Three Rounds of 4-4-6
Follow the circle — four seconds in, four held, six out. Three rounds lower the pulse and return you to the present moment.
应无所住而生其心。
Give rise to the mind without abiding anywhere. — Diamond Sutra
The circle breathes for you: the golden orb swells on the in-breath, stills at the top, and settles on the out. Keep the count with your eyes; let the shoulders drop.
Then read today's verse →Three Passages to Sit With
Not for memorizing — for returning to. Read one slowly, then close the page and let it work.
Three Old Questions
Koans are not riddles to solve. They are doors that open when the solving mind stops.
Does a dog have Buddha-nature?
A monk asked Zhaozhou: “Does a dog have Buddha-nature?” Zhaozhou said: “Wu” — 無, none, no-thing.
Why did Bodhidharma come from the West?
The master’s answer was always the same, and never the same twice: “The cypress tree in the courtyard.”
What is the meaning of Chan?
A monk asked Zhaozhou again. Zhaozhou said: “Go drink some tea.” — 吃茶去.
Five One-Minute Practices
No cushion required. Each fits into a minute of an ordinary day.
The door breath — one full in, one full out before you open the door to work or home.
The tea mind — when the cup is in your hands, it is only tea. Nothing else exists for ten seconds.
The red light — a traffic light is a bell. Breathe until it changes.
The unfinished sentence — before reacting, count to four. Then speak.
The last step — on the final step into bed, let the day go. The mind can rest now.
Chan and the other OmniDraco doors
Meditation is the companion practice to everything else here: sit for a minute before you draw a fortune stick, breathe before you read today's almanac, and let a verse from the daily cycle of 1,080 carry into your day.