Great Vow Zen Monastery
Sounds are an important part of life at the Great Vow Zen Monastery. Between 3:40am and 4:00am, talking is not suggested. The only sounds you'll hear in the morning are the calls to wake up and the calls for the morning Zanzen (meditation).
At meals, talking is not permitted/suggested until a rap of a hammer or other device. Generally, the Spiritual Leaders sit at the head of the table where the hammer is located. A quaint, almost silent discussion begins, and everyone is allowed their turn to speak in a very formal manner.
During the working hours - generally from 1p to 6p, there isn't much talking between members, as everyone is working on a particular project they have been assigned for that day.
During the informal lunch, after dinner and after the evening Zanzen are the times when informal day-to-day conversations generally take place. It's a total of about 2 to 3 hours per day. With such a busy yet quiet day, there is plenty of time to contemplate and take in the sonic world.
1.) Bell
Evening Zanzen (meditation) bell / calling.
2.) Frogs
A midnight mass of rain and frogs. During the 4 hour Zanzen session the previous morning, a frog had been croaking to us through the window. He cheerily kept my mind off the physical pain of meditation.
3.) Blessing
A group blessing before our mid-day meal.
4.) Cows, Farm Equip and ?
One of the more peculiar sounds of the monastery are in this clip. You can definitely hear the cows, farm equipment and water running -- but what is that buzzing sound? I'll give you a hint, they have wings!
5.) Mahogany Block
A supplement to the morning wake-up call (at 3:40am), this Mahogany Block can be clearly heard throughout each building, calling us in to morning Zanzen.
