T2025 The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

Fascicle VII

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

of "depositing the ashes" in the tower. After depositing the ashes, the administrative official seals the tower. The director of practitioners' affairs calls for chanting the Mahākaruṇā-dhāraṇīand concludes with the following invocation of merit transference: The merit hereby accrued is intended for the sake of Venerable So-andso, who entered ultimate quiescence, and, on depositing his ashes in the tower, to enshrine the transcendental abode of his realization. Veneration to the buddhas in the ten directions and the three times, and so on. The guest reception official calls for chanting the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs and practitioners from the same province also conduct a service of chanting. The invocation of merit transference in each case is the same. End of Fascicle Six

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Fascicle Seven

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Chapter VII (continued)

9. Format for the Accounting Record Inscribed on a Wooden Board

The following is the record of the auction revenue and its expenditure regarding the late Venerable So-and-so's possessions: A revenue of one thousand guanwen(i.e., one guan= one thousand wen). (This is the total revenue from the auction. If there are any other items of revenue, they must be detailed in a serial list.) An expenditure of ninety-one guanwen.(The items to be recorded on the wooden board.)

Itemized in detail:

Fifteen guanwen:The funeral shrine. Three guanwen:Procurement of funeral offerings. Three guanwen:The rice gruel offering. One guanwen:The shrine lamp oil.

Ten guanwen:Paper, brushes, and so on for records; flags, artificial flowers, and wicker leaves.

One guanwen:For shaving the head of the deceased. Two guanand five hundred wen:For the rite of lifting the shrine and transport of the deceased.

Five hundred wen:For preparing hot water for bathing the deceased. Two guanwen:For bathing and cleaning the corpse. One guanwen:For the shrine attendant to serve rice gruel and rice. Five hundred wen:For treasury office attendants to report and prepare the funeral offering.

Five hundred wen:For setting the area of the funeral rite with curtains, floormats, and so on.

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Five hundred wen:For the work of accounting the revenue and expenditure in detail.

Five hundred wen:For funeral offerings prepared and delivered from the treasury office to the shrine attendant. Five hundred wen:For a kitchen subfunctionary to cook food provisions.

Five hundred wen:For a treasury office tea serving attendant to offer tea and sweet hot water.

Five hundred wen:For a ceremonial leader to assist the attendants' activities.

Two guanwen:To the practice hall attendants to help provide information.

Five hundred wen:For the foreman to arrange manpower for various work and activities.

Five hundred wen:For the abbot's attendant to convey the master's commands and carry his incense case.

Ten guanwen:For the novice attendants to participate in various prayers and sutra chanting.

One guanwen:For practice hall attendants to display the monetary gift records and strike the wooden sounding block. Two guanwen:For attendants of the four offices to serve tea. Fifteen guanwen:For manpower required to lift and carry the portable funeral shrine.

One guanwen:For attendants to play cymbals for ceremonies. Three guanwen:For attendants to play drums for ceremonies. Three guanwen:For six workmen to carry the incense table, flags, candles, and so on.

Five hundred wen:For novice attendants to create and distribute paper flowers and branches for the funeral procession. One guanwen:For a workman to help with the cremation. Three guanwen:For workmen to assist the abbot's group for the procession.

One guanwen:For workmen of the four offices to transport the bamboo cases to auction.

Five hundred wen:For the attendant at the auction to affix an identity tag on each item to be auctioned.

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Five hundred wen:For attendants to show each item at the auction. Five hundred wen:For an alms-serving attendant to give each successful bidder a tally.

Five hundred wen:For an alms-serving attendant to place auctioned items back into the basket at the auction.

Five hundred wen:For the meal-proceeding attendant to deliver the lottery tray to bidders at the auction.

Five hundred wen:For a workman to collect the remains after cremation.

One guanwen:For a workman to lift the box of ashes when depositing the remains in the tower.

One guanwen:For workmen to attend the tower at the time of depositing the remains.

The foregoing are the items included in the expenditure of ninety-one guanwen.

An expenditure of two hundred and seventy guanwen.(An amount totaling three-tenths of what remains after the foregoing expenditures recorded on the wooden board is to be added to the temple's annual revenue.)

An expenditure of one hundred and thirty-five guanwenfor Buddhist funeral rites.

Itemized as follows:

Twenty guanwen:For the material cost of the cremation rite. Ten guanwen:For a monetary gift at the rite of applying fire to the pyre.

Forty guanwen:For the rites of closing and lifting the shrine and lifting and depositing the remains.

Twenty guanwen:For monetary gifts at the four ceremonial rites of the foregoing events.

Thirty guanwen:For the prayer rite at the funeral site by the director of practitioners' affairs, auction records by the guest reception official and the attendant of the guardian bodhisattva. 313

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Fifteen guanwen:For three monetary gifts for the foregoing events. An expenditure of fifteen guanwen:five guanweneach for the funeral procession headed by the primary seat official, rear-guarded by the head administrative official, and the chanting led by the director of practitioners' affairs with the hand bell. These are itemized for the above total.

An expenditure of nine guanwen:three guanweneach for the chanting led by the guest reception official and the abbot's assistant who carried the incense case; two guanwenfor the attendant of the guardian bodhisattva who handled the auction revenues; and one guanwenfor the maintenance official who provided the torch. These are itemized for the above total.

An expenditure of fifteen guanwenfor the attendants of the abbot, the dual order officials, and the practice hall official who served at the auction proceedings and made the records of itemized objects and prices; incidental food provisions three times for their work, of which the cost is received by the abbot's office. These are itemized for the above total. An expenditure of twenty guanwenfor the inspection and sanction by the abbot and the dual order officials of the contents of auction, of which the cost of two is received by the abbot's office. These are itemized for the above total.

An expenditure of four hundred and forty-four guan and five hundred wenfor the service of sutra chanting by the practitioners, of which Guanyin, (Avalokiteśvara) Bodhisattva, the guardian bodhisattva (shengseng), and the abbot each receive the amount of two guanwen; approximately four hundred regular practitioners each receive one guanwen;the practice hall attendants who participate in the chanting, the practitioners-in-absentia, and the recent arrivals, together numbering seventy-five, each receive one half, five hundred wen.These are itemized for the above total. Excluding the foregoing expenditures, an expenditure of five hundred wen(diverted for public use by the practice hall office). 314

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The foregoing report is prepared as before [the venerables' inspection] Date and year Records kept by: Prepared by So-and-so attendant The practice hall office

Assistant of the guardian bodhisattva,

So-and-so (signed)

Guest reception official, So-and-so (signed)

The Buddha hall master

The bath hall master

The Tripiṭaka hall master

The Tripiṭaka hall master

The maintenance official The kitchen hall official The treasury official The director of practitioners' affairs The treasury official The administrative official The head administrative official The secretarial official

The rear practice hall official

The primary seat official

Signed by all dual order officials

The abbot, signed

The institution of the wooden board account record (banzhangshi) perhaps derived from the custom of earlier times to record whatever information was necessary for accomplishing ritual conduct on a wooden board, whereby it was shown that no arbitrary changes [to the record] were allowed. This has become the practice of preparing a wooden board accounting record on the death of a practitioner of the Zen monastic community. Whenever a practitioner dies, his personal items are distributed at auction for the sake of the other practitioners, by pricing these items before the practitioners' very eyes as a disciplinary measure to counter the greedy accumulation of personal possessions. At the auction, such possessions are assigned a monetary value, necessarily requiring a record of reference inscribed on a wooden board. Other than the amount expended for an event, the remaining money must be divided into three parts and seven parts, with the former amount of threetenths given to the temple's general fund as overhead. 315

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Chapter 8: The Annual Celebration Days and Calendar

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

(For example, in the case of one hundred guanwen,thirty guanwenwould be turned over to the temple's revenues. In the case of there being less than a hundred guan,no three-tenths overhead should be considered.) The remaining amount must be equally distributed to the practitioners. If remuneration for the practitioners' service of chanting sutras is one hundred wen,one guanmust be due for conducting a religious rite, and twice that amount is due to the abbot. Using a revenue of one thousand guanas a standard, the distribution of expenditures has been shown in the format above. If a given auction brings a higher amount, a proportional increase should be made as to each expenditure; if it brings in less revenue, a proportional decrease in expenditure should be made. Taking into account the actual circumstances and also taking into consideration the number of practitioners, adequate and expedient changes should be made.

(If a recently deceased retiree official left behind personal possessions such as a rice field, rice crops, cottages, bedding, furniture, and so on, all these must be turned over to the temple. In accordance with the amount acquired from the auction, if it is more than what is necessary, more days of services for chanting sutras may be prescribed to dispense with the excess money as a gift to the practitioners, and by scheduling additional rites and services, such as servings of tea and sweet hot water, turning the funeral shrine around, and so on.)

End of Chapter VII: The Practitioners

of the Zen Community

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Chapter VIII

The Annual Celebration

Days and Calendar

I. Preface to the Chapter

Practitioners do not follow the order of their chronological age but that of ordination age, so that [the religious] world is distinguished from the secular one. In the western regions (i.e., the Central Asian Buddhist countries including India), there are three seasons, one of which is established as the period of retreat, during which no one may leave or come to the monastery. The system of order is based on seniority determined by whether one's learning of the Zen texts by heart (chansong), practice of cross-legged seated meditation (xingzuo) and year of ordination (shoujie) [were accomplished] earlier or later than another's. For the duration of ninety days [each year], practitioners [remain in their respective residences] in order to achieve some definite degree of merit in the practice of the path. In the thirty days [prior to the retreat period], each acquires the basic needs of life (i.e., clothing, food, and so on), enabling them to develop Zen insight internally and nurture their physical well-being externally, so that they can sustain peace of mind and body [through the subsequent period of concentration]. Every practitioner is obliged to commit himself to that full period and carry out disciplined training without wasting a moment, and to spare every living thing and be motivated by compassion and patience. What a wonderful institution this is, which has been followed for ten thousand generations!

