. Some practitioners teach thatshikantaza means that one should not focus attention on a specific object (such as the breath),[note 1] instead "just sitting" in a state of conscious awareness. However, the 13th-century origin of the expression indicates a general emphasis on meditation in any form as sufficient for spiritual enlightenment. The original teaching was meant to criticize the complicated ceremony, abstruse study, endless tracing of spiritual lineage, and other aspects of Buddhism that even by the 12th century had been identified as excessive.
According to Buswell and Lopez, the Sōtō school presentsshikantaza as a radical simplification of practice which is necessary in the degenerate age of the Dharma, ormappō. That is, rather than try to master a range of concentration techniques, such as breath counting or the investigation ofkoans, by simply adopting the posture of the buddhas and ancestors, the practitioner becomes identical to them in body and mind, thus becoming stabilized in "a state of full clarity and alertness, free from any specific content," which is also described as the state of body and mind dropping off.[6]
The termshikantaza is theSino-Japanese reading[1] ofZhǐguǎn dǎzuò (只管打坐 / 祇管打坐)[1][web 1] "just sitting",[2][3] "nothing but sitting",[7] "meditation of just sitting",[web 1] "just mind [yourself] sitting".[8]Zhǐguǎn dǎzuò (只管打坐 / 祇管打坐) translates as follows:
The inspiration for this teaching derives from a pivotal episode reportedly occurring sometime in the early 1220s (Song dynasty), atTiantong Mountain Monastery (天童寺, also known as Jingde Monastery景德寺, east of modern-dayNingbo). An exchange took place between the eminent ChineseCaodong teacherRujing and his disciples. In particular, it focuses on an inspiration by one of Rujing's Japanese disciples,Dōgen, who would later found theSōtō Zen sect:
Then, one day during late night seated meditation, Reverend Jing entered the hall and admonished the great assembly for sleeping, saying:
"Inquiring into Zen is the sloughing off of body and mind [身心脱落].There is no need for burning incense, making prostrations, recollecting buddhas, practicing repentances, or reading sūtras. Just sit [in meditation] [祇管に打坐]; only then will you attain it."
At that time, hearing this, the Master [Dōgen] immediately had a great awakening... .[9] [emphasis added]
While T.G. Foulk's translation here reads only "sit", he and other interpreters clarify that the meaning of打坐 is generally broad, meaning more than simply sitting.[10] The original exchange between Rujing and his disciples indicates a clear meaning of the teaching: that high-flung ceremony and study are unnecessary and irrelevant, thatzazen,dhyana, and similar meditation practice of whatever kind (whether sitting, resting, breathing, gazing at a scene, walking, or simply engaging in silence) should be sufficiently effective.
James Ishmael Ford states that "some trace the root of this word [shikantaza] to the Japanese pronunciation of Sanskritvipassana, though this is far from certain."[3] This etymological error about只管 (shikan, "only", "just") is rooted in the fact that Japanese has manyhomophones pronouncedshikan. It stems from a more commonly used Japanese word, namely止観 (shikan, "concentration and observation"[note 2]) (as practiced by the Tendai sect) that translates the Sanskrit "śamatha andvipaśyanā," the two basic forms ofBuddhist meditation.[note 3]
The phrasezhǐguǎn dǎzuò ("just sitting") was used byDōgen's teacherTiantong Rujing (1162–1228) for silent illumination[2] (Chinesemòzhào 默照; Japanesemokushō).[11] According to Koten Benson, inmochao
The first character, mo, has an element in it that means black or darkness, making the whole character signify "dark, secret, silent, serene, profound" and also "to close the lips, to become silent". The second character, chao, has as element meaning "the brightness of the sun". The whole character translates as "to reflect light, to shine on, to illume or enlighten", as well as "to reflect upon, to look upon, to have insight into". The whole term thus becomes "serene reflection", "silent illumination" or "luminescent darkness".[11]
"Silent illumination" or "silent reflection" was the hallmark of theChineseCaodong school ofChan.[web 2] The first Chan teacher to articulate silent illumination was the Caodong masterHongzhi Zhengjue (1091—1157), who wrote an inscription entitled "silent illumination meditation" (Mokushō zen 默照禅 orMòzhào chán 默照禪).[12] Sheng-yen explains that
In silent illumination, "just sitting" is only the first step. While you maintain the sitting posture, you should also try to establish the "silent" state of the mind. Eventually you reach a point where the mind does not move and yet is very clear. That unmoving mind is "silent," and that clarity of mind is "illumination." This is the meaning of "silent illumination."[13]
