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5 easy ways to become a daily Zen spiritual master (according to Francesc Miralles)

Enlightenment is often associated with long spiritual practices or retreats far from the world, ignoring that these moments of extreme lucidity are also found in everyday life. As the Zen master Suzuki Roshi said: «You cannot live in the kingdom of God for long. There are no restaurants or toilets».

The lightning It’s not something we have to look for because it is not outside of us, according to this popular Japanese branch of Buddhism. It all depends on how clean and clear our gaze is. British scholar Tim Freke uses this analogy: “Just as the particles in a glass of dirty water settle to the bottom when we stop shaking the glass and the water becomes transparent, in the same way thoughts drop when mind is not agitated and consciousness clears».

Zen lighting in everyday life

if we can our mental lens is completely transparent, we will be able to see reality as it is. Then we can access satori, the abrupt illumination of zen, reaching a deep understanding of reality. According to this spiritual philosophy: «Before studying Zen, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers; while you are studying zen, the mountains are no longer mountains and the rivers are no longer rivers; but once you are enlightened, the mountains are mountains again and the rivers are rivers again».

Perhaps that is what the Theravada Buddhist Jack Kornfield was referring to when he titled one of his books After the ecstasy, the laundry (ed. The March Hare).

how to be a zen master in your day to day

In Zen monasteries, the monks meditate while sweeping the leaves in the patio and we can mistakenly think that it is just a matter of having a point of attention to focus the mind. But according to Alan Watts, “Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while peeling potatoes. The zen spirituality it is precisely peeling potatoes».

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Give purpose and intention to everything we are doing It is the way to find inspiration in everyday life. When you make the act of peeling a potato the center of the universe, you not only free yourself from distractions and projections that drag us into the past or future, but also you reach the deep meaning of what you do. And that brings us closer to satori.

1. Achieve Zen Spirituality when cooking

When I peel a potato I am doing more than just removing the skin. I am undressing a food that will give me vitality and energy. Once cooked, it will serve to nourish the people I love: I will give them satisfaction and the privilege of enjoying its flavor together around a table. With this approach, the daily ritual of cooking becomes an act of compassion and empathy. According to the Zen cook Edward Espe Brown in the documentary by Doris Dörrie how to cook your life: «Preparing food teaches us to treat others with love and respect. (…). When you cook with purpose, your heart and hands work more and more aligned with your clear intention (…), because your work becomes a manifesto of love. The food appears!».

2. Order and cleanliness to achieve spiritual mastery

Just as cooking can be a highway to shared love, cleaning chores are another opportunity to achieve spiritual mastery. As Keisuke Matsumoto explains in his Cleaning Manual of a Buddhist Monkthe appearance of our house is a reflection of our inner state. Living in a dirty and messy environment is a warning that things are not much better in our mental space. Thus, the monks’ daily cleansing rites go beyond focusing on the here and now. They are also an opportunity to clean and put order in your own interior.

When we are neat and tidy behind closed doors, we are also neat in our relationships with the world, as Keisuke Matsumoto points out: «Those who do not take care of objects do not take care of people either.. Any object has been created with effort and dedication. When we clean or put order, we must treat things with care».

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3. Awaken spirituality in the face of difficulties

Not only tasks such as cooking or cleaning can lead us to the spiritual awakening. Everything that happens in our day to day is an open door to wisdom and lucidity, even when reality shows its most uncomfortable aspects. Some examples:

He I deal with people who are difficult for us forces us to practice patience and refine our emotional intelligence tools. daily unforeseen and setbacks they test our resilience and the ability to focus on what is really important. days when everything goes wrong, by contrast, allow us to appreciate those of the opposite sign. Realizing that everything is part of life, that it always deserves to be celebrated, helps us to relativize and appreciate all its nuances. On this, the fable of the young fish that questions an older fish seems illustrative to me:

What is the ocean? I always hear about it, but have never found it.

Well the ocean is all around you, young man – says the older fish.

But… if that’s the case, why am I not able to see it?

Because it is everywhere. surrounds you It is inside and outside of you. In the ocean you were born and in it you will die. You are the life of the ocean. And it is precisely because it is so close to you that it is difficult for you to see it. But don’t be in any doubt: it’s here!

When we recognize the everyday teachers, then routine gives way to wonder. We appreciate each new day, as an open field for surprise and learning. This perspective allows us to access the wisdom and the development of our intellectual and spiritual capacities. And nothing ever seems the same again.

Integrative psychology teacher Ken Wilber explains the everyday zen in his work One Taste: «Early, the orange sun slowly rises, shining with a luminous, empty clarity. Mind and sky are one, the sun is rising in the vast space of primordial consciousness, and that is all. Yasutani Roshi said that the satori was the world’s most precious understandingbecause all the great philosophers have tried to understand the ultimate reality but have not succeeded, but, with satori or awakening, your deepest questions are finally answered: it is only this».

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4. Act like cats, the zen masters

the spiritual master Eckhart Tolleauthor of The power of NowHe once stated: “I have lived with several Zen masters. they were all cats». What is it about these mascots to inspire writers, artists, and even prophets?

in the novel Neko Cafeby Anna Solyomseven cats show their secrets of the art of living well:

Be true of heart.Accept everything with serenity.Take a breath.Pay attention and you will find opportunities everywhere.Watch your appearance, you never know who is watching you.Be flexible, but do not lose sight of who you are.Do not stop being curious.

5. Trust the power of your breath

Something we do all the time breathing is an entrance to knowledge.

Yoko Ono, in her first meeting with a John Lennon prey to drugs and anxiety, gave him two cards that would be his teachers. One had a hole in the center and the inscription “To see the sky through it». The other showed a single word: “breathe».

The Korean monk Thich Nhat Hanh highlights the role of breath: «Is the bridge that connects our body with our mindthe element that reconciles the body and the mind (…) It is the only tool that can unite them, illuminating both and bringing them peace and calm».

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