B JUST SIT

Shikantaza (Just Sitting)

In the Soto sect, we use the expression ‘Shikantaza’. This means to ‘just sit’. It doesn’t mean that the zazen referred to as shikantaza has a certain fixed form. To ‘just sit’ means to be one with zazen to the extent that you forget ‘I am sitting’. In Buddhism, there is an expression ‘entering samadhi by listening, thinking, and practising’. From the standpoint of the practice of the Way of Buddha, this is very important and something that you must remember. This means it is necessary to listen carefully to the teaching of the Buddha and those who have transmitted the Dharma, think thoroughly about what you have heard, and then put it into practice. By following this sequence, you can enter samadhi (awaken). You must remember that Zen (the Buddha-dharma) begins first with listening to a true master speak about the Dharma.