Zen vs. Gen (Guhn)

The Japanese Zen practitioners adopted religious meditation from China. It involves developing techniques to focus on a single object or sound for extended periods of time. This process is meant to allow practitioners to achieve a level of focus or concentration effectively on subjects and challenges. The Japanese samurai swordsman used these techniques to enhance and improve on their skills with the sword.

While this practice originated from China, the Chinese practice/practiced a broader, older and more common practiced known as "gen (guhn) or meditation (keeping still), for more broad application in life.

I quote, "Gen basically means stilling the mind to the point that you can focus objectively on your innermost desires and needs as well as your surrounding and immediate situation. It is primarily a technique for narrowing the focus of one's thoughts down to the essence of what is uppermost in importance at the time." The objective, to create, achieve and maintain inner peace and to be a more centered person in all of their thoughts. To accomplish this one must calm the mind from all the monkey chatter we experience at most or all times. It is also about conquering the ego so your thoughts and resulting actions are unrestrained, pure and appropriate.

Such practice seems to my mind to be more apropos to our practice today or any practice of a martial system. Even if not directly similar to Zen practice this type seems to address the many times I have personally heard, read or viewed comments and teachings about escaping the ego along with its sometimes resulting price and to achieve enlightenment. It seems that if the truism of the monkey chatter mind is true that this is a more reasonable practice within a martial system such as karate-jutsu-do.

Gen (Ghun) means something like, "Stilling the mind," which presume is possible. I often speak of my response to the question, "What  are you thinking about?" with the answer "nothing." In reality when one thinks they are thinking of nothing it is merely that they are not consciously being aware of what it is they are thinking for the mind is in monkey chatter mode a lot when not focused on a task or specific thought.

As can be seen by this short, terse, post on Zen and Gen we begin to realize the importance of studying the cultures and beliefs of a people who create these long-lived practices for this may also have been the precursor to the practice of Japanese Zen. There are a lot of similarities in Asian culture and belief systems and why I believe in this as a part, intricate part, of our practice. It shows that the differences between Japan, Okinawa and China are not all that far apart.