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Kinhin

Kinhin is walking meditation. It is not a break from practice or a rest period. After we rise from zazen, we place our hands in gassho and wait for the sound of the wooden clappers. When we hear the clappers, we bow, then turn together and form the kinhin line, closing any spaces to about an arm’s length. At the second (2nd) clap, we bow and place our hands in shassu (left hand like a fist with thumb enclosed, right hand closed gently over left, elbows away from the body and parallel to the ground), and begin to walk very slowly and mindfully, our attention focused on our feet. We walk as one. At the third (3rd) clap, we walk together more quickly, usually at a “processional pace”, attention still focused on our feet. At the fourth (4th) clap, we place our hands back in gassho and continue walking until we reach our cushion. We face the center of the zendo and wait until we hear the fifth (5th) clap. We then sit and assume our preferred zazen posture.

If you choose to exit the zendo during kinhin, either to leave or to use the restroom, just bow and leave the line when your position is somewhere near the door and exit quietly. When you return, please stand somewhere near the door, with hands in shashu, and wait for your place in line to pass by, then simply bow in gassho and resume your place in line.