The five regions of the Indian continent are so vast that the weather in these regions varies between hot, cold, rainy, and dry and is never the same everywhere. Thus, the period of retreat begins in the fourth month in some provinces, in the fifth month in others, and even in the twelfth month elsewhere, 317

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although it always begins on the sixteenth day of the month. The so-called rainy season retreat(yuanju) has been institutionalized according to the various geographical regions and their seasonal changes. It is sometimes called the "summer retreat" (zuoxia) and at other times the "winter retreat (zuola), and it was on the basis of this retreat [period] that the meaning of "ordination age" (jiela) began to be used to refer to the years of a practitioner's career. It is, however, a kind of baseless vulgar saying that [the expression, "so-and-so

many years of winter retreat,

" originally referring to the determination of a

practitioner's career in reference to his ordination age], was distorted to mean that examining the quality of a wax-made statue buried in the ice is to verify the impeccability of a person's practice in terms of clean ice, and that burying a wax-made human form in the ground is the way to examine whether his practice has accomplished the goal or not. How could such distorted ideas have come from our traditional transmission? Moreover, what is practiced and experienced in our tradition cannot be fathomed even by a holy man [such as Laozi]. How much less could such an external object be a measurement of the state of religious transcendence or immanence?

Today, in the Zen monastic institution, the inauguration of the summer retreat is set for the mid-month (i.e., fifteenth) day of the fourth lunar month, and it ends on the mid-month day of the seventh lunar month. If the retreat is set to begin one day earlier, by performing a special ceremony, every retreat participant is enabled to fully concentrate on their intent, the fulfillment of their practice within the retreat period. Thus, omitting or abridging troublesome literary statements is not necessarily discordant with the spirit of the Vinaya discipline. [Some argue that] this is not in accordance with the Vinaya, but they do not realize or understand the intended meaning of the rule hidden outside it. In China, winter begins at the beginning of the year and is regarded as being the start of the four seasons. Everything, whether material or temporal, is regarded as being new and is celebrated by all in their hearts. It is important to coordinate the seasonal proprieties [of monastic life] with those of secular society. Since it is the best method of conversion to follow such expediency, the beginning and end of the summer retreat, the winter solstice, and the new year have been institutionalized as the four major festival days [in Zen monastic communities]. The manner of the practitioners in their circling and turning movement is so regulated that the entire session appears to be a grand gathering 318

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of supernatural beings, and the vocal exchange of question and answer between host and guest is comparable to that of a lion's roar. Their ceremonial proprieties are well ordered; how glorious it is to regard them!

II. The Inauguration of the

Annual Summer Retreat

1. The Presentation of the Residency

Chart Draft Prior to the

Summer Retreat

On the first day of the third month, it is customary for a Zen monastic temple to issue a residency chart draft (format given below), after which the abbot no longer accepts new residents. The practice hall office copies the number [and names] of practitioners from the residents' "Ordination Record Book" (jielapai) and instructs an attendant to present this to the primary seat official, then to the abbot and the dual order officials [for inspection]. [He then] posts it in front of the practice hall and sets up a table below it, equipped with an inkslab and brushes. For approximately three days, after the noon meal practitioners are advised to check the residency chart draft and correct any mistakes or wrong information about themselves. The reason that the chart draft is not immediately finalized as to the record of the units of floor space (chuangli) is simply because it is feared that temporary confusion may result from such mistakes, and also because when there are a great number of residents omissions may occasionally occur. Therefore, in order to prepare the residency chart (tuzhang), a draft is first made, and each member must examine whether his name and rank appear in it in the proper order of seniority. In recent years, those who like to dispute and create disturbances, based on their strength and motivated by private interests, compete for superiority with others [in regard to their respective Dharma lineages], thereby placing blame on each other and engaging in quarrels, with the result of greater disturbance among the resident practitioners. Such transgressors must be censured and expelled altogether. If, in effect, some do derogate others' names and transgress the norms of the precepts, it is obvious that the director of practitioners' affairs must 319

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations deal with them by informing the primary seat official about the matter in detail and also by reporting it to the abbot. Format of the Residency

Chart Draft

(The ordination rank is to be written in red ink, while the name is to be written in black ink.)

The Ordination Ages of Practitioners Name and Title

Ordination Year of Regnal Era The Original Ordination [authorized by the Tathāgata Bhīṣmagarjita ghoṣasvararāja (Buddha Weiyinwang)] The Immemorial Past [referred to in the Lotus Sutra] The Venerable Eldest Senior Practitioner Ājñātakauṇḍinya Ordination [authorized by Śākyamuni Buddha] The Venerable Master Abbot

So-and-so Senior Practitioner Ordination, Such-and-such Year of the Zhiyuan Era So-and-so Senior Practitioner Ordination, Such-and-such Year of the Yuanzhen Era So-and-so Senior Practitioner Ordination, Such-and-such Year of the Dade Era So-and-so Senior Practitioner Ordination, Such-and-such Year of the Zhida Era [and so on]

The foregoing chart is prepared as presented to [the practitioners]. It is feared that there might be some errors; should there be any, each of the venerable practitioners is advised to correct them. May all the venerable 320

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practitioners examine, without fail, their respective records given on this chart.

Date and Year

Prepared by So-and-so Official

The Practice Hall Office

2. The Serving of Tea by the New Residents

on Joining the Practitioners' Quarters

After establishing membership in the practitioners' quarters, based on the preceding examples, the new residents donate funds to the quarters for the cost of a tea reception. They ask the head official of the quarters which day they should be in charge of the tea serving according to the rotation assignment system, and post a signboard for the tea serving to inform the practitioners. The signboard reads as follows:

Today, immediately after the noon meal, So-and-so senior practitioner and others (three, six, or nine, listed by name) will be in charge [of the tea serving].

Each member must carry a small incense case and be properly attired. They line up beforehand to the right of the quarters' entrance and wait for the practitioners to leave the practice hall. The tea master of the quarters strikes the wooden sounding block in front of the quarters, and when the practitioners have all arrived, he receives them with a gesture of greeting, then returns to his position and stands there.

Those who are serving tea stand in line and, after giving greetings, request the practitioners to take their seats. When everyone is seated, they proceed in two or three groups to the mid-hall incense burner, located between the higherand lower-ranking sections of the hall. No more than nine practitioners should offer incense. Three practitioners [at a time] step forward [to offer incense, and then] step back and turn around, mutually coordinating their movements [with the other practitioners] in a precise and smooth manner. Forming a line, they bow, and proceed, dividing themselves into separate groups, toward the incense burner and bow. [After offering incense] they return to [the end of 1150c

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their line], bow in unison, and remain standing. This is called "offering incense on behalf of the practitioners.

" The small wooden sounding block in the hall

is struck twice to signal that the serving of tea has been extended to every member in the hall. The jars of tea [for the second serving] are now brought into the hall through the rear hall entrance. Once again, the practitioners step forward in groups of three as before, bow before the incense burner, return [to their places], forming a single line, and bow in unison. This is called the "commendation to drink tea" (yicha). When the wooden sounding block is struck once, the teabowls are retrieved and the practitioners all rise from their seats. The head official of the quarters steps forward to the incense burner and on behalf of all the practitioners thanks the practitioners who served the tea. At the same time the practitioners, from their respective positions, [show their thanks] by joining their palms in a gesture of respect. Thereupon, the head official of the quarters returns to his place.

The serving practitioners once again line up and bow. Again they proceed in groups toward the incense burner and bow before it [after offering incense]. This is called "giving thanks for the guests' presence.

" As before, they step

back, form a line, and bow [toward the altar]. The wooden sounding block located in front of the quarters is struck three times, signaling the practitioners to give greetings harmoniously and leave the hall. The head official of the quarters instructs the tea master to invite those who served tea at the reception and serves tea for them. When all the new residents have completed their serving of tea on the occasion of joining the quarters, the head official invites them to the tea reception each day, designating their names on the basis of ordination seniority. The propriety of this tea reception is identical to the above. 3. The Issuance of Various

Charts before the

Summer Retreat

Once the draft of the ordination chart is finalized, the practice hall official draws up the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs ceremonial chart, the prayer chanting and practice hall rounds chart, the bed quilt space unit chart, the almsbowl seating position chart (formats given previosly as well as below), and the ordination age tablet, all on the basis of ordination seniority. The chart showing 322

Chapter I Chart of the Initial Head Seats of the Sixteen Raised Meditation Platforms and Almsbowl Positions head seats not specified sleeping positions identical inner hall (6) Rs Rs Rs Rs (8) (12) Rs

(4) Rs E

Rs (16)

guar dian bodhi sattva shrine

(14) Rs

Rs (10)

B Rs (2)

A

(1) Rs I G C (9) Rs

Rs (13)

(15) Rs

Rs (11)

D Rs (3)

(7) Rs Rs Rs Rs (5) skylit hall skylit hall S P O N M L K J outer hall F H Q Q Q Q Q wooden rack wooden rack Ss Ss Ss

Ss Ss Ss

A. Abbot B. West Hall Official C. Primary Seat Official D. Rear Primary Seat Official E. Trainee Primary Seat Official F. Administrative Head G. Secretarial Official H. Director of the Practice Hall I. Scripture Hall Official J. Guest Reception Official front entrance Key

K. Master of the Bath House L. Master of Ceremonial Affairs M. Master of the Practitioners' Quarters N. Master of Hermitages O. Master of Ceremonial Proceedings P. Master of the Memorial Towers Q. Assistants to the Abbot's Office R. Practitioners S. Recent Arrivals 323

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

where each individual keeps his bowl, practices zazen, and sleeps must be divided into sixteen sections. (The remaining charts are not affected by the size of the practice hall.) Excluding those head officials who have individual quarters, the west hall guest official, the primary seat official, and the retired officials who should be assigned to the head position of each section, the remaining practitioners are assigned to the seats of the sixteen sections according to ordination seniority. In the Ancient Regulations,one of the officials of the retiree's hall was assigned to a seat which was shared by another practitioner. Later, however, this double assignment was abolished because it created dispute and competition.

