Shikantaza: Only Sit

Text

Shikantaza means only sit. Not sit and pray, not sit and concentrate on a mantra, not sit and try to understand a koan. Only sit. The body sits, the breath comes and goes, and that is enough. Dōgen said zazen itself is enlightenment—not the cause, not the means, but enlightenment as it actually appears. When you sit shikantaza, the Buddhas of all directions sit with you. There is no second step.

license: fair_use

Attribution

• Attributed To
  Taisen Deshimaru

Lineage: Sōtō

By Taisen Deshimaru

• Just Sitproverb
• The Cosmos in the Postureproverb
• Automatic Thinkingproverb
• Observe Your Own Mindproverb
• Mushotoku: Without Seeking Gainsaying

From Teachings of Taisen Deshimaru

• Just Sit
• The Cosmos in the Posture
• Automatic Thinking
• Observe Your Own Mind
• Mushotoku: Without Seeking Gain
• Hishiryo: Beyond Thinking
• The Posture Is the Teaching
• True Zen Is Useless
• Here, Now, Nothing Else
• Kontin and Sanran: The Two Sicknesses of Zazen

Sources

• contentZen Deshimaru - The history of Zen, from the Buddha to the modern world

  Zen Deshimaru Buddhist Association

  Kusen on shikantaza, AZI dōjō transcripts

  Teachings of Taisen Deshimaru: Shikantaza: Only Sit