Zen emphasizes rigorous self-restraint, meditation-practice and insight.
No I am not going to turn this into a far-east religious experience. But the above description does tell us something about driving attitude.
Imagine you are driving down the highway and someone cuts into your lane. Many people would be mad, speed up and confront the driver in some way. So let's apply Zen
Self -Restraint. Resist the urge to do anything. Your emotion tells you to do something - but should it be your first reaction? You would not buy a car without considering alternatives. This is not a situation that requires a decisive action like someone coming at you the wrong way on the highway. So your first thought should be "What is the best way to react in this situation".
Meditation-Practice. No don't start saying om or close your eyes. But get out of an emotion state and into a contemplative state. This will diffuse any surprise and anger.
Insight. Why did the person cut you off? Is this a one time thing? Does the person even know you? Think about the situation and were you ever in the otehr persons position?
In practice, a person cuts you off. First control your car. Are you now too close to them - if so slow down. Is the person continuing to drive in a dangerous manner - don't get caught in their mistakes. Once you have established control over your situation,
Relax. The car's movement might have caught you distracted. Your adrenaline will be high. Take the time to take a deep breath and calm down.
Now think about what happened. Were you in the driver's blind spot? Were they trying to make an exit they almost missed. Did they have to make a sudden move to avoid something? Did the other driver offer a "I'm Sorry" sign? Are they slicing through traffic in order to get somewhere fast or just driving erratically? Most likely, if it wasn't you it would be (and many times will be) another car. You just happened to occupy that time and space. You will probably never see that person again.
But all this leaves you powerless to change anything - yes. It is not you responsibility to police the roads or correct every driver. But is there something you can do? First, if you do have a dash cam, be sure to lock in the recording, especially if the person sideswiped you or any other car of caused an accident. Then decide if it is worth calling the police. They will ask the make of car, what road you are on, which street or exit you are near and the license plate of the other car if you can read it. Most of the time, the best they can do, if they are around, is to follow that car to see if they do anything else. So usually nothing. Don't feel you have to chase the car to get them the information.
There might be one exception. A driver who seems to be under the influence, drifting out of lane or off the road should be reported. They are a disaster waiting to happen. They will usually not be speeding. But reporting this gets you involved and requires a calm, observant person.
Can Zen make you that person?
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