Every night before going to bed, I practice Zazen. To me, Zazen—or meditation—is about concentration. It does not mean making your mind a complete blank or thinking about absolutely nothing. It’s a completely self-styled practice, so I have no idea if I’m doing it right. However, practicing Zazen before sleep clears my mind completely. Even just a few minutes of it is effective. It helps me fall asleep easily and sleep deeply. I previously wrote about the importance of not bringing unnecessary thoughts into bed, and Zazen allows me to do exactly that.
So, what do I concentrate on during Zazen? In my case, I imagine the universe. Then, I become aware that I am one with it.
What kind of image comes to your mind when you think of the “universe”? Most people probably look up at the sky and imagine a dark, quiet, and vast world beyond it. They are imagining a world that exists strictly outside of our planet. However, Earth is also a part of the universe. It is just one planet in a vast cosmos. And we, who live on it, are also a part of the universe.
Modern science suggests that this universe originated from a single source. If that is true, Earth and all of us are not just existing inside the universe; we are its elements, its quiet members. At present, the universe is expanding and possesses an immense amount of energy that humanity has yet to fully understand. Before going to bed, I practice Zazen and try to imagine being a part of this universe. When I do this, I can feel that the world is constantly changing, and that our bodies and consciousness have no permanent substance—we are simply part of a changing flow.
Why not try it tonight before you go to sleep? I hope you will imagine not a distant universe high above, but the reality that you are right inside it.