Seeking a contemplative counterpoint to karaoke, conveyor belt sushi, and talking toilets? Zen meditation retreats are a chance to slow down and immerse yourself in a fundamental part of Japanese inner life.
Let go of your preconceptions of an unflinching Zen master cracking the whip as you “chop wood and carry water.” Some of these retreats may be a demanding course for those who want to expand on a personal meditation practice, but others are ideal for those just trying to learn how to sit still for ten minutes. Tucked away in the countryside or hidden in the bustling city, these foreigner-friendly meditation retreats translate the uniquely Japanese way of Zen, straight from the source.
Rustic Temple Homestay by the Sea: Shogan-ji | Ojuki, Oita
Joe Gebbia, one of the co-founders of AirBnB, described his stay at Shogan-ji Temple as follows:
“Imagine waking up to the sound of trees rustling in the wind and birds singing to the sunrise. As you lay in bed, your fingers feel the reeds of the tatami mat underneath your futon, and your eyes gain focus on unidentified Japanese calligraphy across the room. The sound of footsteps passes through the hallway outside your door and you know it’s time to join your host, Hosan, in the temple for an hour of silent meditation.”
This 600-year-old Buddhist temple offers an authentic experience in a peaceful corner of Kyushu, Japan’s third largest island which not many foreign visitors make it to. More like a homestay than a retreat, an intimate number of guests can join in the daily life of this temple which serves around seventy local families.
You can experience morning Zen meditation, Japanese calligraphy, yoga, and traditional cooking lessons with the host’s mother in this bamboo-surrounded seaside village just five minutes from the beach. Shogan-ji is also well-located for day trips to stretch your legs after all that sitting. Take a dip in Yufuin’s hot springs, row a boat through the emerald waters of Takachiho Gorge, and gaze in awe at the Usuki Stone Buddhas.
Zen Buddhism for Dummies: Shunko-in | Kyoto
Kyoto is like Disneyland for Japanese temple aficionados. However, standing in a line of tourists waiting to take a photo of the Golden Temple, one can’t help but feel like an outsider looking in at Japanese culture. An introduction to zen meditation at Shunko-in opens the door to a deeper understanding.
Rev. Taka Kawakami draws upon his education in the U.S. to bridge the cultural divide for curious foreigners with his Zen meditation classes offered almost daily in English. He also marries the ancient practice with modern technology, offering a select number of students a glasses-style device which uses biofeedback to monitor the wearer’s focus, calmness, and posture.
Shunko-in’s sessions, which include a tour of the “Temple of the Ray of Spring Light” and a cup of Kyoto’s famous matcha tea, are ninety minutes long. Seekers who want more can also stay in one of the eight private rooms in the temple guesthouse. “The most important thing is to relax,” Rev. Kawakami told The Japan Times of his personal Rinzai Zen Buddhism philosophy. “Meditation isn’t torture.”
A Ray of Light: Japan Vipassana Association | Chiba & Kyoto
Japan may be known for Zen, but that’s not the only school of thought in the country when it comes to meditation retreats. Vipassana is a style of meditation whose name means “to see things as they really are.”
Serious practitioners can spend ten days intensively honing their sight at one of the Japan Vipassana Association’s two meditation centers: one located ninety minutes from central Tokyo, and a second situated ninety minutes from Kyoto City.
Their highly disciplined residential courses are offered in English and Japanese a few times each month and are paid by donations only.
A “universal remedy for universal ills,” Vipassana is an ancient Indian meditation technique and requires total dedication from its students. While on the retreat, participants follow a strict schedule of about ten hours of daily meditation. If that doesn’t sound hardcore enough for you, consider that students are also required to:
- Observe “noble silence” for the entire ten days (no winking even!);
- Not kill any animals (which sounds easy enough, except when you consider how many mosquitos buzz around the Japanese countryside in the summer); and,
- Refrain from distractions like reading, writing, and music. (You can probably guess what their policy on sex and drinking is.)
While the code may be strict, the experience of a Vipassana retreat is undoubtedly transformative.
Pilgrimage to the Holy Mountain: Shukubo Lodging | Koyasan
If your image of Japan is deep and rustling cedar forests, moss-covered stone lanterns, and too-exquisite-to-eat fare, Koyasan fulfills. Wakayama Prefecture’s holy mountain is the center of Shingon Buddhism. The original hermitage founded by the monk Kukai in 819 has today grown into 120 temples perched on the peak. The town, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is surrounded by the atmospheric Onku-in cemetery (the largest in the country), which honors the souls of some of Japan’s most illustrious ancestors.
