Spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism in the conditions of globalization challenges of modern times

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Borys Grinchenko Kyiv University (Ukraine)

Spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism in the conditions of globalization challenges of modern times

O. Donets

Abstract

The article studies the specifics of Zen Buddhism spiritual practices that influence the spread of their popularity in the contemporary Western globalized world. Zen Buddhism insists on the need for inner spiritual experience, which is directly opposed to aut hority and external revelation. Zen Buddhism primarily emphasizes individual effort in overcoming the separation of the world into opposites, which is the result of the thinking activity. The difference between the religious system of Zen Buddhism is that Zen Buddhism, with its enlightenment, does not depend on sacred books and texts (as, for example, in Christianity, which formed the Western world system); Zen is also primarily non-verbal. The experience of enlightenment cannot be shared with others. Zen practice is a cultivated path, which at the same time has no ultimate goal or meaning; here the path (life in the inevitable) is already a "satori" here and now, which constantly flows through human existence. The relevance and novelty of the study are due to the highlighting of the features of spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism as a way of self-knowledge of a person, "returning to oneself", which ensures its active spread in modern Western society. It is determined that the essence of Zen Buddhism mysticism is that the most real is the abstract, and vice versa. The whole system of spiritual practices is the product of this essential inner spiritual experience. This mysticism often prevents us from measuring the depth of the Eastern mind in terms of Western rationalism because it denies logical analysis by its very nature. The Eastern mind is synthetic. It does not attach too much importance to insignificant trivialities. Still, it strives for an intuit ive understanding of the whole, which reaches the spiritual philosophy of Zen in the dail y practical challenges of the globalised world. The features of the influence of the spiritual system of Zen Buddhism on Japanese art are also analysed. The conclusions underline that Zen Buddhism has had a significant impact both directly on the religious and cultural life of the Japanese and world culture in general. The popularity of the spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism in Western society is due to their idea of breaking a person out of the subject-object dichotomy, which leads to the separation of the spiritual ess ence of man, and causes social conflicts. Zen has unique aesthetics, which include a h i gh appreciation of moderation, asymmetry, imperfection, simplicity, and naturalness. In simple beauty and simplicity (transformation of "poverty" into a kind of minimalism), the Japanese find a unique charm and a source of true beauty.

Keywords: Zen Buddhism, spiritual practices, meditation, satori, za-zen, koan, wabi, sabi

Анотація

Духовні практики дзен-буддизму в умовах глобалізаційних викликів сучасності

О. Донець, Київський університет імені Бориса Грінченка (Україна)

У статті досліджено специфіку духовних практик дзен-буддизму, що впливають на поширення їх популярності у сучасному західному глобалізованому світі. Дзен-буддизм наполягає на необхідності внутрішнього духовного досвіду, що прямо протиставляється авторитетам і зовнішньому одкровенню. Дзен-буддизм на перше місце у практиці ставить індивідуальне зусилля у подоланні роздільності світу на протилежності, яке є результатом діяльності мислення. Відмінністю релігійної системи дзен буддизму є те, що дзен-буддизм з його просвітленням не залежить від священних книг і текстів (як, наприклад, у християнстві, що сформувало західну світ-систему); дзен також здебільшого невербальний. Досвідом просвітлення, неможливо поділитися з іншими. Практика дзен є культивованим шляхом, який одночасно не має кінцевої мети, або ж сенсу; тут шлях (життя у неминущому) - вже представляє собою «саторі» тут і зараз, яке постійно протікає через людське існування. Актуальність та новизна дослідження зумовлена виокремленням особливостей духовних практик дзен-буддизму як способу самопізнання людини, «поверненні до самої себе», що забезпечує активне його поширення у сучасному західному суспільстві. Встановлено, що специфіка містики дзен-буддизму і значною мірою в тому, що найреальніше - це абстрактне, і навпаки; і вся система духовних практик є продуктом цього основного внутрішнього духовного переживання. Саме цей містицизм часто заважає виміряти глибину східного розуму у категоріях західного раціоналізму, адже за своєю природою містицизм заперечує логічний аналіз. Східний розум синтетичний, він не надає занадто великого значення несуттєвим дрібницям, а прагне до інтуїтивного розуміння цілого, що актуалізує духовну філософію дзен у щоденних практичних викликах глобалізованого світу. Проаналізовано особливості впливу духовної системи дзен-буддизму на японське мистецтво. У Висновках підкреслюється, що дзен-буддизм здійснив значний вплив як безпосередньо на релігійне і культурне життя японців, так і на світову культуру загалом. Популярність духовних практик дзен-буддизму в західному суспільстві зумовлена їх ідеєю вирвати людину з суб'єкт-об'єктної дихотомії, яка призводить до розділеності духовної сутності людини, та стає причиною суспільних конфліктів. Дзен має унікальну естетику, яка включає в себе високу оцінку помірності, асиметрії, недосконалості, простоти та природності. Саме в простій красі, простоті (перевтілення «бідності» на своєрідний мінімалізм) японці знаходять особливу чарівність і джерело справжньої краси.