The [foregoing] charts, all of which ought to be formulated according to ordination seniority, both original and corrected, must be presented together for inspection, first to the primary seat official and then to the abbot. These charts, when finalized, must be recopied and presented along with the originals. Only the almsbowl seating chart must be presented to all the officials who have individual quarters. On the day of the ceremonial bathing of Śākyamuni, all the charts must be displayed in front of the Buddha hall. The quilt and almsbowl (i.e., zazen and meal position) seating chart (beibowei) must be displayed beforehand, with a small bulletin board on which is written: After the morning rice gruel, the quilt and almsbowl seats will be assigned. May every practitioner know of this matter. Respectfully stated by the practice hall official on such-and-such day of such-and-such month. 4. Special Serving of Sweet Hot Water

for the Quarters' Residents

at the Beginning and End

of the Summer Retreat

(Including the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs Prayer Service

at Its Inauguration and Completion)

At the beginning of the fourth month, or when the practitioners visit the abbot's office to express thanks for having been granted residency, the practice hall official should have already finalized the ordination chart and the head official of the quarters must have completed the following items on the basis of ordination seniority: 324

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1. The sutra cabinet assignment chart.

2. The tea and sweet hot water propriety seat chart.

3. The ordination seniority name list tablet.

4. The seniority of joining the quarters name tablet.

5. The calendar of regular shaving days.

6. The chart of the positions of jars and bowls for serving tea and sweet hot water during the summer retreat.

Whoever wishes to volunteer to be a member of the serving team should note his name down in reference to these positions.

After these charts have been completed, they are displayed together in the rear section of the quarters at the time when the quarters' residents exchange the morning greeting.

On the afternoon of the twelfth day, the practice hall office attendants report to the abbot and the dual order officials that the service of sutra chanting will be held at the practitioners' quarters. A tablet announcing "sutra chanting" is posted at each quarters to inform the practitioners of the event. The head official of the quarters sweeps and cleans the hall. Having prepared beforehand the invitation for a special reception of sweet hot water (format given below) to all the quarters' residents, he posts it in the outer hall lower section of the quarters. The preparation consists of setting up the tablets indicating seating, arranging alms offerings on the altar of the enshrined Guanyin image, placing incense burners and candle stands in both the higher and lower sections of the hall, and heating up the sweet hot water beforehand. The head official of the quarters personally delivers a portion of the sweet hot water to the abbot's office and instructs the tea master of the quarters to distribute it to the quarters of the dual order officials.

After these two deliveries of sweet hot water have been completed, the small wooden sounding block located within the quarters is struck. First, the minor propriety of serving sweet hot water is conducted, for which the seating tablets must be reset. This reception is conducted especially for the first master of the quarters, the second master of the quarters, and the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs ceremonial leader [of the quarters], who are assigned to carry the jars and cups [for serving the major reception]. The associate head official (liaozhang) is invited as main participant. They take their seats when the head official of the 325

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quarters, with a gesture of greeting, offers incense, and [they drink a cup of sweet hot water] when he offers incense and makes a gesture of greeting [a second time]. The associate head official then returns to his seat and the minor reception is completed.

The wooden sounding block located outside the quarters is struck to signal the associate head official and the practitioners to enter the hall and stand at their respective seat positions. The assistant to the director of practitioners' affairs, invited as main participant, is seated symmetrically to the head official in the rear section, separated by an arm's length. The associate head official is seated in the front section directly opposite from and facing the head official, while the practitioners take their positions at the fourth seat board according to ordination seniority. Dividing the serving area into two, the first and second masters of the quarters conduct the propriety of the serving. They greet the practitioners one by one with a bow. Upon returning to their places, they make a gesture of greeting to request the practitioners to sit, and burn incense with another gesture. At the signal of two strikes on the quarters' small wooden sounding block, they serve the sweet hot water, and when [all have been served] they make a gesture of greeting to request the practitioners to drink. At the signal of another strike of the quarter's wooden sounding block, they retrieve the serving cups. The associate head official of the quarters steps forward to the incense burner and expresses thanks for the sweet hot water. At the signal of three strikes of the wooden sounding block outside the quarters, all withdraw from their seats.

When the dual order officials enter the quarters, the primary seat official and the head administrative official offer incense, return to their respective positions, and remain standing. The head official of the quarters stands outside to the right of the entrance, waiting for the abbot's arrival. He receives the abbot and follows him into the hall, then burns incense and returns to his position at the end of the west order. As the head official of the quarters steps forward to burn incense, the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs ceremonial leader intones the sacred verses and offers the invocation of merit transference. He sees the abbot off. The propriety of the twelfth day of the seventh month (i.e., the last day of the summer retreat) is identical.

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Format of the Written Invitation

So-and-so, the Guarding Bhikṣu of the practitioners' quarters, respectfully conducts a serving of sweet hot water this evening at this quarters' hall, especially in honor of the residents of the quarters as a whole as part of the propriety of the inauguration (or completion) of the summer retreat. We earnestly request your honorable presence at this occasion with due compassion. Day and month

Respectfully written by So-and-so, Guarding Bhikṣu The Practitioners' Quarters Format of the Envelope Letters of Invitation To

The Honorable Zen Masters, Resident Members of the Practitioners' Quarters From

So-and-so, Guarding Bhikṣu of the Practitioners' Quarters 5. Inauguration of theŚūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs Prayer Service

This ceremonial session must be inaugurated on the thirteenth day of the fourth lunar month. The practice hall official copies the ceremonial chart (format given below) beforehand, referring to the records of the practitioners' ordination seniority. He posts this chart along with all other charts in front of the Buddha hall on the day of bathing the statue of the infant Śākyamuni (i.e., the day of the Buddha's birthday celebration), and requests the secretarial 327

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official to compose a word of tribute. The director of practitioners' affairs appoints beforehand someone endowed with a good voice to be the ceremonial leader of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs prayer service and accompanies him to the abbot's office and the administrative office to introduce him. Both offices invite the ceremonial leader for a snack, with the director of practitioners' affairs as a participant.

On the appointed day, the director of practitioners' affairs copies [a special] sacred verse to include in the universal invocation of merit transference directed toward all beings. (The verse, composed by Zen Master Zhenxie Qingliao [ca. eleventh to twelfth century], is given below.) The verse is posted on the right and left pillars of the Buddha hall. In some monastic temples, a tablet on which the verse has been inscribed is hung on the pillars. The evening before the day [of the ceremony], the practice hall office attendants notify the practitioners:

After breakfast tomorrow morning, the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs prayer service is scheduled to be inaugurated at the Buddha hall. Every one, properly attired, is requested to attend the service of chanting sutras. A tablet announcing the sutra chanting is posted at each quarters of the temple.

The next day, after the morning rice gruel, the dual order officials and the abbot are informed when the preparations have been completed in the Buddha hall. Starting from the practitioners' quarters, the wooden sounding block is sounded to relay the signal to the wooden sounding blocks of all corridors of the temple, ending with that of the abbot's office. When the abbot comes out of his office, this is signaled by three strikes of the metal gong at the kitchen hall, followed by the sound of the large bell, the practice hall bell, and the Buddha hall bell all at once. Arriving at the altar of the Buddha hall, the abbot burns incense, offers tea and sweet hot water to the Buddha, and takes his place mid-hall. Thereupon, the attendants play the cymbals, and the director of practitioners' affairs greets the abbot and the dual order officials, signaling them to offer incense in successive pairs from each order. (According to the Ancient Regulations,there is no performance of prostrations by the practitioners [at this moment in the ceremony]; however, recently it has become customary for practitioners to perform three prostrations. 328

