retreat guidelines

Please try to arrive and be settled at your seat at least five minutes before the first period of zazen each morning and throughout the day.

Maintaining silence throughout the retreat is a necessary support for settling mind and body. If you have any questions or concerns during retreat, you can leave a note with the Ino on the message board in the entryway. During work periods, you may need to speak quietly to communicate a work-related question to your crew leader.

During the length of the retreat, we encourage you to maintain silence after leaving at the end of the day. If possible, you may ask your family and friends to support you in this. That said, please do not hold onto silence if this might be a source of discord with them. In that case, please maintain awareness while speaking instead.

Please do not read or write during breaks. Once at home, we recommend that you maintain internal silence by not reading, listening to music, watching TV or using the computer.

When engaged in any kind of activity, we encourage you to move mindfully as a way of maintaining “zazen” mind. In the zendo, please walk slowly and quietly.

We are practicing closely together in an intimate space over long periods of time. Please take care of your space by keeping the area around your cushion neat and be mindful of your impact on each other. Bring only the minimum you need to your seat. Please do not wear jewelry or watches in the zendo. The doorwatch will watch over your valuables and the doan will watch over the time.

You may exit the zendo to use the restrooms or drink water during kinhin, leaving right after the bell and before the clackers. Afterwards, please line up and stand quietly at the entrance to the zendo, reentering after the first zazen bell is rung. There is a restroom off the entryway, and there are two additional bathrooms down the main hallway outside the space.

We will have tea available during the breaks. Please do not use kinhin as a time for a tea break.

Meals are an opportunity to work with preferences and to accept what is offered.

Please follow the schedule you agreed to completely. If for any reason you are not able to follow the schedule, please let me the Ino know.

Thank you.