Ключові слова: дзен-буддизм, духовні практики, медитація, саторі, дза-дзен, коан, вабі, сабі.

Introduction

In the contemporary globalised world, the spiritual and religious system of Zen Buddhism is reflected not only in religious and philosophical discourse but also in various spheres of Western culture: in painting, music, and literature. The popularity of this philosophical system was facilitated by its ability to adapt to changing socio-political conditions and ethnographic features of different countries. Zen Buddhism, as a form of "non-religion," has its own unique set of concepts, terms, and peculiarities (revelation without sacred texts; aspiration to experience personal enlightenment; direct contact with the objective- psychological essence of a person (beyond their feelings, thoughts); comprehension of the "secret nature" as "Buddha's perfection"), the semantic embodiment of which is quite complex and needs to be clarified. However, as a worldview-mystical system that does not fit into a precise logical-discursive explanation, it can still help a person to experience spiritual, psychophysical, and psychosomatic self-healing, helping to understand oneself, find calm, slow down the "turmoil" of the mind. To achieve this state, a list of meditative (mystical-intuitive) practices is used, aimed at intuitive (non-verbal, informal) comprehension of the true nature of man and the surrounding reality. Thus, through enlightenment, a full-fledged, once-lost integral personality can mature. As a result, a person gets rid of their solely "material" perception of being and re-opens to the world in their feelings and sensations. Understanding the unity of the "I" and its involvement in being in all its aspects leads a person to new spiritual horizons, which ensures the popularity of Zen Buddhism in modern Western society. The purpose of the study is to analyse the essence of the spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism in the context of the globalisation challenges of our time.

The purpose determines the following objectives: to analyse the essential features of the spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism, which ensure their popularity in the modern Western cultural environment; to identify the critical elements of the uniqueness of the aesthetics of Zen Buddhism; to characterise the spiritual and aesthetic syncretism of the religious and philosophical practices of Zen Buddhism in the modern globalised world.

Research methods. The research methodology is based on a logical combination of comparative, hermeneutic, and dialectical scientific research methods. In particular, the use of the comparative method made it possible to identify the specifics of the spiritual system of Zen Buddhism; the dialectical method provided the study of Zen Buddhism in its formation; the application of the hermeneutic method contributed to the interpretation of the scientific texts. The scientific novelty lies in the analysis of the peculiarities of spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism as a way of human self-knowledge, "returning to oneself', which ensures its active spread in modern Western society. The theoretical basis of the study is the publications of H. Dumoulin (2005, a; b), D. Suzuki (1991, 2019), R. Otto (2004), N. Ross (1964), A. Huxley (2004), and A. Watts (1999).

