12.08.21 – Thanks to all who took part in our Rohatsu Sesshin, I dearly hope it was a fruitful experience. My apologize for being unable to broadcast the very final session, the Bodhi Day Ceremony. As I had feared the strong winds brought down trees all over the Island and we were without power for nearly 12 hours.
“Every sit builds toward sesshin; every sesshin builds toward Rohatsu.”
Tahoma will hold Rohatsu Sesshin on the traditional days, December 1st through 8th. This will be offered as an online retreat but there also be limited opportunities for those in the local area to attend in-person and our evening session will remain open to drop-in attendance (vaccination and masks required) As the culmination of the Autumn Kessei as well as the training year, we can all dedicate ourselves to an extended week of zazen. OSesshin is always an opportunity to go deep and push ourselves beyond our limits, Rohatsu even more-so as we are asked to leave it all on the table. A virtual sesshin does demand more from us in order to deeply take advantage of the opportunity. The broadcast provides a structure, just as attending a sesshin in-person does, but the commitment is up to the individual. If one is able commit to doing the entire sesshin, prepare yourself a space where you can minimize distractions. Have your meals planned out and the shopping completed. Work out a way to do kinhin and physical practice. Then just flow along with the schedule. During the Dharma talks we will continue our investigation of the Letters of Dahui and his teachings for lay practitioners without ready access to a teacher. Truly valuable teachings for these times and for lay practice in general.
Online Retreat Information
We will begin with a period of zazen and kokuho on November 30th. Kokuho will include any orientation information needed for online participants. During the week of retreat Zoom broadcast throughout the day will be in four blocks with the evening broadcast becoming longer and longer as as the week goes on.
“People vow to experience this very same experience of the Buddha as they approach the Rohatsu OSesshin. In every single Zen dojo people put their lives on the line to be able to experience the exact same state of mind, on the eighth of December, as that of the Buddha. This is the firm vow with which they come to Rohatsu OSesshin.”
Please note that this is a winter sesshin and storms and power outages are possible. If there is no connection at a scheduled time, please sit on your own until the host is able to join. Check here on the website where we will post updates as we can.
Dharma Talks will be from Torei Enji’s Discourse on the Inexhaustible Lamp of the Zen School. Download a free PDF of it here (45MB pdf). An archive of previous talks can be found here: Torei zenji’s Discourse talks.
All times Pacific Time. Please tune in five minutes before scheduled events Events in Bold will be streamed, events in Italics are self-directed As the sesshin progresses the schedule runs later. Download the full schedule for details.
Tuesday, December 8th
5:00am
Choka (abbreviated sutras); sampai
5:40am
Zazen (short period); Kinhin
6:00am
Zazen; Zazen
6:50am
Break
7:00am
Bodhi Day Ceremony
7:30am
Closing Remarks
All times Pacific Time. Please tune in five minutes before scheduled events Events in Bold will be streamed, events in Italics are self-directed.
Schedule Notes Monday November 30th: No evening zazen Sunday December 6th: No Zazenkai Wednesday December 9th: No scheduled events
In Person Attendance The following blocks are open for in-person attendance (masks required): 9:30am-Noon 6:00pm to Close
There is no fee for participating in this event but do be mindful that virtual events also utilize resources and the monastery does have regular expenses in order to keep open. We wish to facilitate the practice and promote the dharma as widely as possible, thus our practice of putting on these events without cost. This is especially important in these times with so many out of work and confined to home. For those who are able to offer support, we appreciate your including us in your consideration. Thank your for your continuing support and please email us with any questions: Contact Information.
Rohatsu is the traditional peak of the practice year and commemorates the Buddha’s enlightenment. The classic story is that after his years of ascetic practice the Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree vowing to sit there until complete awakening. Nine days later on seeing the morning star (Venus) he penetrated to the depths. Rohatsu Sesshin commemorates this with an eight day sesshin that models a single day of practice. We play the Han as we sit on the first day and not again until on the eighth morning we conclude this one long single day with the Kaimei Han. The amount of sitting increases as the sesshin wears on and it is expected that one sits through the night on the final day.
Tahoma will hold a Virtual Rohatsu Sesshin on the traditional days, December 1st through 8th. While we are not able to gather in person, we can all dedicate ourselves to an extended week of zazen. This is an intense schedule and while participating virtually one is not as held by the social pressure we encourage those who can to take full advantage of this opportunity. The broadcast simply provides a structure just as attending a sesshin in person does. The commitment is up to the individual. If one is able commit to doing the entire sesshin, prepare yourself a space where you can minimize distractions. Have your meals planned out and the shopping completed. Work out a way to do kinhin and physical practice. Then just flow along with the schedule.
