The method in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind is hard to do in the beginning stages of practice. In the beginning you still need to have a method like counting breaths to focus the mind. That book says to just put down your mind. That's not what I am saying. Some people might have difficulty counting breaths when they meditate, so I'll have them do shikantaza (just sitting) practice instead. Some people can't use either method. They have too many scattered thoughts for shikantaza and they control or force their breathing. I usually advise these people to repeat the Buddha's name or recite a mantra. These two methods allow the practitioner to stabilize the mind.

STUDENT:

What kind of mantra would be good?

SHIH-FU:

Anything can be a mantra. Some mantras have a kind of power in and of themselves, especially if many people repeat them aloud and together, over and over. The more people use them, the more power they can accumulate. If you use your own personal mantra, then probably it won't gain much power. But some mantras are very powerful, like the Great Compassionate Dhyana mantra. Each phrase in this mantra is the name of a bodhisattva and, since the mantra is recited by many people, it is extremely powerful. However, the Ch'an sect is not concerned with personal power, so any mantra or phrase will do. As a Ch'an method, a mantra should be simple, and its purpose is just to focus the mind.

STUDENT:

Most of us have hectic lives and schedules. When we try to meditate we are extremely scattered in the beginning. You say we should tell ourselves to feel happy and relaxed about what we are going to do, but thoughts and feelings are two different things. You can tell yourself to settle down, but that doesn't mean you are going to. What you are saying may be too subtle to grasp. So would it be better to start with counting breaths until settled and then shift to the just sitting method?