Zen Life

Haruka: I know you love Zen, the concept of Zen. When did you start learning it?

Mark: I started learning about Zen philosophy when I was in college

Haruka: In college?

Mark: Yeah. Zen's not really a religion, but I've studied it in a religion class. It comes from Buddhism originally.

Haruka: Was it a Japanese teacher?

Mark: No, but it was an Asian studies teacher. So he was an expert in Asian religions.

Haruka: And what was the concept of Zen by that teacher?

Mark: Well, it's difficult to explain, but Zen is basically about appreciating the little moments in life and being in the present moment. A lot of times we think about the future or we spend a lot of time thinking about the past. Zen is mostly about trying to be in the right now.

Haruka Sounds like mindfulness.

Mark: It's very close to that. Mindfulness is discussed a lot in Zen philosophy.

Haruka : So, is there a way to be good at Zen or, what I can do to-

Mark: I think I understand your question. There is no good or bad about it. It's really like, do you like taking a walk in nature sometime?

Haruka: I love it.

Mark: Yeah, me too. And I think that in essence is Zen is just appreciating the beauty in nature or the wind on your face, or, the sound of the birds and the trees. It sounds a little corny, but appreciating that moment in time, that's basically Zen.

Haruka: So if I'm enjoying this conversation right now, that means I am in Zen?

Mark: Sure. In essence, if you're in this moment, as we speak, that's a form of Zen appreciation.

Haruka: Is it possible that I will be in Zen all the time, if I'm able to enjoy every moment of my life?

Mark: That's a great question. I think it's sort of impossible to constantly be present. It's a good goal to aim for, but it's sort of like an unattainable goal, like a goal that you can't ever get to because your mind is at some point going to think about tomorrow or remember something from the past.

Haruka: How much of a day do you think you are in the Zen moment?

Mark: I've never calculated it like that. I don't know, because I catch myself all the time thinking too much about the future or reliving a memory for too long. And then when I catch myself, I bring my focus back to what I'm doing at the present moment.

Haruka : Mm. Sometimes I focus so much and I feel like I'm in the zone, but it's different from Zen?

Mark: Well, I don't really want to define it because that's the paradox or the confusing thing about Zen, the more and more you try to define it, really, the further away you get from it. It's not something that there are like rules that are written down and you follow these rules. It's really more about just being, just being alive and acknowledging that, appreciating that.

Haruka: Maybe we can both go to the Zen garden and see how it works.

Mark: That's good. I would love to talk to a Zen monk or something.

Listen Mark talk about Zen on the Zensammich Podcast: