Zuowang

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Zuowang
Chinese

Literal meaning sitting forgetting
Transcriptions
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zuowang (simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: zuwng) is a classic Daoist
meditation technique, described (Kohn 2008a:1308) as, "a state of deep trance
or intense absorption, during which no trace of ego-identity is felt and only the
underlying cosmic current of the Dao is perceived as real." Zuowang originated
during the late Warring States period (475-221 BCE), formed the Zuowanglun
title of a Tang dynasty (618-907) treatise on meditation, and continues in Daoist
contemplative practice today. This ancient Daoist practice compares with
zuochan "sitting meditation" in Chinese Buddhism and jingzuo "quietly sitting" in
Neo-Confucianism.
Contents [hide]
1 Terminology
2 Classical usages
2.1 Zhuangzi
2.2 Huainanzi
2.3 Zuowanglun
3 Modern interpretations
4 Modern research
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Terminology [edit]
Chinese zuowang compounds the words zuo "sit; take a seat" and wang "forget; overlook; neglect".
In terms of Chinese character classification, this zuo character is an ideogrammatic compound with two "people" sitting
on the "ground"; and wang is a phono-semantic compound with the "heart-mind radical" semantic element and a wang
"lose; disappear; flee; die; escape" phonetic and semantic element. Wang and wang are etymologically cognate,
explained as "(Mentally lost:) absent-minded, forget" (Karlgren 1923:366), or "'to lose' (from memory)" (Schuessler
2007:507).
Accurately translating zuowang is problematic. Compare the remarkable similarities among dictionary translation equivalents.
"be in a state of mental abstraction" (Herbert Giles 1912)
"to sit in a state of mental abstraction" (Robert Henry Mathews 1931)
"oblivious of oneself and one's surroundings; free from worldly concerns" (Liang Shih-chiu & Chang Fang-chieh 1971)
"oblivious of one's surroundings, free from worldly concerns" (Lin Yutang 1972)
" be oblivious of oneself and one's surroundings be free from worldly concerns" (John DeFrancis 2003)
Kohn explains translating wang as "oblivion".
Zuowang "sitting in oblivion," signifies a state of deep meditative absorption and mystical oneness, during
which all sensory and conscious faculties are overcome and which is the base point for attaining Dao. I translate
wang as "oblivion" and "oblivious" rather than "forgetting" or "forgetful" because the connotation of "forget" in
English is that one should remember but doesn't do so, or if used intentionally that one actively and
intentionally does something in the mind. None of these holds true for what ancient and medieval Daoists were
about. This is borne out both by the language and the writings: the word wang in Chinese consists of the
character xin for "mind-heart," usually associated with conscious and emotional reactions to reality and the word
wang for "obliterate" or "perish." The implication is as indeed described in the sources that one lets go of all
kinds of intentional and reactive patterns and comes to rest in oneness with spirit and is ready to merge
completely with Dao. (Kohn 2010:1)
The synonyms yiwang and wangque mean "forget; oblivion".
Daoist zuowang meditation had parallels in other Chinese religions and philosophies. The practice of jingzuo "quiet
sitting" was first recorded in the (3rd century BCE) Legalist classic Hanfeizi. Neo-Confucian leaders like Zhu Xi (1130-1200)
and Wang Yangming (14721529) advocated jingzuo meditation. (Jingzuo shiwei is the modern Chinese word for
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"sit-in"). The Chinese Buddhist practice of zuochan "sitting meditation" (namely, Japanese zazen) uses the word chan
"meditation; abstraction; trance", and zuosi "sitting contemplation" uses si "think; consider; deliberate". Compare the
Buddhist word zuowang "sitting death; passing away while sitting in meditation", which is the ideal manner of death for
eminent monks and nuns.
Classical usages [edit]
Chinese classics first used zuowang "sitting forgetting" around the 3rd century BCE, during the late Warring States period.
