Practice is not a preparation for some future event; it is always now. Whether in sitting meditation (zazen), moving meditation (qigong), relationship meditation (psychotherapy) or in mountain meditation (trekking) we actualize ourselves by finding our place where we are. We discover who we are through how we respond, harmonizing with nonstop flow.
Zen emphasizes returning to stillness, finding the movement at its heart rising and falling. Qigong's energy moves in streams supported by the stillness of the earth that bears all and the sky that embraces all. Sitting quietly, doing nothing in Zen provides a refuge from the busyness of daily ventures; exercising the forms of qigong provides a source of effortless effort in the midst of our daily activities.
from the Sandokai:
Within the light there is darkness,
but do not be caught by that darkness.
Within the dark there is light,
but do not be attached to that light.
Light and darkness are a pair,
Like the foot before and the foot behind
in walking.
Each thing has its own intrinsic value
and is related to everything else
in function and place.
Ordinary life fits the absolute
as a box and its lid.
The absolute works together
with the relative
like two arrows meeting in mid air.
From the Tao Te Ching:
Thirty spokes converge on one hub;
the center is empty,
so the wheel can turn.
A pot is made from clay;
the center is empty,
so the vessel can be used.
Windows and doors are cut for a house;
the center is empty,
so there's room to live.
The being of a thing makes it handy
Its nonbeing lets it function.