Originally Posted by
Emmy
Another part of it might be (and this is a little embarrassing) it might just have to do with the romanticism we in the west have for "Eastern" things. The idea of Zen was just so COOL that I WANTED to do it right. Which as Taigu has pointed out, is not so good for practice. I know this now, but it might have had something to do with my laser focus at the beginning. I noticed myself doing the same thing when I started learning Kung Fu as well.
I know exactly what you mean. I am always hesistant to tell someone from the west (I live in Canada) that I practice Zen Buddhism because it sounds like I"m must following the trend and trying to be cool. Which, of course, is not true at all. In fact, I credit Zen to saving my life in so many ways.