Daily Dharma Practice Buddhist Practice For American Buddhists This program is geared to American Buddhists. It is a non-sectarian program that can be used as part of your daily Buddhist practice. The goal of the Home Altar/Daily Gassho Program is to facilitate an everyday spiritual practice. It is useful because a support structure is needed in addition to books and talks. There are two steps in the home practice program. First—create a home altar Second—do a Daily Gassho for 21 days. To Create a Home Altar The term “altar” may not be appropriate for our purposes. The word has different associations for different people. If the word “altar” is troublesome, the phrase “Special Place of Tranquillity” (SPOT) can be substituted. It should be noted that the word “Tranquillity” does not refer to just a quiet serenity, but involves a notion of “quiet power” or “Dynamic serenity.” In any case, your altar or SPOT is not a place where something is worshipped or prayed to in the usual sense of those words. Your SPOT does not need to have a fixed “religious” central point of focus. If such a symbol is desired, traditional Buddhist icons can be used and/or items with personal meaning can be included. The intention here is to provide a universal motif that can be individually customized. Your SPOT can be a secular (ordinary) place that is made sacred (spiritual) through your attitude. Your SPOT need not be labeled as a solely sacred or secular place. Our approach is the Way of Oneness. In the present context, this means that such dualistic terminology as sacred versus secular can be transcended.

Setting Up Your SPOT If you already have a Buddhist altar, fine—by all means, use it. Basic SPOT items include: bell, candle, flowers, incense burner, and meditation beads. The incense burner is usually put in a middle position, with the candle on the right side (as you face the incense burner) and the flowers on the left side. The bell is placed conveniently; e.g., anywhere on the right side for a right-handed person.

Using Your SPOT Traditional usage involves lighting the candle, lighting incense from the candle flame, ringing the bell, doing gassho with the ojuzu, and optionally, chanting a sutra and/or doing a reading. For our purposes, minimal usage is to simply ring the bell and do gassho. This procedure is fine and is in no way inferior to more involved rituals. In fact, it may be advisable to routinely use only the minimal procedure-and to add other aspects only when your mood or need motivates you. Flexibility is the key in setting up and using your SPOT. Any suggested traditional guideline is simply a convenience, in the sense of having a standard to work from. The most essential thing is one's attitude and concentration when doing the act of gassho.

Daily Gassho The act of gassho is done by putting the palms of one's hands together in front of the heart and bowing the head. Gassho may be done sitting or standing; with eyes closed or open; and with or without the ojuzu beads. Your SPOT does not need to have a fixed “religious” central point of focus. If such a symbol is desired, traditional Buddhist icons can be used and/or items with personal meaning can be included. The intention here is to provide a universal motif that can be individually customized. Your SPOT can be a secular (ordinary) place that is made sacred (spiritual) through your attitude. Your SPOT need not be labeled as a solely sacred or secular place. Our approach is the Way of Oneness. In the present context, this means that such dualistic terminology as sacred versus secular can be transcended. As part of our 21-day program, a Harmony Gassho and Gratitude Gassho are done daily in front of your SPOT.

Get in the Habit The Harmony gassho is done in the morning and sets your motivation for the day. Decide when doing it will best fit into the flow of your usual morning routine. If helpful, post a “gassho” reminder sign in a visible place (e.g. in the kitchen or on the inside of the front door). One suggestion is to do your Harmony Gassho just before breakfast. As an aid to making gassho a habit, you can mentally make eating breakfast contingent upon first doing gassho, i.e. “no gassho, no meal.” The Gratitude gassho is done in the evening and recaps your day. It is suggested that you do it just before eating dinner. On days you eat out, you can do your Gratitude Gassho just before going to bed.

Harmony Gassho The verbal recitation accompanying your morning gassho can be the word “harmony.” Other recitations can be introduced later. Your recitation can be spoken with any degree of loudness or simply be said to yourself. The depth or power of the recitation is facilitated through your breath. After a moderately deep (but not overly long) inhalation through your nose, make your recitation as you exhale through your mouth. The sound of the last syllable should be extended until the end of the exhalation. As an approximate guideline, your inhalation can be about 3-5 seconds long, whereas your exhalation should be about 9-15 seconds long. Keep your body and head erect as you inhale. As the last syllable of the recitation is being extended, slowly bow your head, keeping your hands and body still. At the end of the recitation most people like to stay in the finishing position for a while (perhaps for 1-3 normal breaths) so that one doesn't get the feeling of rushing off immediately after the recitation. The underlying sentiment of the Harmony Gassho is that you will try your best to have a spirit of cooperation with others, and always be as calm and patient as possible. The seed of this sentiment will gradually blossom into an understanding that can be called wisdom.

The Gratitude Gassho Use the same procedure as described for the Harmony Gassho except that your recitation is the word “gratitude” The underlying sentiment accompanying the Gratitude Gassho is an awareness of interdependency—that one is supported by nature, by other people, by everything. There is a feeling of “counting one's blessings,“ of “grace,” or of “how grateful I am.” The seed of this sentiment will naturally blossom and be expressed in compassionate ways.

An Important Consideration The Buddhist way is “purposeless purpose” or “effortless effort.” In the context of this program, this means being as earnest and sincere as possible while doing your daily gasshos—and letting their effects gradually and naturally spread into other times of your day. Don't feel you have to force anything and don't try to do too much during the 21-day program. You will do better by being patient and keeping your energy focused on just the specifics of the program. After your daily gassho is firmly established, other aspects can be developed and applied to your everyday experiences.

This Daily Dharma Practice program was developed by Rev. Koyo S. Kubose of the Kubose Dharma Legacy. We thank him for allowing us to post this program on our web site. Rev. Koyo Sunnan Kubose attended the University of California at Berkeley and continued with postgraduate work, earning an M.A. from San Francisco State University, and Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Iowa. He has been on the Psychology faculties at the University of North Carolina, University of Hawaii, and the University of Wisconsin Center System. He studied Buddhism in Japan—combining studies in Shin Buddhism at the Eastern Buddhist Society of Otani University with meditation practice under Zen masters of both Soto and Rinzai traditions. Rev. Koyo Kubose served on the ministerial staff at the Buddhist Temple of Chicago from 1983 to 1995 to help further his father's work of creatively nurturing Buddhism in America. He served as the Executive Director of the Japanese American Service Committee from 1995-1996. From 1997, he began working full-time towards establishing the Rev. Gyomay M. Kubose Dharma Legacy as a religious educational organization dedicated to carrying on his father's lifework.

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