You Can Change Your Karma. Your Mind Can Do Anything.

Recollections of Zen Master Seung Sahn

Meeting Zen Master Seung Sahn was a life-changing experience for me and for many people. When you meet such a person, your life becomes so determined that it leaves you with no other choice but to spread his teaching eventually.

We meet many people in our life. Some are charismatic, interesting, or warm, maybe even bright, but Zen Master Seung Sahn was something else. He was like a clear mirror, and in the reflection of it you could see your mind vividly. This wasn’t always pleasant, yet at the same time, there was neither judgment nor discrimination from his side, only an open-minded person whose only wish was to wake you up.

I had the privilege to live with him in one apartment every time he came to Warsaw Zen Center. We shared the same space, and he was a part of our family, coming to the kitchen, always with some comment or advice. He was curious about what we were cooking and would hang around for a while. We were living our daily lives, and one time, a large kitchen table we had ordered arrived and we couldn’t get it through the door.

Zen Master Seung Sahn heard some movement and people pushing the table and immediately had an idea. He shouted, “Bring it through the window” and added, “Good table.” These were the special moments of living together, simple but at the same time remarkable to see this alert mind in everyday-life situations.

But there were also unusual moments. Zen Master Seung Sahn had this strong dharma energy or dharma light, and it was hard to stop my little kids, who absolutely wanted to go into his room and just be with him as much as possible.

Another story from a significant moment for the Polish school occurred when we celebrated our twenty-year anniversary. Zen Master Seung Sahn was already very ill, but he came anyway. We built a new dharma room just before the event. Zen Master Seung Sahn was very happy when he arrived and saw a beautiful new big hall for practice and so many students inside. He didn’t talk much during the ceremony, and when he returned to his room, he just collapsed on the big chair, exhausted. So I leaned close to him and whispered if he needed anything, maybe I should call a doctor. He just shook his head in denial and said, “You have many people here, think about other people.”

Zen Master Seung Sahn touched the hearts of so many people. I hear stories all the time from his students. Some of them are still in our school, and some came back after many years of absence. He spread enlightenment seeds all over the world, and they are still growing in many different places.

What is fascinating is that he didn’t have to explain much. As we know, his verbal communication wasn’t the most important factor. His books and his teachings constantly inspire and attract many students, but the essential part was that his presence helped us to connect to something bigger than us, our original mind.

I had the honor to translate hundreds of interviews and exchanges he had with many people. He had such a strong impact and could change a person's view or attitude in a short time, or help them to let go of their anger or strong opinion or strong suffering, giving them direction and encouragement for practice.

One time a man arrived in a very poor state of mind. He was in pain and crying. Zen Master Seung Sahn sat with him in silence for a while, and then he said to him, “You can change your karma, your mind can do anything. You must do strong training.” And that’s exactly what he did, and he is doing so much better.

Zen Master Seung Sahn could reach each person deeply, and people seemed relieved after talking to him, a truly remarkable and great bodhisattva.

I remember a big dharma talk at the Warsaw University of Technology, where about five or six hundred people attended. It’s hard to describe the moments of complete silence after he asked questions like “Where are you coming from?” or “When you die, where do you go?” or “Who are you?” Everyone got hit, and even after he finished his talk, people were just sitting there and still couldn’t leave the lecture hall for a little while.

The last story comes from an important event on my path, a kind of recognition from Zen Master Seung Sahn. I received inka from him and I was very happy. For a moment, I had this idea that now I can relax a bit with my daily practice and focus more on my new job, but I wanted to hear what Zen Master Seung Sahn had to say about that. So I asked him, and he looked at me with his piercing eyes and repeated, “Relax, haha! Now you should practice more, because you have more responsibility. If you loosen your practice, your karma will control you, and you cannot be completely clear.”

Deep gratitude for Zen Master Seung Sahn’s unshakable direction, incredibly clear and powerful teaching that continues to inspire and save many people from suffering.