Results and Discussion

First of all, it is necessary to explain a little about Zen Buddhism itself in order to understand the specifics of this phenomenon. Now widespread in Japan, Zen began to develop actively in China and was called Chan Buddhism. Since ancient times, the story has been narrated, which gradually embodied in one of the legends, that the teaching of Chan was brought by the patriarch named Bodhidharma, traveling from northern India to China. G. Dumoulin mentions that already in China, this doctrine underwent a number of profound transformations, which were caused by the peculiarity of the Chinese worldview and spiritual culture. Gradually, coming out from under the shadow of pure Buddhism, Chan modified, adapted among the Chinese and came into use, and then spread to the lands of Japan and Korea. Thus, it is China, brought up on the doctrines of Confucianism and Taoism, contrary to the systems that had already been formed, that managed to create the ideological doctrine of Chan Buddhism and ensured its spread to other countries of the Asian continent.

The history of Zen Buddhism is a separate ornate great path to which many works of talented scholars have been devoted, but, returning to Zen itself, it is worth noting that Zen Buddhists, both monks, and Zen laymen, often distinguish it as the complete version of Buddhism. Moreover, Zen is the way to lead a person to the same spiritual enlightenment. R. Otto's statement well characterises Zen in that it is based on a connection with a constant study of the Incomprehensible. This study, however, is not something intellectual; it is inexpressible (Otto, 2004)

The specificity of the spiritual and religious doctrine of Zen Buddhism was primarily formed under the influence of not only the Japanese national religious and cultural tradition, with its animation of nature, but also a particular worldview that appears as a synthesis of the traditions of the past with its hierarchical system of the samurai class, the ideals of the code of honor, the heredity of cultural traditions and the transmission of knowledge from generation to generation. The synthesis of the "hidden" knowledge and mystical and psychological practices of the past and innovative technologies of the modern world of Japan is of great interest in contemporary Western intellectual society.

The popularity of Zen Buddhism in the West is due to several factors: "exoticism, the irrationality of this tradition, "anti-intellectuality", emphasis on introversion, attention to a particular person, his life, and, finally, the proactive nature of the followers of this teaching. The Buddhist worldview and Buddhist anthropology were the products that Western man, exhausted by boredom and crisis, needed. The East presented by Zen Buddhism was a window with an entertaining landscape or a mirror to reflect hidden cultural intentions (Kolesnyk, 2012: 105).

Zen Buddhism insists on the need for inner spiritual experience, which is directly opposed to authority and external revelation. To understand the essence of Zen, to find contact with this "Incomprehensible" is possible only on the condition that it is perceived fully and completely. It could be said that this refers to the sacred scriptures, works of Zen masters, and other "baggage", but the point is that all this accumulated knowledge must be "burned" in order to be embodied in the wisdom sought (Otto, 2006). At the same time, it is a path exclusively "beyond", where emptiness will absorb that burned mind and its conflicts. According to scholars and practitioners of Zen, it is about the fundamental "truth" of the teachings of Zen Buddhism, which, however, is in all things. One has only to feel the contact with it, to come to it, and then the person's life is transformed. It is about seeing the meaning that a person has not noticed before, but at the same time, his being remains the same - all his experience is ordinary human, but two steps above (Ross, 1964).

Comparing the spiritual, mystical experience of Zen Buddhism and Christianity, it is worth noting that the common feature of Christian mystical practices is the sacred orientation towards achieving direct supersensory union with the Divine, which is carried out mainly based on asceticism as a prerequisite for spiritual perfection. Mysticism seeks to dissolve the individual self in the absolute (Lomachynska, Donets, 2021a: 91).

The essence of Zen mysticism is that the most real is the abstract, and vice versa, and the whole system of spiritual practices is a product of this essential inner spiritual experience. This mysticism often prevents measuring the depth of the Eastern mind in terms of Western rationalism because, by its very nature, mysticism denies logical analysis. The eastern mind is synthetic; it does not attach too much importance to insignificant trifles but strives for an intuitive understanding of the whole, bringing Zen's spiritual philosophy up to date in the daily practical challenges of the globalised world. This world is associated with the acceleration of the pace of life and the global destruction of the established system of values provoked by the Russian war. O. Huxley, many years ago, speaking about Zen Buddhism, argued that his contemporaries feel a solid spiritual constraint, which leads to several spiritual, cultural, psychological, mental, and even physical problems. individual philosophy spiritual practice zen buddhism