Dharma Talks will be from Torei Enji’s Discourse on the Inexhaustible Lamp of the Zen School. This text is rarely engaged with in the west but presents a complete description of Rinzai Zen Training in the Hakuin tradition. If you’d like your own copy you can purchase the book here (scroll down) or download a free PDF of it here (45MB pdf).
Schedule Notes Monday November 30th: No evening zazen Sunday December 6th: No Zazenkai Wednesday December 9th: No scheduled events
Sesshin Schedule
Tuesday, December 1st – Monday, December 7th
5:00am
Choka (morning sutras); sampai
5:40am
Zazen [short period]; Kinhin
6:00am
Zazen; Zazen
7:00am
Breakfast / samu / cleanup
9:30am
UninterruptedZazen; Kinhin
10:30am
Zazen;Zazen; Kinhin
11:30am
Zazen
12:00pm
Lunch / break
2:00pm
Dharma Talk; Kinhin
3:00pm
Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin
4:00pm
Banka (afternoon sutras); sampai
4:30pm
Outside/Physical Practice
5:00pm
Dinner / Break
6:00pm
Uninterrupted Zazen; Kinhin
7:00pm
Zazen; Zazen; Kinhin
8:00pm
Zazen; Zazen;
8:45pm
Kaichin / Yaza
All times Pacific Time. Please tune in five minutes before scheduled events Events in Bold will be streamed, events in Italics are self-directed As the sesshin progresses the schedule runs later. Download the full schedule for details.
Tuesday, December 8th
5:00am
Choka (abbreviated sutras); sampai
5:40am
Zazen [short period]; Kinhin
6:00am
Zazen; Zazen
6:50am
break
7:00am
Bodhi Day Ceremony
7:30am
Closing Remarks
All times Pacific Time. Please tune in five minutes before scheduled events Events in Bold will be streamed, events in Italics are self-directed.
There is no fee for participating in this event but do be mindful that virtual events also utilize resources and the monastery does have regular expenses in order to keep open. We wish to facilitate the practice and promote the dharma as widely as possible, thus our practice of putting on these events without cost. This is especially important in these times with so many out of work and confined to home. For those who are able to offer support, we appreciate your including us in your consideration. Thank your for your continuing support and please email us with any questions: Contact Information.
The post outlines what we will be engaging in at Tahoma Zen Monastery for the week of January 12th through the 19th. We encourage anyone interested in taking part in any of this to contact us (see the contact page). Part time attendance is perfectly acceptable and drop-in opportunities are available in the mornings, evenings and during the dharma talks. More details below.
General Overview
Rohatsu is an eight day sesshin that is thought of as one continuous day. This is in commemoration of the Buddha’s vow to sit under the Bodhi tree until awakening. In honoring this event we will engage in activities for a full eight days from Sunday the 12th through Sunday the 19th. We will sound the Han in the morning of the 12th and not sound it again until the Bodhi Ceremony on the 19th. From the 12th to the 15th we will follow our normal monastery schedule (which can be found here) but will have readings from Hakuin Ekaku Zenji’s Rohatsu Exhortations.
At 5pm on January 15th, we will offer an option orientation for the kosesshin. There will be information useful for all attendees but would be of particular value for first timers and those who will be staying at the monastery. There will be a light meal available at this time as well.
We will begin the kosesshin, on the 16th at 4:50am and this will continue throughout the day until around 9pm. There will be a complete schedule posted around campus and individual copies will be handed out at orientation and then made available in the kitchen. On Saturday the 18th the evening will continue until 11pm or so. Sunday the 19th we will start at 3:50am with the Bodhi Day ceremony. There will then be an informal breakfast in the kitchen and a period of cleanup. This will conclude the Rohatsu Observance but we will as alway have zazenkai at 8pm followed by an informal tea. I would encourage everyone who can to stay for this.
Rohatsu Observance WeekSchedule
January 12th 4:50am – Regular morning Choka and Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations January 13th 6:20pm – Regular Evening Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations January 14th 4:50am- Regular morning Choka and Zazen 6:20pm- Regular Evening Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations January 15th 4:50am – Regular morning Choka and Zazen 6:20pm – Regular Evening Zazen with reading from the Rohatsu Exhortations
Rohatsu Observance Kosesshin January 16th Rohatsu Observance day 1 – 4:50am to 9:00pm January 17th Rohatsu Observance day 2 – 4:50am to 9:30pm January 18th Rohatsu Observance day 3 – 4:50am to 11:00pm January 19th Rohatsu Observance day 4 -3:50am Bodhi Ceremony Breakfast and cleanup
During the kosesshin drop-in opportunities for zazen are available from: 4:50am to 7am – morning sutras and zazen with kinhin at the hour 1:50pm to 4pm – dharma talk and zazen with kinhin at the hour 5:20 to 8:30 – three periods of zazen with kinhin at the half hour
Dharma Talk Study Material
There will be a Dharma Talk every day during the kosesshin during the 2pm to 4pm block. This is open for people to drop in if they wish. If you would like to do so, you should be seating in the zendo by 1:50. You can then leave during the 2pm Kinhin or remain for the next period of zazen until 4pm
During this retreat we are going to work with Chan Master Sheng Yen’s Shattering the Great Doubt. We are going to be working through the Ch’an approach to zazen and several other practices leading up to the Huatoa (Jp: wato) practice that is the core of this book. There will be daily talks oriented around these practices as well as an overview of the Ch’an approach with historical material describing and advocating for these practices. There will also be times where new techniques are introduced and Q&A periods for deeper investigation into our personal practice.
