Update 03.15.24 • Please note that due to circumstances we are changing this retreat to a day of zazen with an extended period of samu in the morning. Please see the schedule below.
Please join us during the Spring Training period for a day of practice. This is opportunity to keep the practice fires burning between retreats, or to begin to add more intensive investigation to your current practice. This retreat offers practice throughout the day and is open for drop-in or online attendance . We will begin the online broadcast Saturday morning and run throughout the day following the below schedule. As always Sunday’s Zazenkai will be broadcast if one wishes to extend their practice.
Every day during the OSesshin (February 20th – 26th), there will be Teisho (dharma talk) from Shodo Harada Roshi. Talks are in Japanese with translations by Daichi Zenni. The talks begin at 1pm and it is requested that attendees arrive 10-15 minutes early to allow time to walk to the zendo and get settled. There will be staff to assist with parking and making your way to zendo. There will be chairs and cushions available for seating and staff on hand to facilitate finding your seat.
Roshi will be speaking on koans from the Blue Cliff Record, please do come for this unique opportunity to hear a living Zen Master speak on the words of our Zen ancestors.
February 17th Community Samu Day We encourage everyone in the general vicinity of the monastery to come join us in samu (work practice) toward the maintenance and upkeep of our monastery. Samu is a an opportunity to take part in practice in the midst of regular activities, engaging the One Mind in the actions we are engaged with. There are indoor tasks and outside tasks that need doing as we ready the monastery for the February OSesshin.
Please join us Saturday, February 17th for a morning of work practice. We meet at the kitchen deck (coffee and tea provided) at a bit before 8:30am. We will work until noon and then share in a simple meal at 12:30pm.
CommunitySamu, February 17th, 2024 8:15-8:30am – Meet on the Kitchen deck 8:30am – Inside and outside cleaning 12 noon – Cleanup 12:30pm – Vegetarian lunch
Please contact us if you have any questions. As always we are deeply appreciative for the support of the sangha; we couldn’t exist without your continuing support.
The February 2024 OSesshin with Harada Roshi at Tahoma Zen Monastery begins with kokuho on the evening of February 19th and concludes the evening of February 26th.
OSesshin: Monday, February 19th – Monday, February 26th, 2024
Kokuho is Monday evening, February 19th.
Full-time participation is required. OSesshin concludes the evening of Monday, February 26th.
The link to the OSesshin application is near the bottom of this email.
The fee is $450.
Donations to support financial aid are welcomed. If you are requesting financial aid, please contact the registrar.
The application deadline for OSesshin is Monday, January 15th. You will receive an email regarding your acceptance or wait list status soon after the deadline date of January 15th. Please send your sesshin fee once you have been notified of your acceptance. Payment information will be included in the acceptance email.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING THIS OSESSHIN
Any help with set up before or clean up following OSesshin would be greatly appreciated. If you would like to arrive a day or two before sesshin and/or stay a day or two after sesshin please contact the monastery to make arrangements. The monastery email address is tahoma@tahomazenmonastery.com
We hope that we will be able to conduct our February 2024 OSesshin but recognize that our plans, as well as the dates, may need to change suddenly and without notice. If you are purchasing airline tickets please be prepared to cancel your reservations.
There may be a wait list for this OSesshin. Those on the wait list will be contacted immediately as spaces become available.
Bodhi Day celebrates the awakening of the Buddha. It culminate the week long end of year Rohatsu retreat. The Bodhi Day ceremony this year is open to all, whether you took part in any of the rest of the retreat or not, and at the very reasonable hour of 8am. I would like to encourage all in the community, especially those who haven’t come to Zazenkai in while, to consider coming for this ceremony and connecting (or reconnecting) with the local sangha. We will follow the usual Zazenkai schedule and hold the ceremony in the second half of the program. The whole morning will be broadcast via Zoom (details below
Celebration We will follow the Bodhi Day ceremony with a casual celebratory gathering in the Tahoma Dining Hall. This is open to everyone, no participation in any of the week, or even days events required. We would like to celebrate with all in our community. We will provide hot and cold drinks and sweet and savory snacks. If you want to bring something to share, by all means please do. But just bringing yourself will suffice. We ill be in the Dining Hall around 9:35am.
Sunday, December 10thSchedule
Day 8: Morning Schedule 5am; Zazen; Kinhin; Kaimei Han 5:45am: Closing Sutras (p. 3, 7); Sampai; Closing Remarks 6:25am Breakfast
November 23rd 5am: Regular morning service. No evening meditation.
