Saturday, August 29, 2009

Many Roots, Many Branches

A bodhi tree bonsai. Can you imagine it?! You can find it here.

Another question posed this week has got me thinking about providing a broader introduction to different types of Zen.

As I've mentioned, Zen is really just the Japanese pronunciation of Ch'an, which is the Chinese pronunciation of Dhyana, the Sanskrit word for meditate. And this short lesson in etymology pretty much follows the path that Zen as we know it took from India to Japan, with a few stops in-between. An excellent source for the history of that pathway--with lots of links to lots more information-- can be found at this Wikipedia page and also in this article at DharmaNet (which I found here, on their "Brief History of Buddhism" page).

Today I thought I'd post some resources that provide a glimpse into the other types or schools of Zen Buddhism. This will be a very generalized list; as you surf along, you're sure to find more categories and sub-categories that provide a richer picture of each school and possibly related schools.

For now, we'll start with China, which is where Soto Zen legend has it that Bodhidharma traveled from India to offer Buddhism to the Emperor. He was refused, and so he sat in meditation facing the wall of a cave for 9 years before emerging again.

A resource for Ch'an Buddhism in America is Dharma Drum Mountain. You can read their take on the history of Ch'an Buddhism here. (Bear in mind that there are many, many schools in the Chinese Buddhist tradition. This will just get you started!)

From China, Ch'an Buddhism spread into the neighboring country of Korea. The best resource that I know of to learn more about Korean Zen in America is The Kwan Um School of Zen, founded by Zen Master Seung Sahn.

Zen also flourished in Vietnam, becoming a lovely blend of Ch'an, Pure Land and Theravadin Buddhist tradition (there's an informative read about the history here). Thich Nhat Hanh, one of the most beloved Buddhist teachers in the West, is one of the most accessible resources for Westerners.

Zen arrived in Japan by way of China and Korea in the early 13th century. Today the most (popularly) recognized schools of Japanese Zen are that of Rinzai and my tradition, Soto. Rinzai Zen has a focus on sharpening the mind's concentration with koan practice, while Soto Zen emphasizes zazen meditation or shikantaza, "just sitting". Mind you, these two paths do meet and in fact intertwine in some lineages, and there is a great and spirited debate among scholars and practitioners alike of just how different or similar these schools are or aren't.

Find out for yourself by starting with these earliest Japanese Zen masters who founded temples and zen centers all across America:

Shunryu Suzuki: Soto Zen; San Francisco Zen Center
Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi: Rinzai, Soto & Harada-Yasutani lineages; Los Angeles Zen Center
and the White Plum Asanga
Taisen Deshimaru: Soto; American Zen Association (New Orleans)
Soyu Matsuoka: Soto
Kyozan Joshu Sasaki: Rinzai; Mt Baldy Zen Center, CA (interesting to note that one of his more famous students is Leonard Cohen!)
Eido Shimano: Rinzai; Dai Bosatsu Zendo, New York State
Soen Nakagawa: Rinzai, founded Dai Bosatsu with Shimano Roshi.
Sokei-an Shigetsu Sasaki: Rinzai; First Zen Institute of America, NYC (interesting to note, he was one of the first Zen Masters to arrive in America; his most famous student was Alan Watts.)

I'll be writing a bit more about lineages and teachers in general, but for now, this short list forms the basis of what we know today as American Zen.

By all means, if you have an interesting link or further suggestions for this very basic outline of the many types of Zen that exist in the world, please share it in the comment section. Know too that I'm plotting a two-part post about teachers and lineages for the future, and comments or suggestions to that end are welcome also.
Enjoy the many, many flavors!

Monday, August 10, 2009

What Does Zen Look Like?

In conversation today, I realized it might be helpful if I post something that explains "what zen looks like" for those of you who have not had the opportunity to see it before.

Unlike many types of meditations in other traditions, zazen does not involve music, mantras or any other external stimulus. Rather, the point of zazen is to still one's mind in order to see the real nature of one's mind.

Zazen in a traditional Soto Japanese setting.

Why do this? And how does one get oneself into this pretzel of a position? Those questions are answered very nicely in this well-done video I discovered on YouTube.

