Someone who knows little about « Zen » asked today whether I « practiced » everyday.
Well… I thought of saying, « I’m practicing right now. »
But I didn’t.
I asked him, « Do you mean formally? » Which was not really what I was thinking, but it was what he was thinking.
Launching into something about nonduality and not creating artificial separations between « everyday life » and some special « practice life » would not have been helpful. Instead, I told him something about regular sitting and also something about trying to be aware of whatever is at hand, moment to moment, and acting freely, selflessly, in accord with that.
I don’t know what he thought. But he was smiling brightly when we parted.
I’m practicing right now
About the Author: zenscribe
Enseignante Zen et poète, Sensei Amy “Tu es cela” Hollowell est née et a grandi à Minneapolis, aux Etats-Unis. Arrivée en France en 1981 pour étudier la littérature et l’histoire, elle y est restée, s’installant à Paris, où elle élève ses deux enfants et gagne sa vie en tant que journaliste.
The Zen teacher and poet Amy “Tu es cela” Hollowell Sensei was born and raised in Minneapolis, but came to France in 1981 to study literature and history and has lived in Paris ever since, raising her two children and making a living as a journalist.
"trying to be aware of whatever is at hand, moment to moment, and acting freely, selflessly, in accord with that" : j’entends "pratiquer"…