In Zen Buddhism, shoshin is a word that means beginner’s mind. It simply refers to letting go of preconceived notions and certainty by having the mindset of someone who is just beginning to learn about something. As a beginner, we are eager to learn, open to discovering something new, and we question everything because we do not ‘know’ all the answers.
Most people feel threatened if they are asked to question their beliefs. We all have a perception of reality based on our experiences, yet we also have beliefs that are handed down to us from our families, or that we picked up from others along the way. We mostly don’t question these beliefs but build our reality from that mindset. Yet, if we keep our minds open to other possibilities and are willing to examine our beliefs, including things we take for granted, then we might discover a new understanding of something that we wouldn’t have been able to access when we were certain we knew the answer.
“Keep this ‘don’t know mind.’ It is an open mind, a clear mind.”
Seung Sahn
We all know someone who refuses to budge on their beliefs, certain that their point of view is correct and that anything that deviates from that is wrong. Not to say that their observations aren’t valid, but because they aren’t willing to look at something from an unfamiliar perspective, they might not have the full picture, so to speak. This does not mean to believe in nothing, or to constantly question every little thing every minute of every day; it means to take time to bravely and nonjudgmentally examine our most steadfast beliefs and determine if they are true, if they once were true but no longer are, or if they never were true in the first place. By having a beginner’s mindset, we open ourselves to a whole array of previously unknown information.
“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.”
Shunryu Suzuki
In fact, most of the changes and levels of progress that have occurred over the history of the world happened because a maverick courageously questioned some customary belief, standard, or tradition. This curiosity to dig deeper then revealed a greater understanding which led to either finding evidence that it was in fact the truth, or that there was more to it than we thought, therefore propelling us to be able to make changes and improvements.
“Something interesting happens when we approach situations from a perspective of humility-it opens us up to possibilities as we choose open-mindedness and curiosity over protecting our point of view. We spend more time in that wonderful space of the ‘beginner’s mind,’ willing to learn from what others have to offer. This translates into moving away from pushing to allowing, from insecure to secure, from seeking approval to seeking enlightenment.”
Bruna Martinuzzi
The Weekly Post 