Each evening we will read from Hakuin Zenji’s Rohatsu Exhortations. We will be using the Eido Shimano translation published by the Zen Studies Society. This can be purchased here: ZSS Books.
It is not necessary to have a copy of either of these books for the retreat. If however you would like to have a copy for personal study this is encouraged. During sesshin one typically only engages in reading material related to their practices (koans for instance) or teisho. These texts will be considered appropriate to read during this sesshin during the breaks or before the Dharma Talks.
On day 2, there will be another round of kinhin and zazen until around 9:30. On day 3 there will be two more rounds of kinhin and zazen until around 11. Day 4 begins at 3:50 seated on the cushion for choka. Detailed schedule will be posted around the monastery.
This January, 2020 we will hold a KoSesshin at Tahoma Zen Monastery in observance of the traditional Rohatsu sesshin. There will be three full days concluding with an early morning Bodhi Day Ceremony on Sunday the 19th. Attendance can be for the whole period or any fraction that works for you. We ask that those interested in attendance in any capacity please email us with your desired attendance. During these days drop-in attendance is available in the morning period before breakfast and the evening period after dinner.
Schedule
The schedule for the first two days (January 16th and 17th) will follow our standard Day of Practice Schedule with an extended period of zazen into the late evening of the third day (January 18th). Sunday, January 19th, we will have Choka and zazen an hour earlier at 4am followed by a Bodhi Day Celebration and an informal breakfast. For those who wish to sit with the local sangha we will wrap everything up with Zazenkai at 8am.
Information
For attendance of a day or more, we require registration. Part time attendance is allowed. Please email tahoma@tahomazenmonastery.com to signup and let us know your attendance plans.
There is no fee for this sesshin but donations of food, funds or time are always welcome.
Drop in attendance
If you wish to drop in for a period of zazen, the following times are available: 4:50am to 7:55am: Choka and two periods of zazen 5:20pm to 8:30pm: Three blocks of two periods of zazen with kinhin in between.
You can sit for one hour in any of these blocks, please arrive during the kinhin, or before Gosei and leave during kinhin or at the end of the period. Sesshin attendees will be continuing directly to the next event and we ask that you directly leave and not interact with sesshin participants.
Call for Assistance
We could use your help for this sesshin. We would like to have prepared dishes: soups, salads, casseroles and other food that can be stored for a few days. We would also gratefully accept food donations of sweets for tea, coffee and snacks for breaks, fruit and vegetables that we can use at meals and really any other food items we could put to use for sesshin
Additionally if you are planning to attend we would like people to help with meal preparation, tea serving, chant services and the like. If you have taken part in any of these activities or would like to learn please let us know. Everyone will need to help in one way or another and we will do in situ training as needed.
The special Rohatsu schedule starts Sunday, Dec. 1st and ends on Sunday, Dec. 8th. Zazen will start at 6:30a.m. each day, ending with a mini-sesshin on Dec. 8th.
The mini-sesshin will include a breakfast of oatmeal, fruit compote, peanut butter, raisins, sugar,and granola. If you would like to donate or cook any of these items, reply to this email.
Zazen Schedule for Rohatsu
Sunday, 12/1: 6:30-7:30 AM Monday, 12/2: 6:30-7:30 AM & 7-8:30 PM Tuesday, 12/3: 6:30-8:30 AM Wednesday, 12/4: 6:30-7:30 AM Thursday, 12/5: 6:30-7:30 AM Friday, 12/6: 6:30-7:30 AM Saturday, 12/7: 6:30-8:30 AM Sunday, 12/8: 6:30-11:15 AM (formal breakfast at 8AM, Sitting for part of mini-sesshin is allowed.)
Daichi Zenni will be here in December for Rohatsu.
Rohatsu commemorates the December days Shakyamuni Butsu (Buddha) sat under the Bodhi tree and awakened fully.
Dates are:
Dec 21 Chisan arrives
Dec 22 Preparation day, Kokuho (opening talk in evening)
Dec 23 Day 1
Dec 24 Day 2
Dec 25 Day 3
Dec 26 Day 4
Dec 27 Day 5, Setsuryo (closing talk in evening)
Dec 28 Chisan departs
Typical schedule (subject to change; may be more zazen for Rohatsu)
