Zazen at Daihonzan Sojiji
We got back to Tokyo and our hostel around 5 PM. We were scheduled to
check into Sojiji the next day around noon and get oriented with the
Sesshin. Sojiji, located in Yokoyama in the Tsurumi district, is one
of the two great head temples of the Soto Zen sect of Zen Buddhism (the
other one being Eiheiji in Fukui Prefecture.) We were to participate in
a special sesshin (intensive meditation) called Rohastsu Sesshin which
is an 8-day intensive meditation commemorating the Buddha's
enlightenment which took place on the eighth of December as he gazed
upon a morning star.
Zen dojos all over Japan and the world partake in the Rohatsu Sesshin
(Dec. 1-8) seeking to experience the deep samadhi that the Buddha
experienced. I'm embarrassed to say however that due to my schedule I
wasn't able to complete the entire Rohatsu sesshin (I only did three
days). But I am grateful to the monks of Sojiji that they let me
experience a part of it.
On our first day at Sojiji, we checked in, paid our fee, and then the
monks showed us around the monastery. There were about 20 lay people,
mostly middle-aged and eldery Japanese men. There was one French woman,
Valerie, and us three from Canada who composed of the foreigners
practitioners. Next, the monks took us into a large tatami room and
instructed us on O-ryouki, formal eating protocol for sesshin. This was
quite a challenging thing to do as there are so many movements to
remember and execute properly. It proved even harder to do in the zendo
as we had to perform these movements while in lotus position after
zazen. But the structure and the fact that these movements have been
performed for thousands of years by countless buddhists was very
interesting to me. Also, before entering the bath we had to perform
sanpai (three prostrations) before the guardian statue of the bath
while chanting a prayer.
Basically the daily schedule was:
AM
2:50 wake up
3:15 Zazen
3:50 Service
4:25 Zazen
5:30 Breakfast
6:00 Samu (work meditation)
8:30 Dharma Talk
9:50 Zazen (two times)
11:30 lunch
PM
1:30 Dharma Talk
2:50 Tea Time
3:10 Zazen
3:30 Zazen
4:30 Dinner
4:50 Bath (only on 12/2,4,6)
7:00 Zazen (two times)
9:00 Sleep
Without going into details, the experience was deeply insightful. As I
sat in (half) lotus, on the hard tatami mat, I was in such excruciating
pain for all those hours.....I felt like being burned in the fires like
the bamboo being oiled after harvesting. All the strict rules and
rituals one has to surrender to was like having my mind bent until
things flowed smoothly like the process of "tameru" or straightening
the bamboo. I really began to understand "reibo" yearning for the
ringing of the bell that would signal the end of the zazen period. On
the third day, I began to learn how to ride the pain by breathing
easier and visualizing my teachers and the Buddha's calm face. It was
at this time that I had to exit the monastery. I apologized to the
monks for my early retirement and they just told me to remember that
all the sutras and rules were not the most important things. The most
important things were the basic things like breathing, sitting, eating,
dressing, working, and sleeping. They gave us a farewell gift and
invited us back any time.
After two weeks of constant movement and sensory stimulation throughout
Japan, this intense experience of focussed concentration in one place
was quite powerful and moving. This was perhaps the deepest and most
profound part of the trip. I hope to do this again, and next time
complete the entire Rohatsu Sesshin. (My experience with 10-day
Vipassana retreat was very similar.)
I spent the next week exploring Tokyo and rehearsing for my show with
Kakushin Nishihara, biwa master, on Dec. 11 which was great as usual. I
also visited my old biwa teacher, Yukio Tanaka, and one of the last
biwa makers in Japan, Ishida-san in the Toranomon district. Thank
goodness he passed the art on to his son who now has his own workshop
in Saitama.
I got back to Vancouver on Dec. 12. Released for a while, studying the
rudiments, searching for truth, living the Dream.
That's the end of our Shakuhachi Roots Pilgrimage 2005.
May everyone have a wonderful holiday season full of joy and happiness.
ATR
=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=
Alcvin Takegawa Ramos
Director
The Shakuhachi Society of BC (Bamboo-In)
=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=<+>=
S9-C3
Madeira Park, B.C.,V0N 2H0
Canada
tel: 604.883.2023
cell: 604.788.0060
MAIL: ramos@bamboo-in.com
WEB: http://www.bamboo-in.com/about-us/ramos.htm
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