Zhuangzi [edit]
The Daoist Zhuangzi had the earliest recorded reference to zuowang. One of the (c. 3rd century BCE) core Zhuangzi "Inner
Chapters" (9, ) mentions zuowang "sitting forgetting" meditation in a famous dialogue between Confucius and his
favorite disciple Yan Hui, who (Roth 2003:18) "ironically "turns the tables" on his master by teaching him how to "sit and
forget"." Yan Hui describes forgetting the basic virtues of Confucianism: li "rites; ritual; morals", yue "music" (see Classic of
Music), ren "benevolence; human-heartedness; altruism", and yi "justice; righteousness; significance" (compare the
Daodejing 18).
"I'm making progress," said Yen Hui.
"What do you mean?" asked Confucius.
"I have forgotten rites and music."
"Not bad, but you still haven't got it."
Yen Hui saw Confucius again on another day and said, "I'm making progress."
"What do you mean?"
"I have forgotten humaneness and righteousness."
"Not bad, but you still haven't got it."
Yen Hui saw Confucius again on another day and said, "I'm making progress."
"What do you mean?"
"I sit and forget."
"What do you mean, 'sit and forget'?" Confucius asked with surprise.
"I slough off my limbs and trunk," said Yen Hui, "dim my intelligence, depart from my form, leave knowledge
behind, and become identical with the Transformational Thoroughfare. This is what I mean by 'sit and forget'."
"If you are identical," said Confucius, "then you have no preferences. If you are transformed, then you have no
more constants. It's you who is really the worthy one! Please permit me to follow after you." (tr. Mair 1994a:63-
64)
Roth (2003:18) refers to the apophatic practice of Daoist breath meditation as "inner cultivation", evident in Yan Hui meaning:
"to lose visceral awareness of the emotions and desires, which, for the early Daoists, have "physiological" bases in the
various organs," "to deliberately cut off sense perception," and "to lose bodily awareness and remove all thoughts from
consciousness." Kohn (2008a:1308) says, "This passage presents a mental state of complete unknowing, of loss of personal
identity and self, and a kind of total immersion in the Non-being of the universe."
The Zhuangzi has other allusions to meditation. Yan Hui asks Confucius about xinzhai "fasting of the mind" (4, tr. Mair
1994a:32), and two chapters discuss the question "Can you really make your body become like a withered carcass and your
mind like dead ashes?" (2, 24, tr. Mair 1994a:246). Harold Oshima (1983:67) clarifies that for Zhuangzi, "forgetting" means to
empty the xin "heart; mind", "just as one empties one's stomach by fasting. This idea of "forgetting" is essential, frequently
cited as the most important hurdle in the quest for sagehood. It does not refer, however, to the simple displacing of facts from
the mind."
The Xuanxue (lit. "Arcane Learning") "Neo-Daoist" philosopher Guo Xiang (d. 312 CE) redacted the Zhuangzi text, and wrote
a commentary, which explains zuowang.
In a state of sitting in oblivion, what could there be unforgotten? First one forgets all outer manifestations (ji ),
then one also forgets that which causes the manifestations. On the inside, one is unaware that there is a self
(shen ), on the outside one never knows that there is heaven and earth. Thus one becomes utterly empty and
can unite with the changes, leaving nothing unpervaded. (tr. Kohn 2008a:1308, cf. 2010:17)
Guo refers to the Xuanxue philosophical distinction between ben "root" (Daoist underlying ground of Being) and ji "traces"
(apparent Confucian virtues), "as everything is a trace of the Ultimate Truth, neither real because is not the Truth, nor false
because it is its manifestation" (Robinet 2008:275). In addition, "Guo Xiang interprets the attained state of oneness as one of
going along with the changes, adding an ecstatic element of transformation to the basically enstatic notion of oblivion" (Kohn
2008a:1308).
Compare the above Zhuangzi translation by Victor H. Mair with the following.
"I neglect my body and allow it to become effete; I discard my intelligence; so that, divesting myself of all corporealties [sic]
and permitting all knowledge to flow away I have become as one who has attained to complete perspicuity of vision. This is
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what I mean by sitting in in perfect abstraction." (Frederic H. Balfour 1881:81)
"My connexion with the body and its parts is dissolved; my perceptive organs are discarded. Thus leaving my material
form, and bidding farewell to my knowledge, I am become one with the Great Pervader. This I call sitting and forgetting all
things." (James Legge 1891:257)
"I have discarded my reasoning powers. And by thus getting rid of body and mind, I have become ONE with the Infinite.
