Saw zen...I want to spend a few days exploring a concept I call "saw zen". This may be a bit much for some of you, so you may want to check out for about a week or so and spend your time reading other things. Before I got so involved in exploring the Wisdom of the Hands concept through teaching at Clear Spring School, I was working on a book proposal I called "Saw-Zen, A Craftsman's Guide to Practicality and Spirit." Perhaps at some point, given time, I will be able to complete it and have it published. For now, it is enough to share a few of the concepts as they relate to the hands, woodworking, learning and growth.

A number of readers of sidebar materials in my how-to books and students in my classes have noted a similarity between my approach to woodworking and their understanding of Zen Buddist meditation. There is a concept in Zen called "zazen" which can be found in any number of internet sites through a Google search or in the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

Before I spend a few days outlining what is meant by "saw zen," I would like to point out that while "zazen" is practiced as sitting meditation, in withdrawal from practical affairs, "saw zen" is practiced while in full 100 percent immersion in the practical and creative affairs of daily life.

I plan to go slowly with this, so either check in for more or check out for awhile depending on your interests. The image above is of zazen. If you want to know what saw zen looks like, you will see evidence of it in nearly every other photograph in this blog. Believe me, the two are not to be confused or mistaken for each other.