Doing

Inevitably we often thought that the way of realisation is through doing. This comes to the point where Zen masters say chan is about walking,staying, seating and sleeping. That derives the point that chan is doing, chan is eating and chan is even doing big things.

But we do see people and sometimes even ourself during our path of practise we get frustrated, and even lost our meaning in doing. Somethings we expect to do alot and "faithfully" thought some Devas and Buddhas will see us in good light. But I do wonder does a clay statutue really listens to us :) And if even they do, are we doing the right things? Expecting less we have lesser worries. And without mindfulness, doing becomes a chore and all we get is tireness.

To quote from Ajahn Brahm "Simply this moment - chapter on Between the observer and the observed,

The point is where do greed, hatred and delusion live? Where do the five hindrances go? Do they live in your body? Do they live in the food you eat? Do they live in the bricks you lay or the broom or the leaves you are sweeping?

This is an important point not only to your success as a monastic and to your harmony with friends and other monks, but also to your process in meditation. Those hindrance do not live in then broom, nor do they live in your citta (mind). They live between you and the object.....

Too often people put their mindfulness on the object or put their mindfulness on the observer....When you put your mindfulness in the middle, then it is not what you are doing that matters but how you are relating to it......When you know where mindfulness should be put, the path of meditation, the path of Liberation.......

The mindfulness, the awareness of that can actually see where craving comes from, where pride comes from, where ill will comes from, and where fear comes from because that is its breeding ground......

To realise and being mindful of the arising of greed, hatred and delusion from the interactions between the object of doing and the doing leads to realisation. So it doesn't matter what you do and where you are helping. It matters more in the mindfulness of the defilements and how your mind reacts to it.

Simply mimicking the story of realisation of the Zen master is akin to apprehending whether the tea is hot from other people drinking it.