Zen Focus & Concentration
These articles included in the Zen Thoughts collection are intended to accompany studies of Zen Buddhism, Buddhist Meditation, or Taoism. Concepts presented in Zen Thoughts are explained and referred to in other, external zen materials typically acquired from studying literature related to Zen. Reading of the contents provided in the Zen Thoughts collections without studying Zen literature from various respected authors of the topic may not provide the value intended for the audience to attain. Please consider learning, studying, and practicing the art of meditation before attempting to understand or relate the materials offered by Papoose on the subject in order to avoid confusion or misinterpretation. Papoose assumes that readers of Zen Thoughts have a certain knowledge and insight into literature on the subject being presented.Concentration
When we set our mind on one thing or focus on achieving a specific goal, perhaps performing a particular task flawlessly, then we can accomplish anything we want. That is to say, we can accomplish any goal we set our mind to when we are able to focus our minds solely on achieving that one goal, and set our minds to performing the tasks towards achieving that goal flawlessly.
There's just one caveat; but there always is, isn't there? You have to be able to truly concentrate on each task of that goal independently so that each thought is given to the mind exclusively without any distractions interfering.
For example, think about something random; let's say the number three in an empty room. Did you imagine an empty room? Was there nothing in the room other than the number three? Did you imagine a couch? or bed? How about four walls completely barren except a sculpture of the number three, all in simple shades of black and white? No, of course you didn't. The three was probably blue or red if you were even able to imagine it alone inside of four walls. Perhaps you did imagine a bed, a dresser, a door, a light fixture, a window, flooring, a closet, pretty much everything but an empty bedroom, and all in assorted colors and shades.
If given a choice between working for the reward or performing a task mindfully, then choosing to focus on the task without thinking of the reward is the only way a task can be rewarding. In other words, in order to enjoy the benefits of performing a task perfectly, all thoughts of rewards gained from performing the task must be erased so that the mind can focus with full concentration on the task it is engaged in.
In each moment when my mind is focused on what I am doing rather than what I will gain once it is done, I can be confident in my actions leading to the task being completed properly. However, if I take a moment to notice how focused I am on the task, then I am no longer focused solely on the actions involved in performing the task. Only when I can perform a task, or series of actions, with as few mistakes as possible, when I concentrate on the action rather than the benefits of those actions, then can I be confident in the actions I have performed and expect the reward one would expect from performing those actions perfectly. With practice and proper concentration, tasks eventually are completed without any mistakes, and the reward for perfection is greater than can be bought with any form of currency, but that is only if you are concentrating on performing a just act. To decide the value of an action, one must have the right intentions.
That of course raises the question of how you know if you are doing something absolutely right. That question can be answered by the quality of the results or craftsmanship as well as the footprint left behind after a task is complete. More important than all of those factors is the intentions the actor has when deciding to commit those actions. The less the mess, the brighter the future for posterity, sure, but what about the same two actions performed with different intentions. We should all strive to reduce the impact our actions have on each other and others not yet born, but more important is the intentions when we perform our actions in the first place. Consider the actions of two persons both running for office, one to increase the happiness in his district, the other to increase the taxes so he can profit in his district. Both men perform the same actions (they are both running for office), but only one can perform those actions perfectly, for the other is clouded with thoughts of self-gains after the elections. In the same respect, if the first is overly concerned with the benefits he will provide once elected, then the actions of running for office, regardless of how noble in cause, may suffer because the mind is not engaging the necessary actions in the present moment.
The more thought and time you put into a task to ensure you are performing every little subroutine exactly as it should be done to achieve the "perfect" version of whatever results are expected from those actions, the more likely you are to find yourself a master of that particular action within that task, and the more likely you are to learn those details you never thought mattered before, but eventually realize can make a significant difference. However, to master a task and not just an action leading to accomplishing a certain task, then sometimes it is necessary to not let limitations of time interfere by concentrating on the action without interference, especially when only a short interval of time can be dedicated to planning or performing that action.
For example, when making rice, do you let any grains fall on the floor? do you throw away any unused ingredients that could be recycled? Do you count and weight each grain of rice then perform algebraic equations to ensure the perfect amount of water is boiled? If so, do you compensate for the amount of water molecules that evaporate as the water boils? Of course, the answers to these questions are obvious. If you counted every grain of rice, you would only eat once every few days. If we don't recycle things that are recyclable we cause suffering to our own children. Is the packaging you bought the rice in good for the environment? That question is usually weighed against the cost of buying large quantities of rice. Is the rice a good quality? Has it been sprayed with pesticides or chemicides? Is the water boiling too hot? or too slow? Did you rinse the starch out of the rice before cooking it? If so, what did you do with that starchy water? Even the water with the rice's starch in it can have some value, perhaps to later prepare rice milk or as a base for soup.
In answering these questions, you can see the amount of thoughts that are either ignored or engaged before and during the preparation of a simple bowl of rice. And when you cook the rice, none of these thoughts should interfere with your concentration on ensuring a healthy meal is the result. Now the question is, can you concentrate on just making the rice correctly without allowing distractions to hinder your progress?
The right concentration for any given task, especially meditation, is where you can find the greatest rewards of Zazen practices. Control yourself, control your body, control your organs, control your breathing, focus your mind on the here and now, and now, quick! Make some rice.