Dojo Schedule
Dojo Schedule
Sitting at the Dojo
You are welcome to join us at the Dojo, provided you’ve previously attended an introductory session *
* Please email us at info@zenbristol.co.uk
or call us on 0117 942 4347 to arrange an introductory session – usually on Wednesday at 5.30pm but other times are possible if arranged in advance
On Zen Half Days, usually the first Sunday each month, we have a formal breakfast (genmai), a work period (samu) and further ‘sits’ following normal Sunday zazen
Zen Days
We offer occasional Zen Days at the Dojo, led by visiting teachers or by our own senior monks, nuns and practitioners. Here Zen beginners and practitioners can engage in more intensive sitting, and ask questions to clarify & deepen their practice.
Zazen
Our main activity is to sit shikantaza – that is to say, we just sit in silence, facing the wall, trying to remain alert and present rather than being distracted by thoughts about the past or future, or giving way to sleepiness. This takes energy and concentration, though we try to keep the body itself relaxed.
Kinhin
‘Sits’ are generally either 25 or 40 minutes long, perhaps interspersed with a few minutes of kinhin – slow walking meditation – during which we aim to maintain the same upright alertness, the same zazen mind.
Ceremony
Ceremony is a halfway-house between seated zazen and busy life in the everyday world – in which we have to cope with many distractions. Through chanting and bowing together, we learn to concentrate our minds and awareness while taking action in the world.
We often chant the Heart Sutra and the Four Bodhisattva Vows in Sino-Japanese. This is a common language whether we’re practising alongside British, European or Japanese teachers….. etc, etc