Not only is his posture correct and his orientation right, but Patrick's sense of humor is very helpful. It's very easy to get too serious about meditation and think we're becoming something better, or accomplishing something! I like to keep in mind a simple meditation hint Kobun taught:
"... almost every time he talked about posture, after all the linings-up, balancing, and all those things, is a smile. Don’t forget to smile. Just a little bit, not a big grin. You can lift the corners of the mouth like you see in the statues of Buddha. Since then I’ve read that a smile actually changes our brain waves. A down-turned mouth also changes your mood. So how we sit is very important; our sitting can get quite grim if we comport ourselves that way, and it doesn’t need to be. It can be lightened up by a smile." --Angie Boissevain recalling Kobun Roshi's teaching on proper zazen posture. You can find more here, in the April 2007 Jikoji newsletter.


Thursday, August 6, 2009

No Zazen 8/8

Hello everyone,
A quick announcement: there will be no meeting this weekend, August 8th, due to illness-- I've caught a bit of a cold, and I'd rather not share it.
We'll resume our schedule on the 15th!
Pilar

Thursday, July 30, 2009

In gassho

Thank you, everyone, for such a fine evening Friday night and for a lovely retreat on Saturday. I was especially happy with the great sense of community we shared Friday night. What a nice discussion following Amongst White Clouds! Gassho (many deep bows) for your generosity of patience and financial support toward Joy Lane Healing Center. The inspiration of those monks' dedication and our sharing afterward made for an exhilarating support for my meditation practice the next day. I'm hoping to put something like this series together again, and I will be sure to let you know when it's in place. In the meantime, please join me for regular practice starting again this Saturday. The schedule is posted in the menu to the right.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Extended Day of Meditation this Saturday, July 25

I thought I'd post a schedule of this Saturday's events; all are welcome to join for the entire "retreat", or for just part.

9:20 Newcomer's instruction
9:30 Zazen (seated meditation)
10 Kinhin (walking meditation)
10:10 Zazen
10:40 Kinhin
10:50 Zazen
11:20 Lunch (provided; this will be soy-based, so please bring your own if you have an allergy.)
Tea & Discussion about "our teachers"
12:30 Samu (work practice)
1:30 Zazen
2 Ceremony to honor the life of Kobun Chino Otogawa Roshi
2:30 clean up, say goodbyes.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

July is Busy!

Hello and gassho: June travel time is finished, and I am glad to return to the zafu this weekend!

Open Palm Zendo is going to be a busy place for the month of July. In addition to resuming our regular sitting schedule, I'm happy to announce a special movie presentation and a day of extended sitting, all to commemorate the life and teaching of Kobun Chino Otogawa, Roshi.

Kobun, as he preferred to be called, was among the first teachers who came to the United States at the request of Suzuki Roshi, the founder of the San Francisco Zen Center. Sensei helped American students learn such arts as kyudo and oryoki and in time, developed his own centers in California, New Mexico and Switzerland. You can learn more about Kobun's life by following the link to his website below.

It is a tradition in Soto Zen to hold a memorial sit to honor teachers who have passed from this world, and I am happy to be able to do the same this year! The movie I'll show on Friday night will put us in the right mood. I saw Amongst White Clouds at an independent film festival in Denver a few years ago, and found it very inspiring to my own practice. It certainly answered a lot of questions I had about the root of Japanese Zen, which is Chinese Ch'an Buddhsim and Taoism... not to mention successfully parting me with any romantic illusions I had about the hermetic lifestyle!! Saturday, we'll follow a traditional sesshin retreat schedule, albeit on a small scale. (I know many of us have kids to get home to, so I hope this works the best for all of us!) If you've got any questions, feel free to email me: pilar at joylanehealingcenter.net

Descriptions and details from the Joy Lane website follow. I look forward to seeing you!


Movie presentation: Amongst White Clouds

Fourth Friday Movie Night at Joy Lane
July 24, Friday at 7 pm to 9 pm

Have you ever wondered what it might be like to live the life of a religious hermit, sequestered away from the world on an isolated mountaintop, devoted to a life of contemplation and religious practice? Nothing captures the imagination quite like the life of the iconic hermit-monk, and until now not many of us could ever dream of seeing

what that kind of life might really be like. The movie Amongst White Clouds provides us with just that glimpse.

