
October 2019 Practice Intensive at Tahoma
Due to a scheduling conflict we will not hold the October Day of Practice on the usual third Saturday but on the second Saturday, October 12th. This full day of zazen will run from 4:20a.m. until approximately 9:00p.m. with formal Breakfast and Lunch. As we are now in the Autumn Kessei (intensive period) we will be extending the hours of this one day sesshin as well as shifting to the winter samu schedule. Additionally we will formally begin at 4:50pm on Friday October 11th and conclude at 10am after Zazenkai on Sunday. This allows for a full 36 hour weekend Practice Intensive.
We would welcome any donations of prepared meals for the Practice Intensive (soups, salads or casseroles, or other easy to ready dishes) and would also welcome any assistance with the monastery posts especially mokugyo and tenzo but also temple bells and han. Please contact us at tahoma@whidbey.com with any offers of assistance.
We will continue our study of the Diamond Sutra during the autumn intensive as well as its companion text in the Maha Prajnaparamita The Empty Bowl. We are utilizing the Red Pine translation and commentary for both the Diamond Sutra and The Empty Bowl if you’d like to engage in this with your own copies of the texts. Additionally we are exploring the commentary by the Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng, in The Sutra of Hui-neng translated by Thomas Cleary.
Further details on practice at Tahoma over this weekend can be found at the end of this post.
The Schedule for this 36 hour weekend intensive will be:
Friday October 11th
5:20pm | Seated in Zendo; Gosei |
5:30 | Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin; |
6:30 | Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin; |
7:30 | Zazen; Zazen; |
8:30 | Kaichin in kitchen Yaza |
Saturday October 12th
4:20 | Seated in Zendo; Gosei |
4:30 | Choka (Sutras); Han; Zazen |
5:30 | Kinhin; Zazen; Zazen |
6:30 | Kinhin; Zazen |
6:55 | Breakfast Breakfast Cleanup |
8:30 | Samu (Clappers; meet at deck) |
10:00 | *Samu ends (Clappers) |
10:20 | *Seated in Zendo; Gosei |
10:30 | *Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin; Zazen |
12:00 | Lunch Kitchen Cleanup |
1:50 | Seated in Zendo; Gosei |
2:00 | Reading; Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin; Zazen; Zazen |
4:00 | Supper (optional, informal) |
5:20 | Seated in Zendo; Gosei |
5:30 | Uninterrupted Zazen; Han; Kinhin; |
6:30 | Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin; |
7:30 | Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin; |
8:30 | Zazen |
9:00 | Han; Closing Sutra; |
9:15 | Kaichin in kitchen Yaza |
Sunday October 13th
4:50am | Seated in Zendo; Gosei |
5:00 | Choka (Sutras); Han; Zazen |
5:55 | Kinhin; Zazen; Zazen |
6:30 | Breakfast Breakfast Cleanup |
8:00 | Zazenkai Zazenkai tea |
* Note
For Zazenkai prep there is a minimum amount of work that needs to be done. In the case of it not being completed during the scheduled samu time, samu will continue for another half an hour and everything will be shifted accordingly.
Anyone can drop in for any of these zazen periods and stay for as long as they are able. If you plan to stay for any meals, we ask that you email beforehand. Those here for choka will be assumed to be here for breakfast, those here for morning samu will be assumed to be here for lunch. We will assume anyone who arrives without prior notification is just dropping in for a period or two. Do notify staff during the samu period or breaks about your plans if they differ from these assumptions.
We encourage people to arrive on Friday evening before the Practice Day and/or stay though Zazenkai on Sunday, if you’d like to extend your practice. In all cases it is expected that the monasteries schedule will be followed. On Sunday there are no monastery activities after Zazenkai and attendees should plan to depart shortly thereafter. Arrangements need to be made in advance for any further residency.
Please email us If you’d like to attend, especially if you will be coming early, staying later, going to be here for a meal, or for any questions:
tahoma@whidbey.com