November 24th No morning service. 6:30pm: Regular evening meditation.
December 3rd Zazenkai 8am. In person and online. Start of Rohatsu Sesshin. Details: Rohatsu Retreat.
December 4th-7th 5am: Regular morning service. 6pm-8:45pm : Extended evening meditation in observance of Rohatsu. All events offered in person and online. Details: Rohatsu Retreat.
December 8th and 9th Rohatsu Weekend Retreat. In person and online. Details: Rohatsu Retreat.
December 10th, Bodhi Day Ceremony and Holiday Gathering 8am: Bodhi Day ceremony during our regular Zazenkai. Open to all. 9:30am: Followed by an informal holiday gathering. Details: Rohatsu Retreat And Bodhi Day Ceremony.
December 23rd, 2023 – January 5th, 2024 Winter closure: no online or in-person events
January 6th, 2024 Regular daily schedule resumes.
All days not specifically listed will be on our regular schedule. Please see our Calendar for the events offered for each day. This is kept up to date with any changes to the daily schedule.
Rohatsu Retreat and Bodhi Day Ceremony December 3rd-10th, 2023
The autumn training period culminates with the Rohtasu sesshin commemorating the Buddha’s awakening. This is always the most intense training period of the year in which one brings a years worth of training to bear. This year Rohatsu at Tahoma will run from December 3rd through the 10th with extended practice during our regular schedule leading up to a weekend retreat and culminating in the Bodhi Day Ceremony during regular Sunday Zazenkai. The Bodhi Day ceremony this year is open to all and at the very reasonable time of 8am. I would like to encourage all in the community, especially those who haven’t come to zazenkai in while, to consider coming for this ceremony and connecting with the local sangha. We will follow the Bodhi Day ceremony with a casual holiday gathering in the Tahoma kitchen.
This follows the pattern we have utilized with Rohatsu at Tahoma where our days get longer and more intense as we go through the week as well as acknowledging the realities of practice here at this time. Likewise as is our tradition each evening of the retreat in the first period after golden hour we will read from Hakuin Zenji’s Rohatsu Exhortations (available here).
All of the practice periods during this time are open to drop-in attendance and during the weekend retreat, residential practice. Additionally the entire retreat will be broadcast via zoom. The Zoom link will be posted on the website in the days prior and sent out in the Tahoma Events weekly mailing. Please contact us if you would like to take part in residential practice or if you have any additional questions.
ScheduleOverview
Day 1: Sunday, December 3rd 8am – 9:30am: Zazenkai and Rohatsu opening with reading from Rohatsu Exhortations.
Day 2: Monday, December 4th 6pm – 8:45pm: Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations around 7pm.
Days 3-5: Tuesday– Thursday December 7th 5am: Choka; Zazen (short period); Kinhin 6am: Zazen; Zazen 6pm: Uninterrupted Zazen; Kinhin 7pm: Rohatsu Exhortations reading and Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin 8pm: Zazen; Zazen
Days 6: Friday, December 8th 5am-7am: Choka and Zazen 11-noon: Zazen 2pm – 4pm: Dharma Talk and zazen 6pm – 9:25pm: Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations around 7pm. Please see the Rohatsu Sesshin Schedule for these days.
Day 7: Saturday, December 9th 5am-7am: Choka and Zazen 10am-noon: Zazen 2pm – 4pm: Dharma Talk and zazen 6pm – 10pm: Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations around 7pm. Please see the Rohatsu Sesshin Schedule for these days.
Day 8: Sunday, December 10th 5am; Zazen; Kinhin 5:45am: Closing Sutras; Closing Remarks 8am – 9:30am: Zazenkai and Bodhi Day Ceremony
This retreat is offered without charge, however there are costs to putting it on, so please consider making a donation online or in person with this in mind.
This first weekend of November we will dive into intensive investigation of this great matter with a period set aside for extended practice. This weekend event, centered on Saturdays full day of practice, is open for residential and drop-in attendance. If you would like to stay on campus and make the most of this weekend of practice please contact us to make arrangements. Please be aware that there is a minimum number of attendees required for us to support residential practice. We request that everyone who intends to join us beyond dropping in for a single period contact us with your plans.
Additionally we will continue to broadcast these retreats via Zoom for those unable to join us in person. We will begin the online broadcast during regular Friday evening zazen and conclude after Sunday’s Zazenkai allowing for one to be able to extend ones practice beyond the full day.
