This Much I Know

Learning and thinking are like being outside the door; sitting in meditation is returning home to sit in peace. - The Buddha in the Zen Calendar (September 4, 2006).

Zen is like looking for the spectacles that are sitting on your nose. - D. T. Suzuki in the Zen Calendar (October 9, 2007).

To manage your mind, know that there is nothing, and then relinquish all attachment to the nothingness. - The Hua Hu Ching in the Zen Calendar (November 6, 2003).

Day 359.  Seven blogs left to write.  Bummer, because I have over a hundred quotes sitting on my desk.  Perish the thought I write a SINGLE day after my birthday.  We'll see.  That moment is not Now.

I find myself sitting in the need of making a list.  A list of the rather persistent truths arising while sitting zazen.  The list is titled:  This Much I Know:

I know all of Creation originates in Love.
I know Life perpetuates itself with the momentum of ceaseless perfection.
I know suffering exists in the distance between Reality and my Preferred Version of It.
I know that dwelling in Reality alleviates suffering.
I know there is nothing to be afraid of.
I know I am afraid.
I know there is no separation between me and the rest of Life.
I know I feel separate.
I know to relinquish all attachment.
I know I am attached.
I know the difference between Sitting and Intending to Sit.
I know the timer will eventually sound.
I know I may not hear it.
I know 40 minutes can feel like 40 years.

I know 40 minutes can feel like a heartbeat.

I know my shoulders and knees are the first things to get cold when I sit zazen.
I know my left side bends are deeper than my right.
I know that blood continues to flow even when my body parts are numb.

I know my mudra sags.

I know kinhin is my most potent Monkey Silencer.
I know Emptiness is endless.
I know nothing is permanent.
I know there is no Knowing.
Just This.

Gassho,
CycleBuddhaDoc