A conversation between 2 friends on Zen:

N: To live in the realm of Buddha nature means to die as a smallbeing, moment after moment.

J: This is such a pessimistic thought.

N: Its referrring to the death of Small being in us to realize our true nature of all encompassing being.The small me dies with its small thinking like I want this, I am this I am good bad, people are like this and that etc.... the being which is continuously chattering in us.... al the incessant, never ending talking we do with ourself ... that me which does the talking dies....then there is only awareness without identification....Then we see with a Big Mind...
N: The Big mind sees-sees-hears- senses what is all around and which couldnt be noticed otherwise.. without attaching itself to anything in particular.

J: hmmm.....ok Now it makes a bit of sense :)

N: The true understanding is that the mind includes everything,not just this car or that phone or this person and not this -only muslim not hindu. etc

J: hmmm
N: Nothing outside yourself can cause any trouble.You yourself make the waves in your mind.includes me :-) If you leave your mind as it is, it will become calm. This mind is called big mind.And our attitude towards your life will be different according to which understanding we have.

J: yeah

N: Then we understand that all the problems, petty arguments, differences, opinions, beliefs,
liking/disliking,desires, depression, over-excitedness, etc every little thing all arise because each one of us has created his own unique smalll world around himself and believes that as the true image of reality....whereas in reality, reality only is.:-)
N: Actually all this talk can only point the way...Each one of us has to walk it on our own. No point discussing the journey and describing the destination...because there is only the way and you on itonly to realize that the way is not a means to a destination but that the way is the end in itself.

J: hmmmmm.....

N: because there is only the way and you on it.only to realize that the way is not a means to a destination but that the way is the end in itself.

J: hmmm

N: Zazen is the direct expression of our true self. So in Zazen even though you do not do anything, You are expressing your true nature.

J: Actually "We say the nature of human mind is always to seek something"-one thing or the other. Does that not become its true nature than just keeping it shut against all those kind of thoughts by nature.....our mind is always seeking things and that could be termed as its true nature. Civilizations cannot prolong itself by being away from its true nature.

N: Actually we are not supposed to suppress all our thoughts at all. All we have to do is to leave them alone by not reacting to it.

J: Isnt that too against our nature? We all get thoughts and naturally react to it So isnt that our true nature?

N: When you do this you will see that they go away on their own. Like clouds in the sky or breeze in the room and we actually see how they have been controlling us. Or like ripples in a lake.

J: ok.So we can apply this to bad thoughts.

N: yes.We just watch them- come and go of their own accord.

J: Lets say...u get a thought that I should prastice zazen...which is a good thought.You dont let it go off like a breeze in the room or clouds :) isnt it?

N: Even thought of zazen is like that, yes. Thought of everything,thought of practising, thought of enlightenment,most thoughts are all in the small mind.
N: But they say thought of enlightenment is wonderful, but in elightenment there are no limiting thoughts.So we cant really think of enlightenment in a state of enlightenment cos there is nothing .... to think of.

J: hmmmm

N: So when you play music, you only play music, when you eat you only eat. When you very tired u just sleep.

J: Yes but at the same time some thought will prompt you to play music and this thought will come to your mind when u are doing something else right? ?? It cannot be like we do something and then take a break to get a thought for the next thing to be done and then do that thing.

N: Our every activity is shadowed by some preconceived idea.... U re right. and this thinking normally leaves some trace.The thinking not only leaves some traceo residue, but also gives us many other notions about other activities and things.
N: As a result the next action becomes complicated cos it came out of a multiplicity of relative thoughts. If thinking leaves no trace then you are already into the action without being able to point that this is where thought ended and action began. There is only music- only the doing- no duality of a Musician and his activity. This thinking leaves no trace.

J: hmmm. ok

N: For instance, you may say,"This is what I have done!"But actually it is not so. In your recollection you may say, "I did such and such a thing in some certain way," but actually that is never exactly whathappened.... they are merely words, conceptions that limit the actual experience of what we actually did.

J: hmmm

N: Like we shared the other day"As soon as you see something, you already start to intellectualize it. As soon as you intellectualize something, it is no longer what you saw." Intellectualizing is also thinking, complex thinking.Its like ...
I want to sit and Study then, You just sit and Study.
Its not... " I think its time to study. What do I do.... Whats the time now.....already late. I am tired also.
The subject is difficult.... I ve also missed the class. I dont know if I will follow anything that I will read. May be timorrow early morning,or after dinner or a smoke. or maybe I call a friend and ask him what he is doing. what is his strategy...Am I sure of the dates of exam?

J: yeah..... :) I get it.:)
N: It only gets more complicated than the actual process of studying When you wanna do something you just do that thing. When I decide to sit, just shut up and sit. If I start thinking ... is it a good time. this and that then there is no end to it.

J: yeah

N: So in Zen Centre... there is nothing like Should I do this? There is only ..Just Do It. In Singapore Centre they gifted me a hand bag. Its says one line: Just Do It.

The "It" is already thought of.

J: hmmm

N: Every word makes so much sense. Just - Do - It.

J: hmmm true

N: This is how it is.... So what do we do then? :-)

J: ok ...Lemme think and tell you :) :P

N: Actually I did not answer a single of your question, I was only a medium.
I have not realized so much, u know that. These are Master Shunryu Suzuki's answer.
So in a way both of us are blessed. I got involved so much that I had ready answers from one of his books I am reading. :-)

J: hmmmm... :)
Naveen: I