“An unforgettable journey into the hidden tradition of China's Buddhist hermit monks, the film is an intimate insider's look at students and masters living in scattered retreats dotting China's Zhongnan Mountain range. These peaks have reputedly been home to recluses for some five thousand years. One of only a few foreigners to have lived and studied with these elusive practitioners, American director Edward Burger is able, with humor and compassion, to present their tradition, their wisdom, and the hardship and joy of their everyday lives among the clouds." Filmed on location in China.

A discussion will follow the film with our presenter, Zen priest and Open Palm Zendo facilitator Pilar Teishin G. Dea.


Open Palm Zendo Extended Day of Meditation

July 25, Saturday at 9:30 am to 2 pm

In conjunction with the film, Amongst White Clouds, Soto Zen priest Pilar Teishin G. Dea is offering a day of extended sitting to honor the life of her teacher, Kobun Chino Ottogawa Roshi, who died on July 26, 2002. Zazen--zen meditation--will begin as usual at 9:30 am, and continue in 30-minute periods with kinhin--walking meditation-- in between each. We will break for tea, discussion and a simple lunch (to be provided), experience an hour of samu--work service-- for Joy Lane Healing Center and then resume sitting for one final zazen period. We will end the day at 2 pm with a simple ceremony and offering of gratitude for our teachers in life. All are welcome for the entire day or just part; no prior Zen Buddhist experience is necessary. As this is an offering of simple meditation and gratitude, all backgrounds are welcome!

Feel free to visit http://www.kobun-sama.org/english/biografie.htm for more about the life of Kobun-sama.

To register for the day-long sit or to RSVP for the movie night, please contact the Center, Marin Goldstein at 301-373-2522 or email info@joylanehealingcenter.net, for additional information. These events are entirely free; donations for the Center are gratefully appreciated.


Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Summer Practice Schedule

Here is an update of our current summer schedule.

As I will be traveling through much of June, I've decided to cancel our meetings June 13, 20 and 27.

There are, however, a few goings-on at the Center you may be interested in, in place of our usual zazen: The 12th through the 14th, Dr. Marcy is offering a retreat at the Temple of Light. The meditation style she teaches is very different from zazen, but for those of you who have an interest in all types of meditations (from all types of traditions), this may be a rewarding experience for you. The Friday night introduction is free; Sat & Sun require a night spent in the forest. (Bummer!) Then on the Solstice, Sun. the 21st, there is an introduction to the Labyrinth-- a wonderful meditative walk that is most famously known in medieval churches such as Chartres Cathedral. Check the Joy Lane web site for details: www.joylanehealingcenter.net.

We'll resume our weekly zazen practice on Saturday, July 4: what a wonderful way to celebrate Independence Day!

Finally, I'm happy to announce that we're hosting a Joy Lane Movie Night and offering an extended day of sitting in honor of my late teacher, Kobun Chino Otogawa, roshi. You may check here for details, which I will be posting here soon. In summary, our movie on Friday the 24th will be Amongst White Clouds, a documentary about Chinese Zen and Taoist hermits; and sitting on Saturday the 25th will be an extended schedule of 9:30 to 2. You are welcome for any part, or all.

Enjoy the beginning of your summer! Gassho, Pilar

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Die on the Cushion

In this crisp morning after last night's thunderstorm, I went off to my cushion at Joy Lane with a gnat of a thought buzzing in my head. Dosho Port, sensei posted an intriguing case about death at his blog Wild Fox Zen. (If you click the link, you'll see the post.) In it, he quotes from a report that investigates the afterlife beliefs of Japanese Zen monks. It was rather thrilling, I have to admit, to get to read the innermost, quiet beliefs of these men who are singularly dedicated to living and breathing zazen....

And it was surprising, for what they think is not necessarily what you'd think they think!

Reading of it was refreshing, in a way-- for if these people who are so dedicated to zen practice could hold such beliefs, they could be human too, rather than the enlightened stalwarts I elevate them to be. Ahhh!

What annoyed me was my sanghas' responses to this post. Dosho asked, "What do you believe?" And as usual, most answers were either "why bother worrying about it? It's not happening now (it's not enlightenment?)," or some quote by some long-dead Zen Master, proving how clever the post-author was. As if avoidance was perceived to be "enlightened behavior".

