Why do we eat

Here are some basic Zen questions to help you cut through duality in your daily life and open your mind to greater expansion. Zen is about piercing the illusion of ‘who you are’ (ego identity) to allow your true Self to emerge. Only then can you truly experience Oneness. The three basic questions are: Why do you eat? Why do you want to be healthy? What is inner peace? Let these three basic questions empower you.

• What do you eat? Everything is energy. Food is energy. Do you know what your body needs? Are you sabotaging your mission by compromising your body’s energy needs? What is your relationship with food—do you overeat, or do you take the time to appreciate food? Pause for a moment and become aware of the type of energy you use to achieve what you are meant to in this life. We should eat food that vibrates at a higher level as much as possible (fresh food, charged with high energy). Organic food alone is no longer enough. Raise the vibration of everything you touch, eat, drink, relate to, and so on. [check my blog https://myokucenter.com/qa-1-why-raising-our-vibration/ ]

• Health and food. In Western countries, we often eat less or follow a diet to lose weight, correct a health problem, or prevent a disease (like cancer), among other reasons. In short, we eat to prevent something or protect ourselves from something. As a result, we don’t listen to our bodies; instead, we manage them based on societal ideas of health or beauty. We approach eating like managing a business. But who is managing this business? The ego, which is ignorant and clueless. So, quiet your ego and listen to your intuition. Don’t follow the health industry’s ever-changing trends about which products to add or remove from your diet. Know yourself! We should eat to raise the life vibration within us and to accomplish our mission.

• Technology vs. your Body: You likely know more about technology, the mechanics of your car, or the care of your plants and pets than you do about your own body. Do you understand how your body works? Society encourages us to focus on the external, but the true path is to look inward and understand ourselves, so we can live and function in a way that suits each of us individually. Learn about your biology in a general sense and be aware that it is a mind-body dynamic. Mind and body work together. Feed your mind with positive and elevating thoughts that, in turn, nourish your body. Epigenetics has taught us that genes do not solely control your body; your emotional, mental, and internal environment also affect genetics.

Remember that food is simply a form of energy to support your journey toward your life mission. Enjoy it, but don’t become attached to it with some beliefs and controlling ideas from society. With everything happening on the planet and in the environment, focus more on the vibration of your food and follow your intuition. Know yourself.

Why do you want to be healthy?

Sounds like a silly question, doesn’t it? But think again. We often take things for granted. Always question what seems obvious to you. Break through the illusion to reach the essence of things. Being healthy just because you don’t want to be sick or because you fear death is no longer enough in the new paradigm we are experiencing in this century. Move beyond this restrictive framework don’t aim to be healthy merely as the negation of something else. Rise above it! Be healthy to fully enjoy what you came here for and to accomplish your life mission with joy and satisfaction. Re-read that sentence. Step out of the dualistic mindset of health versus disease.

• What is health? Health is not the opposite of disease. Health is the harmonious functioning of all your physiological systems. Health is a combination of mind, body, and spirit—a holistic state encompassing physical, social, mental, and spiritual well-being. By now, you know that epigenetics and quantum physics have shown that your mind creates your reality. Don’t blame your genes—expand your mind. Develop your consciousness.

• Young / Old. Western society’s ideology is fixated on fighting aging, which is yet another dualistic view of life. We focus on staying younger, looking better, improving our biology (with an obsession for detox), and using specific products to promote health and rejuvenation—all with a fragmented view of the mind-body connection. But what’s wrong with aging? What is really aging? Why is there so much anxiety, especially among women and the younger generation, about the idea that aging is unappealing? We are so obsessed with appearances and ‘youth’ that we overlook the empowering aspects of aging. This fixation on physical appearance blinds us to the potential for mind-body expansion as we age. There is immense potential for the expansion of consciousness and chi as we grow older. It’s a matter of understanding the development of the mind-body connection at each stage of life. Break free from the binary view of ‘young/old’ that society imposes on you. Learn how to live fully within your age group for maximum empowerment—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It’s about reaching your life mission. Don’t forget that.

