The Zen Manifesto is a synthesis of my views on Zen practice, why people should practice, how, and some of the issues that arise in the course of practice. If I had only one compact document to share with people, this would be it. My aim is that it’s complete enough that one wouldn’t have to look elsewhere. It’s ironic that human beings rarely know how to be . Our society, language, upbringing, and culture have all conspired to make thinking the centerpiece of our personal identity. We’re lost in thought non-stop. While thinking is an incredibly useful tool, when it goes unmanaged and unchecked, it can complicate and distort our lives and relationships and even our understanding of reality itself.  Our thinking generates an entire world of meaning that we project out onto our experience and confuse with reality itself. I like this, I don’t like that. This person is smart, this person is an idiot. This is scary, that is useless.   It layers onto our experience seamlessly...