Oryoki revival?

Hello all,

The 8th of April is the second Sunday of the month. Shall we meet again for Oryoki practice? And, would anyone object to meeting half an hour later (8:30am Los Angeles time, 11:30am New York City time)?

Gassho,

Shugen

Sattoday/LAH


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Works for me brother! =)

Gassho
Shingen

Sat/LAH

[Shugen]

Hello all,

The 8th of April is the second Sunday of the month. Shall we meet again for Oryoki practice? And, would anyone object to meeting half an hour later (8:30am Los Angeles time, 11:30am New York City time)?

Gassho,

Shugen

Sattoday/LAH


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[Meitou]

Thank you for this Jundo, it makes sense to me that there would always have been rituals around sharing food - I liked the clarity of the instructions.
I'm very grateful that we can share this practice online as we do everything else, I can't imagine any other Sangha offering this opportunity.
Gassho
Meitou
Satwithyoualltoday lah

[Shugen]

Thank you Jundo.

Gassho,

Shugen

Sattoday/LAH


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Thank you Jundo for this walk down history lane. Oryoki is such a wonderful and beautiful practice ... I am happy that we are able to come together and carry on the tradition. =)

And yes, thank you to our dear Shugen. =)

Gassho
Shingen

Sat/LAH

[Jundo]

You may be interested in this if a bit of a history buff ...

I recently discovered some material that shows that this Practice of Oryoki, although refined by Dogen and the Japanese masters, largely reaches back to China centuries before, with elements (such as the grouping of bowls) originating in India long before.

However, perhaps in all that time, no one has ever attempted to teach and undertake Oryoki in the way of this group of people today. So, a little Oryoki history has been made by you. Thank you to Shugen for a lovely and careful effort to shepard folks through this lovely Practice.

Gassho, J

PS - About the origins of Oryoki ...

I thought our Oryoki folks might find this interesting. 11th Century Oryoki instructions from before the time of Dogen. As well, the author traces aspects back to many centuries before that, and the configuration of the bowls to India. Some of the chants are identical to chants in the 4th century AD ...

The Chanyuan qinggui (Chinese: 禪苑清規 or The Rules of Purity in the Chan Monastery, is a highly influential set of rules for Zen monasteries compiled by the Chinese monk Changlu Zongze in 1103. Although many other monastic codes aimed at the Zen school would follow, Chanyuan qinggui is the oldest extant work of its kind. Prior to the Rules of Purity, various translations of Indian Vinaya texts had existed in China since the fifth century, while Chinese monks beginning with Daoan has created sangha regulations in the 4th century. However, none was extensive or geared towards any particular sect that existed at that time. Both types of regulations has a direct influence on Chanyuan qinggui, but neither aimed to be nearly as extensive or authoritative. The text regulates nearly all aspects of daily life in a monastery, from the proper protocol for ceremonies to the correct way to visit the toilet. The text became the standard reference for its topic not only in Song Dynasty China, but also well into the Yuan Dynasty, as well as abroad in Korea and Japan.

Daoxuan himself was largely preserving practices codified more than two hundred years before by Daoan, through his works we can discern indirectly how many Chan monastic practices, many of them still carried out today, can be traced as far back as the fourth century. We see, for example, that the octagonal hammer with its pillar stand, which sits in the center of the Sangha hall in Chan monasteries, is not a Chan invention, but a device used long before by Daoxuan, who, in turn, inherited it from Daoan. The five contemplations [recited when opening the Bowls] and other verses chanted by Chan monks during the Tang and Song are described in Daoxuan’s Xingshi chao, and these, too, can be traced back to Daoan’s time. ... Even the use of four nesting bowls at mealtimes, often thought to be unique to the Chan monastery, can be found in the original Vinaya texts [from India]

The 11th Century text ...

To correctly display a nest of bowls, the monk should first
bow and untie his cloth bundle. He takes out the bowl wiper and
folds the cloth into a small shape. He then takes out his spoon and
chopstick bag and places them horizontally, close in front of him. Next
the clean towel is used to cover the knees, after which the cloth
bundle is completely opened and the three corners closest to him are
folded over and neatly joined together at the center, while the far corner
is allowed to drape over the edge of the platform. He then uses
both hands to unfold the mat. With his right hand facing down, he
holds the corner of the mat closest to him on the right side and places
it over the top of the bowls in front of him. Then, with the left hand
facing up, he reaches under the mat to pick up the bowls and places
them on the left side of the mat. Using the fingertips of both hands,
he takes out the three smaller bowls stacked together and places
them on the mat one at a time without making any noise. If his seat
is narrow, he should display only three of his bowls. He then opens
the bag to take out his spoon and chopsticks. (When removing these
items, he should take out the chopsticks first. When replacing them, he should
put the spoon in first.) He places the chopsticks and spoon horizontally
behind the first bowl, with the handles to the side of his upper shoulder.
The brush he places on the edge of the mat to the side of the
lower shoulder with the handle facing out. He then waits for the offering
of food to all sentient beings.

...

