Zazen
Zazen (Japanese座 禅, dt " sitting meditation " ) refers to a technique of meditation of Zen Buddhism. This is to bring body and mind to rest and prepare the ground for mystical experiences as Kensho or Satori.
Posture
Can zazen in the lotus seat ( Kekka - Fuza ), in the half lotus position ( Hanka - Fuza ), the so-called Burmese seat or in the heel seat ( seiza ) are performed. Tools are the seat cushion ( zafu ) with the underlying mat ( Zabuton ) in Zen. Footstool or meditation bench also be used but considered less effective because the extremities are positioned near the body center by the traditional way of sitting and thus allow a more centered stance. Which seat is always selected, the knee to the floor.
Zazen is practiced in stable emphasized upright in itself resting posture that ensures a harmonious relationship between tension and relaxation. The hands are often held just in so-called meditation mudra below the navel, one hand lying with her back in the face of the other and touch the tips of the thumb over it. Zazen can be practiced in a chair when physical conditions do not permit sitting on the floor. Also in this case, the posture is erect and the back free of any dependence. During zazen, the body is not moving, since the outer, physical discipline of the inner, spiritual observation and concentration provides support.
While it is common in the Soto Zen to sit with his face to the wall, as once Bodhidharma, the meditators sit in the Rinzai Zen with his back to the wall. Even if the eyes in zazen are usually open or semi-open, is taken from any active Look distance. Long zazen phases are separated by the monastic practice of a walking meditation ( Kinhin ). It is recommended to maintain the attitude of about 20 minutes; by years of practice also significantly longer seat - phases are possible.
Attitude
The practice of meditation knows different variants, but always it is carried out in complete mindfulness. It represents, at least at the beginning, a physical and psychological burden for the students dar. Through self- observation of the body, its posture and breathing (eg consideration of the respiratory flow and the sensations, the thought processes and consciousness ) connects the practitioner to the present location and moment. Since your body and mind are not separate, the posture has a direct effect on the sensation, thinking, and the physical- mental state. By attitude, observation and concentration of the stream of thoughts comes to rest or is temporarily interrupted completely. The manifest also in the body life experiences and subconscious appear in this attitude of mind and may come off.
But zazen has no defined objective and no significance that goes beyond the seats themselves. Therefore, there is hardly traditional general instructions except the reference to mindfulness. Zazen is often called just "practice" in order to emphasize the departure from the theoretical employment. Only in the concrete exercise, for example, during a sesshin, the Zen teacher enters into individual discussions ( dokusan ) and lectures ( Teisho ) on the current experiences and difficulties of practitioners.
Occurring physical pain by - unusual for Beginners - attitude are not displaced during zazen, but not ignored. The same applies to unusual perceptual and sensory experiences that are called Makyos. With this Zen practice the experience of silence and emptiness is possible. From this collected state can suddenly enter a mystical experience, which is called in Zen Kensho or Satori. In particular, Satori can be used as the experience of the original universal unit or as the abolition of all opposites - in particular the separation of subject and object to be understood.
Zazen and Science
From a scientific perspective Zazen is a difficult topic to Exploring. As mentioned above it is a subjective experience, but science tries to gain intersubjectively comprehensible positions in order to obtain such an objective opinion. So Scientific conclusions do not necessarily reflect the experience of zazen practitioners resist, the science is simply trying to make the causes of that subjective experience visible. Thus, the brain waves meditator were examined with an EEG device in a study.
Interestingly, the researchers appeared obviously the relationship between habituation ( habituation ) and zazen practice. With the help of EEG brain waves are visible, machined into a graph and recyclable. The various manifestations of these waves are divided. Interesting for the experiment are the so-called " alpha waves ". When a person is mentally active forever, so even if he is exposed to a stimulus, these alpha waves are interrupted. With repetition of the same stimulus, this blocking flattened. In the documentation of the experiment, the ticking of a clock is called an example: the first tick of the alpha waves are blocked as long as you pay attention to the ticking, but as soon as you focus on something else, you can hear the ticking of not more aware of the alpha - wave blocking flattens: habituation. While the phenomenon of habituation in subjects who do not practice zazen entered, so it was accounted for in the experiment with a Zen master. This seemed to hear every single tick of the clock.
Zazen apparently helps the meditator to better control its habituation.