Summer 2025 Newsletter: Letter From the Abbot
Journeying Home on the Back of the Ox
by Sayama Daian Roshi
Our sesshin this summer was truly a Dai Sesshin, a Great Sesshin. 32 people trained, the most in many years. The okyo resounded in the Dojo. Meals were satisfying both because of the food and level of concentration. There were moments in zazen of delightful clarity and tranquility. The weather was good, and the yardwork unveiled more of the beauty of the grounds. We practiced Hojo, Boxing, Kyudo, and Tai Chi during the afternoons, and at night Kendo and Shodo as well. At the end of sesshin, six new priests were ordained.
My teisho for this sesshin was based on Omori Sogen Rotaishi’s commentary on the Ten Oxherding Pictures. As he explained, there is no gradual path to the sudden enlightenment of Rinzai Zen, but nevertheless, the Ten Oxherding Pictures are a guide to students through its depiction of ten stages of self-development, in which the ox symbolizes the True Self.
In the first picture, Searching for the Ox, the oxherd “finds himself confronted with the limitations of his mortal power,” which are the limitations of his dualistic ego. The ox is lost in dusty regions far away, and the oxherd suffers from not knowing the meaning of life and from what Omori Rotaishi called “the fundamental insecurity” of modern times. (All quotes are from An Introduction to Zen Buddhism, Omori Sogen, 1996, pages 210-247.)
In the next picture, Seeing the Traces of the Ox, the oxherd has “at last come so far as to find the right discipline.” All academic and secondhand knowledge about the Ox are only traces, but these traces lead to a practice through which a person sees the Ox.
The third picture, Seeing the Ox, refers to experiencing samadhi, the state of relaxed concentration where one is fully present without thought. It is easiest to experience samadhi in the stillness of zazen. At Chozen-ji we practice the arts to experience samadhi in activity. An art is a limited field where the student can practice form and learn space/time relations to develop the capacity to act without intention. At this stage, the oxherd has consciously experienced samadhi but has not grasped it yet. He is lucky when it happens.
The fourth and fifth pictures, Catching the Ox and Herding the Ox, refer to deepening and maintaining samadhi in all aspects of life through breath, posture, concentration, and the letting go of attachments, essentially making daily life training. Omori Rotaishi writes:
"(The oxherd must) strive for the proper operation of his original self on all affairs and matters in his everyday life….It is essential for us to be disciplined in samadhi with all our strength, tugging at the reins of our minds without diverting attention, and being completely absorbed into the world of speech and silence, movement and stillness, and all other dualities."
Sesshin is a structured training to help you herd the ox through six days and nights. Normally our minds are so scattered that it takes this kind of uninterrupted training to collect the mind and make us familiar with herding the ox in daily life.
The sixth picture, Coming Home on the Ox’s Back, is where I hope I’m at after 50 years of training. The oxherd does not guide the ox. He lies on its back “playing the flute to the sky of his clear, empty mind.” This is Yugei Zammai, the Play of Samadhi. The character Yu means to swim and Gei means to play. The Play of Samadhi is swimming playfully in the Tao like fishes in water. Admittedly, I play too much sometimes and fall off the Ox.
The seventh picture, Ox Forgotten, Man Alone, shows the oxherd peacefully sleeping over a rock. It reminds me of the Old Cat in the story on swordsmanship often told by Tanouye Rotaishi. The Old Cat, who represented the highest level of swordsmanship, slept all day, but wherever she roamed, there were no rats. It is like the sage who does nothing and nothing is left undone.
The eighth picture, Both Man and Ox Completely Forgotten, is an empty circle symbolizing the Void before the Big Bang, containing within it the original vibration before differentiation. It is “the absolute negation of man and object.”
The ninth picture, Return to the Original Life, Return to the Source, depicts a pine tree with green needles and flowers white with dewdrops. “Through the transcendence of absolute nothingness,” the natural world is reinstated.
"He is in the state of tranquil concentration where he is always flowing and turning together with myriad of things around him without even knowing his own flowing and turning."
Paul Nishimura, our first president, who liked to refer to himself as the George Washington of Chozen-ji, said he was at this level at the end of his life. Paul led the founding members of Chozen-ji to put their houses up for collateral so we could get the loan for the land. He was our Aikido teacher and made the toro, the lanterns which serve as our Nio or guardian deities.
Sayama Daian Roshi
The tenth picture, Entering the Marketplace with Bliss Bestowing Hands, shows Hotei bare chested and barefooted greeting a fishmonger. Nobody knows whether he is a sage or a fool. He does as he pleases, drinking sake with wine-dealers and fishmongers, but wherever he goes, he removes anxiety from people and puts them into samadhi. In our modern Hawai'i Nana Veary, with her bliss-bestowing hugs, is a good example of Hotei.
"What makes it possible to do all these things must indeed be the tremendously great power of concentration nurtured in samadhi. I must say in conclusion that it is truly the life of Zen Mind to make it possible for us to live in the state of freedom and serenity."
At the closing tea of sesshin, I told everyone how heartwarming the sincerity of their training was and expressed my profound gratitude for this chance to train with them as this sesshin was my last as abbot. I will be stepping down in October, and Michael Kangen Roshi will become the next abbot. Kangen Roshi has the vigor, rigor, and creativity to lead Chozen-ji into a new era. Of course, I will continue my shugyo at the Dojo.
I deeply thank all of you for the support which has sustained Chozen-ji throughout the years.
Gassho,
Sayama Daian