What Is Zen Buddhism- - A Japanese Perspective Through Lived Experience

This world is full of contradictions. People, science, nature, communities, even the universe. We live in an age of fast-growing technology and endless information. It's a time that feels uncertain and complex. And the answers are not always simple. I believe that Zen holds the key Zen is not just about meditation or calm feelings. It's a deep way of life, a philosophy we live through real experience. Many people have already shared the history and ideas of Zen through books and YouTubes. So in this video, I'll speak as one Japanese person and share the Zen I've found through my own journey and life experiences. The word Zen comes from the Buddhist practice called Zenjo, which means to focus your mind on one thing deeply. Zen started in India as a part of Buddhism. It later grew and developed in China. Around the 6th century, a monk named Bodhidharma traveled from India to China. He taught the importance of meditation and sitting quietly. His teachings became the foundation of what we now call Zen Buddhism. Zen finally arrived in Japan during the Kamakura period. But here's the question. Why do so many people today think of Zen as something deeply Japanese, even though it came from India and China? That's because Japan embraced Zen not just as a religion, but as part of everyday life and culture. For example, samurai used Zen to train their minds and stay calm. Later, Zen ideas like empty mind and living in the moment were naturally woven into things like tea ceremony, flower arrangement, and martial arts. Zen doesn't give you clear answers. Instead, it asks you to find the truth through your own experience. It's a way of thinking that values action and practice over theory. In a world with no simple answers, Zen teaches us to take one step forward, even while holding inner contradictions. That spirit matched well with how Japanese people live, facing reality and embracing diversity. Zen took deep root in Japan, and today Zen is known around the world, not just as a religion but training, but as a way of life and a form of beauty that Japan helped grow and share. I believe the purpose of Zen is to free yourself from all kinds of attachments. From the moment we are born, we are surrounded by invisible rules like social norms or limiting beliefs. These help us fit into society, but they can also trap us. Many people end up hiding their true selves without even realizing it. For me, the biggest attachment was contradiction. We unconsciously tend to see things in two extremes, good or evil, positive or negative, and then we label one as bad and try to reject it. A common example is positive thinking. When we feel negative emotions, we try to forcefully turn them into something positive. But remember, those negative feelings are still a part of you. Trying to deny them means rejecting a part of yourself, and the more you try to suppress them, the more we search, it hurts you even more. What really matters is not denying the contradiction, but embracing it freely. Each of us holds a variety of versions of ourselves, an honest self, a self who wants to run away, a kind self, an angry self. We often put these parts of ourselves against each other by labeling them as good or bad. But by doing so, you are rejecting parts of who you are, and the parts you reject will always return in a different form. You try to push them away again, and the cycle never ends. Zen is not about removing these parts of yourself. It's about accepting that all of them, even the contradictions, are still you. Through martial art training, meditation, and daily life experiences, I slowly learned to accept and love every part of myself. And something amazing happened. When I accepted my own contradictions, I could start accepting the contradictions in others too. Eventually, I could even love those parts in other people. Because we all have contradictions, and that's completely natural. When you can embrace all of it, such as yourself, others, and even society, your mind stays calm no matter what happens. I believe many of you watching might feel the same. When nothing disturbs your inner peace, and you can focus fully on the moment, that, to me, is the true state of Zen. There are two major turning points that helped me come to terms with contradiction. The first was the death of my best friend. We had played soccer together since elementary school, even into adulthood. But when we were 24, he suddenly took his own life. Not even his family knew why. He had so many friends, was always cheerful, funny, and good-looking. Why him? If only we had met up earlier. If only I had noticed something was wrong. That regret stayed with me. Years passed. I turned 30. The feelings from his death had faded. I had experienced both deep joy and deep despair. Life was busy. And one day, a question came to me out of nowhere. Why am I trying so hard to live? That was the second turning point. I had always believed in the value of my work. I wanted to change the world. But the more time passed, the more my friend's presence began to fade. And when I looked at the world more broadly, I realized something unsettling. The world would go on, just as if nothing had happened. Even if I were to vanish tomorrow, the people I love would eventually forget, and the world would continue spinning in its usual rhythm. In that moment, I truly understood, deep inside, that my existence might hold no meaning at all. Even Steve Jobs passed away, and yet Apple lives on. The iPhone keeps evolving. If not me, someone else will probably do similar work with similar passion. All the things I believed had meaning. Maybe none of it actually meant anything. But at the same time, another thought quietly emerged. My friend's life has certainly changed mine. Out of 8 billion people, one life had been deeply touched. Perhaps that's what change really is. A quiet ripple, invisible to most, spreading slowly over time. And maybe it's not about what we do, but who we are. Our presence alone creates impact. That's when two contradictory truths began to live side by side in me. My life means nothing, and I've made a real difference. As someone who used to live by logic and reason, this feeling was unfamiliar, quiet, and hard to explain. But as that quietness settled into my heart, something shifted. If everything I do is both meaningful and meaningless, then I should stop chasing validation, and simply live as my true self. When I realized that I was living within a grand contradiction, I began to see the contradictory parts of myself more clearly, and without judgment. I could look at my emotions and thoughts, receive them as they were, and allow them to stay. And somehow, my heart no longer wavered. I could accept everything as it was, without resistance. Maybe that was the moment I finally stepped through the gate to understanding Zen. Maybe my story is a bit unique and does not resonate with everyone, but I believe most people, at some point, have asked themselves, what is the meaning of my work? What's the purpose of my life? Zen isn't just about meditation, or having sudden realization from study. But I can say this with confidence. Every experience, every step has led me to this awareness. Zen is the ultimate practice-based philosophy. And practice doesn't mean something special or spiritual. It means living your daily life with awareness. Japan embraced Zen not just as a religion, but as everyday culture. That's because we believe the truth could be found in daily experiences. The path of Zen never ends. I'm still walking the path too. But it's not about going somewhere or doing something special. It's about asking yourself, again and again, how am I living this very moment? And when you can fully embrace your contradictions, just as they are, you'll start to accept and even love them in others and in society too. Then no matter what happens, your heart stays calm and you can focus on the present moment. That's the quiet strength I believe Zen leads us to. If my story helps you face that question, even just a little, I'm truly happy. So, what contradictions are you living with today? How do you accept and walk with them?