Fusho – Your Unborn Mind meditation

A 25 min guided Zen meditation on the Unborn Mind (Jp. fusho, also known as "open presence") in English, read by Daizan Skinner Roshi.

Transcript

We are going to practice the unborn meditation taught by the great Rinzai Zen Master,

Bankei.

So as you get comfortable in your sitting place,

Bring your attention to your legs.

You can sit on a chair with your feet planted firmly on the floor,

Or you can kneel with a meditation bench,

Or you can sit cross-legged with a cushion beneath your buttocks.

However you are sitting,

We want to create a stable triangular base in your lower body.

So making sure your knees are separated,

Making sure your upper body is resting on your ischia,

The two little sitting bones at the base of your pelvis.

Rock your body a little side to side,

Forward and backward,

So that you can find the natural balance and uprightness in your upper body,

Your spine adopting its natural curves,

Relaxing your shoulders.

Let the top of your head be directly above your sitting bones.

Have your hands in your lap,

Resting on a cushion if necessary.

Your mouth closed,

Have your tongue resting on the roof of your mouth with your tongue broad.

Allowing your eyes to lower,

And if you wish you can close them.

Relax your body.

Allow your breathing to be natural,

Feeling the rising and sinking of the breath in your body.

In this meditation practice,

We don't particularly focus on the breathing.

In fact,

We don't particularly focus on anything.

We just stay 100% present with whatever arises,

And it is this quality of presence that's the important thing.

When Master Banke wants us to sit like a mirror,

Allowing the rising and passing of thoughts,

Emotions,

Sounds,

Anything at all.

Just staying in this mirror-like presence.

Perfect.

For now,

We can just be.

There's nothing to hold on to,

Nothing to chase after.

We just stay present.

The mirror never changes.

Perhaps it reflects many things,

Or perhaps just a few,

None of it matters.

All these arisings are born things.

We rest in the unborn.

Our only task is to observe when we begin to identify with one or other of these born things.

When we recognize this is happening,

Immediately we're resting again in the unborn.

It's also very simple.

Just resting in this quality of presence,

This unborn mirror-like awareness.

You lack for nothing.

Just relax.

Enjoy the show,

The arising and passing.

None of it is you.

In this place,

You're quite safe.

Anything at all can arise.

Anything at all can pass,

And you're just fine.

In this place,

You're completely free.

This is free space.

Allowing even these words to pass across the great round mirror of your awareness.

Allowing even these words to pass across the great round mirror of your awareness.

Now you can know that your unborn,

Absolutely indestructible Buddha nature is always present.

Allowing this unborn presence that underlies all things to come to the forefront.

This small shift in perspective,

That's all that's called for here.

Allowing the arising,

The passing away.

Resting in this unborn presence.

Allowing even these words to pass across the great round mirror of your awareness.

Allowing even these words to pass across the great round mirror of your awareness.

And now,

As your sitting meditation period comes to an end,

And it's time for you to engage in other activities,

Taking the opportunity to continue resting in this unborn awareness,

Allowing things to arise and pass,

Just dealing with that which is necessary to do.

How simple and straightforward can you allow your life to be?

How clear and open and enjoyable can it all be?

Reviews

experience grace.

First Bankei-style meditiation I’ve heard. ”Enjoy the show” - thank you!

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to explore the unborn mind and pure awareness. That was so peaceful

Brilliant! Excellent! interesting a voice was used to end the sitting practice instead of a jarring bell.
A great new tool in my toolkit!

Excellent beautiful balance of silence and guidance. A 20 minute meditation felt like 5. Onto my other activities, doing only what is necessary. Sound advice. Gratitude for creating and sharing 🙏

✨️🙏Thank you, so helpful to get in touch with our BUDDHANATURE.

This was my first experience with this teacher, and day 900 of using insight timer. Perfect. 9 billion days to go, maybe a few more. Thank you, as this reset the day towards the innate Buddha nature I often fail to remember...

Love Daizan. Have completed both his Zen Ways courses. This is a go to meditation for me.

This was wonderful. Grounding, relaxing and simple in essence

Loved this reflection. It shows that we are that. We are still, we are that who is present observing what passes. The mind wonders and it is ok for it is is function but we are not our minds. Namastê🙏

Thank you! So good an instruction. Where exactly is the mirror? Whole body....brain... I maybe have to find out myself...

wonderful as ever

The Rolls Royce of Meditation Techniques So Simple So Difficult. Its the fast track.

Excellent. Only a little noise at the back at 13 minutes.

Very calming and reflective

I was lost in this meditation- producing a gentle calm within ☸️🙏🏼💟 Namaste !

Simple, pure and clear 🙏 an excellent meditation!

Clean, clear, elegant. I realized today it’s like meditating with Dumbledore from Harry Potter. Yes. Discursive mind. And it made me smile. Update: After listening to this meditation for two months I am struck by its depth, nuance, its deceptive simplicity. I return to this over and over. Gassho.

Following on the amazing Breakthrough to Zen retreat I did with Zenways over the weekend, it's great to have this meditation with Daizan to continue my daily practice! So grateful!