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During this time, the abbot kneels, left knee up and right knee on the ground, before the incense burner and makes the respectful gesture of joining his palms together. This same propriety is performed in the ceremonial proceeding for the prayer of imperial longevity and the commemoration of the Buddha's birthday. It is not known for certain which patriarch may have started this tradition. In tracing the origin of this propriety, it may be said that the practitioners' act of prostration and the abbot's kneeling down, as well as the reading of the word of tribute, clearly point to the sense of celebration for imperial longevity and to the sense of gratitude and discharging of indebtedness to Śākyamuni Buddha. These meanings must really be emphasized by strict adherence to the proprieties. On the other hand, the Śūraṃgamadhāraṇīs prayer service is essentially meant to be a prayer on the part of the practitioners for the successful completion of the summer retreat. Hence, the proprieties in question must be inappropriate for this kind of ceremony, and it is best to omit them here and follow the Ancient Regulations.) After the Verses of Adoration for the Buddhais recited and the word of tribute is read, the ceremonial leader invokes the presence of the buddhas and bodhisattvas to the place of the Śūraṃ gama-dhāraṇīs prayer service, with the practitioners' accord. The ceremonial leader then recites the Sanskrit verse and continues to recite the introductory passage of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs. He initiates the prayer service by intoning the esoteric verses, and upon completion utters the phrase "Mo-he "("Hurrah to the Great Vehicle!"), with

which the practitioners again accord in unison. Thereupon, the director of practitioners' affairs gives the following invocation of merit transference: The merit accrued from chanting the sutra is dedicated to the goal of absolute truth (bhūta-tathatā; zhenruo) and absolute reality (bhūta-koṭi; shiji), and also thereby to en shrine the state of supreme enlightenment (bodhi; puti) that follows the realization of buddha-nature (buddhaphala; foguo). May this deed help us discharge our obligation resulting from the four kinds of indebtedness, help those who abide in the three worlds to equally realize enlightenment, and together with all sentient beings of the Dharma world, reach the perfect realization of omniscient knowledge (sarvathā-jñāna; zhongzhi). Veneration to the buddhas in the ten directions and the three periods [of time], and so on. 329

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Each day, the practitioners take a short recess after the morning rice gruel. When the practitioners have changed into ceremonial robes, the practice hall office attendant notifies the dual order officials and then the abbot. After that, the attendants begin striking each of the wooden sounding blocks located throughout the corridors of the temple three times. The kitchen metal gong is sounded three times when the abbot comes out [of his office]. If [the abbot does not come out], the metal gong and the large bell should not be sounded; however, the practice hall bell and the Buddha hall bell should be tolled every day in any case. When the practitioners have gathered in the hall and the chanting of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs has been completed, the ceremonial leader intones the verses of universal invocation of merit transference, chanted by the practitioners in unison. If this ceremonial session coincides with the first day of the month or the mid-month day, the director of practitioners' affairs should express celebration of imperial longevity in his invocation of merit transference. On the thirteenth day of the seventh lunar month, the ceremonial ful fill ment of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs prayer service should be conducted (this propriety is identical as before). The only difference is that the ceremonial leader is required to intone the ending passage that comes after the sacred prayer verses, followed by the invocation of merit transference by the director of practitioners' affairs, after which all leave the hall. The Universal Invocation

of Merit Transference

The foregoing chanting of the sacred Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs has been intoned by the sacred assembly of bhikṣus. The merit thereby accrued is dedicated to the devaand nāgaguardians of the Dharma, to the local earth spirits and the gods of the temple building, the creators of things. May those suffering in the three worlds of existence and of the eight kinds of diffculties be freed. May the four kinds of benefactors and the three worlds of existence be fully rewarded. May the state be in peace while armed revolts are quelled. May the wind and rain be properly ordered so that people have well-being and ease. May this assembly, well disciplined, wish to accomplish an advantageous advance. May everyone traverse through the ten bodhisattva stages with no diffculty. 330

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May the temple maintain its serenity, transcending all unexpected disasters. May the patron devotees uphold their devotion and increase in fortune and wisdom. Veneration to the buddhas in the ten directions and the three times, and to all bodhisattvas, mahāsattvas, and Mahā prajñā pāramitā. 1. The Word of Tribute for the Inauguration

of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs

Prayer Service

Because iron is the essence of tempering and grinding, its edge can never become dull; and because the mirror borrows the luster of a wellpolished gem, its reflection can never become darkened. Therefore, our preceding sages (i.e., patriarchs) manifested their capacities, sometimes suppressing and other times enhancing such qualities in order to shatter even the tiniest speck of delusion for the sake of sentient beings. The episode of Mātaṅgī and Ānanda tells how marvelously an illicit magical power was intimidated, and Śākyamuni and Mañjuśrī especially revealed the esoteric means of conversion. From analytical study of the forms of teaching and the method of introspection taught by the Buddha throughout his lifetime career, one may find the doctrines and practices; and yet from the point of view of the esoteric revelation of practice and realization, there is neither realization distinct from practice, nor is there practice separate from realization. It reveals the absolute insight (zhenjian) and terminates multiple illusions (zhuchen). An empty flower has no stem. Abiding in right concentration, one restrains every inner movement. Still water creates no waves. In reflecting upon the descendants, it may be asked: How many of us understand this? Chanting the words left by our predecessors, we admonish ourselves. May we earnestly wish to reduce myriads of kalpas, as many as the sands of the Ganges River, into a single moment of thought, for there is no distance between now and then. May we also wish to identify all the lands of the ten directions as a single abode of existence, so that all may universally attain supreme enlightenment.

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2. The Word of Tribute for the Fulfillment

of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs

Prayer Service

Glancing back at this monastic community, we see it as if it were the Jetavana Monastery, where innumerable bhikṣus assembled like an ocean. At the great assembly of the disciples, where all in stern dignity gathered at Vulture Peak, the grand universe of three thousand great universes was embraced within a speck of dust, and the three different dimensions of time dissolved into a single moment of thought. Having reposed upon the voluntary self-reflection at the end of the summer retreat, one neither restrains oneself not to transgress, nor does one exert one's effort; rather, one is totally harmonious and interdependent with the myriads of phenomena as a whole. Irrespective of whether one is mundane or transmundane, [there being no distinction,] each individual's wondrous enlightenment, reflecting each moment of great illumination, manifests myriads and myriads of bodies and surpasses all the fifty-seven stages of realization. The use of a finger is meant to exemplify the truth that it is not the finger [but what it points to], and thus this finger also ceases to be [merely a finger] simultaneously with its being [that which it points to]. While it resembles emptiness (śūnyatā) and contains it within, it is yet juxtaposed with emptiness, and thus emptiness [and form] are reciprocal.

Thus, out of his compassion for those of limited understanding, the Buddha especially encouraged those whose minds are slow and dull. We have steadfastly adhered to this teaching bequeathed by the Buddha during the period of the summer retreat. Since there has been no obstacle throughout the period of the retreat, may we earnestly hope that our practice of concentration and insight (śamatha and vipaśyanā) prevails over the gates of all senses and intellect, and that the transcendent faculty (dayong) arises as often as it may [within phenomenal faculties] and thereby lead them equally to enter into the ultimate state of the śūraṃgama samādhi.

332

Chapter VIII TheŚūraṃgama-dhāraṇīsPrayer Service Seating Chart Buddha Altar incense

candle candle burner

incense

candle candle burner

incense

candle candle burner

45 44 43 42 41 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 46

47 23 24 25 26 27 48

49 22 21 20 19 18 50

Śūraṃgama

ceremonial master 51

52 1 2 3 4 5 53

54 practi- training primary tioners officials seat 55 official

28 29 30 31 32 33 17 16 15 14 13 12 director of

practitioners' affairs 6 7 8 9 10 11 abbot

head head practiadmin. assistant tioners official

56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 Front

6. The Tablet of Ordination Ages Officials of the practice hall office, the assistant office, and the practitioners' quarters get together beforehand to draw up the tablet of ordination ages by copying [the ordination record book]. In the afternoon of the fourteenth day, these tablets must be placed in the higher-ranking section of the outer practice hall, in the lower-ranking section of the Dharma hall, and in the practitioners' quarters. Each office sets up a table equipped with an incense burner and candle stands as well as various alms offerings. The practitioners each burn incense, perform prostrations with opened sitting cloth, and then take down their respective tablets in order to place them at their assigned seats. 333

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1152b

III. Various Proprieties for the

Sweet Hot Water Reception

1. The Minor Propriety of

Serving Sweet Hot Water

at the Abbot's Office

At the occasions of the four annual celebration days, according to ancient custom, traditionally three kinds of reception are held at the abbot's office for serving hot sweet water. The first reception prescribes the "dual division seating arrangement" (fenerchu). This reception is held for the east and west hall high-ranking officials, with the primary seat official as a participant. The second reception consists of the "quadruple division seating arrangement" (fensichu). There are four sections with this seating arrangement: 1) the training officials (the west order) are to take their seats at the first section (i.e., front right) [in the abbot's reception hall; 2) the administrative officials (the east order) take their seats at the second section (front left); 3) the retired west order officials are seated at the third section (middle right end); 4) the retired east order officials are seated at the fourth section (middle left end). The west hall official is invited as a participant.

The third reception consists of the "sextuple division seating arrangement" (liuchu). This arrangement requires the subfunctionaries of the head temple as well as all the other various temples to be assigned to the six divided sections according to rank. At the same time, whoever holds a similar position should be seated consecutively within the same section. The primary seat official is invited as main participant for this reception. The office of assistant officials prepares a draft chart beforehand for each occasion and presents it to the abbot before establishing the final seating arrangements. On the appointed day, seat name tablets must be prepared by inscribing the guest names on each of them. In the afternoon, three crepe-wrapped tables are placed in a line in the reception hall (i.e., the one adjacent to the abbot's office), and the three formal seat arrangements, drawn up as No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3, are displayed in the lower section of the reception hall. It is the duty of the guest reception assistant to handle the reception for the high-ranking officials, such as the east and west hall residents, the front hall primary seat official, and the head 334

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administrative official. He is obliged to visit each of their quarters and, after performing a prostration with unopened sitting cloth, makes the following request: The abbot requests the venerable's presence at a special serving of sweet hot water this evening at the reception hall, sir. For those other training officials and subfunctionaries, as well as some renowned practitioners, the attendant of the guest reception master at the abbot's office is sent to invite them respectively with the following words: The abbot wishes the venerable to be present at a special reception for serving sweet hot water to be held at the reception hall before the evening session, sir.

