Zazen Meditation Benefits

Benefits of Meditation, Deep Zen Meditation, Zazan MeditationDeep Zen Meditation Read on to find out more about Deep Zen Meditation…
Enlarge ImageBackground Deep Zen Meditation or Zazen Meditation is a part of Zen Buddhism. A part of Mahayana Buddhism, Zen places an importance on experiencing life as it is, without any structure or belief system. Zazen is an important part of the process of experiencing this kind of ‘bliss’. Zazen means ’sitting meditation’ and is usually done in a variety of sitting postures. This form of deep meditation is quite akin to yoga. One can meditate either by oneself at one’s home, or one can participate in long sessions of Deep Zen meditation held at various meditation halls. This type of meditation practice is
Your hands are to be folded in a ‘mudra’ near the belly. The dominant hand is held, palm upwards, holding the other hand (also palm upwards), so that the knuckles of both hands overlap each other and the thumbs are touching each other lightly, forming an oval. Wear comfortable, loose clothing that allows you to breathe easily and lets your blood circulate smoothly. The mouth is closed and the tongue is to be pressed slightly against the upper palate, which reduces salivation. During the meditation, you breathe in from the ‘hara’ or the stomach chakra, and your eyelids are half closed. The hara is located two inches below the navel. Focus your mind on this part of the body. Breathe in and out from your nose and let the breath move in and out of this chakra. Watch the breath. This is a very important aspect of Deep Zen Meditation which brings a focus on Concentration or ‘Joriki’. While watching or observing this inhaling and exhaling of the breath, thoughts will come, as they always do. The process is to look at the thought, acknowledge it and consciously let it go. In time, you will reach the place of ‘no thought’ and you will find that your awareness is heightened. The idea is not to suppress these thoughts, but to acknowledge their presence and let them go with complete awareness. Once this state has been achieved, one can move on to the next step. This is called Koan Interpretation, where you focus your thoughts on to a Koan as the goal of that meditation. Solving a Koan is not an intellectual exercise. It serves to open up thought processes and pathways inside your mind. The third state in Zen Meditation, is called ‘Shikantaza’ or Just Sitting. This is a form of meditation which is objectless where one uses the power of concentration acquired from the previous stages to see all things in the present moment with complete awareness.What does all this Do for Me? The process of Deep