What Is The Purpose Of Zazen?

09/08/2015 19 min
What Is The Purpose Of Zazen?

Listen "What Is The Purpose Of Zazen?"

Episode Synopsis

This talk is the first talk given at the Sawtell Zendo, and is a commentary on a famous zen story. In this story, the teacher asks the student, “what is your purpose or intention in doing Zazen?” and the student replies, “I seek to become a Buddha”. Thereupon the teacher picks up a roofing tile and begins to rub it with a stone. The student asks, “Teacher, what are you doing that for?” and the teacher replies, I am polishing this tile to make a mirror”. The student replies aghast, “but you can’t make a mirror by polishing a tile!” The teacher responds with “can a Buddha be created by doing Zazen?”