Zazen, the core practice of Zen Buddhism, is sitting meditation in its most essential form. Unlike visualization or mantra practices that employ specific mental objects, zazen teaches the practitioner to simply sit with alert awareness, allowing the mind to settle into its natural state. Morning zazen—the daily practice of sitting in meditation as the sun rises—has been the foundation of monastic training and lay practice for over a thousand years. This session from Upaya Zen Center, a Buddhist residential contemplative community in Santa Fe, New Mexico, offers practitioners at all levels an opportunity to engage directly with this ancient discipline, discovering both the structure that makes zazen effective and the spaciousness that emerges when sitting begins.
What Is Zazen and Why Practice in the Morning?
Zazen literally means "seated meditation" in Japanese, though the practice itself originates in earlier Chinese and Indian Buddhist traditions. The form is deceptively simple: sit upright, maintain alert awareness, and allow the mind to rest without grasping or rejecting thoughts. The simplicity, however, conceals profound depth. In zazen, practitioners are not trying to achieve a special state or attain anything outside themselves. Rather, they are sitting in direct contact with the present moment, body and mind integrated, without agenda or improvement-seeking.
Morning practice holds particular value in Zen tradition. The early hours, before the mind becomes occupied with daily tasks and concerns, offer a natural window of clarity and receptivity. Many practitioners find that sitting at dawn, when the mind is less cluttered and the environment is quieter, allows for a quality of attention that becomes increasingly difficult to access as the day unfolds. Upaya's daily morning zazen serves both residential community members and online participants, making the practice accessible to people across different geographies and life circumstances.
The Physical Foundation: Posture and Breath in Zazen
Proper posture is not a matter of aesthetic preference in zazen; it is integral to the practice itself. An upright spine, with the head positioned so the eyes gaze downward at a slight angle, allows energy and attention to flow naturally through the body. The shoulders remain relaxed, and the hands rest in a specific mudra (gesture), typically with one hand cradling the other in the lap, palms up. This positioning prevents the body from collapsing forward into sluggishness or tilting backward into distraction.
Breath in zazen requires no artificial manipulation. Practitioners are guided to breathe naturally through the nose, allowing the breath to be deep and full without forced effort. As the body settles and the mind quiets, breathing naturally becomes slower and more rhythmic. The breath serves as an anchor: when the mind wanders into thought-chains or planning, gentle attention to the breath brings awareness back to the present body. Over time, this returns to the breath becomes less effortful, as practitioners discover that the mind, given space and lack of interference, tends naturally toward stillness.
The Mind in Zazen: Thought Without Attachment
A common misconception is that zazen involves stopping all thoughts or achieving a blank mind. In reality, the mind continues to produce thoughts, sensations, and mental images. The practice is to observe these phenomena without grasping, rejecting, or following them into elaborate narratives. When you notice the mind has wandered into planning, memory, or fantasy—which it will—the instruction is simply to return to present-moment awareness without judgment or frustration.
This non-interference with thought is crucial. Rather than fighting the mind, zazen practitioners learn to sit with the mind's natural activity while maintaining a space of awareness around it. Over time, thoughts continue to arise, but they lose their compelling force. The practitioner develops what Zen traditions call "just sitting"—a quality of presence that is neither suppressive nor indulgent, but naturally balanced. This balance extends into daily life, where practitioners begin to experience a similar freedom from reactive thinking patterns.
Zazen as Embodied Practice, Not Just Mental Discipline
Zazen is fundamentally a whole-body practice, not a mental exercise alone. The seated posture activates and grounds the physical body, bringing awareness into sensations, tensions, and the felt sense of being present. Many practitioners report that in early sessions, they become aware of chronic tensions they have carried unconsciously—in the shoulders, jaw, or belly. Rather than trying to relax these areas forcefully, the simple act of sitting with attentive presence often allows these tensions to release naturally.
This embodied dimension distinguishes zazen from purely mental meditation practices. The body, held in upright posture for extended periods, gradually becomes an ally rather than an obstacle. Discomfort that initially arises—an itch, a tight knee, restlessness—can be met with awareness rather than reaction. Through this process, practitioners develop a more resilient and integrated relationship with physical sensation, extending far beyond the meditation cushion into movement, work, and interaction with others.
The Role of the Zendo and Collective Practice
While zazen can be practiced alone, Upaya and other Zen centers emphasize the value of the zendo—the meditation hall where practitioners sit together. The shared silence and collective commitment create a field of practice that supports individual effort. Sitting in the presence of others, particularly more experienced practitioners, naturally strengthens concentration and resolve. There is also an implicit transmission: through observing how others sit, through the shared rhythm of practice, and through the tangible silence that deepens as a group settles together, practitioners absorb the essence of Zen practice without instruction in words.
Upaya's expansion of zazen practice to include online sessions via Zoom has extended this accessibility to practitioners who cannot travel to Santa Fe. While the experience differs from in-person practice—the felt presence of a physical zendo carries its own quality—the core discipline remains intact. Sitting in one's home, connected to others engaged in the same practice, continues to deepen the integration of zazen into daily life.
Zazen and the Contemplative Life
Zen tradition teaches that zazen is not a means to some distant enlightenment goal, but the direct expression of Buddha nature. In sitting, one is already practicing Buddha—not becoming Buddhist or progressing toward enlightenment, but expressing the fundamental wisdom and awareness that is one's deepest nature. This shifts the relationship to practice: zazen is not something to do in order to become better, but something to do because it is the natural expression of awakeness.
Over time, the effects of regular zazen practice ripple into all dimensions of life. Practitioners typically report increased clarity in decision-making, deeper listening capacity in relationships, greater equanimity in the face of difficulty, and a more direct intimacy with simple, ordinary experience. These are not special attainments but natural byproducts of returning, again and again, to present-moment awareness without agenda.
Where to Go From Here
For those interested in beginning or deepening zazen practice, Upaya Zen Center offers daily online zazen sessions, accessible through their website. Practitioners might begin by sitting for shorter periods—even 15 or 20 minutes—allowing the body and mind to gradually acclimate to the practice. As familiarity develops, sitting duration can naturally extend. Reading classical Zen texts, attending workshops or retreats, and connecting with a teacher can deepen understanding of the philosophical and spiritual dimensions of zazen. The practice is best learned through direct experience, however; talking about zazen, while useful for orientation, is not the practice itself. The invitation is simply to sit, return again and again to the present moment, and discover what clarity emerges when the mind is given genuine rest.
