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Zuowang (simplified Chinese: 坐忘; pinyin: zuòwàng) 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. ==Terminology== Chinese ''zuowang'' compounds the words ''zuo'' 坐 "sit; take a seat" and ''wang'' 忘 "forget; overlook; neglect". In terms of Chinese character classification, this ''zuo'' character 坐 is an ideogrammatic compound with two 人 "people" sitting on the 土 "ground"; and ''wang'' 忘 is a phono-semantic compound with the "heart-mind radical" semantic element and a ''wang'' 亡 "lose; disappear; flee; die; escape" phonetic and semantic element. ''Wang'' 亡 and ''wang'' 忘 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) *"① be oblivious of oneself and one's surroundings ② be free from worldly concerns" (John DeFrancis 2003) Kohn explains translating ''wang'' as "oblivion". ''Zuowang'' 坐忘 "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'' 遺忘 and ''wangque'' 忘卻 mean "forget; oblivion". Daoist ''zuowang'' meditation had parallels in other Chinese religions and philosophies. The practice of ''jingzuo'' 靜坐 "quiet sitting" was first recorded in the (3rd century BCE) Legalist classic ''Hanfeizi''. Neo-Confucian leaders like Zhu Xi (1130-1200) and Wang Yangming (1472–1529) advocated ''jingzuo'' meditation. (''Jingzuo shiwei'' 静坐示威 is the modern Chinese word for "sit-in"). The Chinese Buddhist practice of ''zuochan'' 坐禪 "sitting meditation" (namely, Japanese ''zazen'') uses the word ''chan'' "meditation; abstraction; trance", and ''zuosi'' 坐思 "sitting contemplation" uses ''si'' "think; consider; deliberate". Compare the Buddhist word ''zuowang'' 坐亡 "sitting death; passing away while sitting in meditation", which is the ideal manner of death for eminent monks and nuns. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Zuowang」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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