Less is more.
- clearstreamzendo
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
This week’s topic for reflection is less is more. In our society there is a constant need and desire to have and get more. Somehow we believe if we have more money or a bigger house or a more important job we will be happier. For Zen teachers sometimes there is an unspoken desire that to be more successful means having more students, more programs, more successors etc. I’m not so sure this is true for Zen teachers or actually for anyone else.
When we die we loose everything we have. We work hard our whole life accumulating everything and then in a flash we no longer have any of it. This includes our body, our home and all of our possessions. This loss could feel like a huge relief. Being responsible for all of this could be a huge burden that is finally able to be put down or released. Do we really need to be responsible for all of it?
Without needing to die, what do you have already that is actually an unnecessary burden that you could put down? You might choose to hang onto your body awhile longer and keep it functioning the best you can. There has to be things you have accumulated over the years that are no longer needed. Notice what you are unsatisfied with and then how important it really is. Perhaps look directly at the dissatisfaction and what’s behind it. Maybe it is important. Maybe not.
There is an important Buddhist story that illustrates less is more. Shakyamuni Buddha was about to give a lecture to many hundreds of followers. He reached down and picked up a flower, held it up and twirled it. His student Mahakashyapa smiled. A very simple message and response. Enough said.
In meditation as in life, less is more. Less is slowing down. Slowing way down to simply being present. Being simply present allows what is happening around and inside to show up vibrant and alive, sparkling and new. Thoreau called this wildness. Tibetan Buddhists call this spontaneity. I call it what happens in quiet stillness. The opportunity to do this is always present no matter what we’re doing or what is happening. While walking somewhere familiar or doing something you normally do, sift to being present in it and notice it for the first time. Being present is simply being without expectation. Empty out the need bucket. Pause, notice and accept what is already given. Less opens the window to everything.
Please join us for morning Zoom zazen from 7:00 to 7:30 Tuesday and Thursday, and Sunday morning Zoom zazen and discussion of the topic for reflection blog from 8:00 to 9:00 Pacific Time. Here’s the Zoom link:
Meeting ID: 811 6100 3357
Passcode: 278259
Gassho,
Futai
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