is a set of nested bowls and other eating utensils for the personal use of

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

monks. Ōryōki also refers to a meditative form of eating using these utensils that originated in Japan and emphasizes mindfulness awareness practice by abiding by a strict order of precise movements. The term (, , , also known as ) is a transliteration of the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

, meaning 'vessel that contains just enough'. The term is mostly used in the of

Zen Buddhism Zen (; from Chinese: '' Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka ph ...

. In the and , the utensils are called , which is written as according to the Rinzai school and according to the Ōbaku school. is also used to refer to the bowls alone. The bowls are usually made of lacquered

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

, with the utensils bundled in a cloth. The largest bowl, sometimes called the Buddha Bowl or , symbolizes the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

's head and his wisdom. The other bowls are progressively smaller. In describing the form of used at

John Daido Loori John Daido Loori (June 14, 1931 – October 9, 2009) was a Zen Buddhist rōshi who served as the abbot of Zen Mountain Monastery and was the founder of the Mountains and Rivers Order and CEO of Dharma Communications. Daido Loori received sh ...

's Zen Mountain Monastery, author Jack Maguire wrote: This is the formal style of serving and eating meals practiced in

Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...

temples. Buddhist tradition states that after

Huineng Dajian Huineng or Hui-nengThe Sutra of Hui-neng, Grand Master of Zen, with Hui-neng's Commentary on the Diamond Sutra, translated by Thomas Cleary, Shambhala Publications, 1998 (; February 27, 638 – August 28, 713), also commonly known as the ...

received the monk's robe and bowl as evidence of his receiving

Dharma transmission In Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' ('' kechimyaku'') theoretically traced back to the Buddha him ...

, the bowl itself was considered a symbol of transmission from teacher to student. have evolved in in

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

over many years and are part of the Buddhist tradition that has now been transmitted to the West. Both monks and laypeople use to eat formal meals in Zen monasteries and places of practice. A lineage was also transmitted from Kōbun Chino Otogawa to the Tibetan Buddhist sangha of

Chögyam Trungpa Chögyam Trungpa (Wylie transliteration, Wylie: ''Chos rgyam Drung pa''; March 5, 1939 – April 4, 1987), formally named the 11th Zurmang Trungpa, Chokyi Gyatso, was a Tibetan Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhist master and holder of both Kagyu and Nyingm ...

and is now practiced at all

Shambhala International Shambhala International (originally named Vajradhatu) is the umbrella organization that encompasses many of the distinct institutions of the Shambhala Training, Shambhala spiritual community, founded by the students of the Tibetan_Buddhism, Tibe ...

retreat centers. Zen teachers say that taking meals with cultivates gratitude, mindfulness, and a better understanding of self. (In this regard, it is not unlike .) The intricacies of the form may require the practitioner to pay great attention to detail.

Meaning of Japanese word

According to Shohaku Okumura: In Japanese, three Sino-Japanese characters comprise the word : *, the receiver's response to the offering of food *, a measure, or an amount, to be received *, the bowl.

References

External links

Photos of OryokiShambhala lineage use of Oryoki explainedPatrick Reynolds briefly explains and demonstrates Soto oryokiRobin briefly explains and demonstrates oryoki as practiced in the Shambhala community
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oryoki Zen Zen art and culture Buddhist cuisine Buddhist ritual implements