Nevertheless, all the consequent problems are caused by people and their activities. O. Huxley remarks that perhaps a person is able to get rid of the distortions in the perception of the world and himself, the source of which is the peculiarities of his own perception, and to see the world again as it is - without the lens of human passions, sins, illusions, and complex superstructures. The writer also referred to the phenomenon of meditation on the conventionality and limitations of language (to which Zen pays considerable attention), saying that it overcomes it so perfectly that its individual consciousness, devocalizing, becomes one with the universality of consciousness as such (Huxley, 2004: 48).

Thus, it can be assumed that Zen Buddhism, with its specific "negation", "self-dissolution", meditation practice, and even a number of artistic and meditative techniques, can lead a person to understand himself and how easily everything can be lost in the modern world, which is changing rapidly.

In the first place, in practice, Zen Buddhism puts an individual effort into overcoming the separation of the world into opposites, which is the result of thinking. The separation is eliminated at the moment when there is "satori" or enlightenment of consciousness and the discovery of the fact of the unity of all phenomena, regardless of their qualities, in a single body of Buddha (Dharmakaya). There is a "Buddha seed" in the human consciousness, which develops and thus makes it possible to comprehend the absolute Self during life. This provision is one of the reasons for the popularity of the school's teachings in the West, especially among young people and intellectuals: the ability to expand the perception of all dimensions of one's being by the consciousness makes it possible not only to see and feel other possibilities but also to actively use these possibilities in the modern world (Kolesnyk, 2009: 205).

The difference between the religious system of Zen Buddhism is that Zen Buddhism, with its enlightenment, does not depend on sacred books and texts (as, for example, in Christianity, which formed the Western world system); Zen is also mostly non-verbal, that is, it does not have a strict connection or mutual dependence on various ways of verbal transmission - speeches, sacred texts, letters and words, and human language in general (Suzuki, 1991). Although in Zen, there are texts and collections of parables and koans (so-called paradox riddles or no less paradoxical life situations of Zen masters, which are beyond the rational logical-discursive mind), any verbal, oral or printed experience, spiritual heritage always remains only the experience of a person who has experienced it himself. So even if he is one of the greatest masters of Zen Buddhism, all his teachings, words, lectures, and sermons will remain his achievements. Such subjective experience, and especially the experience of enlightenment, cannot be shared with others. In the most favorable case, it can only help on the path of Zen to the one who chose it, taking the form of the same books, treatises, or even personal conversations. Accordingly, the adherent of Zen Buddhism will still follow his path but perhaps find the right direction. The search for one's path occurs through the moment of "intuitive" - returning to one's "true self' through intuitive penetration and immersion. Thus, subjective logical and psychological elements remain on the sidelines, not participating in this process. According to Zen Buddhism, it brings a person to the objective-psychological mind beyond feelings and thoughts. Thus, this state represents the mind as "only consciousness", forming one of the defining principles of Zen - overcoming the subject-object conflict" (inherent in the Western world) to bring the person to a state of "taktosity", which will allow him to understand and live his life as a direct result of immediacy (Watts, 1999).

Zen claims that it is the division of consciousness (its dualism) and subject-object perception of everything that a person can "reach" that led to a substantial distortion of reality in his eyes. As a result of such processes, the world itself gradually underwent a complex "encryption". In such circumstances, the human consciousness is conceivably split into two parts: "I" as myself and a complex image of myself, which often turns into a distorted representation or even a symbol. When, in a rapidly changing world, a person tries to "fit" himself into this image (which can further distort his perception of the world and himself or even cause considerable harm), he gradually becomes more distant from himself. As a result, a person gets entangled in a complex system of superstructures, illusions, and perceptions, resulting in losing himself and plunging into a number of psychological (and not only) problems (Ross, 1964).

