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 Practicing
Prostrations
Photos taken from the first edition of Zen Wisdom: Knowing
and Doing.
Scroll to the bottom for an article on prostrations by Chan Master Sheng Yen.
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1. Stand upright with the feet forming a "V" shape -
about eight inches apart in the front and two inches apart in the back. Hold
the palms together at the chest level. Keep all the fingers close. The arms form a 30-degree angle
with the torso. While standing, keep the eyes cast on the tips of the
fingers, without bending the neck. This is a skillful means to keep the
mind from distraction. Relax, breathing naturally and stay mindful. Each
of the following steps is a skillful means in mindfully practice.
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2. Bend the upper body down while keeping the legs straight.
Let the spinal cord curves naturally and shift the buttock backward so that
the center of gravity is kept at a vertical axis passing through the heels.
Be mindful to keep the neck straight.
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3. Bend the knees as if
you are squatting down. At the same time, move the right hand away from
the left and put it down on the ground. Be mindful not to bend the upper
body below the waist. When the right palm touches the ground, kneel down
to the floor, using the right hand as a support. Once kneeled,
the buttock naturally sit on the legs. The right hand should locate just
in front and at the outer edge of the right knee. Place the left hand down
to the floor, on a line at the outer edge of the left knee, extending
approximately one and a half palm-length ahead of the right hand. Move the
right hand forward to the same level as the left.
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4. With the palms as supports, bend the upper body
downward, until the forehead touches the ground. The spinal cord curves up
naturally. Be mindful to keep the
neck straight and the buttocks grounded. Flex the fingers to form a fist and roll them
up side
down. Open the fists so that the palms face upward, as if one is offering
to hold the Buddha on one's hand. Note that the palms form a
"V" shape, with the narrow part in front. Flex the fingers back
into a fist, roll them back, and then open the fingers, with the palms
touching the ground. Raise the upper body, withdraw the right hand back to
just in front of the right knee. Withdraw the left hand away from the
ground to the front of the chest. Use the right hand as a support and get
up from the floor. Return to position 1. Be patient, mindful, and
relax.
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Four Kinds of Prostration
By Chan Master Sheng Yen (Retreat Evening Talk December 4, 1992)
There are four kinds of prostrations. The first kind is for fulfilling
wishes. When we prostrate, we ask the buddhas and bodhisattvas to help
us. We can do this prostration when we encounter difficulties or misfortune.
It can also be done for others. If someone is not doing well, you can prostrate
for the Buddha's help. This prostration can also be used to avoid accidents, sickness, or to prolong life. The second kind of prostration is done
out of the sincerity of your heart, not with a seeking mind. You may prostrate
from the depths of our heart in gratitude for the Three Jewels. You can
also prostrate to your teacher, your shifu. Shifus represent the Three
Jewels, so we prostrate to them with sincerity for their teachings and
guidance. It is important to understand that is you who benefits from such
prostrations, not your shifu. Through this act of gratefulness and respect,
we can change ourselves and generate sincerity in our hearts. The third
kind is repentance prostration. For this you need a mind of humility and
a sense of shame. It is impossible to do this if your are filled with arrogance.
Even as you touch your head to the floor, you will still you are right
and others, wrong. Such prostrations can help you to change your character
to being more receptive and honest. You will be more complete, more well-rounded.
It is like washing clothes. Our clothes get dirty over and over, and time
and time again we wash them. As long as we wash them, they stay clean.
Going through the motions of repentance prostrations without admitting
your faults or being open and sincere is like wearing clothes, but never
washing them. They just get dirtier and dirtier. When you find stains on
your clothing, be joyous that they are so clear and easy to spot. It means
that your clothes were relatively clean to begin with. If you never wash
your clothes, you may not notice new stains. There is no need for self-pity
when you find faults in yourself. The more you find, the better. Perhaps
you'll be able to catch them before they arise. Better yet, once you spot
your shortcomings, perhaps you'll be able to change them. The fourth kind
of prostration I call "formless prostration." However, since it's impossible
to immediately arrive at formlessness (no-form), we begin with form and
progress through stages until we get to no-form. Similarly, to get to no-self
-- impermanence -- we start with the self. From there, we contemplate emptiness
until we gradually move to the level of no- self. We do the same with non-attachment,
beginning with contemplation on attachment and working toward our goal.
Formless prostrations come from contemplating the four foundations of mindfulness:
body, sensation, mind and dharmas. No matter which one we contemplate,
we begin with form and end with formlessness. We can consider these four
foundations in the context of the stages of formless prostrations, which
I will now describe. The first stage is when we tell ourselves to do prostrations
and our body obeys our commands. We control the body and consciously ordering
it to prostrate. While doing the prostrations, we are to remain extremely
clear of our movements as well as the sensation. Already, we are contemplating
the first two foundations -- body and sensation. The third foundation,
mind, is also involved because clarity and awareness are the mind itself.
At this point our minds' movement should be fine and subtle, since our
body movements are carried out slowly. In the second stage, we know we
are prostrating and we feel it, but our bodies are moving by themselves.
We no longer have to order or control our bodies. We are now witnesses.
Who is prostrating? The body is prostrating. At this stage, there is no
longer the thought, "I am prostrating;" rather, prostrations are occurring.
At the third stage, others may see you prostrating, but as far as you are
concerned, there are no longer thoughts that you are prostrating or that
prostrations are occurring. Body, mind and sensation are fused: there is
no separation. Like learning to ride a horse, at first there is a rider
and a horse, separate wills wanting to go their own way. As a result, the
ride is bumpy. Experienced riders feel no separation between themselves
and their horses. The horse responds instantly, so that the ride becomes
fluid and uninterrupted. The third level is the stage of formlessness,
but it is not no- self yet. When we perfect the third stage, there are
no influences whatsoever. We are neither affected by internal nor external
conditions. Of course, we must always begin with the first stage. If we
cannot even reach the initial level of a calm and subtly moving mind, then
it will be impossible to progress to the next stages.
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