I am just about to head off to sesshin for the next week and will be totally off-grid for the duration.
This will be my third consecutive year of attending a sesshin retreat.
I will, as they say, see you on the other side…..
“To preserve the silence within–amid all the noise. To remain open and quiet, a moist humus in the fertile darkness where the rain falls and the grain ripens–no matter how many tramp across the parade ground in whirling dust under an arid sky.” ― Dag Hammarskjöld, Markings
Oh, just in case you are wondering, this is what each days schedule looks like:
- Zazen is zen meditation.
- Dokusan (going alone to the teacher) is a one-on-one meeting with the zen teacher.
- Work period (samu): each participant is given a work task such as cleaning the bathrooms, or helping to prepare meals.
- Teisho is a talk given by the teacher.
| 5.00 | Wake up |
| 5.10 – 5.30 | Stretching and exercise |
| 5.30 | Tea |
| 5.30 – 7.00 | Zazen |
| 7.00 – 7.30 | Breakfast |
| 7.30 – 9.00 | Work period/Break |
| 9.00 – 10.30 | Zazen, dokusan |
| 10.30 – 11.00 | Stretching, guided relaxation |
| 11.00 – 11.30 | Zazen |
| 11.30 – 12.00 | Lunch |
| 12.00 – 1.30 | Work period/Break |
| 1.30 – 2.00 | Zazen |
| 2.00 – 2.45 | Teisho |
| 2.45 – 4.30 | Open practice |
| 4.30 – 5.00 | Zazen |
| 5.00 – 5.30 | Dinner |
| 5.30 – 7.00 | Work period/break |
| 7.00 – 9.00 | Zazen, dokusan |
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