Zen is a way of life rather than a set of beliefs from "summary" of The Way of Zen by Alan Watts
Zen is not a system of beliefs, doctrines, or dogmas to be accepted on faith. It is not a religion in the ordinary sense, for it has no God, no priesthood, and no code of ethics. It does not demand of its followers any belief in a doctrine which it is impossible to understand. Zen is a way of liberation, an awakening from the sleep of illusion. It is a way of life, a way of being that is available to anyone who is willing to open their eyes and see things as they really are. In Zen, the emphasis is not on gaining knowledge or accumulating information. It is about experiencing directly the reality of the present moment. It is about being fully present, fully alive, fully engaged in the here and now. Zen is not about escaping from the world, but about plunging into it more deeply. It is about seeing the sacred in the ordinary, the extraordinary in the mundane. The practice of Zen is not about following a set of rules or obeying a set of commandments. It is about cultivating a state of mind that is open, receptive, and nonjudgmental. It is about letting go of attachments, expectations, and preconceptions. It is about embracing the unknown, the uncertain, and the mysterious. It is about being like a child, free of the burden of the past and the fear of the future. Zen is a way of life that is simple, direct, and unadorned. It is about cutting through the complexity, the confusion, and the clutter of everyday life. It is about getting to the heart of the matter, the essence of things, the truth of our existence. It is about seeing things as they are, without distortion, without prejudice, without judgment. In Zen, there is no need for elaborate rituals, elaborate ceremonies, or elaborate hierarchies. There is no need for a priest, a guru, or a teacher to mediate between the individual and the divine. The practice of Zen is a direct, immediate, and intimate encounter with reality. It is a solitary journey, a solitary quest, a solitary realization of the ultimate truth. Zen is not about becoming something other than what we are. It is about realizing our true nature, our original nature, our essential nature. It is about waking up from the dream of separation, the dream of duality, the dream of self and other. It is about recognizing that we are already perfect, already complete, already whole
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