Many of Koyasan’s temples offer shukubo (temple lodgings) to pilgrims, and a few school visitors in ajikan, a type of Buddhist meditation “focused on the sound, the form, and the meaning of the Sanskrit syllable ‘A’ as a gateway to experiencing ultimate reality.”
Eko-in and Muryoko-in are just two of the 1000-year-old temples where visitors can observe the monks doing their morning chanting, learn about esoteric meditation, practice tracing calligraphy of the Buddhist sutras, and experience a daily goma fire ritual, in which the fire symbolizes the wisdom of the Buddha burning away human suffering. One of the perks of a meditation retreat at Koyasan is the shojin-ryori, elegant meals of seasonal vegetarian delicacies, specially prepared to enlighten your palate.
Meditating for World Peace: Chokai-san International Zendo | Akita
Chokai-san International Zendo welcomes visitors with this quote:
“The Buddha’s teaching guides people to the place where there is nothing special.”
But CIZ is indeed a special place.
“Away from the stress and strains of every day, the life in CIZ should be an excellent, refreshing, and purifying experience, bringing peace of mind.”
That’s how Joko Sato describes his dream of an International Zendo at the foot of Mt. Chokai in Akita Prefecture. As a reaction to the stresses of the modern world, in 2000 he began work on a center that would promote harmony by welcoming men and women of all ages and backgrounds to share in the practices of a traditional Zen temple.
Students at CIZ are immersed in the Soto school of Zen (the most widespread of the Japanese sects), taking party in the daily life of the temple which includes seated meditation (sometimes outdoors with a stunning view of the mountain), sutra chanting, and meals — all with explanations in English.
Sato’s life’s work is sharing the thirteenth-century teachings of the Zen master Dogen with contemporary seekers from around the globe so that anyone can,
“Practice together here beyond each national borders and obtain a recovery of true humanity, world peace, and enhancement of human well-being.”
Zen and the City: Tosho-ji International Zen Center | Tokyo
Around the corner from a McDonald’s in Tokyo’s Shinagawa neighborhood sits the unassuming Tosho-ji International Zen Center, which was reconstructed after WWII. Tosho-ji welcomes foreigners twice a year for a five-day sesshin retreat. Sesshin means “touching the heart-mind.” Students don’t just meditate for a few hours a day but devote themselves entirely to mindfulness “as if one’s life were at stake.”
Toshoji’s bi-annual sesshin periods are usually held in April and December, perfect timing for a visit to Japan that coincides with cherry blossom season and New Year’s festivities. Students rise at 4:00 AM and retire at 9:00 PM, with seated meditations, walking meditations, lectures, and sutras in between. As Tosho-ji’s website puts it,
“It is by no means easy, and in order to truly resolve life’s ultimate question (enlighten), there is no means superior to sesshin.”
The Art of Zen: Horakuan Temple | Nagano
“Let’s express ourselves and Zen spirit through various art activities.”
That’s the mantra at Horakuan Temple, nestled in the Suzaka mountains of Nagano Prefecture (about two hours by train from Tokyo). German-born expat Dorothee Eshin Takatsu, an ordained Zen Buddhist priest, leads meditation retreats out of an eighty-year-old traditional farmhouse which she converted into a Zen dojo.
This student’s poem describes the experience of meditation at Horakuan:
“in candle light / the outlines of the bodhisattvas / their solemnness takes hold of me / I close my eyes / the teacher leads us / into a world of imagination / of fantastic daylight dreaming / I’m falling endlessly but without fear / ….back again I’m full of new energy.”
From April to December, Horakuan hosts overnight, weekend, and longer stays for those who want to “get away from the everyday hassles of life and focus on personal growth.” The mountain hideaway is occasionally home to yoga retreats as well.
Zen students take part in the standard seated and walking meditations, chanting, temple chores, chanting, and discussions, but Takatsu also offers the unique chance to incorporate artistic expression into one’s Zen practice, which has the power to “unleash creative energy and facilitate nonverbal expression.” Says Takatsu of the effect of a retreat at Horakuan: “I get the feeling that when people leave [a session], they leave with a lighter heart and a new perspective.”
Have you taken a meditation retreat in Japan? Perhaps you attended one that I didn’t mention? Please share your experiences and thoughts in a response below :)
