Eliminating our old habits

We are even unconsciously habituated to a limited way of searching for truth, so that in the example of Zen what we often discover to be the truth is still stuck within our human sensory sphere.  We haven't pierced through this sphere which is what Zen is asking us to do.  We prefer our old ways.  They served us well in the past and they will work when it comes to seeing our true nature or kensho.  But in the past our attention was mainly directed to the outside—not the inside.  Nope, our old ways ain't gonna work.  

Our life's great journey began on the outside and we expect that it will end there in some as yet, unimaginable way.  Who knows we might become wealthy and famous.  This, however, is all wrong.  As regards Zen, the journey begins on the inside, and this is after we jettison our old habits.

We can't afford to search for truth using our former methods.  If we choose to search in this way, we will fail at Zen except to be able to sit on a zafu for forty minutes.  Is this a great accomplishment?  Not really.  We just conformed to what someone else imagines Zen to be who, obviously, has only read the parts of Zen he or she agrees with which concerns zazen.  Yes, groups zazen can be fun but awakening to our true nature which is luminous is infinitely better.  This is what the old Zen sages were trying to get their students to realize.

Eliminating our old habits, which help to keep our spiritual blinkers on, is half the battle.  We can't expect kensho, that is, seeing our luminous nature, by letting our old  habits do the thinking for us.  This is when it sometimes requires a good teacher, but not one who is going to say the magic word and make us a Buddha.  I hate to say this, but becoming a good student takes a lot of hard work.  One has to get to the point where they have internalized the teacher.  Students who, after five or more years, are still "teacher dependent" have not as yet internalized the teacher.  To be honest, a good teacher's job is to help the student to internalize the proper Zen teacher.  From there one can work their way to kensho.  They have what it takes to realize pure Mind.

Comments

[poptart]

A good teacher is like a mirror, making us examine ourselves. Friends enable and reinforce our habits one way or another. A teacher is not a friend, but far more valuable. Not everyone is fit to be a teacher, it's a very demanding role.