So I grit my teeth and set about "dying on my cushion" this morning, following the first zen instruction I received early in my practice. Humph. We must face death earnestly and honestly!

Well....thoughts floated and buzzed and by the end I'd gritted and grunted through the lot of it. Zazen is hard, when you have a "mission" or something to prove.

It wasn't until later in the evening that a lightningbolt of understanding struck me. (Yes, a tooth-flossing kensho, you might say.) It seems that one of the sangha had responded to another of Dosho's posts to say he'd had a very strange dream about death that night. Clearly the conversation had given him a bit of a mind-scramble. I understood. Death is hard.

We can't think our way through death. And we cannot think our way through to enlightenment; and it follows, we oughtn't think our way through life, either. My earlier grit fell away, my disgust over over-intellectualization dissolved. We do it--think-- because life, existence is so large, so overwhelming. There's too much to comprehend; and we think the more we can mentally organize, the safer we are. We cannot.

So I leave you with this bit of advice from Buddha himself, culled from yet another blog I find very inspiring, that of Eido Frances Carney of Olympia Zen Center. She's paraphrasing her own dharma talk. And what she had to say seemed a good approach to this string of events. Enjoy!

When we think of "self" we think of consciousness or mind as that which defines us. But, the Buddha pointed out that it was much wiser to take the physical body as the self rather than the mind, or consciousness, because the body was slower, more settled, solid. Our minds are moving very quickly and our thoughts change very rapidly, much much faster than does the body change. Also, if we must think of a self, by placing the notion of self in the body, we can release ourselves more easily from the tyranny of thoughts and be more equanimous moment by moment. That is a moment of the Buddha's sweet wisdom.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Good, Bad and...What Else Is There?

Welcome back, after a bit of an absence! Our travels for Mother's Day were wonderful; it's good to get away from it all once in a while, to change scenery and perspective. And I was very glad to be back in the Zendo last week. Personally, I had a "good sit"-- you know, one of those days where it's easy to enter the flow of things as the Mental Chatter is low and expectations are nil. Two periods of zazen flew by and I left the zendo feeling refreshed and light. I had missed my practice!

One week later, though, and it's more thorns than roses on the zafu. So, what's the difference? Why should I lose that energy that I had last week? Sits like these are disappointing, and I find that when I leave the cushion, I feel such regret for wasting an opportunity to have an hour of my life well-centered and at ease.

In Soto Zen, there are a couple of "tricks" one can use to quiet the mind in order to create a "good sit". One is counting the breath-- counting exhalations to 10, and thus focusing the mind. Another strategy I used this morning was simply asking, "what else is there?"

A nightmare of a thought popped in. "What else is there?" I asked myself as I found myself following a very negative thought-stream. And just with the asking, the negative stream abated, and on I went. Soon an agitated thought popped in. "What else is there?" And I recognized a pattern to my thoughts that seemed to suggest an agitation in my psyche. So rather than belittle myself for having "bad thoughts", I gave myself a dose of compassion, promising to address the underlying issue once I got off the zafu. Soon I felt that sense of flow again, a "good sit". But still, "what else is there?"

We don't meditate to have a "good sit", and zazen isn't about strategies-- though these can help to gain concentration. It's about just sitting, without aim or goal. It is a study of the self, and a forgetting of the self to find the reality of all things. Just sitting-- opening to the experience of enlightenment itself, beyond "good or bad". Just.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Shelter from the Storm


Buddha's Footprint, featuring the symbol for the 3 Jewels. 1st Century CE.

Another brilliant day of grey skies, and thus richer forest color and birdsong, at the Zendo today. But did I notice? No. Why is that? Ah, this was one of those days where my mind was spinning in a million directions of worry, concern and regret. We've all had sitting periods like that.

It's easy to want to escape from those moments on the cushion, but I attribute them to be flags of concern, reminders to myself to sit still more often, because evidently there is a lot happening in my life that is a little too much to bear. "My mind runneth over." Perhaps like many others, my present way of dealing with these overwhelming things is to ignore them and just move on... Keep moving!

Don't Just Do Something...Sit There!
Sylvia Boorestein has a knack for creative Buddhist book titles, and that one has always been my favorite. I have yet to read it, but the title has certainly been a mantra for me on days like this. My other mantra is "I take refuge..." This phrase began my journey of dedicated practice, and over and over it continues to inspire me, especially when times are hard. Like today.

