Mirror of Zen Blog

Search
Close this search box.

NEW VIDEO: Mind Habits

Mind Habits /// Arman Ray + Hyon Gak Sunim // The Formless Track // 현각스님: 첫 선-테크노 앨범 #edm #zen #현각스님

The overused word “karma” seems to be confusing to many people. It is often used to express “punishment” or “retribution”. But this is not the meaning of “karma”.
Literally, “karma” means “action”. Zen Master Seung Sahn had the simplest and clearest definition of “karma” ever uttered: “Karma means mind-habit.” Positive or negative, happy or sad, sinner or saint — every time we touch our thinking, and engage with it, the thinking leaves an “imprint”. That imprint is the valence of attraction which causes this thought to occur again, and again, and again, and again: a habit forms to “send up” that kind of thought again, just like the YouTube algorithm!
Then when we follow that mind-habit, the actions that flow out of it begin to develop an “automaticity” that practically guarantees the appearance of this thought again (or emotion, or fear, or desire), and then all of the actions which have been born from it.
And what is the solution or refuge from the constant onslaught of mind-habits? Bravo! — you guessed it right: Only practice.
Many thanks to Arman Ray (Chris Taylor) for the genius rhythms, and Γιάννης Παπάκης Παπαδοπουλάκης for the great amount of work that went in to producing this video.

Share this on:

Related Posts: