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    Existentialism and Christian Zen: An East/West Way to Christ
    Existentialism and Christian Zen: An East/West Way to Christ
    Existentialism and Christian Zen: An East/West Way to Christ
    Ebook129 pages1 hour

    Existentialism and Christian Zen: An East/West Way to Christ

    By A William McVey

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    It is a small book written for readers without an in depth background in philosophy, especially existentialism. It is an examinnation of the interface between Christian meditation and Zen Buddhism. It is contextual, and as of yet I have not included the meditation workshop book that I use when I am giving workshops on Christian Zen meditation. Presently, it is really in the format of an in depth essay. The style is siminlar to one of your publications that had led me to your site i.e Emotion and Psyche, Marc Jackson.I have presented this workshop also on college campuses in the midwest, and it was received well. It helps greatly clarify the nature o af promising and practical dialogue between Christian existentialism and the practice of Zen.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJohn Hunt Publishing
    Release dateOct 26, 2012
    ISBN9781780995946
    Existentialism and Christian Zen: An East/West Way to Christ

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      Existentialism and Christian Zen - A William McVey

      distribution.

      Introduction

      ‘Some years ago,’ William Johnston suggests, ‘Arnold Toynbee declared that when the historian of a thousand years from now comes to write the history of our time, he will be preoccupied not with the Viet Nam war, not with the struggle between capitalism and communism, not with racial strife, but with what happened when, for the first time, Christianity and Buddhism began to penetrate one another deeply’ (Johnston 1979, 1). This was written by William Johnston in the late 1970s; since then, the interest in Buddhism on the part of Western theologians has grown. Johnston describes his dialogue with Buddhism from a limited perspective: ‘I have called this little book Christian Zen, but the contents are less ambitious than the pretentious title might suggest. Rather than treating of the confluence of two vast traditions of East and West, I simply try to say something about how Zen and Christianity have met in me, setting down some practical conclusions that this meeting has evoked’ (Johnston 1979, 1).

      I am not interested in examining in any theological depth the meeting of the Western and Eastern mind. I approach the issue of Eastern spiritual techniques strictly as a pragmatic pastor in a postmodern culture. Furthermore, I am concerned with the finding of the calm mind in these days of anxiety. Most often, Western Christians view mysticism and meditation as a type of esoteric practice that seems strange to the ordinary person. As a pastor, it is my calling to dispel this serious misconception.

      This book is divided into three sections. Part One builds on the existential awareness of no-thing and the relationship between the Zen concept of Mu and the Christian mystical practice of Via Negativa. Part Two develops the fundamental existential concept of will (volition), the practice of Christian Zen and the discovery of hope. Part Three merely lays out some suggested methods of Christian Zen style meditation.

      Part One

      Christian Zen, the Existential Center

      and No-thing

      1

      The Practice of Self Realization

      Philip Kapleau, in the preface to The Three Pillars of Zen, clearly holds that:

      Briefly stated, Zen is a religion with a unique method of body-mind training whose aim is Self Realization … At the profoundest level Zen, like every other great religion, transcends its own teachings and practices, yet at the same time there is no Zen apart from these practices. Attempts in the West to isolate Zen in a vacuum of the intellect, cut off from the very disciplines which are its raison d’etre, have nourished in places a pseudo-Zen that is little more than a mind tickling diversion. I believe that the Japanese school of Zen Buddhism has perhaps for thousands of years remained the most faithful to the original mindfulness practice of the Buddha that leads to enlightenment (satori).

      (Kapleau 1980, 69)

      Kapleau’s book is about the closest a Westerner might get to a sense of the teachings of Zen Buddhism. Even people who have practiced a combination of various forms of Eastern and Western meditation find it difficult to read. It serves to give a genuine insight into Zen, while simultaneously portraying how difficult it is for a Western left-brain person to comprehend.

      Kapleau’s explanation of Zen, I have found, fits well with my heart, mind and most of all my existential wondering soul. In terms of existential philosophy and therapy, we wander and worry about the lack of meaning in postmodern society. Without meaning in our life, we are driven by our anxiety-based nature and all of its manifestations in the ego. In existentialism, the solution to our anxiety-driven wandering is found by reaching into the deepest elements of humanity. When we explore our being, the existentialist always returns to the core person that recognizes a call to live courageously:

      A chief characteristic of this courage is that it requires centeredness within our own being, without which we would feel ourselves to be a vacuum. The emptiness within corresponds to an apathy without, and apathy adds up, in the long run, to cowardice. This is why we must always base our commitment in the center of our own being, or else no commitment will be ultimately authentic … Courage is not a virtue or value among other personal values like love or fidelity. It is the foundation that underlies and gives reality to all other virtues and personal values. Without courage our fidelity becomes conformism.

      (May 1975, 13)

      In an existential analysis, our higher power is the discovery of mind.

      Kapleau explains Zen as a religious practice. He does not say religious beliefs or institutions; rather it is a religious practice. It is a religious practice because in Zen there is a belief in the dharma, i.e. the proven way of Zen. Furthermore, Zen has a faith in the power of satori (enlightenment); in other words, it has a belief in the higher mind. In Zen, like existentialism, there is no unconscious mind; there is only the mind. If you ask a true Zen master where the mind is, then he will tell you, ‘The mind is where you focus.’ In Zen, there is a salvific belief in the discovery of the ‘Original Mind.’ It is where we go to find our true nature, and it is by means of our Original Mind that we find the solution to pain, suffering and anxiety:

      If you would free yourself of the sufferings of samsara (the law of causation), you must learn the direct way to become a Buddha. This way is no other than the realization of your own mind. Now what is this mind? It is the true nature of all sentient beings, that which existed before our parents were born. This mind is intrinsically pure. When we are born, it is not newly created, and when we die, it does not perish. It has no distinction of male or female, nor has it any coloration of good or bad. It cannot be compared with anything, so it is called Buddha nature. Yet countless thoughts issue from this self-nature as waves arise in the ocean or as images are reflected in the mirror.

      To realize your own mind you must first of all look into the source from which thoughts flow. Sleeping and working, standing and sitting, profoundly ask yourself, ‘What is my own mind?’ with an intense yearning to resolve this question. This is called ‘training’ or ‘practice’ or ‘desire for truth’ or ‘thirst for realization.’

      (Kapleau 1980, 193)

      2

      The Existential Center

      What we have here from the perspective of an existential analysis is the courageous pursuit of meaning that awaits us at the center of our existence. Perhaps the existential core that is discovered in contemplation, art, music and poetry is somewhat similar to this Zen Mind. It takes a courageous effort of time and practice to come to enlightenment and belief in the dharma of the ‘Original Mind.’ It takes a courageous belief in the teachings of the Zen masters to trust them and enter on the journey to the Original Mind. In Zen, the true self is like the moon that cannot be seen because it is covered by the clouds. The Zen clouds are the three delusions of anger, greed and ignorance.

      Anxiety is a combination of thoughts and feelings that comes from the ego driven by the need for self-esteem, affluence and the lack of courage to look for our true self. The three delusions clearly address the issue of anxiety and removing the anxiety clouds that keep us from the Original Mind. It

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