End your anxiety, depression, and stress with this Japanese and Chinese meditation technique called Zazen [座禅]. The goal of zazen is “just sitting,” with an open mind, without clinging to thoughts.
Zazen is the main form of Zen Buddhist meditation. Where za [座] means to sit; while zen [禅] refers to a state of deep and subtle meditation. It’s hard to explain zazen with words, it’s better to practice it.
The practice of zazen consists of sitting in a comfortable position, with an upright spine, for periods of up to 40 minutes, interspersed with Kinhin meditation.
How to Do Zazen
We recommend doing zazen in a calm, clean place without disturbances. It should not be a dark place nor too bright. Meditation can be done alone, but in a group it can be more stimulating.
Zen Buddhist practitioners often use an image of Monjushri Bodhisattva or another image of the Buddha. This meditation should not be done when tired, drunk, hungry, or with a full stomach.
Clothes should be comfortable and should not be dirty, luxurious, or heavy. Place a zabuton in front of a wall and put a zafu on top of it (these are cushions).
Sit down, positioning the base of your spine in the center of the zafu, so that half of the zafu is behind you. After crossing your legs, firmly rest your knees on the zabuton.
Observe everything around you. Let your thoughts and feelings come and go, do not try to control or eliminate them, let them be free. Maintain abdominal breathing, with short inhales and long exhales.
During zazen, our hands are positioned forming an ellipse, which represents the cosmos within us, and us in the cosmos. With palms facing up, we rest the fingers of the left hand on the fingers of the right hand. This is called Hokkaijoin.
Kinhin is zazen in motion, walking. It usually lasts ten minutes and is done in the zazen room. It serves to stimulate circulation and allow us to sit again in zazen.
In meditation, you can also sway your body with palms facing up on your knees. Rock your body from side to side, forward and backward, then form the hokkai-join again.
Do not focus on any object, nor try to control your thoughts. When you maintain a correct posture and your breathing calms down, your mind will naturally become tranquil.
Much Better Breathing
My friend and Sensei Roberto Pedraça has a course called Much Better Breathing that focuses a lot on meditation along with breathing and brings results 50 times better than Zazen meditation.
While Zazen meditation is based on Buddhism, Much Better Breathing involves various scientifically proven breathing methodologies. In other words, it can be practiced by anyone who is not Buddhist.
In fact, you don’t need all this ritual, worship, planning, cushions, time, and posture to achieve good results with meditation and breathing. Much Better Breathing exists to simplify all of this.
The course is comprehensive and also teaches meditation, diets, NLP, EFT, and some techniques to solve the main problems in your life. I think it’s worth taking a look by clicking the link below.
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