Glossary
A few words of the zendo
You do not need any of these words to sit with us. They are here only so that nothing feels strange when you hear it. Learn them slowly, or not at all.
- Bodhisattva
- One who vows to awaken for the sake of all beings, and to stay engaged with the world.
- Buddha-nature
- Busshō. The awakened nature that all beings already are, inseparable, in Dōgen’s reading, from impermanence itself.
- Dāna
- Generosity, the first of the perfections and the ancient practice by which Zen is sustained. Teaching and community are offered freely and supported freely; giving is not a fee but part of the practice itself, with giver, receiver, and gift not separate.
- Dharma
- The teaching of the Buddha, and reality itself as it is.
- Dharma transmission
- Shihō. The face-to-face confirmation, from teacher to student, that authorizes one to teach in the lineage.
- Doan
- The timekeeper, who rings the bells that shape the morning.
- Dōgen
- Eihei Dōgen (1200 to 1253), the Japanese master who founded Sōtō Zen, the tradition we practice in, centered on just sitting, and author of the Shōbōgenzō.
- Dokusan
- A private meeting between student and teacher for guidance in practice.
- Ensō
- The open ink circle, drawn in a single breath of the brush. A quiet expression of the whole: complete, imperfect, and unrepeatable.
- Five Ranks
- Goi. Dongshan’s scheme charting the interplay of the absolute and the relative.
- Fukanzazengi
- Dōgen’s brief, foundational instructions for zazen, recited in Sōtō to this day.
- Gassho
- The bow with palms joined at the chest, an expression of respect and non-separation.
- Genjōkōan
- “Actualizing the fundamental point,” the central fascicle of Dōgen’s Shōbōgenzō.
- Han
- A wooden board struck with a mallet to call everyone to the zendo before sitting, often inscribed with a verse reminding us how swiftly life passes.
- Hishiryō
- “Non-thinking,” the awareness in zazen that neither chases thoughts nor suppresses them.
- Jukai
- The ceremony of receiving the precepts and entering the lineage as a practitioner.
- Kenshō
- A glimpse of one’s true nature, acknowledged in Sōtō yet not made the goal.
- Kinhin
- Slow, formal walking meditation between periods of sitting, one half-step with each breath, carrying the same attention from the cushion into gentle movement.
- Mahāyāna
- The “great vehicle” of Buddhism, oriented to the liberation of all beings, within which Zen sits.
- Oryoki
- The formal monastic meal taken with nested bowls.
- Precepts
- The ethical commitments received at jukai, understood as the natural functioning of buddha-nature.
- Rakusu
- The small sewn version of the Buddha’s robe, worn by those who have received the precepts.
- Roshi and sensei
- Honorifics for a Zen teacher.
- Samu
- Work practice: mindful labor as zazen in motion.
- Sangha
- The community of people who practice together, and the reason we sit in one another’s company rather than alone.
- Seiza
- A kneeling posture, sitting astride a cushion or a small bench.
- Sesshin
- An extended, often several-day period of intensive silent practice, given over almost entirely to zazen.
- Shashu
- The left hand in a soft fist, the right hand covering it, held lightly at the chest. The hand position used while walking and standing.
- Shikantaza
- Just sitting. You do not try to stop your thinking; you let it stop by itself. When a thought comes, you let it come; when it goes, you let it go, without judging it, chasing it, or pushing it away. You stay upright, breathe, and let go. There is nothing to attain.
- Shōbōgenzō
- Dōgen’s masterwork, a collection of essays on practice and realization.
- Silent illumination
- Mokushō. The Caodong meditation of bright, aware stillness, the forerunner of shikantaza.
- Sōtō Zen
- The school of Zen centered on shikantaza, just sitting, founded by Dōgen in thirteenth-century Japan. The tradition we practice in, as lay students, without claiming a formal affiliation or a lineage of our own.
- Sutra
- A scripture recording the teaching of the Buddha.
- Uji
- Being-time. Dōgen’s teaching that being and time are one, each moment complete in itself.
- Zabuton
- The flat padded mat beneath the zafu, cushioning the knees and ankles.
- Zafu
- The firm round cushion you sit on.
- Zazen
- Seated meditation, the center of Zen practice. We sit upright, breathe naturally, and let the mind and body settle.
- Zendo
- The room or hall where we sit together.