Curtains are hung in the reception hall, the seat name tablets placed, the candles lit, incense burned, and after all this is done, the guest reception master's attendant notifies the assistant official and then the abbot, before drumming. When the guests assemble for the first type of reception, they are greeted by the assistant official. They are led before the abbot, exchange bows with him, go to their respective seat positions designated by the seating tablets, and remain standing. Both the incense offering assistant and the guest reception assistant, dividing the two areas of serving, proceed to stand before each of the guests, greet each one with a bow, and, after requesting them to take their seats, return to their places. The incense offering assistant steps forward to offer incense, and upon returning to his place once again, he and the guest reception assistant go around to each of the guests to bow and burn incense on their behalf. Thereupon, the abbot's office wooden sounding block is struck twice to signal the completion of the serving of sweet hot water. Then the guest reception official goes around [once again], commending each of the guests individually to drink, and thus the reception is accomplished. Next, the incense offering assistant steps forward to burn incense on behalf of the participant. With the signal of a strike on the wooden sounding block the cups are retrieved, and at the signal of five drumbeats the guests are obliged to leave. The proprieties of the three types of reception are identical. The proprieties of the serving of tea and sweet hot water were the major and most common tradition in Zen monastic temples. But because disruptive quarrels, concerning whether the seats are too high or too low and so on, 335

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations frequently occurred among guests in recent years, [this tradition] has mostly been abandoned. However, each abbot must try to revive this propriety and established practitioners of the Zen world must urge others to do the same. This propriety is said to be regarded as a practice that should be widely encouraged in the future. (symbols $, #,

¶

,

Minor Propriety Seating Arrangements

• show the direction each person faces) 1. The Dual Division Seating Arrangement Participant ($) ($) Host Second seat (#) (#) First seat 2. The Quadruple Division Seating Arrangement Participant ($) ($) Host Fourth seat (¶) (•) Third seat Second seat (#) (#) First seat 2. The Sextuple Division Seating Arrangement Participant ($) ($) Host Fourth seat (¶) (•) Third seat Sixth seat (¶) (•) Fifth seat Second seat (#) (#) First seat 2. Prayers Given at the Shrine of the Local Spirits on the Four Annual Celebration Days In general, on the afternoon of the day before [each of the four] annual celebration days, various alms offerings are solemnly set out at the shrine of the local spirits, and incense, candles, a table, incense burner, and water jar are arranged there. The practice hall office attendants post a wooden tablet 336

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announcing the scheduled prayer chanting to notify the practitioners. The manner of striking the wooden sounding blocks located throughout the corridors of the temple is identical with that of the three monthly days ending in eight (i.e., the eighth, eighteenth, and twenty-eighth day of each month). The practitioners assemble and stand facing each other at the practice hall. The abbot first visits the patriarchal shrine hall and then the Buddha hall to burn incense and perform three prostrations, at which time the kitchen hall metal gong is sounded three times and the large bell is tolled. When the abbot arrives [at the practice hall] he offers incense and returns to his place. (At the abbot's arrival, the practitioners stand with palms together and heads slightly down; the assistant official follows after the abbot with his hands clasped over his chest [chashou].) The novice attendants play the cymbals. Thereupon, the director of practitioners' affairs steps forward to greet the dual order officials and burn incense. He leads the prayer chanting and concludes with the appropriate invocation of merit transference (given below). Invocations of Merit Transference

for the Prayer Chanting of the

Four Celebration Days

On the Inauguration Day

of the Summer Retreat

We earnestly reflect that a fragrant wind blows over the field, while the blazing sun commands the entire world, and we have today arrived at the first day, as prescribed by the Lord of our religion (i.e., the Buddha), of the summer retreat period, that of restraint from activities. As this is the first day for Buddhist followers to shelter and protect all living creatures, we have respectfully gathered at this shrine of the local spirits to intone steadfastly the sacred names endowed with innumerable virtues and to dedicate the merit thereby accrued to all the spirits enshrined in this hall. We humbly pray for their protection, so that the present retreat may be fulfilled without interruption. May the practitioners intone the prayer, and so on.

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On the Fulfillment Day

of the Summer Retreat

We earnestly reflect that a golden wind blows over the field, while the bright sun commands the entire world, and that we have arrived today at the last day of the summer retreat as prescribed by the Lord of Enlightenment. As this day begins the fulfillment of another year of Buddhist ordination, we rejoice that there has been no problem throughout the ninety-day period, and peace and ease have prevailed with us. By intoning the sacred names endowed with innumerable virtues, we wish to respond to the spirits of this hall to express our thanks. May the practitioners intone the prayer, and so on. On the Winter Solstice Day

We earnestly reflect that the time of the year's end approaches, while the chapter [of the year] has arrived at the day of the winter solstice (i.e., the page of fortune-telling [shuyun]). As this is the day when the sun begins its return course, it is the beginning of the birth of ten thousand classes of beings. Having respectfully assembled the practitioners at the shrine of the local spirits, we intend to intone the sacred names endowed with innumerable virtues and to dedicate the merit thereby accrued to the spirits enshrined in this hall. May the practitioners intone the prayer, and so on.

On New Year's Day

We earnestly reflect that the workings of nature have invisibly carried out their course, while the calendar year once again has renewed itself, and we pray that the four kinds of order be secured in peace, and celebrate New Year's Day. Having respectfully assembled the practitioners at this shrine, we intend to intone the sacred names endowed with innumerable virtues and dedicate the merit thereby accrued to the spirits enshrined in this hall. May the practitioners intone the prayer, and so on.

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The Invocation of Merit Transference

Common to All Four Days

We dedicate the merit accrued by the foregoing prayer to the local spirits of the temple environs and the guardian gods of the temple buildings, all enshrined in this hall. We earnestly wish that their supernatural power be well accorded in manifesting advantageous assistance, that the monastic institution become ever more prosperous as granted with everlasting impartial blessing. Once again, may the practitioners intone the prayer: Veneration to the buddhas of the ten directions and the three periods, and so on.

3. The Administrative Office's Special Serving

Serving of Sweet Hot Water for the Primary

and the Practitioners on the Four

Annual Celebration Days

When the prayer chanting has concluded, a special serving of sweet hot water should be conducted at the practice hall. The head administrative official must prepare a note of invitation for this reception beforehand (format given below), and after the noon meal he visits the front hall primary seat official, accompanied by the guest reception attendant carrying a crepe-wrapped board equipped with an incense burner and candle stand. Burning incense and performing a prostration with unopened sitting cloth, the official says: We are pleased to announce that a special reception for a serving of sweet hot water will be conducted in honor of the venerable primary seat official and the practitioners at the practice hall this evening. May the venerable, with due com passion, be present at this reception. The head administrative official presents the written invitation to the primary seat official, who, in turn, instructs the tea master of the practitioners' quarters to give it to the alms-serving master, to be posted on the wall of the lower-ranking section of the outer practice hall. Following the notice of this special serving, the guest reception master of the administrative office announces:

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The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

After the sweet hot water reception, an evening meal will be served. Next, the head administrative official, with an incense case in his sleeve, visits the abbot's office and, after performing a prostration with unopened sitting cloth, invites the abbot:

We are prepared to serve this evening at the practice hall especially in honor of the primary seat official and the resident practitioners. I earnestly wish that the venerable master, with due compassion, be present at this occasion.

Thereupon, the guest reception master of the administrative office is instructed to extend the same invitation to the retired officials of both orders as well as all the other quarters, all of whom respectively post a tablet indicating the event at their quarters. When each official has been individually invited, the seat assignment tablets are displayed in front of the outer practice hall. The seat of the primary seat official must face the abbot, while the seats of the practitioners are arranged in both the higher- and lower-ranking sections, and an attendant is specially assigned to the person for whom the serving is being conducted.

When the prayer chanting is over, a series of drumrolls (identical to the noon meal signal) takes place. The practitioners proceed to take their seats at their respective meal positions, while all of the training officials take their seats on the front hall raised sitting platform. The head administrative official enters the hall immediately after them. He greets the primary seat official, inviting him to move from his seat, and requests the other training officials to move up one seat, then guides the primary seat official to his specially prepared place [directly facing the abbot across the hall]. The official then goes out of the hall, passing to the right of the altar of the guardian bodhisattva, receives the abbot, and escorts him into the hall. As the alms-serving master gently strikes the bell located in the outer hall seven times, the head administrative official escorts the abbot to his seat, and, stepping toward the primary seat official, greets him and bids him to take his seat. Thereupon, the head administrative official, beginning from the primary seat official's seat, makes a round through the inner hall, the outer hall, and the higher- and lower-ranking sections, then returns to in front of the altar and bows. The practitioners then take their seats. 340

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The head administrative official burns incense, proceeds to the outer hall in both sections, returns to the altar, and places his incense case on it. Immediately he approaches the main guest, the primary seat official, and bows, then, moving back to the right of the altar, goes before the abbot and bows. He makes another round through the hall with his head down, goes to the outer hall, and then returns to the mid-inner hall, bows [before the altar], and remains standing there. When the practice hall bell is struck twice, he makes the first serving of sweet hot water to the abbot and the primary seat official, and then commences the serving for the practitioners throughout the hall. When [the first serving] is completed and when all the tea jars have been retrieved from the hall, he goes before the primary seat official (i.e., the main guest) and bows. Then turning back to the right of the altar, he proceeds to the altar of the guardian bodhisattva and performs three prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth.