This is precisely where Zen Buddhism is worth turning to. Zen practice is a cultivated path, which at the same time has no final goal or meaning. In addition, the path (life in the inevitable) is already a "satori" here and now, constantly flowing through human existence. Satori can be defined as an intuitive insight into the nature of things rather than an analytical or logical understanding of that nature. It virtually means opening a new world previously unknown to the confused mind accustomed to duality. In other words, satori shows us the world around us from a completely unexpected perspective. Satori in Zen Buddhism should be connected with life itself because Zen offers a reassessment of oneself in terms of finding spiritual unity. Therefore, the attainment of satori radically changes a person's spiritual life, brings order to it, and gives it inner meaning.

Zen meditation practices differ in their implementation and execution. It can be sitting meditation, the art of solving problems-paradoxes of "koans", and practicing various arts. The purpose of such practices is to intuitively "grasp" and perceive the surrounding diverse reality while maintaining the calmness of consciousness. Similar perception does not involve verbalisation, complex logical analysis, etc.; it is simply not provided (it is not necessary). As a result, a person achieves the overcoming of subject-object relations, as a result of which he comes to a state in which he "does not distinguish". It is not a pure self-dissolution "in emptiness" or self-destruction, a distorted form of consciousness change, or passive inactivity. Still, at the same time, it is the highest cultivated goal (Suzuki, 1991). For example, E. Fromm emphasises that "satori" should not be defined as an anomaly of the human mind, as a kind of separation from the surrounding reality. A person fully understands the experienced state, and according to the classical definition, it does not fall under the condition of altered consciousness. The form of satori does not interrupt a person's orientation, in reality, either internally or externally, but rather is not perceived by the human brain or any other part of the body but by the individual in its entirety (Fromm, 2010: 215-213).

Meditation, called "zazen", is one of the primary embodiments of Zen Buddhism practices and is practically the standard of the state of active "taktosity" of Zen. At the same time, "za-zen" can be called a kind of intuitive and contemplative inactivity because the person in it does not set a goal to embody this "state". There should be no cultivation or negation; even the very desire for enlightenment, for the past or the future, is replaced by a particular here-and-now active observation, which, however, does not aim at this very activity in the classical sense (wrapped in goals, comments or play of meanings).

Accordingly, in Zen Buddhism, self-knowledge is an extra-intellectual process that appears as a complete experience resulting from contact with the inner intuitive self-absorption to find the unity of one's being. Through self-negation, a person learns to see the true essence of the world; through meditation, there is an intuitive awareness of the true self, which is the true nature of all things (Lomachynska, Donets, 2021b, 2:87).

Needless to say, Zen Buddhism preached by monks is a much more serious and responsible phenomenon. Still, the peculiarities of its practices and their cultural and religious influence have spread far beyond the temple Zen. Zen, as a religious and philosophical doctrine with mystical and intuitive colouring, seeks to lead a person to awareness of the nature of the surrounding reality through enlightenment. It can be achieved through intuitive contemplation of the truth, which, in turn, is already inherent in man. One can often come across in the literature devoted to Zen Buddhism the words that it is impossible to find "beyond" something that was initially inherent in a person from his birth. However, for such a perception of this "true nature", a particular concentration is needed, which is achieved by focusing the thought in a state of instantaneous "here and now". Giving logical-discursive knowledge a more secondary role, Zen Buddhism insists on "true reality" through certain practices. In this case, Japanese art, which in its diversity has embodied many Zen postulates, can be referred to.

The unity of the universe declared by the doctrine of Zen Buddhism, the organic connection of man with nature, its inclusion in the cycle of universal metamorphoses - all this appealed to the consciousness of any Japanese who does not think of himself in isolation from nature. Harmony with nature is an essential value in the ethnic religion of the Japanese - Shintoism, which was strengthened and acquired a deeper meaning in Zen Buddhism. Zen emphasizes a deep spiritual connection with nature and considers it sacred. Therefore, all Japanese art forms were strongly influenced by the unique Zen philosophy and were transformed into a spiritual discipline focused on peace, simplicity, and self-development. Zen teachings about art focus on the importance of unity of mind and body. By practicing art from a Zen perspective, the mind remains in the present, fully aware of the illusory nature of the material world.

