In this episode I am joined by Muho, Sōtō Zen teacher, Youtuber, and previous abbot of Antai-Ji monastery in Japan.
Muho recalls the death of his mother when he was 6 years old, his childhood behavioural problems and time in boarding school, and initial contact with meditation.
Muho shares what he describes as his narcissism, which arose from the death of his mother and a subsequent yearning to be seen; how his desire to be seen has caused difficulties for those around him; and how his thirty years of discipleship under a Zen master in a Japanese monastery collided with these patterns.
Muho also observes that there is something missing in American Zen teachers, disambiguates good and bad reasons for teaching Zen, and explains why he believes sitting meditation is actually good for nothing.
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Video version: https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep357-zen-is-good-for-nothing-muho
Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.
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Topics include:
00:00 - Intro
00:54 - Death of Muho’s mother and the beginning of questioning
04:49 - Sent to boarding school
05:35 - First meditation at 16 years old
07:48 - Discovering a connection to the body
10:02 - Reading about Zen Buddhism
11:32 - Studying Japanese and moving to Japan
12:21 - Being the class clown
13:14 - Muho’s narcissism
15:10 - Trouble from describing himself as a narcissist
18:20 - Others’ suffering from Muho’s narcissism
19:31 - How Zen practice affected narcissism
22:01 - “It’s not about you”
24:35 - Vertical and horizontal axis of enlightenment
27:32 - Achieving Buddhahood
30:00 - Should you try to improve yourself?
34:37 - Student projections and exposing the teacher’s flaws
36:16 - Guru as father figure
38:02 - Looking for the perfect leader
39:00 - What is the role of the Zen teacher?
40:31 - Muho’s teaching activities
41:40 - The problem with American Zen teachers
42:21 - What example should a teacher set?
43:38 - Real teachers do not promote their enlightenment
45:11 - Using your teacher to promote yourself
47:14 - A teacher must first be a student
49:00 - Spiritual businessmen and teacher trainings
50:30 - 3 reasons to teach
56:05 - What is missing in Western teachers?
57:05 - Teaching as an expression of gratitude
58:15 - Minimum time before becoming a teacher
59:57 - Signs to become a teacher
01:00:26 - Tragedy of premature teaching
01:02:40 - Muho’s advice for shallow teachers
01:05:01 - Zen has become a game
01:06:25 - Zen is good for nothing
01:07:56 - Techniques, states, and stages
01:11:25 - Play a different game
01:13:48 - Is Zen true or just another method?
01:19:43 - Taking the result as the path
01:22:00 - Do other practices miss the point?
01:25:51 - From samsara to nirvana
01:28:46 - Muho’s Youtube channels
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To find our more about Muho, visit:
- https://www.youtube.com/@muho
- https://www.youtube.com/@MuhoZen
For more interviews, videos, and more visit:
- https://www.guruviking.com
Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James
Ireland