Thereupon, the head administrative official makes another round through the inner [and outer] halls. He then leads the other administrative officials before the abbot and all perform in unison the formality of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth. On the first opening of the sitting cloth, he says:

Despite the humble quality of this serving, the venerable has granted us his compassionate presence on this day. This is most gratifying to us, sir. On the second opening, he says:

On this day and at this respectful moment, we wish that the venerable master of the temple may enjoy every blessing in daily life. Stepping back, he and the east order officials complete the formal greeting with three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth. They then immediately turn around and withdraw by passing behind the right side of the altar, go out to the outer hall, and take their places in line. The primary seat official comes out after them and expresses his thanks to the head administrative official by performing a full prostration with unopened sitting cloth, and once again returns to his special seat from the side of the higher-ranking section.

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The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

The head administrative official once again enters the hall to burn incense and withdraws. The practice hall office attendant announces: "May the practitioners take their bowls down. "

An attendant carries in the evening meal set on a table for the abbot and the primary seat official respectively, while the practitioners open their almsbowls.

(The west order officials, however, do not take their bowls down; they will be provided with a meal by the kitchen office.) When the evening meal has been served and is completed, the practitioners withdraw at the signal of three drumbeats. [Prior to this special serving,] the abbot issues an announcement on the bulletin board to excuse the formal propriety, as follows: On such-and-such celebration day and on the following day, the propriety will be received at the Dharma hall, so there is no need to come to the abbot's office. It is respectfully wished that this must be made known to every resident practitioner. So stated for consideration by So-and-so, abbot of this temple.

This announcement is posted on the higher-ranking section of the practice hall, and the practice hall bell will not be struck to cancel the evening session. (According to the notices put up by various groups, each member visits the meeting sponsored by each regional group.)

There is no difference in these proceedings for any of the four annual celebration days, the only exception being that on the winter solstice day, after the serving of sweet hot water, some fruit and an evening meal will be served. Format of the Announcement

of the Special Serving of

Sweet Hot Water

This evening at the practice hall, the administrative office will conduct a special serving of sweet hot water in honor of the primary seat official and the practitioners in order to express the propriety of such-and-such celebration day. It is earnestly wished that all practitioners, with due compassion, be present at this occasion.

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Date and month

Respectfully stated by So-and-so

Bhikṣu of the Administrative Office

4. The Propriety for the Inauguration

of the Summer Retreat

At 3:00 A.M. on the appointed day, the propriety of burning incense and prostrations with opened sitting cloth should be conducted before the abbot at his office by all the resident practitioners of the temple, namely, the dual order officials, the retired officials of higher and lower ranks, those from the Zen world, the subfunctionaries, those who come from the same province, and the direct disciples of the abbot. [This propriety is not required] if an announcement excusing it is posted on the bulletin board in the outer practice hall. The assistant official notifies the abbot that his ascent to the Dharma hall is in order, instructs the attendants to inform the practitioners, and posts the tablet with the notice.

After the morning rice gruel, when the abbot has completed preaching, he explains the entire process of the required proprieties in thorough detail: After his descent, the abbot is obliged to first exchange: (1) a propriety with the west hall official of a prostration with unopened sitting cloth;

(2) Next, a propriety to respond to the head administrative official for the propriety of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth; (3) Next, a propriety to respond to the primary seat official and the practitioners for their performance of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth;

(4) The head administrative official who has returned to his office receives the primary seat official accompanied by the practitioners, and exchanges the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth with the primary seat official and the practitioners;

(5) The primary seat official returns to the practice hall, waiting at the higher-ranking section of the outer hall, and receives the rear hall primary 343

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seat official's visit accompanied by the practitioners, who arrive at the lowerranking section of the outer hall, and exchange the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth; (6) After this is done, all members take their places as prescribed by the chart of prayer chanting service in the outer hall. The primary seat official leads the practitioners into the hall and, while making a round through the hall, each takes his place at his prescribed position. The primary seat official then leaves his place, burns incense before the altar, performs three prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth, and makes a round through the inner and outer halls before returning to his place. When [the primary seat official] has returned to his position, the attendant in charge of proceedings announces: The primary seat official's return greeting to the practitioners, and the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth is in order. The practitioners then perform three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth;

(7) Next, the head administrative official enters the hall, burns incense before the altar, performs three prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth, immediately makes a round through the hall, and then stands at his place by the altar's board-edge. The attendant announces:

The head administrative official's return greeting to the practitioners and the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth is in order.

After exchanging three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth, the head administrative official remains and waits for the arrival of the abbot. (8) [Finally,] the abbot enters the practice hall, burns incense, performs three prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth, then immediately makes a round through the hall and returns to his place. The attendant announces: The abbot's exchange of greeting with the practitioners and the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth is in order. Again the attendant announces:

The practitioners are required to perform in unison the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth.

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Following this, the abbot is scheduled to make a round through the various quarters of the temple.

When the abbot descends from the rostrum seat, the attendants promptly bring incense, candles, tables, incense burners, and water vases into the Dharma hall and finish setting up the tables in a straight line. The west hall ranking official steps forward to perform prostrations. Next, the head administrative official steps forward to burn incense and perform the propriety of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth. On the first opening [of the sitting cloth] he says: Having been granted an opportunity to serve the venerable during this year's retreat, I am obliged to pray for nothing but the safe fulfillment of my duty with the assisting power of the Dharma, sir. On the second opening he says:

On this severe summer day and at this respectful moment, I reverentially wish that the venerable master of this temple may enjoy every blessing in daily life.

Stepping back, he completes his greeting with three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth, to which the abbot responds with a single prostration. Next, the primary seat official, leading the practitioners, burns incense, and the retired officials and residents of the various quarters all follow the primary seat official and burn incense in due order. The propriety of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth and both wordings of the greeting are all identical.

When the officials step back, the abbot sits down cross-legged and the assistant officials and his disciples burn incense and perform [the same set of] prostrations. Next, the ceremonial leader, representing the group of novice attendants, burns incense and performs prostrations. Next, the lay carpentry leader, leading the foremen, clerical workers, sedan chair bearers, various workmen and so on, all pay homage to the abbot.

The primary seat official, leading the practitioners, visits the administrative office and exchanges with the head administrative official the propriety of three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth. The rear hall primary seat official, leading the practitioners, returns to the lower-ranking section of the 345

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations

practice hall and takes his place, while the front hall primary seat official takes his place in the higher-ranking section. The practice hall office attendant announces:

The fellow practitioners' exchange of the propriety with the primary seat official is in order.

They perform three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth and immediately take their places at their respective positions as prescribed in the prayer chanting seating chart. The primary seat official enters the inner hall, leading the practitioners in a partial round, then stops at his place and remains standing there; [the practitioners also stop and stand at their respective places]. The assistant official and the newly arrived practitioners make a half- round of the hall, while the assistant takes his place behind the altar and the new arrivals take their places [before the rear entrance,] facing each other. The primary seat official goes before the altar, burns incense, performs three prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth, and immediately makes a round through the hall before returning to his place. The attendant announces: The primary seat official returns the propriety to the practitioners. The practitioners then perform three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth.

[Next,] the head administrative official enters the hall, burns incense, performs prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth, immediately makes a round through the hall, and stands at his place by the altar's board-edge. The attendant announces:

The head administrative official returns the propriety to the practitioners. The practitioners once again perform three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth in unison. After this is done, however, the official does not leave the hall. The abbot enters the hall, burns incense before the altar, and performs three prostrations with opened sitting cloth, then proceeds to make a round through the hall and returns to his seat.

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entrance without fail to avoid congestion. When all the proprieties have completed, they return to their places for tea.) The attendant announces again:

The venerable master abbot's exchange of the propriety with the practitioners is in order. All the practitioners perform three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth in unison. Another announcement follows:

The return propriety of the practitioners in unison is in order. Then all again perform three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth. (In the Ancient Regulations,it is said that if the administrative official leaves before the abbot enters the hall, the latter has no opportunity to make a return greeting to the former. Perhaps, the rule that "whoever makes a propriety of greeting ought to receive a return propriety" has been instituted recently, since the time of the Venerable Xiyu [i.e., Shaotan, ca. thirteenth century] and the Venerable Yishan [i.e., Lewan, ca. thirteenth-fourteeth centuries]. Those who are well versed regard this rule as correct.) The head administrative official shifts his position and goes out of the hall, followed by the assistant official and the new arrivals. The assistant official returns to the inner hall and with the gesture of a bow bids the practitioners to sit, and the practitioners take their seats. The assistant official proceeds to the incense burners in mid-hall, burns incense in the higher- and lower-ranking sections of the inner hall as well as in the outer hall, returns the incense case to its place, and, stepping back a little, makes a bow toward mid-hall, toward the higher- and lower- ranking sections, and toward the outer hall, then returns to stand mid-hall. With the signal of two strikes of the practice hall bell, the serving of tea is completed. After the jars have been carried out of the hall, the assistant official stands at mid-hall as before. With the signal of one strike of the bell, the teabowls are retrieved, and with the signal of three strikes, the assistant official goes out of the hall and the practitioners leave the hall as well.

The abbot proceeds to make his rounds at the various quarters in due order. At each quarters, a chair and an incense table should be set up, and 347

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the resident practitioners should receive him outside the entrance. The abbot begins his rounds at the first quarters located in the eastern corridor and proceeds to the incense table set at each quarters. Along with the member residents, the master of the quarters burns incense and says: On this day, although it is our duty to make a congratulatory visit to the venerable, we have instead received your gracious visit. After placing incense [in the burner], he further says: Receiving the venerable's gracious blessing, we are extremely gratified, sir.

