Notes on Home Practice

Beginning a Sitting Round
by Ven. Jinmyo Renge osho

Originally published in the eMirror, Volume 5, issue 10


           (A student's question concerning home practice prompted me to write a series of short articles on the subject. This is the second in the series). This week, I will write a little about entering one's practice room and beginning a sitting.

Note that I referred to a home practice room as a "practice room" rather than a "Zendo". A Zendo is a practice space that has been formally empowered by a Teacher in a ceremony known as "Kaisan", or "Opening the Mountain". It is difficult to explain what "Kaisen" is, because one would need to have received a great deal of training to understand what actually takes place.

But let me put it this way: When you walk into the monastery, it feels very different from your own home. When you are in the monastery, the dining hall feels very different from the Shuryo (library). And the Shuryo feels entirely different from the Zendo. What is the difference? The difference is in the way the room has been designated for use, whether or not it has been empowered, and if so, how it is maintained thereafter. The Zendo and Hatto at Dainen-ji have a palpable quality that can be felt distinctly and clearly. This is not solely due to the placement of zabuton and zafu (cushions and mats), the Hoza (Teaching seat), the Butsudan (platform of Wakefulness) and so on throughout the room. It is due to the kaji (empowerment) Roshi exerted on these rooms before they were used, and is sharpened and refined by the practice of each of us. This is why it is appropriate to refer to one's home practice space as a "practice room" rather than a "Zendo".

Monks and senior students clean the Hatto and Zendo at Dainen-ji prior to every sitting during samu (caretaking practice). The Butsudan is cleaned, all of the objects standing on it are prepared, and a new stick of incense is laid out in preparation for the beginning of a sitting. All of the zafu and zabuton are wiped down with a soft cloth, the floors are washed with a solution of water and lavender oil, and surfaces are dusted.

          Your home practice area can be tended to in similar fashion, whether you have a Butsudan or not. Many students do not have one, and it is not essential to one's practice to have a formal Butsudan. We often mention to students beginning practice that we would rather they keep things very simple as we are more concerned with clarifying their understanding of practice – what they are actually experiencing and how they practice with their experience – rather than concerning themselves with (as I sometimes say) "a lot of bells and whistles". Butsudans, rupas, gongs, kaishaku, incense – all of these need to be understood clearly to be used properly.

They are not "religious" objects, they are not "spiritual" or "inspirational" paraphernalia; they are intended to help us to recognize and open to the dimensionality, vividness, and exertion of the space of our own experiencing. So we would much rather that new students stay with a very simple format of practice and allow themselves to gradually come to understand how we use all of these objects in our practice before purchasing them.

In any event, whatever materials you are using for your practice, whether you are sitting in a beautiful room with shoji screens and wooden floors and so forth, or if you are sitting on two telephone books in your bedroom (I mention telephone books because I used them many years ago and they are better than couch cushions or pillows because they don't slide), the space should be prepared prior to each sitting. Do this and then take a little break between setting up your sitting area and beginning your practice to keep things clear for yourself.

If you are practicing as a general student, you should consult with a Dharma Teacher or practice advisor if you would like to add Great Bows or chanting to your daily sitting; associate students who are sitting once or more a week should not use chants or Great Bows during their practice periods; public students who have been given instruction in bowing and chanting practices and have consulted with a Dharma Teacher or practice advisor about these may use them, of course.

The "rule of thumb" is that if you have not consulted with a Dharma Teacher or  a practice advisor about these, you should not be doing them. A standing bow at the doorway, or before a Butsudan, or while standing next to one's seat is appropriate. However, a note about standing bows – when you bow, please don' t bow to your zafu. A bow is not directed to anyone or anything. A bow is an acknowledgement of the Space of practice, the Space in which we arise and which we arise as.

Once you have bowed and are ready to take your seat, approach the area and stand next to it with your feet together if possible. If you are using a zabuton (mat), step onto the back corner of it, again feet together, pause, and then lower yourself into a kneeling position. Pause with your hands on your lap, and then shift your weight onto the zafu or telephone books as the case may be. Arrange yourself, turn over the clock and calculate a half-hour sitting round.

Bow forward, keeping your head and neck straight while fully and audibly exhaling through the mouth. Straighten, audibly inhaling through the mouth.

Then notice any areas of tension that may be present. In the noticing of these, the body will often relax without your having to do anything and when it does, it will tend to move back just a hair – 1/8th of an inch. This we refer to as "balance point" – a very slightly dangerous posture, a little like sitting on the edge of a cliff, as you will keel over backwards if you fall asleep. If the body does not ease back just that little bit, then move back a little. As you are settling into balance point, exhale, emptying your lungs of air and much of the air from your mouth. Place the tip of the tongue against the hard palate just behind your front teeth and allow the rest of the tongue to drape across the palate. This will help prevent the accumulation of saliva so that you will not have to continuously swallow while sitting. Then simply continue your practice. You have felt and heard three full breaths, so now simply continue to feel the breath together with the tanden.

If you use these forms for beginning your sitting, you will find that they will help in cutting through the potential for vagueness that can come up when one begins sitting, particularly when alone – that "Oh, so now what do I do?" You know what to do, because you are already doing it. Just pay attention. Once you have begun your sitting round, you should not move for the full half-hour. Essentially, what we do while practicing is practicing the posture. If you move, you will not be allowing the body to practice the posture.

If you do not already have a zafu and zabuton, I would recommend that you obtain them when you can. A zafu is designed for sitting and is the perfect tool for it because it is round, allowing more space for your feet. The zafu we use at Dainen-ji are filled with kapok, which if properly taken care of, will not bunch or lump. I know that a few people prefer to use zafu filled with fiberfill or buckwheat husks and that is fine, but I would not recommend either.

Zafu and zabuton can be purchased from many outlets. The one I frequently recommend is DharmaCrafts, which has an online catalogue and ordering service. We have found their zafu and zabuton to be of consistent quality.

         The URL for DharmaCrafts is

http://www.dharmacrafts.com/cgi-bin/miva?Merchant2/merchant.mv

N ext week I will include some information concerning taking care of one's zafu and zabuton, and some information about Butsudan (altars), rupas (statuary) and sho (calligraphy).

 

The next article in this series is entitled "Practice Materials, Ending A Sitting Round "

 

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