“Whether we perceive our experiences as joyful or painful doesn’t matter. The more we awaken, the less we make distinctions. We gradually stop thinking in terms of opposites and simply are with each moment in a clear and open relationship. Our healing, our growth come from being open and awake. Our discomfort, our suffering, come from defending our delusional separate selves. This is the healing process, awakening to the original wholeness of life.”

(Soeng Hyang)

Inner Journey: The new era of consciousness we live in offers powerful tools for transformation on many levels. However, it also brings to the surface the confusion that was already latent in our culture. People often turn to Eastern philosophies and spirituality to heal themselves (as traditional medicine reaches a dead end in many cases) and to obtain what they believe will make them ‘happy.’ In doing so, they use spiritual teachings or practices as tools to acquire something, rather than living through those teachings to transform themselves. In sum, if you maintain a binary mindset while trying to reach ‘oneness,’ you will only distance yourself further from your true Self.

• Inner journey means transforming yourself by cutting through your dualistic mind. As a Zen master once said, ‘Many times we want to get something from practice, but enlightenment means to lose everything. To lose all illusions about yourself.’ (Bon Shim). What you gain is not from the outside but from within, as you shift consciousness and establish a clear and empowering relationship with what is. The inner journey can be undertaken anywhere on the planet; you don’t need to be in a specific place. By reaching the infinitely small within yourself, you connect with the infinitely vast universe. As quantum physics states, the particle (photon) already carries the memory of the entire universe. Do you realize how many particles and atoms you are made of? Reconnect now!

• Meditation is often misunderstood. In Japanese, Zen means ‘meditation.’ It has nothing to do with manifesting your dreams, visualizing what you want, or communicating with beings or spirits. While those practices may have their benefits, they should not be called ‘meditation.’ Meditation is about reconnecting with your true nature (Self) to move beyond the duality that causes suffering, live through oneness (higher consciousness), and help the world. The practice of meditation creates a space of detachment from duality, allowing your mind to become clear as you see and experience the world from a broader perspective. That’s true empowerment.

• Inner Joy / Peace. On the path to reconnecting with your true Self, you experience inner peace and joy as they emerge from a space of consciousness within you, independent of the outside world. Inner peace and joy are qualities of your true Self, unaffected by external circumstances. That’s why we call them ‘inner,’ rather than simply joy or peace that depend on the material world. You don’t need a Zen landscape to feel Zen; the peaceful landscape is already within you. You just need to access it. That’s true freedom of mind. When you are in that inner space, you don’t react to things through your ego—your wisdom arises to respond to any situation with clarity, correctness, and perfection in that specific moment.

The 21st century is a time to break away from the dualistic reality that society imposes on us. Suffering stems from living in duality. In a dualistic reality, there is no true objective solution—only treaties, compromises, agreements, metaphors, and euphemisms (ways to rephrase what bothers you in a positive and inspiring way). You cannot experience oneness with a dualistic mind. You don’t need to force your mind through intense practice to experience the universe. You simply need to let go of all your illusions about who you are, what reality is, and all ego’s expectations. Quiet your ego, and your true Self will naturally emerge—it’s always been there.

One last example that’s important to mention: Be cautious with euphemisms that are meant to inspire you. We’ve all heard the rephrasing of the success/failure dynamic, where ‘failure’ is presented as a lesson that propels you toward success. While this rethinking of the duality may seem inspirational, it remains in a duality. You need to move beyond this dynamic. A Zen approach would say, there is no failure because there is no success to begin with. Success/failure are only concepts, not real. There is only one event. Whether you perceive it as success or failure doesn’t matter because as you awaken you stop thinking in a dualistic way. What matters is whether you are getting closer to your inner peace. Learn to break away from a dualistic mindset. What we need in the 21st century is no longer “inspirational quotes” but “conscious quotes” that help awaken you – take you beyond duality. Conscious quotes shake up your traditional thinking. That’s what the new consciousness of the 21st century is about – self transformation.

I will end this blog with a Zen koan for you: What is Buddha?

Given what I’ve discussed in this blog, don’t try to answer with your ego (logic, intellectual mind). Let your true Self resonate, emerge, and you will find the answer.

Namaste.