Following a few steps behind the abbot, he returns to the incense table and stands at its right side with palms together, bowing until the procession completely ends. He then brings up the rear of the procession making rounds through the quarters. In this way, the residents of each quarters follow in the procession, and all finally arrive at the Dharma hall. The abbot stands in the middle of the space between the incense tables while the practitioners, in groups of three, come to stand before him and, after a bow, proceed through the quarters. Thus, making a round through the various quarters and reaching their own quarters, the resident members stand to the side of the incense table with palms joined together, in order of seniority [letting the following groups pass]. When the rounds are completed at the last quarters, the propriety of the congratulatory procession ends. The proceedings are identical for all four annual celebration days.

5. Appointed Discourse or Holding a Zen Dusting

Brush on the Four Annual Celebration Days

At the supplementary session, the abbot announces:

Tomorrow, after the noon meal, the head administrative official, the director of practitioners' affairs, and the assistant official are requested to take the tablet of "appointed preaching" and a Zen dusting brush to the primary seat official and other training officials and invite them to give an exhortation for the sake of the practitioners. 348

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The next day, after the noon meal, the incense offering assistant instructs an attendant of the guest reception master to carry a walking cane, a tablet, and a Zen dusting brush, and a workman to carry a crepe-wrapped board equipped with an incense burner and a candle stand. They accompany the head administrative official and the director of practitioners' affairs to visit each of the training officials' quarters. The two officials respectively visit each training official, burn incense, and say:

Due to his compassionate wish, the abbot instructed us, So-and-so and others, to respectfully forward the tablet of "appointment of preaching" and a Zen dusting brush to the venerable here and invite the venerable to preach for the sake of the practitioners this evening. After the invitation is extended individually to each of the training officials, the primary seat official and the others who have accepted it visit the abbot's office together, accompanied by their attendants carrying the tablet, Zen dusting brush, and walking cane, and report to him their acceptance [of the invitation to preach]. The abbot is especially obliged to encourage them before they leave. The primary seat official turns to his place and says: Since I cannot refuse your gracious appointment, may I earnestly hope for the venerable's compassion to have the Dharma seat available for my use on this occasion, sir.

In ancient days, different seats were set up for such an occasion but today it is more customary to use the [abbot's preaching] seat. We no longer hear today about the ancient practice.

Next, the appointed preachers visit the assistants' office to request the use of the drum for the evening, and instruct the tea attendant to invite the guardian bodhisattva's assistant and some well-versed Zen specialists to their tea reception. After burning incense, they make this request: This evening, we are scheduled to give an exhortation and shall be in need of an assistant to burn incense on our behalf and also some Zen conversants to exchange dialogue with us.

Again they instruct the attendant to post the tablet indicating "appointed preaching" at the practice hall. Although the abbot has invited the appointed 349

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preachers for an evening meal, he should excuse them if they decline to attend and have the meal delivered to them instead.

The practice hall office attendants set up a screen and seat for the abbot on the left side of the Dharma seat. While the evening bell is being tolled, an attendant notifies the appointed preachers and the abbot, and at once starts to drum to assemble the practitioners for the session. The propriety is identical to that of the supplementary session. The abbot enters [the Dharma hall] and immediately goes to stand at his prepared seat. The head administrative official, the director of practitioners' affairs, and the assistant official simultaneously proceed to the appointed preacher and bow to him in unison. The appointed preacher then steps toward the abbot and bows; next, he bows to the head administrative official and continues to bow to each member of the order. Next, he goes to stand before his own order and bows to each member. Immediately after this, he lifts both hands above his head before the practitioners, bows in unison with them, ascends the rostrum seat, and sits cross-legged.

The assistant of the appointed preacher, along with the abbot's assistant, comes to the foot of the high seat and bows [to the preacher]; the officials of both orders and the west hall official one after another bow [toward the appointed preacher]. Finally, the abbot bows [toward him], at which moment the preacher rises and, standing by the seat, says:

May the practitioner assistant request the abbot to sit cross-legged. The appointed preacher's assistant proceeds to the abbot and bows to him, immediately turns around to ascend the rostrum seat, burns incense, lifts the Zen dusting brush to hand to the lecturer [along with the sitting cloth] and bows, then stands at his place at the [appointed preacher's] side with hands clasped over his chest. The preacher gives his instructive words and completes his talk with a dialogue exchange. He presents the essentials of his Zen understanding and a [short] word of thanks to the abbot, the dual order officials, the retired officials, and the practitioners of all quarters. [Finally,] raising a particular Zen problem (i.e., kōan), which the abbot had presented at his supplementary session the previous night, the preacher gives his own commenatry on it or expresses its hidden meaning in a poetic verse. He then descends the high seat, goes before the abbot to bow, and returns to his [usual] place. The next appointed preacher follows the same proceedings and propriety.

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When all of the appointed discourses have been completed, the guest reception master of the abbot's office announces an invitation to the preachers to a serving of sweet hot water and fruit, just as after a supplementary session. The appointed preachers, carrying incense cases in their sleeves, visit the abbot's office together to give thanks for the opportunity, and receive the serving of sweet hot water. The next day, the abbot invites them for tea. If the head administrative official prepares the noon meal and simultaneously invites [the appointed preachers] for tea and a snack in mid-afternoon, the abbot is obliged to ascend the Dharma seat some other day to express his thanks and invite them to a special serving. An alternative is that the west hall official is invited to preach on the second evening. During the supplementary session the abbot may request him to preach with due praise for his capacity. The west hall official raises his own doctrinal issue, presents a Zen problem, gives commentary, or explains its hidden meaning in a poetic verse, so as to arouse the practitioners' interest in the path. In recent days, the propriety of giving thanks has become so conventional and overburdened with too many niceties that it is rather detestable to hear, and invites ridicule from knowledgeable practitioners. Generally, the appointed preaching is meant to be a gift of the Dharma. If one is obliged to speak on matters of time and propriety, it should be enough just to mention names as a whole or to give brief accounts.

6. The Abbot's Special Serving of Tea for the

Primary Seat Official and the Practitioners

on the Four Annual Celebration Days

On the appointed day, after breakfast, the guest reception assistant copies the invitation for tea reception (format given below), and visits the primary seat official's quarters, accompanied by his attendant carrying a crepe-wrapped board equipped with an incense burner and candle stand. After burning incense and performing a prostration with unopened sitting cloth, he says: After the noon meal today, the abbot has scheduled us to conduct a special tea reception at the practice hall, especially for the sake of the primary seat official and the practitioners. He earnestly requests the venerable's presence at this occasion.

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He presents the notice of invitation to the official and posts it in the higher-ranking section of the outer hall, while his attendant extends the invitation to all other training officials and the other quarters, and requests the head administrative official as the main participant. The tablet indicating "tea serving" is posted [in the practice hall].

At the signal of the kitchen hall metal gong, the guest reception assistant enters the practice hall, burns incense before the altar of the guardian bodhisattva, and performs three prostrations with fully opened sitting cloth. He makes a round through the hall, stops at mid-hall to bow, and leaves the hall. This is called "the invitation for tea by making a round through the practice hall" (xuntangqingcha). The seating position tablets must be arranged in the outer hall. The primary seat official is seated opposite the abbot [across the hall], while the head administrative official is seated symmetrically to the right of the abbot, at a distance of an arm's length. The seat of the director of practitioners' affairs is next in the line, while the lower administrative officials are seated symmetrically to the right of the main guest of honor, separated by a distance of an arm's length. At the signal of drumming, the practitioners assemble and the incense offering assistant conducts the propriety. (The propriety is identical with that of the special serving of sweet hot water by the administrative office.)

The primary seat official approaches the abbot and expresses his thanks for tea through the formality of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth. At the first opening of the sitting cloth, he says:

I am most grateful for the honor of such a special reception of tea conducted at this hall on my behalf. At the second opening, he says:

On this day and at this moment, I respectfully wish that the venerable master of this temple may enjoy every blessing in daily life. Stepping back, he begins to perform [the propriety of] three prostrations with unopened sitting cloth; however, the abbot is supposed to excuse him [of the remaining prostrations after the first one], to which he duly responds with a single prostration with unopened sitting cloth. The primary seat official 352

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turns around, passes behind the altar to its right, and leaves the hall. The abbot follows him to the entrance and then returns to his place. The assistant official burns incense to give thanks for the presence of the participants. The [practice hall] bell is tolled, the cups are retrieved, and, as before, drumming signals a recess. The primary seat official first goes to the Dharma hall and waits for the abbot's arrival to express his thanks. If the formality is excused, he simply bows. Format of the Reception

Notice of Tea Serving

The Venerable Abbot, master of the temple, will conduct a special serving of tea at the practice hall today after the noon meal, especially for the sake of the primary seat official and the practitioners, to express the propriety of Such-and-such celebration day. Moreover, the invitation is extended to the administrative officials to be present as main participants. Date and month

Respectfully stated by So-and-so

Office of the Abbot's Assistants

7. The Administrative Office's Special Serving

of Tea for the Primary Seat Official and the

Practitioners on the Four Annual Celebration Days

On the second day of the annual celebration, after breakfast, the administrative official prepares a notice of tea reception (identical to the notice of the serving of sweet hot water), to inform the practitioners of this event, and posts the tablet announcing the tea reception at the practice hall. At the signal of the kitchen hall metal gong, the head administrative official enters the practice hall to make a round, inviting the practitioners for tea just as the abbot's assistant official did previously for the sweet hot water reception. After the noon meal, the seating placement tablets must be set up. The practitioners assemble at the signal of drumming. The official requests them to take their seats by making a gesture of greeting, burns incense on their behalf, requests them to drink tea, and makes a round through the hall, stopping to bow at mid-hall. He proceeds before the abbot and performs the propriety of two prostrations with opened sitting cloth and three 353

The Baizhang Zen Monastic Regulations prostrations with unopened sitting cloth and the two sets of the word of greeting, which are identical to those of the occasion of sweet hot water reception. 8. The Front Hall Primary Seat Official's Reception of Tea for the Rear Hall Primary Seat Official and the Practitioners On the third day of the annual celebration, the primary seat official prepares a notice of invitation (format given below), and visits the quarters of the rear hall primary seat official and the abbot's office in order to convey his invitation for a tea reception. The proceedings of serving tea and the propriety of ceremonial conduct are identical with those of the special tea serving by the administrative office. The only difference is that the seats of the administrative officials must be placed.

