"Zen is not about peace, joy, pancakes"

It's the end of the year. Everyone is talking about what they want to do differently next year. Many want to do without something. Where does this urge come from and does it really bring us the salvation we hope for?
If at the end of the year we look back on the old year and think about what we want to do differently, then that in itself is something good! If we discover that we want to do without something because we no longer need it - be it different needs, behaviour or material things - then this can really lead to less stress in our lives and greater inner satisfaction that can be found in doing nothing.

You are a Zen master and have been practising Zen Buddhism for decades. What does that mean anyway?
Zen literally means "meditation" and figuratively means: wholeheartedly doing nothing! What is meant by this is an inner doing nothing, letting go of the inner babble of our personality parts, which constantly conduct mono and dialogues and comment on everything we do with trains of thought, and reaching an inner silence, in awake presence in the here and now, with what is right now. In doing so, one experiences an inner peace and stillness and at the same time a deep happiness. It is a conceptless clarity of consciousness, a pure awareness without intentions, a crystal-clear perception out of timeless silence, the immediate awareness of the "suchness" of things, completely without inner comments, evaluations, intentions, desires, memories, etc. This leads to an inner peace and an inner silence. Over time, this gives rise to a so-called "witness consciousness" as a timeless, impersonal presence - - or in other words: a third-person perspective on things.

And how can we simply become more Zen?
Through meditation practice on the cushion, walking, standing, lying down, eating, etc. in everything we do in everyday life.

The Philosophy Festival will also talk about social media and Likes as the new currency. Is TikTok and everything that goes with it compatible with Zen?
Everyday life is Zen!

Is it even desirable to meet everything with serenity?
Zen is not about just bathing in peace, joy, pancakes - or serenity - and floating above things, but about being with everything that is right now: being open to everything that is there in us and in the world right now, learning to fundamentally accept ambi- and multivalences in and around us, and acting out of the stillness of the present moment, with which we can always be in touch anew, even in the storm of everyday life.

So you agree that it is precisely the moments when we sheerly explode - with joy, with excitement, with anger - that make life worth living?
Yes, that's why all intense feelings like joy, excitement or anger are part of a Zen life. But when we go to the object of meditation in everyday life, we pause for a moment and disidentify for a small moment from what is at the moment, immerse ourselves in the happiness of the moment and have a little more freedom of choice and possibilities to dare the next step, the next action from the connection with our inner silence.

Many draw strength from dissatisfaction. It is their daily drive, their motor. What do you think of this?
Dissatisfaction is also part of it! It is the icing on the cake of contentment!

It seems to be a sign of the times that many people live in extremes. They swing back and forth between gluttony and complete renunciation. Either "not getting enough" or practising frugality.
Buddha deliberately chose the "Middle Way" beyond the extremes after he had experienced the extremes himself. This means the path beyond gluttony or total renunciation, beyond "not getting enough" or "perfect abstinence". Interestingly, there are strong points of contact here with Aristotle's "mesotes teaching". Here, too, it is about the "right middle" beyond the extremes. It is about consciously adopting an inner attitude towards things and not clinging to either gluttony or complete renunciation. When the foreground of our perceptions, our thinking, feeling, sensing and acting is occupied and we can no longer switch back and forth between the "foreground and background" of our perceptions, then we cling.

When you take stock: What kind of year was this 2022?
A year of war and crisis, economically, ecologically, humanly.

If you listen inside yourself (and of course pay attention to the external signals): What kind of year will 2023 be?
I think what we need is inner growth, more complex perception and thinking, openness to inner and outer ambi- and multivalences, acceptance, inner peace, serenity, benevolence and compassion.