Understand Your True Self

When we sit in meditation it is often easy to fall into a daydream or relive old conversations or think about future events. This can be especially true if our direction in practice is not clear. Zen Master Seung Sahn said, “To practice correctly, we need two things - correct direction and try mind.” So what is correct direction? What does that mean?

When I first started sitting at the zen center, I was always so relieved and happy to be there. My job was often stressful with long hours and being at the zen center meant complete silence and relaxation. Although I had a Great Question about life and consciousness and purpose, I would often sit a retreat completely in a blissed out daydream - enjoying the rest and the peace. For that time that was my direction - my purpose for being there. Enjoying a little peace mind is ok, but it is not the purpose of our meditation practice. Our direction in practice is to see our True Nature and then to begin living our lives out of that understanding so that we can be of service to and show compassion for the world around us.

So how do we avoid the pitfall I fell into so many years ago? Intention. It is intention that helps us to stay with a clear direction for practice. The internet offers all kinds of advice on setting an intention, but it doesn’t have to be that complicated. Simply let intention be there and then let it guide you to be aware of each moment of practice - lighting a piece of incense, your posture, your breath, your mantra - all of it guiding you to understand your True Self.