[Buddha-l] Vipassana and Zen

[Mitchell Ginsberg]

d f tweney wrote:
Can someone give me (or point me to) a good
description of what makes "vipassana" meditation
unique -- or what differentiates it from, say, Zen
meditation? I have read descriptions of vipassana
meditation, which is sometimes called "insight
meditation," but the descriptions/ prescriptions seem
to differ very little from what I've read (and
experienced) of the Zen approach. Is there a
difference of focus, or emphasis?
thanks!

=======
There is a practice that has various names, such as
mindfulness practice, insight meditation, or vipassana
meditation. It also called samatha-vipassana-bhavana. 

Vipassana btw could be and is translated as insight. 

In the practice, there is often a base or initial
calming of the mind. 

That is the samatha (calmness) part. This can be done
by following the breathing passively (that is, not
trying to regulate or control or modify it, but simply
to experience its sensations). 

Then there is an attentiveness to each moment of
consciousness. This is sometimes called sati
(mindfulness). It is an open mindfulness, meaning that
there is no predefined something that should be
noticed. That way, nothing can count as a distraction
from what is to be noticed. (It is simply the next
thing to pay attention to.) 

If there were a rule here, it would be simply, Notice
what is most obvious at this moment, or Notice what is
calling our attention to it most strongly. And repeat.


I once thought that that rule was expressed in
Buddhaghosa Visuddhimagga, but can not track it down
now. 

Would anyone know of some passages there for me (or
others) to check out? 

This rule is rather similar to some of the suggestions
of Krishnamurti, and to the Soto Zen practice of
shikantaza. Think "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" here,
which is from that tradition (Soto Zen). 

There is also another school of Zen, Rinzai Zen. That
is where there are koans and usually a shorter period
of seated meditation, with eyes partially open. There
is of course no koan in vipassana practice and is
sometimes quite central in some Rinzai practices. It
seems to be designed to create an inner tension,
perhaps with the idea that this will crack the mind
open! (Shazaam and Bodhi in a flash!) 

There's a bit more on this in the little book of mine,
The Far Shore: Vipassana, The Practice of Insight. 

(In part the answer to your question depends on which
Zen tradition you are concerned with.) 

Mitchell G.

====================
http://www.geocities.com/jinavamsa/mentalhealth.html with links to 
my home page, info on The Inner Palace (3rd ed.) and The Far Shore 
(3rd ed.), further links to  psychotherapy, to my current teaching, 
to the Insight Practice (Vipassana),  Chishtiyya (Sufi), Creative 
Solutions for Peace, and Nasrudin discussion groups, and to the 
Collective Dharma Insight project.


		
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