To correctly receive the food, the monk should hold the bowl with
both hands and lower his hands close to the mat. The bowl should
be held level. The monk should gauge the amount of food served
him; he should not request too much and leave unfinished food. He
must wait until the food has been distributed and the rector has struck
with the hammer before he lifts up his bowl to make the offering.
After the hammer has struck, he presses his hands together in honor
of the food and performs the five contemplations:

one, to ponder the effort necessary to supply this food and to appreciate its origins; two, to reflect
on one’s own virtue being insufficient to receive the offering; three, to protect the
mind’s integrity, to depart from error, and, as a general principle, to avoid being
greedy; four, at the same time to consider the food as medicine and bodily nourishment,
preventing emaciation; five, to receive this food as necessary for attaining
enlightenment.

After this comes the offering of food to all sentient beings.

(Before the completion of the five contemplations the food cannot
be considered one’s own portion and therefore cannot be offered to sentient beings.)
While the monks perform the offering of food to all sentient beings,
they chant a verse: “All spirit beings and deities, / Now I offer you this
food. / May this food be spread in all ten directions / For all spirit beings and
deities to share.

...

After he has finished eating, if there
is anything left in his bowl he should use the bowl wiper to clean it
and then eat it. When he receives the water, the monk should wash
the largest bowl first and then the other bowls in order from largest
to smallest. He should not wash the smaller bowls inside the large
bowl. He then wipes the bowls to dry them. In addition, the
spoon and chopsticks should be washed and placed inside their bag.
The water for the bowls should not spill onto the floor around the
platform. The mantra pronounced while the water from the bowls
is poured out is “Om mahorase svâhâ.” The two thumbs are used to
stack all the bowls inside each other. With the left hand facing up,
the monk puts the bowls into the center of the cloth. Then with the
right hand facing down, he holds the corner of the mat closest to him
on the right side and puts it on top of the bowls. He then folds the
mat and places it back on top of the bowls. Next he picks up the corner
of the cloth closest to the body to cover the bowls. Then he pulls
the corner of the cloth draped over the end of the platform toward
himself to cover the bowls. He folds the clean towel and places it, together
with the bag containing the spoon and chopsticks and the bowl
brush, on top of the now covered bowls and covers them with the
bowl wiper. After the monks have put their bundles back in order,
when they hear the hammer strike to exit the hall, they will all chant
the verse for the completion of the meal:

“After the meal, the body is full
of physical energy / And quakes with a power like the heroes, which permeates
all ten directions in the past, present, and future./ One can now revert
causes and transform effects and therefore one need no longer be preoccupied
with one’s inabilities. / Let all sentient beings obtain supernatural power
through this strength.”

http://terebess.hu/zen/Chanyuan-qinggui.pdf

Gassho, J

SatToday

[bram]

Indeed, I relied on the 16:00 GMT, but I guess it was actually 15:00 GMT.
It is probably for the best, as I didn't manage to watch Jundo's demonstration prior to the meeting.
Looking forward to next month in any case!
Gassho,
Bram

[Meitou]

All ready here...
So, I did get the time wrong ;-)
Next month then.
Gassho,
Bram

SAT

Oh no Bram! I nearly made the same mistake, I think it was because of the daylight savings in the US; I checked today at the last minute and my phone told me it was 4.00. not 5.00 - I believe everything my phone tells me otherwise I would also have missed it. At least now you can get plenty of practice in for next month
Gassho
Meitou
satwithyoualltoday/lah

[Meitou]

Wonderful to practice together!

Today I learned: I need to practice this more - much was forgotten. [emoji28]

Gassho,
Sekishi
#sat #fumbled


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Yes, I really need to practice, this was my first Oryoki since Rohatsu and I too was fumbling and fiddling. I was also fidgeting because I chose to sit in seiza, thinking it would be easier to reach for things, but I was too low and after 5 minutes I couldn't feel my lower legs, so apologies for all the moving about. I learnt so much today - I'm going to rethink my bowls and utensils and make another utensil holder. I'll now make this a regular weekly practice, especially that knot tying at the end! Washing the bowls with green tea felt quite luxurious and tasted delicious
Thank you again everyone, it was lovely to share with you all.
Gassho
Meitou

satwithyoualltoday/lah
satwithyoualltoday/lah

[Entai]

Thank you Shugen and all!
I need to review things. I am out of practice.

Gassho,
Entai
#st

[bram]

All ready here...
So, I did get the time wrong ;-)
Next month then.
Gassho,
Bram

SAT

[Shugen]

Thank you all for sharing a meal together.

We will do it again soon!

Gassho,

Shugen

Sattoday/LAH


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[Sekishi]

Wonderful to practice together!

Today I learned: I need to practice this more - much was forgotten. [emoji28]

Gassho,
Sekishi
#sat #fumbled


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Awesome stuff, thank you Shugen and folks for coming together to practice, was lovely. =)

Gassho
Shingen

Sat/LAH

[Shugen]

Hey Meitou, it will be starting in 25mins on the hour. See you then. =)

Gassho
Shingen

Sat/LAH

Yep, see you in a little while!

Gassho,

Shugen

Sattoday/LAH


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