"I take refuge in Buddha. I take refuge in Dharma. I take refuge in Sangha." These are the Three Jewels of Buddhism, and the basis of the vows one takes when practice deepens. These are also what is represented by the three bows I make before chanting the Heart Sutra on Saturday mornings, and the three bells rung at the end of our practice. But what are they?

Refuge can mean many things. What came to mind today for me was refuge as an oasis, a calm-in-the-storm, a moment to step out of the downpour under a shared umbrella of kindness. Refuge in the Buddha today then meant taking shelter in the idea that this, too, is a part of enlightenment; that beyond my judgments and worry, there is perfection in this exact moment. This moment is awake.

By taking refuge in Dharma, or the teachings of Buddha, today I chose to have faith in the act of sitting down in the midst of all my worry. The zafu itself, the moment, crowded as it was in my thoughts, became a rich teacher by my allowing it to be so. I didn't get up and run. The zafu was my refuge.

Taking refuge in Sangha often points to the community of practitioners one shares space with. And, it can also mean the teachers that have imparted Dharma in one's life. So today I took refuge under a large umbrella of compassion, upheld by all the multitudes of generations of teachers and students that have come before me, all of them with equally complicated human lives. Today, I took refuge in being fully human.

So I fell back on that cushion today, and allowed my mind to simply overflow, relaxing in the refuge of the heart of my practice. And guess what? Without me chasing after them so hard, those awful thoughts calmed on their own, and by the end of it, I was merely half as harried as I had been when I first sat down.

Ah, the power of the humility of "I GIVE UP!!!"
Have a peaceful week, everyone.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

A Path with Heart

This was one of those weeks of nothing is going to go quite as planned, and yet...

Early in the week, I learned that a dear friend died. This man, who lived at a sister temple in New Mexico, had been a source of great encouragement, warmth and humility for me. 4 years ago when I began the practice of Okesa, or sewing the Buddha's robe as is worn by Soto priests, his humor and humble dedication really shone a lamp upon the truth of zen practice and why we pursue it; and he remained as much through the years since then. I had always assumed I would be able to return to my heart-home temple to practice with my friend, and while I am glad for his passage out of the suffering of his illness, I am sad that the possibility I'd hoped for is gone.

So that was a big not-planned-and-yet-somehow-fated moment; it was odd, but it felt right-- certainly not unexpected, but strangely shocking all the same to lose a friend.

Smaller moments persisted in the theme of unplanned-yet-fated, such as leaving the house way past the time I'd intended, but meeting a new neighbor because of it. Finally, this morning I had intended to arrive at the Center with enough time to cut fresh flowers for a ceremony to honor my friend's passing, but my son's teeth had other plans for me. My baby awoke much earlier than usual with a high fever from teething pain and a need to be held. So as my husband left for work with instructions to tape a note on the door for our sangha, I maintained mama-zazen posture on the couch, where my child slept, half-nursing, for two hours straight.

As it was, the day flew and my boy felt better eventually, and so after dinner my little family gathered at our family altar, and there, without too much ceremony and still covered with dirt from the day's gardening, we lit a candle, offered incense, and chanted the Heart Sutra for our dear one.

And I can honestly say, this was the first occasion where I've had to chant to a beat as offered by a 2-year-old, where the usual rhythms of the chant were interrupted by our laughter as the child took off with our mokugyo, or joined in with a rung bell at the "wrong" time... And, it was brilliant. It was quite possibly the most heart-felt Heart Sutra I've ever offered.

At the end of it, we had our little son ring the large bell 3 times as we bowed in offering to Buddha, to Dharma and to Sangha. It was his first introduction to Buddhist ceremony, and he was so very happy to see that his parents were so pleased with his "ringing".

That is the truth of this path with heart, as my friend taught me not so long ago: meeting each moment not as you plan to meet it, or think you might meet it someday, but directly, honestly and humbly as you are, now. The gifts that ring out from that kind of meeting are innumerable, and eternal.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Buddha's Birthday

Today we offered a simple celebration to honor Buddha's birthday: by pouring a little water over a small stone in an offering bowl decorated with a single dogwood flower, we mark the birth not only of Buddha, the awakened one, but indeed of all things.