Japanese art as a whole is characterised by a harmonious combination of the religious and philosophical with the ethical and aesthetic, as a result of which religion (if we can say so about Zen) is firmly intertwined with art and began to manifest itself vividly through its means. This can be traced back to the fact that the category of "art" in Japan as such was replaced by the concept of "Do" ("Kedo" as the way of the flower, "Tjado" as the way of tea, "Kendo" as the way of the sword, etc. Do is the basis of reality that permeates all existence.) However, it is incomprehensible to the mind but is revealed only to intuition, i.e., intuitive contemplation or comprehension (Suzuki, 2019).

Zen has a unique aesthetic that includes an appreciation for moderation, asymmetry, imperfection, simplicity, and naturalness. This aesthetic concept of Zen is called Wabi-Sabi, and it sees beauty in imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete things. "Wabi" is independence from the external, illusory, for example, fame or money; it is a feeling generated by awareness and perception of something valuable worth much more than the momentary. "Sabi" is a rough simplicity, archaic imperfection, apparent simplicity or ease of execution, a wealth of historical connections, and the incomprehensible that makes a certain object a work of art. In art, Wabi-Sabi is manifested in modest, unpretentious, and down-to-earth works of art. D. Suzuki, who described and explained Zen Buddhism in the West, its culture and aesthetics, noticed that although modern Japan is technologically advanced and has largely stepped back from the past in its daily, cultural and spiritual life, "Wabi" is still highly revered and respected among people. Even in intellectual life, they prefer not the diversity of ideas and their subtlety or the formal logic of the formulation of thought. Enjoying the mystical contemplation of nature and feeling the world as own is much more specific to the Japanese (Suzuki, 2019). In simple beauty (the transformation of "poverty" into a kind of minimalism), the Japanese find a special charm and a source of true beauty.

In this regard, an important role is played by such a category as "mudzekan", which embodies the fluidity and impermanence of everything in our world, through which special attention is paid to the beauty of the moment and the importance of the instability of things. Gradually, even life itself goes through an instantaneous and fleeting "here and now" and is embodied as the central work of human art, which still needs to be tried to comprehend and understand. Thus, through art in general, through the art of living in particular, a person makes the practice of self-realisation, trying (referring to the categories of Zen Buddhism) to implement the "Buddha nature" inherent in it and to achieve satori, to understand oneself and the world as they are (Suzuki, 2019).

A striking example is Japanese Zen painting, which is, to some extent, the embodiment of an idea on canvas (or rather, on extremely thin and fragile rice paper). The technique of such painting is characterised by whole symbolism, the main and only colours are black - the colour of ink, and white - the colour of the paper itself. There is always a white unpainted surface in the image. It means the universal emptiness, while the white space inside the black is the emptiness of all forms and things. The symbol of "yang" as a masculine light beginning and the feminine dark "yin" with the help of water surfaces were often conveyed with the help of mountains; both of these essences were interpenetrating without entering into any opposition or conflict. It was Do that emerged as the unity of these two elements.

Zen painting and calligraphy (often intertwined) assumed that a person in a symbolic form conveyed the non-duality of the world with the help of ideology that came from the author's heart. Such fine art had to depict the fragility and transience of all world phenomena and human life while documenting the concept of "muze". The slight strokes of the artist in a painting or calligraphic drawing contained the fact that all things and the man himself in the world are more than a tool of karma, and his life is just a tiny moment of emerging from the ocean of nothingness. The idea of the world fragility (mudze) and impermanence (ukiye), which was actively used in Buddhism, gave rise to a particularly acute interest in the Japanese consciousness of the phenomena and processes of this perishable and fleeting, impermanent world, which made it possible to experience the beauty of the transient especially vividly.

