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Opening the Winter Retreat: Mindful Bowing and Beginner’s Mind
Mindful Dharma discussions are essential at the start of the three-month winter retreat so everyone learns why the retreat is organized as it is and can live happily within it. Newcomers are encouraged to ask about bowing, silence during meals, walking on campus and other rituals until each practice is fully understood and embraced.
Mindful bowing to various objects becomes a door to deeper practice—each gesture generates mindfulness, concentration and insight and touches the Buddha nature within:
- A Buddha statue
- The cushion before sitting
- A leaf or flower
- A person you meet
- The tea tray in tea meditation
When you bow, sit, eat, walk or wash like a Buddha, you reclaim freedom from habit energy and move beyond forgetfulness, transforming every moment into a living practice.
The Sangha is our boat, offering collective energy and wisdom. Retreat life balances the principles of seniorship and democracy through consensus, and taking refuge in the Sangha helps us recognize old habit energies and cultivate positive ones. By preserving the beginner’s mind, we sustain joy, freedom and deep practice from moment to moment.