Our ceremony was a little echo of the Hana Matsuri or "flower festival" that traditionally is celebrated on April 8th in Japan. The marking of Buddha's birth has been handed down since early Buddhist times in India, and as Buddhism came to Japan, the ceremony became known as Kanbutsu-e, or "the ceremony of ritual ablution". In this observance, a small baby Buddha is nestled in a flower-bedecked shrine meant to mimic the garden in Lumbini, where he was born. Visitors to the temple pour a little sweet tea over the baby statuette and imbibe a little themselves.

Being short on baby statuettes-- I've got a little boy who is more into trucks these days than dolls-- I chose to represent the infant Buddha with a small pebble chosen from my yard. In this small way, the little pebble honors the awakened nature of all the Earth, including you and me. The Japanese Hana Matsuri is a flower festival to boot, and I think there's no mistake in the time of year chosen to honor Buddha's birth, as the northern hemisphere bursts to life once again with a party of fresh blooms. So the blossom that festooned the water surrounding our little Buddha was that of the dogwood, and other blossoms on the altar came from a pear tree.

Why celebrate the birthday of Shakyamuni Buddha? It might seem strange that a religion that places the most focus on "enlightenment" would bother at all with something seemingly so trivial. There is a lovely essay on that matter at the Zen Friends site that illuminates much about "precious human birth"-- the condition, according to Buddhist teachings, that allows enlightenment to occur in the first place.

But my teacher would caution about not getting too caught up in that idea. Rather, in my practice, honoring this birth day is a precious opportunity to gather in the raw abundance of life itself, to take it in and notice it without too many labels or ideas, and experience it as directly as one can without the noggin' getting in the way of it. What is the Buddha's birthday? Just pour water; just drink tea.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Something to Count On

Quite a windy morning at the zendo! Blustery spring days like this are hard, aren't they? For wind not only kicks up dirt and leaves; very often it seems to sneak into the mind itself, kicking around inner dust and leaves, like the little aggravations that won't go away or annoyances that nip, nip, nip at the psyche. Such days always leave me feeling tired and a bit exasperated, as there is just no way to tidy up when the atmosphere is so unsettled.

This experience got me to thinking about my practice of late, and my own unsettled feelings about where I am in my life and what I'm doing. It's a typical self-questioning that ultimately lands me square in the lap of, "who am I?" And, just like any good seeker, I return to the assurances of my practice: form is emptiness, there is no self, and emptiness is form.

This last for oh, about a minute, and like the blustery day outside, my mind inside scuffles up the debris once again...And again, I return to Buddha's assurance...And again, the leaves fly...And again, Buddha...

This is exactly why they call it "practice", for on and on it goes!

Luckily, there are some nice little techniques one can use to trick the mind at its own game. In zazen, newcomers are taught to sit and "count your breath" in episodes of 10 out-breaths. But this is not just a "newbie" practice; make no mistake, in zen we honor the beginner's mind, the mind of not-knowing, the mind of a fresh, open approach to each and every moment. And so, each time we sit facing that wall, we count: one. two. three....

Keep in mind, the practice is not about counting; indeed, you're not aiming to "get to 10" by any means. This is an effortless effort, so no such goals are necessary. Instead, you are counting to give those blustery thoughts a focus, a project to attend to while the rest of your body settles into meditation.

I began the period feeling crooked and wild-minded. I gave myself a moment to find my composure, accepting my senses and feelings just as they were, deciding not to fight them. Once I felt a little more bottom-heavy, I began to count those slow out-breaths. I was elated to make it to ten; I stifled the elation, and in the next go, made it to 3 before I realized I was planning the night's dinner. Back again... and realizing I'd just counted "13". Slowly I pointed back to "1".

And on it went, until I realized: My thoughts are quieter now. My senses are a little sharper. I can feel things more succinctly in my body. And so I dropped the counting, and simply sat in that freshness, shikantaza, or "just sitting".

There really is nothing we can count on in this life, but for change itself. Practicing zazen helps one come to a deep appreciation for that change. And counting the breath offers a great way to approach raking leaves in the wind.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

The Craft of Zen

This morning was a beautiful one at the zendo. A chilly mist (or soft weather as some of my friends call it) framed the forest, bringing sights and sounds just a little bit closer and more immediate. There was birdsong everywhere. And as there were no workshops scheduled at the Center, all was quiet and very still. As such, I was able to enjoy the sound of the house settling inside and nature amusing itself outside as I sat zazen.