Format for the Invitation

for Tea

The front hall primary seat official, So-and-so Bhikṣu, has respectfully scheduled the tea reception at the practice hall today after the noon meal, especially for the sake of the rear hall primary seat official and the practitioners, to express the propriety of the celebration day. This invitation is extended to the administrative officials to be present at this occasion as main participants. Date and month

Respectfully prepared

by So-and-so

Format of the Envelope

Letter of Invitation

To

The Venerable Rear Hall Primary Seat Official and the Practitioners

Respectfully sealed

by So-and-so

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9. Serving Tea on the First Day of the Month

and the Mid-month Day after Making a Round

through the Practice Hall

When the abbot finishes the ascent to the Dharma hall and preaching, he says:

Upon descending this high seat, we shall make a round through the practice hall and have a cup of tea.

When the practitioners reach the front hall, they stand at their positions as prescribed in the prayer chanting chart, and then enter the practice hall in a line in due order. The new arrivals and the assistant official follow the line of the practitioners in the procession, and upon reaching the back of the guardian bodhisattva's altar, the new arrivals stand at their positions facing the back of the altar and the assistant official. The practitioners proceed through the hall and take their respective positions. The practice hall bell is rung seven times and the abbot enters the hall, burns incense, and makes a round through the hall before returning to his place. The administrative officials enter the hall and line up in front of the altar to bow, then turn toward the abbot and bow before him. They then make their round beginning from the raised sitting platform of the primary seat official. The new arrivals and the assistant official, following the administrative officials, leave the hall.

The incense offering assistant then returns to mid-hall and bows, requesting the practitioners to take their seats. When the practitioners have settled in meditation posture, he proceeds to burn incense [on the respective incense burners set] at both the higher- and lower-ranking sections of the inner hall and in the outer hall, first at its lower section and then its higher section. Returning to the mid-inner hall, he places the incense case on the altar and bows toward all the sections of the practice hall before their respective incense burners. This completes the offering of incense for invitation. He then returns to the mid-hall position, and the practice hall bell is struck twice to signal the serving of tea. [When the tea has been served and] the jars are carried out of the hall, he once again burns incense and makes bows as before, requesting the assembly to drink tea, and again returns to the mid-hall position. A single sound of the bell signals the retrieving of the cups, and three sounds of the bell signal the abbot's departure from the hall. The primary seat official and the practitioners leave 355

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the hall in due order. If the abbot cannot make the evening tea serving for some unavoidable reason, or if he has been away from the practitioners for some time, he will have tea with the practitioners after the morning rice gruel. The assistant official's ceremonial conduct is the same as before. 10. The Abbot's Tea Reception

at the Novice Attendants' Hall

After the serving of tea at the practice hall on one of the four annual celebration days, the assistant official and guest reception master together visit the novice attendants' hall to serve tea. The guest reception master has beforehand requested the ceremonial master to post a tablet announcing the tea serving, and to inform the residents of the attendants' hall. Prior to the occasion the abbot's office sends tea to the kitchen hall, water is boiled and cups set out, and the kitchen official is invited to participate. The kitchen official receives the assistant official on his arrival at the administrative office, and the ceremonial master and the infirmary master, leading the novice attendants, receive the two officials at the hall gate. The assistant official takes his seat at the main position, because he is conducting the serving of tea on behalf of the abbot, while the kitchen official sits to his right, separated by an arm's length. The assistant official goes to mid-hall and burns incense, and, returning to his seat, requests the resident novice attendants to take their seats. When the drinking of tea is completed, the kitchen official sees the assistant official off, while the ceremonial master and the infirmary master together see off the kitchen official outside the hall entrance. Immediately afterward, both officials visit the abbot's office to express their thanks for the tea. 11. The Serving of Tea by the

Head Administrative Official and the

Training Official at the Attendants' Hall

When the abbot's tea reception ends, the administrative official visits the attendants' hall to serve tea. The official sits at the main position, while the kitchen official is seated to his right, separated by an arm's length. The conduct of this propriety is identical to that of the assistant official. The novice attendants see off the two officials, and the ceremonial master greets them: 356

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The ceremonial master and the resident attendants shall visit the administrative office to express thanks for this tea reception, sir. The guest reception master of the administrative office conveys the message: The administrative official has excused the return propriety. When the practice hall tea is finished (for details, see chapter VI, part VII, section 11) the training officials instruct an attendant of the practice hall office to notify the ceremonial master that they are ready to conduct a serving of tea and request him to post the signboard to inform the residents [of the novice attendants' hall]. The kitchen official is invited as a participant. (The propriety is identical with that of the administrative official. The ceremonial master's promise of a return visit as a gesture of thanks when seeing off the administrative official, as well as the latter's message excusing the return propriety is also identical.)

IV. Monthly Calendar of

Events During the Year

First Lunar Month

First Day (in some temples this also occurs in the fourth month): a ceremonial procession, sutra chanting, prayers for peace and security by the resident practitioners.

New Year's greeting messages to government officials, patron donors, and the major monastic temples.

Seventeenth Day: The Memorial Day of Baizhang.

Second Lunar Month

First Day: Closing of the hearth in the inner practice hall; this is not done if it is a mountain temple and if the weather is still very severe. Fifteenth Day: The Memorial (Nirvana) Day of Śākyamuni Buddha. Third Lunar Month

First Day: The practice hall office issues the draft of the "Record Book. "

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The Spring Memorial Day or "Clear and Bright Day" (qingmingri): The administrative office instructs the practitioners to clean the patriarchal hall, the patriarchal commemorative towers, and the patron donors' family shrines; to solemnly arrange due offerings; and to conduct the service of sutra chanting. A signboard is posted, prohibiting any act of harvesting from the temple's hills and forests and its tea and bamboo fields.

Fourth Lunar Month

First Day: Closing of the transient quarters.

Fourth through Fifth Day: The rite of incense offering as request for general exhortation.

Eighth Day: The Birthday of Śākyamuni Buddha and the ceremonial bathing of the statue of the infant Buddha.

The administrative office prepares a special offering of rice cooked with plant leaves prior to the day of this event.

The abbot's office invites the practitioners for light refreshments prior to the summer retreat.

Thirteenth Day: Setting up the area for the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs prayer service.

Fifteenth Day: The inauguration of the summer retreat. Depending on the weather conditions, this is the time to take down the heavy warm screen at the hall entrance and put up the light cool one. Fifth Lunar Month

Fifth Day: The Duanwu Festival Day. Early in the morning, the administrative official burns incense in the practice hall and serves sweet flag tea. The abbot's ascent to the Dharma hall and inauguration of the prayer session for the growth of rice seedlings in the field. The practice hall office issues the list of sutras to be chanted at the various quarters.

The maintenance official checks the building compounds to repair roof leakage, clean the buildings, and clear the sewage and ditch drainage systems. The abbot visits the quarters, hermitages, and commemorative towers, and each of these offices conducts a tea reception throughout the day. Mosquito nets are set up in the practice hall.

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Sixth Lunar Month

First Day: The rising of heat; the primary seat official excuses the striking of the wooden sounding block located at the outer practice hall to signal zazen practice.

Entering the hottest time of summer, the practice hall official airs out and arranges the hall mats.

The charcoal supply master or the managing treasury official prepares charcoal balls.

Seventh Lunar Month

First Ten Days: The practice hall official issues the list of sutras to be chanted at the various quarters on Ullambana (Memorial) Day. Donations are collected from the practitioners prior to the day and a box of cooked rice for offering is prepared.

Thirteenth Day: Completion of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs prayer service. Fifteenth Day: Commencement of the summer retreat, the Ullambana Day service, sutra chanting, and alms-serving.

Eighth Lunar Month

First Day: Opening the transient quarters (the guest reception official has had the mats of the quarters aired out beforehand). Practitioners of deep intent and practice are not yet prepared to leave their space units.

The practice hall mosquito nets are taken down. Ninth Lunar Month

First Day: The primary seat official again begins to strike the wooden sounding block to signal zazen practice at the practice hall. The practice hall official arranges for repair of the window screens of the practice hall with glue and paper. The cool summer screen at the hall entrance is taken down and the warm winter screen is put up. Ninth Day: The administrative official burns incense in the early morning and serves herb tea (dogwood-leaf tea) for the practitioners. The abbot ascends to the Dharma hall and conducts interviews with practitioners coming from all directions with the intent of establishing residency at the temple. 359