This is what I mean by getting rid of everything." (Herbert Giles 1926:89)
"I smash up my limbs and body, drive out perception and intellect, cast off form, do away with understanding, and make
myself identical with the Great Thoroughfare. This is what I mean by sitting down and forgetting everything." (tr. Burton
Watson 1968:90)
"I let organs and members drop away, dismiss eyesight and hearing, part from the body and expel knowledge, and go
along with the universal thoroughfare. This is what I mean by 'just sit and forget'." (A. C. Graham 1981:92)
"I cast off my limb and trunk, give up my hearing and sight, leave my physical form and deprive myself of my mind. In this
way, I can identify myself with Tao. This is the so-called 'sitting and forgetting'." (Wang Rongpei 1999:111)
The translators render datong as "Great Pervader," "the Infinite," "Great/ universal/Transformational Thoroughfare," and
"Tao." Mair (1994:13) explains that "Transformational Thoroughfare" follows the Huainanzi graphic variant (or copyist's error)
of hua "transform; change; convert" for "big; great".
The Tang dynasty Daoist scholar Cheng Xuanying (fl. 631-650) wrote a Zhuangzi commentary, linking zuowang to
jianwang "twofold forgetfulness", based upon the abstruse two-truths theory of Chinese Buddhist monk Jizang (549-623).
Kohn (2008a:1309) explains, "First one forgets the outer reality (Being), then one forgets its underlying ground (Non-being).
Once beyond these two, one reaches a state of both Being and Non-being, which, once again obliterated, becomes one of
neither Being nor Non-being, a state of perception that neither accepts nor negates, and is sensorially aware yet utterly
pure."
Huainanzi [edit]
The (c. 139 BCE) philosophical compendium Huainanzi includes another version of the anecdote about Yan Hui explaining
zuowang to his teacher Confucius.
"I am making progress," said Yan Hui.
"What do you mean?" asked Confucius.
"I have forgotten Rites and Music."
"Not bad, but you still haven't got it."
Yan Hui saw Confucius on another day and said, "I am making progress."
"What do you mean?"
"l have forgotten Humaneness and Rightness."
"Not bad, but you still haven't got it."
Yan Hui saw Confucius again on another day and said, "I sit and forget."
"What do you mean 'sit and forget'?" Confucius asked with surprise.
"I slough off my limbs and trunk," said Yan Hui, "dim my intelligence, depart from my form, leave knowledge
behind, and immerse myself in the conduits of transformation. This is what I mean by 'sit and forget'."
"If you are immersed," said Confucius, "then you have no preferences. If you are transformed, then you have no
more constants. It is you who is really the worthy one! Please permit me to follow after you."
Therefore the Laozi says:
"When nourishing your ethereal soul and embracing the One
can you not let them go?
In concentrating your qi and attaining softness,
can you be like an infant?" (12, tr. Major et al. 2010:468-9)
The Huainanzi version appends a Daodejing (10) quotation, which is not found in the Zhuangzi. Besides some minor
differences such as exchanging li and yue with ren and yi, and writing huatong "Transformational Thoroughfare" for datong
"Great Thoroughfare" these two versions are conspicuously similar. Major et al. (2010:432) caution against concluding that
the Huainanzi compilers drew upon the Zhuangzi. Roth (1991) suggests that the received Zhuangzi text may have been
compiled, along with the Huainanzi, at the Huainan court of Liu An.
Zuowanglun [edit]
The twelfth Shangqing School patriarch Sima Chengzhen (647-735) wrote the Zuowanglun "Essay on Sitting
and Forgetting", which centers upon zuowang meditation. The text has survived in two editions: one in Zhang Junfang's Yunji
Qiqian and Xu Song's Quan Tangwen , and another in the Daozang. A shorter Zuowanglun copy was
inscribed on a stele erected on Mount Wangwu in 829.
According to Kohn (2008b:1310), "The text in either of its versions outlines the practitioner's gradual progress toward the Dao
in seven steps: I. "Respect and Faith" (Jingxin ); 2. "Interception of karma" (Duanyuan ); 3. "Restraining the Mind"
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(Shouxin ); 4. "Detachment from Affairs" (Jianshi ); "True Observation" (Zhenguan ); 6. "Intense Concentration"
(Taiding ); 7. "Realizing the Dao" (Dedao )."
