Message from Henry is an excerpt from Henry’s path of training as recounted in One Blade of Grass.
I sat through the night with a river of energy coursing through the world. The whole world was love’s plaything, a cork bobbing on a silent torrent.
I broke for a cup of tea in the early morning, then quietly went back and took my place again in the zendo, long before the official sitting began.
A concern arises: I have to see the teacher.
In Zen, confirmation is essential. All masters had their insights and experiences checked by their masters. That’s how Zen is passed down. You bring it to the teacher. Zen stays deep and clear by not letting us self-approve, even when the very notion of “approval” seems absurd.