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Teaching You Zazen 3: Foundational Preparatory Work Before Zazen

2007/8/14 22:42:24

First, the answers to those two questions from this afternoon:

  1. Has the current daily-chart divergence segment been resolved?

Of course not. What this current segment needs to be compared with is the segment from last August to May 29th of this year. Why? Because the two hubs before and after this segment are of the same level, while the one around Chinese New Year is not. From the strokes and line segments on the daily chart, you can see that both the preceding and following hubs are composed of three strokes, while the one at Chinese New Year has only one stroke. Of course, for more detailed classification, you can distinguish hub levels from the 1-minute chart.

  1. After the 1/2 line of 4174 is broken through, where is the next real resistance line?

It's the 2/3 line. Where it currently is—calculate it yourselves.

Here's another question to think about: what is the relationship between strokes and line segments on the daily chart and the daily hub on the 1-minute chart?

Modern people—the fires of greed, anger, delusion, doubt, and arrogance burn fiercely. Consumed by all manner of temptations, both body and mind are damaged. Without first undertaking remediation, it's all just foolishness. For modern people, starting from the faculty of mind is difficult to achieve. It is more prudent to begin with remediation of the body faculty.

All people carry illness in their bodies. Illness is of two kinds: one arises from present karma, the other lies dormant from past karma. The latter cannot be treated by any medical means. The former can be somewhat aided through medicine. However, what medicine cures cannot sever the root; ultimately, like wildfire meeting spring breeze, it cannot be burned away completely and will eventually bring calamity.

Illness does not leave the body. Without a body, where would illness come from? To remove illness, one must purify one's bodily karma. With bodily karma impure, a hundred illnesses follow. The karma of mind, speech, and body are intertwined in continuous succession. To have pure bodily karma while mind and speech karma remain impure—that is impossible. Purify one portion of bodily karma, and you simultaneously purify one portion of mind karma and speech karma. Starting from the body faculty, eliminate them one by one.

Ordinary people have blocked qi-meridians, so naturally a hundred illnesses never leave their side. To purify bodily karma, one must first open the qi-meridians. Yet the qi-meridians are inherently open—people block them themselves. Modern people are clever in petty ways but devoid of wisdom. One must use a fixed method to cut off their cleverness, only then allowing the natural mechanism to flow freely.

In daily life, in a place without other people, turn off all communication devices, eliminate all disturbances. Stand with feet slightly apart, shoulder-width, entire body relaxed. Tuck the chin slightly in, let the gaze withdraw and eyes gently half-close. Hold the thought-intention that the area from the soles of the feet to the diaphragm is filled with qi. The qi rises from the diaphragm upward, and from the chest cavity to the head, it is like a single air nozzle, with qi from below the diaphragm streaming up ceaselessly.

Note: the qi streaming upward is entirely caused by natural breathing—do not regulate it with conscious intention. And treating the area from the chest to the head as an air nozzle means the heart and brain are as if nonexistent. The heart and brain are evolutionary products. Ancient organisms had no heart and no brain, yet they could still perceive and feel. That humans seemingly require the heart-brain function to know what they know is merely due to the force of karma.

For the above procedure, do not sustain it too long at first. You must reach this degree: the moment the thought-intention arises, the above procedure is immediately and perfectly completed. At that point, there is no need for a special standing posture—in any posture, at any time, even while giving a speech, indulging, having a one-night stand, or sleeping, it is accomplished in a single thought. And that thought can last ten thousand years in one thought, one thought spanning ten thousand years. That thought can start and stop at will, coming and going freely.

Generally speaking, after this procedure continues for some time, illness will arrive—especially illnesses you've never had before, appearing suddenly. This is because once the body faculty is activated, the dormant illness-roots that were lurking also activate along with it. In severe cases, the entire body may ooze pus and rot beyond recognition. At this point, one must maintain right observation. Ordinary people, upon reaching this stage, will certainly retreat, or perhaps cannot even retreat. Without great wisdom and great meditative stability, there can be no accomplishment.

Note: the above procedure is this ID's own method—fast in effect and steep in grade. Ordinary people whose understanding of Zen principles is not thorough, and who lack the great determination to resolve the matter of life and death, must absolutely not attempt this.

Once about seventy to eighty percent of the body's toxins have been eliminated, the qi mechanism will certainly activate, filling the entire body with righteous qi, rendering it impervious to illness. However, the remaining twenty to thirty percent of dormant illness cannot be removed by this alone—the road is still long.