Modern interpretations [edit]
Schools of East Asian Buddhism adopted zuowang practices, notably Chinese Chan, Japanese Zen, and Tibetan Dzogchen.
Through its practice, adepts eliminate all sensory perception and the conscious mind as inherently dualistic and
potentially misleading, avoiding the use of the sensory apparatus in attaining higher states. Practitioners thus
strive to access what they call pure experience or "sitting in oblivion of everything" by letting go of all ordinary
perception while strengthening intuition, the potency of the inborn, natural mind-a pure reflection of original
cosmos in human beings. Posture and body control become essential; all analytical, dualistic thinking as well as
connection to deities are radically overcome. (Kohn 2010:6)
Daoists today use zuowang to mean a specific form of practice involving loss of self and conscious thought.
Victor H. Mair, polymathic Professor of Chinese Language and Literature at the University of Pennsylvania, explains zuowang
[wikilinks added].
Tsowang ("sit-forget") is the technical term in early Taoism for meditation. It corresponds roughly to Buddhist
ch'an (i.e., Zen, from Sanskrit dhyna) but more specifically to samdhi ("conjoining"), a trance state in which the
mind loses itself in the object of contemplation. This may be thought of as complete obliviousness. There are
numerous precise stages and states in Indian meditation. In general, they may be described, in Patanjali's term,
as various types of citta-vtti-nirodha ("mental-action-control"). The highest levels are the various types of trance
(amana, "calming, pacification") in which the yogi becomes one with the universe and in which all trace of mental
activity ceases. Similar trance states are described in the Chuang Tzu, although here the emphasis is less on
the voiding (nyat) of the mind than it is on "bodilessness" (videha) or exteriorization. (1994b:13)
Liu Xingdi of the Leigutai Temple in Shaanxi says:
Zuowang is allowing everything to slip from the mind, not dwelling on thoughts, allowing them to come and go,
simply being at rest. It is important to take a good posture to still the body and calm the mind. Otherwise qi
disperses, attention wanders, and the natural process is disturbed. Just remain empty and there is no separation
from Dao. Then wisdom will arise and bring forth light, with is the clear qi of the person. Do not think too much
about the theory of this, otherwise you are sure to disturb the mind. It is like the sun rising in the east and setting
in the west. To think about stopping it halfway is a futile exercise. Just trust the inherent natural process. (Shi
2005:6)
Shi Jing, leader of the British Taoist Association, explains:
Zuowang is to sit and forget. What we forget is the thing we hold most dearly: self, with all its opinions, beliefs,
and ideals. We can be so caught up in the concept of self that we only see the world as a place to fulfill personal
ambition and desire. (2006:11)
Eva Wong, author and Quanzhen practitioner, says:
Zuowang is a dropping of conceptions. When we drop conceptions, what we have is the natural emergence of
the natural self, the natural celestial mind, which has been with us all the time. It is only because of our
conceptions that we can't experience it. So when we practice zuowang, we are simply saying that here is a
method where we can begin to drop conceptions. (Shi 2007:8)
Modern research [edit]
Research on meditation has examined basic zuowang relaxation techniques such as deep breathing and attentional control,
which Kohn (2010:124) says, "have a profound impact on human physiology and neurology, activating the parasympathetic
nervous system and creating an inner state of receptivity and caIm."
Santee (2012) compares Herbert Benson's "Relaxation Response" with Daoist zuowang meditation practices. Benson
(2000:104-106) cites the clazssic Zhuangzi passage on Yan Hui's zuowang as an example of culturally diverse methods for
evoking the relaxation response and reducing chronic stress.
The psychiatrist Charles E. Stroebel's "Quieting Reflex" (1989) also uses concentration for healing. Kohn (2010:124)
describes it as "somewhat closer to Daoist practice," notably the notion of qi circulating through meridians and organs.