Thus, painting for a Zen artist and the one who devoted himself to it is not just a craft or a creative hobby. This is a kind of sacred meditation act in which a person enters a meditative state. In this state, they are freed from the control of "ration" and reach an unprecedented concentration of their consciousness when the subject merges with the object. In both calligraphy and painting, a person enters a meditative state of calm; when his mind seems to deactivate, the subject and the object cease to exist separately, merging into a single whole. This is achieved only in the state of "mu-shin", that is, the state of "no-mind" (this category plays a significant role in many arts of Zen Buddhism, including martial arts). Everything happens spontaneously, but even the thought of deliberate spontaneity is rejected because the mere mention of "non-thought" will focus the consciousness on a certain "external object" and provoke a delay in the movement of the artist's brush.

According to Zen, all this is embodied in the law of "mixing," where a person merges with the object's spirit and makes it move with thin paper. As a result, each stroke begins to pulsate with life, reviving the brush itself and making it his living extension in the artist's hands (Suzuki, 2019).

Similarly, meditative is the art of haiku poetry. These short poems, which consisted of three lines, respectively of 5-7-5 syllables each, also embodied the idea of the state of non-mind. These poems are particular, and their translation firmly hides all the conciseness of the form of Japanese verse and language in general. Nevertheless, in these small poems, man's holistic and fundamental nature and his direct and lively experiences have found their expression. Often, the writing of these poems and their understanding by other generations occurred only through intuitive grasping of the essence of what was instead left "outside" the limits of so few words (Breslavets, 1994). The authors of haiku, great Zen masters and not only, seemed to outline in their terms what a person who wants to penetrate the essence of the poem and its corresponding state should be able to see. Haiku is a unique representation of the inner world of a person deprived of the sense of his own "I"; it is an "imprint" of the state of intuitive insight into the essence of objects without unnecessary things. It can be said that haiku poetry is a treasure trove of poetic intuitions and ideological images that lie far beyond verbal boundaries. Their understanding, which also requires a peculiar state of mind, occurs at the intuitive level of grasping and knowledge. It can lead a person to Zen enlightenment and, consequently, to understanding the original nature of oneself and the world around him (Hanh, 2016).

Conclusions

In summary, the spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism are prevalent in Western society due to their idea of breaking a person out of the subject-object dichotomy, which leads to the separation of the spiritual essence of a person and causes social conflicts. According to Zen, man is able to reach the proper understanding of the world and himself as they are, in the momentary being "here and now" - the true nature of Buddha. However, at the same time, this nature or state is inherent in man.

He only "loses" it in the various matrix of his complex existence, overloaded with the global challenges of the present time. Such self-knowledge in Zen is a nonintellectual process that takes place at the level of intuitive self-immersion and self-observation to find the missing (forgotten) unity. It should also be mentioned that such categories as "self-immersion" or even "self-negation", and "being here and now", which can be found in the description of this phenomenon, do not imply a break with the real world. They also do not imply a renunciation of the past and the future, rational thinking, and logic. They do not mean a complete and irrevocable dissolution of the "I" to connect with "shunyata" (emptiness) or transition to a state of altered consciousness.

References

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5. In Po tu storonu poraboschayuschih nas illyuziy. Dzen-Buddhism i psihoanaliz

6. Beyond the illusions that enslave us. Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis, Moskow, AST (in Russian)

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8. Hanh, Thich Nhat. (2016). The miracle of mindfulness, gift edition: An introduction to the practice of meditation. Beacon Press.

9. Kolesnyk, I. (2009). Probudzhennia v dzen-buddyzmi yak meta transformatsiinoho protsesu. Nauka. Relihiia. Suspilstvo. 3, 201-206 (in Ukrainian)

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12. Lomachynska, I.M. & Donets, O.B. (2021b). Mistyko-intuityvni praktyky dzen-buddyzmu. Liudynoznavchi studii: zbirnyk naukovykh prats Drohobytskoho derzhavnoho pedahohichnoho universytetu imeni Ivana Franka. Ser. “Filosofiia”, 43. 83-88 (in Ukrainian)

13. Otto, R. (2004). O dzen-buddizme [About Zen Buddhism] (рр. 98

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18. Watts, A. (1999). The way of Zen. Vintage

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