Run With Mu

Still running through a string of 100+ degree days. The air last Wednesday night was almost a solid, living object, suffocating to breathe in and move through. It’s good for my practice! At least, that’s what I keep telling myself. Now I’m heading into two consecutive hard weeks of running and with the temps showing little signs of abating, although there is hope of a cold front taking the thermometer a notch below 100 by the weekend. Break out those sweaters; fall is on the way.

I’ve given a little more thought to how a beginner’s Zen meditation practice might look, and I looked to my running for inspiration. Like race training, you could start meditating by building a “base” (a standard level of meditation fitness) for six months or so and go from there.

Of course, as with running, you want to make sure you start out with the right technique and proper equipment. Here’s one site that can help with the basics, and here’s another. Surf around and you’re liable to find a few more. If there is a zendo near you that offers sitting for beginners, don’t be shy about attending and learning first-hand from experienced teachers/lay meditators, which is really the best way to learn – from others, face–to-face. And just because you go to the zendo doesn’t mean you have to shave your head and take the Buddhist Precepts or anything. At least, it shouldn’t — if they tell you otherwise, run away fast!

If you’re just starting, I wouldn’t recommend reading any Zen books of any sort beyond the simple basics of sitting. Reading too much about Zen early on will only make you think it’s more complicated than it is, and it’s not. Well, it’s not supposed to be, anyway. And any book, however well written (and there are some very good ones), pales next to the real experience. If you want to sit, then don’t read about it. Sit. After about 5-6 months of regular sitting, look for some very basic classics of Zen literature, like this one. Especially that one. And it will resonate much more deeply with you once you have sat for awhile.

If you’ve never sat before, here’s what a suggested first-week program for a Zen practitioner might look like:

Day 1-5: 10 minute sit (breath counting)
Day 6: 15-minute sit (breath counting)
Day 7: 10-15 minute cross train (an alternate form of meditation, such as visualization or other guided meditation)

Days 6-7 are intended as longer sessions for whatever you consider your “weekend,” when you should have more time to sit and can focus more readily. Days 1-6 are strict zazen, with the focus on counting the breath and coming back to the breath when attention wanders. Day 7 is something I’ve always thought would be interesting: try another form of meditation other than plain vanilla zazen, just to explore a little once a week and satisfy your curiosity. There are many different types to explore and I’d suggest just follow your curiosity and see where it leads you.

With each successive week, increase the time you spend meditating by 10%. For week 2 that would mean adding a minute to your 10-minute sit for days 1-5 and adding 1-2 minutes for days 6-7. I wouldn’t sit for more than 25-30 minutes without doing 2-5 minutes of kinhin (walking meditation) between one sit and the next. Of course, it all depends on how much time you have – maybe 25-30 minutes a day is all you can handle. Maybe you never get beyond the schedule outlined in week 1. That’s okay; no problem.

For those who continue building their meditation base, keep sitting for about six months, then (if you have a zendo near you) consider trying a zazenkai (all-day sit) or a weekend sesshin (intensive meditation retreat). Or, if there’s not a zendo near you, try to block out at least a weekend morning, afternoon or evening for a more intensive sitting/kinhin session on your own.

These are rudimentary thoughts on how a beginner’s “training schedule” for Zen meditation might look and are certainly not hammered into stone. If you want to learn more, look around … plenty of resources out there. Most of all, enjoy your meditation. It’s not intended to be another thing on the To Do list. It’s just sitting!