Shundo David Haye

‘Originally this expression shikantaza was used not by Dogen himself but by his teacher Rujing. We not only just sit – when we eat, we just eat; when we work in the kitchen we just cook; when we clean, we just clean; when we chant, we just chant.
This attitude of “just” is the answer Dogen discovered through seeing the two virtues of mountains and waters. It means the reality of all beings: abiding peacefully in their dharma positions and also constantly walking. These are the contradictory aspects of one reality. When we see both sides of our life, what can we do? What kind of attitude should we maintain toward our lives? The answer is to be just attentive and put our whole energy into whatever we are doing right now. When we are sitting in the zendo, we just sit, one hundred percent there, nothing else.’ (The Mountains and Waters Sutra)