Before hitting the ball, take a deep breath and focus your gaze on one point. Relax your hands, calmly prepare, and let go of any distracting thoughts. Then, swing the club silently. When you watch this sequence of movements, you can see a spirituality that is reminiscent of the “kata” of martial arts and the “zazen” of Buddhism. Golf is not just a game. It is a “moving zazen” where you live in the “here and now” through each and every shot.
Zazen teaches us "concentration without attachment to results"
In Buddhism, Zen is not a means to gain something. Rather, the state of not trying to gain anything is considered to have value in itself. “Just sit” and “Just breathe.” There is no purpose. There is only “surrendering everything to this moment.” In golf, too, the more you chase your score, the more your swing becomes disrupted. It is precisely in situations where you are under pressure that it becomes all about regulating your breathing and returning your consciousness to the “now.”
Not “hitting,” but “being hit.”
Not “aim” but “leave it to us.”
That’s when a great shot is made.
Each shot becomes a "mirror of the heart"
Golf is a sport in which emotion is reflected in play more than any other sport. If you rush, your grip will be unstable, and if you get angry, you will not be able to read the line. Only those who can observe “how I feel right now” before taking their tee shot can control their next shot. This is the practice of “Shikan” in Buddhism. “Shikan” calms the mind, and “kan” looks inward. Golf is truly a Shikan training session performed while on the move.
The moment you think, "I'm going to hit it well," you lose your "mindlessness"
The essence of zazen is “mindlessness.” Thinking nothing and just being “as it is.” However, this is not about erasing thoughts, but training to “let go of thoughts.” In golf, too, the stronger your desire to “hit it straight” or “make it in,” the more mistakes you will make. This is because the desire to “do well” takes your mind away from the “here and now.”
A selfless swing, a selfless putt.
The secrets of golf overlap with the core of Buddhism.
A game that asks whether you were in the right frame of mind, rather than the score
In Buddhism, true training is “to know how your mind moves.” In the same way, the essence of the sport of golf is more about “how your mind moved and how it recovered that day” than the score. Rather than asking “Did you hit a perfect shot?”, we ask, “How did you breathe and how did you regain your stance after a mistake?” When this perspective is added, golf is elevated from being a mere sport to being a “path of self-observation.”
The 18 holes are the 18 now
With each shot, desire arises. Anger arises. Attachment emerges. But on the grass, you accept all of that and let it go. Golf is a “visualized meditation” for modern people, a “moving zazen” itself. When you finish hitting the last hole, you shouldn’t look back at your score.
“How many times have I been able to regulate my breathing?” “How have I handled my anger and viewed my desires?” Beyond these questions lies the “wisdom” taught by Buddhism.