Today's sit was a little different than most in that I was able to sit on a zabuton for the first time. When the zendo first opened for practice in January of this year, we were given a generous donation of zafus; however, as the cost of zabutons-- the cushions placed under zafus to support the knees and legs during practice-- was a bit prohibitive, we settled for sitting on folded-up Mexican-style blankets. While comfortable, they added a "festive" color to the zendo that is not quite traditional:


So I engaged myself in the crafting of home-made zabutons, to mellow-out the color explosion here at the Healing Center! It was a very simple process, and quite inexpensive. You may want to try it for yourself! Here is a step-by-step guide.


While window-shopping for zabutons online, I found an array of zabutons, cotton and hemp, in many colors and sizes ranging from 25" x 30" and even 30" x 30". I chose a cushion-y black fleece material from my local fabric store that came on a bolt 58" wide.
I then cut several 35" pieces from the bolt, and simply folded each section in order to have a 35" x 29" square.


Next, I sewed the 2 sides closed and left the third open, creating a sack ready to stuff! The seam allowance was nearly 1", as you can see from the photo above. This was to allow for the stuffing to come.
Four zab-sacks, waiting for the next step... each sack measured roughly 33" x 29".


In my online search, I saw some zabutons were filled with cotton, and some with buckwheat. In my old practice temple, a few of our mis-matched zabutons were filled with a thin foam. For the Open Palm zabuton, I chose a 1-inch thick foam for filling. This came on a 24" wide roll.
So I cut the roll into several 24 x 31" sections, and set these into each sack.


Finally, I rolled the remaining 2 inches of the open end of the sack, and hand-sewed it closed with a simple whip stitch. In the future, I may replace this with a snap or velcro closure; in the meantime, this stitch is a quick one that can easily be removed, should I need to wash or resize the sack.

Your zabuton in action, and ready for effortless effort!

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Breath & Posture

My thanks again to all who entered the zendo today; it was a fine thing to sit among all of you.

I have been pondering how I might approach this blog. I want to use care not to appear as though I am some kind of "teacher" or "expert"; not that a teacher in my lineage is considered an expert, but I do not yet wear the brown robes, and I want to be careful about creating any expectations around my role in the zendo, virtual or otherwise.

In that spirit, I have decided it best to offer this space-- in part, at least-- as a way to collect and convey the inspirations of those who have received Dharma transmission (become teachers). The sites I list to the right are primarily Soto; within the blog however I'll be posting from many other manifestations of Dharma, from many different traditions.

One such inspiration came along late this evening, and here I pass it now along to you.

Olympia Zen Center's resident priest Eido Frances Carney has a lovely blog that I find interesting and inspirational. (It is always an inspiration to read the words of an ordained Buddhist woman!) A post from a few days ago-- click here to read it-- struck a chord with me as I read it today, as she too finds teaching people new-to-the-practice refreshing and inspiring to her own practice. Returning to the most basic Zen teachings of posture and breath are of value to any "level" of student, and in this post you'll find a lovely exercise designed to help you "find your breath".

As always, I would love to hear from anyone who passes through the zendo-- both virtual or otherwise! What is your experience of breath in sitting? How would you compare your experience of breath as a part of the posture of zazen, and with that of other meditation practices? If you sat zazen today for the first time, did anything about your breathing surprise you?

All are welcome. Gassho!

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Welcome and Gassho!

Welcome to the new Open Palm Zendo web blog! Please visit often and comment as you'd like.

Along with our new web space, I am very happy to announce that Open Palm Zendo now has a physical home.

With thanks to the very kind folks at Joy Lane Healing Center in Hollywood, Maryland, our sangha now meets once a week for two periods of zazen, kinhin, and the recitation of The Heart Sutra. Please join us at our little purple zendo for zazen. All are welcome.

Open Palm Zendo
Saturday Morning Zazen Schedule

9:20 newcomer instruction
9:30 zazen
10:00 kinhin
10:10 zazen
10:40 incense offering &
recitation of The Heart Sutra