Shinto/Shang
Fall - Fortnight 16 (Earth+Earth)

Festival/Nov 4:   Shamans of Shinto and Shang. Purity and power of nature, sensing the essence (Kami) in everything and everyone. The pre-buddhist pre-tao animistic traditions of northern China and Japan. Lao-Tzu.

The Shang Dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BCE) and early Shinto (c. 3rd century BCE) shared animistic roots, with Shang oracle bones and Korean Mu shamans venerating kami in nature. Shinto altars and grounding meditations connected practitioners to earth’s purity, sensing kami everywhere. Their unique idea of a matriarchal divine essence in all things predates later patriarchal shifts.

Lao Tzu, traditionally dated to c. 6th century BCE (though possibly legendary), authored the Tao Te Ching, foundational to Taoism, emerging from Shang animism. Shinto/Zen prostrations aligned personal nature with universal flow, reflecting experiential certainty. His distinctive concept of wuwei (nonaction) unveiled a natural order within chaos.

Chuang Tzu (c. 369–286 BCE), a Taoist philosopher, expanded Lao Tzu’s teachings in the Zhuangzi, emphasizing spontaneity. Shinto salt ceremonies purified the personal within the universal, fostering inquiry into kami. His unique parabledriven approach revealed unity through paradoxical observation.
 

Feast (Day 1): Prepare and eat a Shojin Ryori meal, respecting each grain, as per Dogen’s Tenzo Kyokun: “Do not let a single grain fall to the ground.”

 Part 1: Jing (Essence) – Physical Practices
Focus: Practical actions, Zen work ethic, cleanliness, and bodily discipline.

1. Sweeping the Temple Floor
   Basis: Zen’s emphasis on manual labor as meditation (Dogen’s Shobogenzo: “To sweep the floor is to sweep the mind”).
   Exercise: Sweep a small area (indoor or outdoor) with a broom, focusing on each stroke as a cleansing of mental clutter. Visualize dust as distractions being cleared.

2. Mindful Dishwashing
   Basis: Dogen’s Tenzo Kyokun on respecting utensils and food preparation.
   Exercise: Wash dishes by hand, feeling the water and soap, treating each plate as sacred. Contemplate Dogen’s words: “Handle even a single leaf of green as if it were the Buddha.”

3. Walking Meditation (Kinhin)
   Basis: Soto Zen’s walking meditation to cultivate mindfulness.
   Exercise: Walk slowly in a circle or straight path, synchronizing breath with steps (inhale two steps, exhale two steps). Focus on the earth beneath your feet.

4. Tending a Small Plant
   Basis: Chan/Zen farming as spiritual practice, reflecting Neidan’s nurturing of Jing.
   Exercise: Water and care for a potted plant, visualizing your essence being nourished as you nurture the plant’s roots.

5. Salt Purification Ritual
   Basis: Shinto’s salt ritual for cleansing impurities.
   Exercise: Sprinkle a pinch of salt around your space, then rub a small amount between your palms, visualizing negative energies dissolving into the earth.

6. Koan: Dogen’s Mountain Walking
   Basis: Dogen’s Shobogenzo: “Mountains walk, clouds walk.”
   Exercise: Sit in Zazen and contemplate this koan. Ask: “How does a mountain walk?” Let thoughts arise and dissolve without clinging.

7. Breathing the Cauldron
   Basis: Neidan’s lower Dantian breathing to gather Qi.
   Exercise: Sit cross-legged, hands on lower abdomen. Inhale deeply, visualizing golden light pooling in your Dantian (below navel). Exhale, releasing tension.

8. Koan: The Sound of One Hand
   Basis: Rinzai Zen’s famous koan to break dualistic thinking.
   Exercise: Sit in Zazen, asking: “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” Hold the question without seeking an answer.

9. Chanting “Mu”
   Basis: Rinzai Zen’s use of “Mu” (from Gateless Gate) to exhaust the mind.
   Exercise: Chant “Mu” softly with each exhale for 10 minutes, letting the sound resonate in your chest.

10. Contemplating the Diamond Mandala
    Basis: Shingon’s Diamond Mandala, symbolizing indestructible wisdom.
    Exercise: Visualize a radiant diamond at your heart, its facets reflecting all phenomena. Contemplate: “All is one, one is all.”

11. Creating an Earth Altar
    Basis: Neidan’s use of symbolic spaces; Zen’s simplicity in altars.
    Exercise: Arrange a small altar with a stone, candle, and incense. Meditate before it, visualizing your body as a mountain anchoring your spirit.

12. Wall-Gazing Meditation
    Basis: Bodhidharma’s nine-year wall-gazing (Soto Zen).
    Exercise: Sit facing a blank wall, letting thoughts dissolve. Visualize your mind as a still lake, reflecting the wall’s emptiness.

13. Visualizing the Golden Embryo
    Basis: Neidan’s early stage of forming the Immortal Embryo.
    Exercise: Sit in meditation, visualizing a golden seed in your Dantian, glowing with each breath, symbolizing your spiritual potential.

14. Contemplating a Rock Garden (Fast Day)
    Basis: Zen rock gardens as tools for contemplation; Neidan’s focus on stillness.
    Exercise: Sit before a small arrangement of stones (or visualize a rock garden). Contemplate their stillness as a reflection of your eternal nature, preparing for life after death.

15. Offering to Hungry Ghosts (Fast Day)
    Basis: Buddhist offerings to ease suffering of spirits.
    Exercise: Place a small bowl of rice on your altar, dedicating it to hungry ghosts. Meditate on compassion, visualizing their liberation as your own.

 Group 2: Water (Days 16–30)

Theme: Fluidity, adaptability, and refining Qi (Neidan Stage 2: Refining Qi, Harmonizing Yin-Yang). Water aligns with Zen’s flow and Shugendo’s ascetic connection to nature.

Feast (Day 16): Prepare a Shojin Ryori meal with seaweed and rice, honoring water’s life-giving essence.