With the phraseshikantaza Dōgen means "doing only zazen whole-heartedly"[14] or "single-minded sitting."[15] According to Merv Fowler, shikantaza is described best as "quiet sitting in open awareness, reflecting directly the reality of life."[16] According to Austin,shikantaza is "an alert condition, performed erect, with no trace of sluggishness or drowsiness."[17] Fred Reinhard Dallmayr writes,
Regarding practice, Dogen counseled a distinctly nonattached or nonclinging kind of action, that is, an activity completely unconcerned with benefits or the accomplishment of ulterior goals: the activity of 'just sitting' or 'nothing-but-sitting' (shikantaza) whereby self-seeking is set aside in a manner resembling a resolute 'dropping off of body and mind.'[18]
Zen masterJohn Daido Loori describesshikantaza as a challenging practice in spite of its name's simplicity. Mental strength (joriki) is not achieved through sustained concentration as inbreath meditation, but through awareness of the flow of mind, without actively attempting to let go of a thought.[19] The user must watch their thoughts, "without analyzing them, judging them, attempting to understand or categorize them," being only aware of them.[19] According to him, this helps mental activity move on and producesamadhi.[19]
When you're doingshikantaza you don't try to focus on anything specifically, or to make thoughts go away. You simply allow everything to be just the way it is. Thoughts come, thoughts go, and you simply watch them, you keep your awareness on them. It takes a lot of energy and persistence to sitshikantaza, to not get caught up in daydreaming. But little by little, thoughts begin to slow down, and finally they cease to arise. When the thought disappears, the thinker disappears.[20]
Commenting on Loori's words, meditation expert Eric Harrison likensshikantaza to apsychological process ofextinction, in which repeated reduction of a behavioral response eventually leads to no response.[21]
Loori describes awareness as the one thing necessary to the practice of shikantaza.[19] This requires a heightened state of mental alertness, which he warns cannot be maintained for too long periods of time. He recommends to practiceshikantaza half an hour to an hour, then stand up and practicekinhin in order to relax the mind before sitting down and continuing.[20]
Shunryū Suzuki states aboutshikantaza, "do not try to stop your mind, but leave everything as it is. Then things will not stay in your mind for so long. Things will come as they come and go as they go. Eventually your clear, empty mind will last fairly long."[22] For his part, describing the practice's goal as being simply aware of thoughts without getting caught by them, Sean Murphy citesTaizan Maezumi as advising to "regard our thoughts as if they were clouds, watching them as they drift from one end of the mind to the other, but making no attempt to hold onto them - and when they pass over the horizon, as they inevitably will, making no attempt to grasp after them.[23]
Jundo Cohen warns that its meaning of "just sitting" must not be taken too literally, and underlines the importance of awareness.[24] When faced against strong emotions or anxious thoughts, Cohen instructs to simply observe them withequanimity, "treating them like passing weather clouds". At the same time, he stresses not to play with and be pulled in by thoughts.[24] He comparesshikantaza to "the children's puzzle ofChinese finger cuffs, which are escaped not by forceful effort, but by non-resistance". Only by dropping the hunt forenlightenment, accepting everything without grasping or avoiding, can enlightenment be found.[24]
A modern technique described as similar toshikantaza is called "Do Nothing Meditation" byShinzen Young. The user is instructed to let go of all mental intentions, without trying to meditate or concentrate in any way. Any distraction or thought is allowed, unless the user feels they are intentionally thinking or doing something, in which case they must stop this intention and let it go, including any possible struggle at it. As a result, "eventually the mind feels very spacious, open, and relaxed, but also bright, clear, and vivid".[25][26]
Another similar description comes fromSri Nisargadatta Maharaj, inI Am That, where he recommends "letting thoughts flow and watching them and to keep the mind quiet. "The state of freedom from all thoughts will happen suddenly and by the bliss of it you shall recognize it."[27]
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