IN THE ZEN TRADITION, you may hear such wise-guy advice from Zen masters as: "Wash the dishes when you are washing the dishes." In other words, stay put in the moment by paying full attention to exactly what is happening in the moments of our daily life. There is no other place to look for awareness or enlightenment, or whatever other multisyllabic word of the week we are using to label our spiritual aims. It's eye-opening advice when you put it to use. Try it the next time you wash dishes, when your mind is everywhere but on the dishes---and the feel of hot water on your hands and the smell of soap in your nostrils.
thoughtful
IN THE ZEN TRADITION, you may hear such wise-guy advice from Zen masters as: "Wash the dishes when you are washing the dishes." In other words, stay put in the moment by paying full attention to exactly what is happening in the moments of our daily life. There is no other place to look for awareness or enlightenment, or whatever other multisyllabic word of the week we are using to label our spiritual aims. It's eye-opening advice when you put it to use. Try it the next time you wash dishes, when your mind is everywhere but on the dishes---and the feel of hot water on your hands and the smell of soap in your nostrils.
Update on "washing dishes"
November 3rd, 2002
- bsb
(P.S. Now you know why they celebrate Hari Raya more than Chinese New Year or Deepavali. They fast.heh)