The holistic psychologist John Diamond's "Behavioral Kinesiology" (1978), which is based upon the controversial applied
kinesiology, involves social, physical, and psychological measures to enhance bodily well-being, which Kohn (2010:124) finds
to be "very much in agreement with those described by Sun Simiao and Sima Chengzhen."
Livia Kohn concludes.
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To sum up, while many of the practices associated with oblivion as an integrated system are still present today
as much as zuowang itself is still practiced in Daoist communitiesthe focus for the most part has shifted toward
the more immediate gratification of modern desires: stress release, pain control, healing, and enhanced success
and well-being. In addition, there are certain branches of modern science: such as kinesiology and energy
medicine, that allow the integration of traditional Daoist views of body and mind into a contemporary scientific
framework and are shaping current new developments. (2010:124)
See also [edit]
Egolessness
Ego death
Samadhi
Fana (Sufism)
Mushin
References [edit]
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Kelly & Walsh.
Benson, Herbert and Miriam Z. Klipper (2000), The Relaxation Response, Harper Collins.
DeFrancis, John, ed. (2003), ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary, University of Hawaii Press.
Giles, Herbert A., ed. (1912), A Chinese-English Dictionary, 2nd. ed., Kelly & Walsh.
Giles, Herbert Allen, tr. (1926), Chuang Tz: Mystic, Moralist, and Social Reformer, Kelly & Walsh.
Graham, A.C. (2001), Chuang-tzu: The Inner Chapters, Hackett Publishing Company.
Karlgren, Bernhard. 1923. Analytic Dictionary of Chinese and Sino-Japanese . Paul Geunther.
Kohn, Livia (1987), Seven Steps to the Tao: Sima Chengzhen's Zuowanglun, Steyler Verlag.
Kohn, Livia (2008a), "Zuowang sitting in oblivion," in The Encyclopedia of Taoism, ed. by Fabrizio Pregadio, 1308-
1309.
Kohn, Livia (2008b), "Zuowang lun Essay on sitting in oblivion," in The Encyclopedia of Taoism, ed. by Fabrizio
Pregadio, 1309-1310.
Kohn, Livia (2009), Daoist Body Cultivation and Behavioral Kinesiology , Daoist Studies
Kohn, Livia (2010), Sitting in Oblivion: The Heart of Daoist Meditation, Three Pines Press.
Legge, James, tr. (1891), The Sacred Books of China: The Texts of Taoism, Part I, Oxford University Press.
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Co.
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Mair, Victor H., tr. (1994a), Wandering on the Way: Early Taoist Tales and Parables of Chuang Tzu, Bantam Books.
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Major, John S., Sarah Queen, Andrew Meyer, and Harold Roth (2010), The Huainanzi: A Guide to the Theory and
Practice of Government in Early Han China, by Liu An, King of Huainan, Columbia University Press.
Mathews, Robert H., ed. (1931), Mathews' Chinese-English Dictionary, Presbyterian Mission Press.
Oshima, Harold H. (1983), "A Metaphorical Analysis of the Concept of Mind in the Chuang-tzu," in Experimental Essays on
Chuang-tzu, edited by Victor H. Mair, University of Hawaii Press, 63-84.
Robinet, Isabelle (1993), Taoist Meditation: The Mao-shan Tradition of Great Purity, SUNY Press, original French 1989.
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Discourses on the Zhuangzi, edited by Scott Cook, SUNY, 15-32.
Santee, Robert (2012), "Sitting in Forgetfulness and the Relaxation Response: An Inquiry into Managing the Physical and
Psychological Symptoms of Chronic Stress ," Sixth International Conference on Daoist Studies.
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Shi Jing (2006), "Sitting and Forgetting: An Introduction to Zuowang," The Dragon's Mouth, British Taoist Association,
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Wang Rongpei, tr. (1999), Zhuangzi (Library of Chinese Classics: Chinese-English edition), Foreign Languages Press.
Watson, Burton, tr. (1968), The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu, Columbia University Press.
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External links [edit]
Zuowang Meditation, Sitting and Forgetting , Michael P. Garofalo
Daoist Zuowang Meditation , Tao Directory
On Sitting in Oblivion , Daoinfo
Zuowang Meditation: Forgetting to Remember , Lori A. Furbush
Categories: Religion in China Meditation Taoism
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