For Newcomers:
"The first step from where we are."
If this is your first inquiry into zen, welcome. Don't let unfamiliarity with Zen be a reason for not investigating Zen practice. When you come, arrive about 15 minutes early and let someone know it is your first time, and you'll receive a brief orientation to our practice forms. Dress comfortably, you might find it helpful to wear dark or subdued colors. You are welcome to stay after practice to ask any further questions you might have.
For a more in-depth orientation to the practice, as well as more opportunity for questions and discussion, please join us for one of our quarterly Intro to Zen workshops. These workshops are typically held on a Saturday morning from 9 am to noon. Please see our events page for the next introduction class.
During a typical practice session, we'll start by finding a comfortable sitting position. Then we start off by chanting. Chanting is a practice consistent worldwide among contemplative traditions, much like singing in unison. We recite chants from a variety of Zen lineages and in several languages. Chant sheets are provided. A copy of our most frequently recited chants is available in .pdf format.
After chanting we start sitting meditation. We generally sit for 25 to 30 minutes. After the first sitting period we'll do a walking meditation. Walking meditation is a continuation of the sitting meditation, done with awareness. After the walk, we finish the practice with another sit.
The general format looks something like this:
- Chant: 20-30 minutes approx.
- Sit: 30 minutes
- Walk: 30 minutes
- Sit: 30 minutes
About the Practice.
In the orientation or Intro workshop, you will learn a variety of sitting postures, including cross-legged on cushions, kneeling on cushions, kneeling on a bench, and sitting in a chair. All of these postures assist in sitting upright, and offer a variety of options so that discomfort can be minimized.
Reading about Zen can be part of an orientation to the practice. You will find many good titles in most bookstores and libraries. Here are titles that have been helpful to some of our Sangha members:
- "Going Beyond Buddha" by Zen Master Dae Gak
- "Compass of Zen" by Zen Master Seung Sahn
- "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" by Shunryu Suzuki
- "Buddhism Plain & Simple" by Steve Hagen
- "Everyday Zen by Charlotte" Joko Beck
- "Art of Happiness" by Dalai Lama
- "Being Peace" by Thich Nhat Hanh
- "Awakening the Buddha Within" by Lama Surya Das
But while reading is fine, doing is necessary, so orientation from someone experienced with the practice is especially helpful.
About Sitting... When we sit, we follow our breath. Beginning meditators are often asked to count their breath - on the exhale - up to ten. Then you begin back at one. If you lose track, simply go back to one. Your breath should be slow and regular, but not forced or artificially controlled. Just breathe naturally and count. You will inevitably find yourself distracted by sounds around you and thoughts within. The way to handle them is to acknowledge them, but do not attach yourself to them. Do not get involved with them. Just let them be, let them go, and focus again on the breath. Later, you will find that the same scant attention that you use for thoughts and sounds will work with physical feelings as well.
