What
is meditation? All Buddhist traditions practice forms of meditation. The student studies dharma (the teachings of Buddha), then uses meditation to deepen understanding of the teachings and to integrate them into daily life and action. At Hakubai we study and meditate in the Zen tradition as developed originally in Japan. Zen is a Mahayana school, in which practitioners seek more than simply their personal liberation from the cycle of birth, suffering, death, and rebirth. Instead, we pursue the Bodhisattva ideal of putting off our own liberation until all sentient beings are similarly freed from the delusions of ignorance, anger, and greed. It’s a tough job but someone has to do it! Zen derives its name from the main practice of its followers, zazen. Hui-neng defines the word thus; “Za (sitting) means not to give rise to thoughts (no delusion) under any circumstances. Zen (meditation) means to see your original nature and not become confused.” Zazen offers an opportunity to step back from the busy and distracted everyday life, and to find out who we are and why we are here. Kinhin is meditative walking, placing the feet quietly and mindfully, and keeping the mind on the breath. We intersperse periods of zazen with periods of kinhin. There are two places of practice: the Zendo and the Hondo. The Zendo is the place for meditation; the Hondo (Dharma Hall) is for services, ceremonies, and special community gatherings. We use the hondo for both purposes in the winter. At Hakubai, the zendo is the yurt on the right as you enter the main gate near the bell; the hondo is the larger yurt on the left, closer to the entry. At least four times per year, we hold sesshin, or concentrated silent retreat practice. These begin in the evening and continue for seven days, ending at noon on the eighth day. The word sesshin (pronounced sesh-EEN) literally means to collect one’s heart, or mind. During sesshin we practice sitting and walking meditation intensely, listen to dharma talks from our abbot or from visiting teachers (with daily interviews as necessary with the teacher), perform work practice, and eat three vegetarian meals a day oryoki style. (If you do not know how to eat in this manner, please let us know in advance.) There are a limited number of people we can accommodate during sesshin. Participants will be expected to help with cooking, clean-up, and other activities of the Temple. We try to establish an environment in which all will be able to return constantly to their meditation, no matter what they happen to be doing: washing dishes, sitting on a cushion, or drinking tea on the deck.
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