Altar items (traditional and non-traditional)

[Chikyou]

On my altar currently I have a painted image of Shakyamuni, an electric candle, stick incense burner and the cypress twig from my Jukai ceremony.

However, the cypress twig has lost all its green and looks very sad. I feel moved to replace it with something, and I'm considering what that something should be. Since the cypress bushes are right off my back patio, I have an endless supply of cypress twigs; and I may just wind up retiring the twig from my Jukai and refreshing it with a new one on a regular basis.

But, though I know there's no "right" or "wrong" here, I'm wondering what a traditional altar would consist of? Or a non-traditional one?

Gassho,
SatLah
Chikyō

[Dainin]

Hi Chikyō,

Your altar sounds lovely. I particularly like the cypress twig. This subject has come up often over the years, so there are similar discussions floating around. The link below presents what seems the "traditional" Soto altar:

https://www.sotozen.com/eng/practice/commemoration/altar.html

However, as you know, around here there's no requirement or even a need for one of those, unless of course one is moved in that direction. Basically it's about what moves you - sometimes that could mean an empty altar. I guess that would be as non-traditional as one could get.

Gassho,
Dainin

SatLah

[Jundo]

https://www.sotozen.com/eng/practice...ion/altar.html However, as you know, around here there's no requirement or even a need for one of those, unless of course one is moved in that direction. Basically it's about what moves you - sometimes that could mean an empty altar. I guess that would be as non-traditional as one could get.

I very much agree. There is no particular requirement for what an Altar must be. I have sometimes spoken in the past about how a "Buddha Statue" could be an empty space, a stone, a flower, or even a coke bottle or soiled baby diaper if the heart is open sufficiently to recognize "Buddha" there. No need to have a "Buddha Statue" that looks like Buddha, which is just a work of art to remind us of the traditional message that Buddha is not so limited!

As to the Soto shu Altar, I caution against need to follow the guidance at the above link. Why? Japanese Altars, like much of Japanese Buddhism, is geared toward ancestor worship and remembrance of our deceased parents, grandparents and other family. Most Japanese who have an at-home Altar (Butsudana) are primarily concerned with that purpose. As the page says, "To honor our ancestors is to repay our sense of gratitude for having received life from them. This is also to keenly feel that we have inherited not only our individual lives but the life of all things. ... The memorial tablets of our ancestors are placed to the left and right of Shakyamuni Buddha. ... The book of ancestors' names should be easily visible. Each morning, open the book to the page that corresponds with the day's date."

Remembering our ancestors is lovely, but I would say that there is absolutely no need whatsoever to make an Altar like that. We have had some discussions in the past here on the creativity of some of our members in their little sacred spaces at home, and they are all excellent ...

Here was our BYOB (Bring Your Own Buddha) Zazenkai from a couple of years ago:

https://forum.treeleaf.org/forum/treeleaf/weekly-daily-zazen-sitting-netcasts/archive-of-past-zazenkai/12465-june-26th-27th-treeleaf-weekly-zazenkai-byob-bring-your-own-buddha

Gassho, Jundo

stlah

[mdonnoe]

I once came upon a Thai Buddhist amulet with a little carving / picture of a footprint on it, and the antique seller explained to me that the footprint was a sort of "early Buddhist" representation of "Buddha walked here," before statues really became a popular home altar thing. The idea of "Buddha walked here" really spoke to my heart (because, didn't Buddha walk here, in my heart, I thought?), and I kept it on my home altar for many years.

Wherever and however Buddha walks in your heart, I'd love to see photos from your home altar!

Gassho,
Michael
SatLah

[Bion]

On my altar currently I have a painted image of Shakyamuni, an electric candle, stick incense burner and the cypress twig from my Jukai ceremony.

However, the cypress twig has lost all its green and looks very sad. I feel moved to replace it with something, and I'm considering what that something should be. Since the cypress bushes are right off my back patio, I have an endless supply of cypress twigs; and I may just wind up retiring the twig from my Jukai and refreshing it with a new one on a regular basis.

But, though I know there's no "right" or "wrong" here, I'm wondering what a traditional altar would consist of? Or a non-traditional one?

Gassho,
SatLah
Chikyō

My choice for altar "flower" has been for a long time a single bamboo branch.

small altar.jpg

gassho
sat and lah

[Chikyou]

Thank you all! I decided to go with refreshing the cypress twig regularly. I haven't yet decided how to respectfully dispose of the original twig (I'm tempted to keep it, but that feels like attachment).

Here is my altar (with some incense ash which will be cleaned up when I sit next, as cleaning the last ash is part of my ritual).

Gassho,
SatLah
Chikyō

[Jundo]

Thank you all! I decided to go with refreshing the cypress twig regularly. I haven't yet decided how to respectfully dispose of the original twig (I'm tempted to keep it, but that feels like attachment).

Here is my altar (with some incense ash which will be cleaned up when I sit next, as cleaning the last ash is part of my ritual).

Gassho,
SatLah
Chikyō

Return the twig to nature, to the ground. Gassho, then move on.

Gassho, J

stlah

[Seiko]

At University the prayer rooms are shared by all faiths, so after use, the rooms must be left neutral, without altars or symbols.

The temporary nature of the altar is interesting. It raises some curiosity for me - how do other faiths feel about the temporary nature of their altars? And how I deal with this situation, the questions I ask myself - without really expecting an answer: Do I consciously choose an altar arrangement and stick to it? Do I decide to vary it each time, or on special dates? Do I vary the altar appearance for no reason, just going with my instinct/ feelings on any particular day? Yes, interesting to notice and note.

Seiko
Gasshō
stlah

[Jundo]

At University the prayer rooms are shared by all faiths, so after use, the rooms must be left neutral, without altars or symbols.

The temporary nature of the altar is interesting. It raises some curiosity for me - how do other faiths feel about the temporary nature of their altars? And how I deal with this situation, the questions I ask myself - without really expecting an answer: Do I consciously choose an altar arrangement and stick to it? Do I decide to vary it each time, or on special dates? Do I vary the altar appearance for no reason, just going with my instinct/ feelings on any particular day? Yes, interesting to notice and note.

Seiko
Gasshō
stlah

Lovely questions.

Of course, all Altars are temporary, constantly changing, even if seeming to last for 1000 years ... like all composite things. The day is ever changing, and each moment of our lives. I feel that these "temporary Altars" can remind us of this. Lovely.

Gassho, J

stlah