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Mealtime
Ceremonial and the
Giving and
Receiving of Food Offerings |
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Related Links: Alms Bowl --(items the Abbey can use) Donation Form Bequests Alms Round |
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We try, through the way we
live as monks, to do as little
harm as possible. Fortunately,
in our culture, vegetarian food
is plentiful. Buddhism being
the practice of the Middle Way,
we steer a middle course in our
diet; we are lacto-ovo vegetarians.
We deeply appreciate offerings
ranging from a piece of fruit
to a sack of potatoes to an entire
meal.
It is not about the amount
offered, but rather the
heart from which it is given.
When you do your weekly
shopping, think kindly of
the monks at Shasta Abbey,
and possibly get a little
extra something to bring
to the monastery as an offering.
As we cultivate a practice of generosity
through steady and regular offerings
we loosen the grip of "I" and "mine".
This naturally brightens the hearts
of all sentient beings.

Eating
food which has been offered
has a spiritual nourishment, and
is not just another meal.
We know that
your offerings come out of your
hard work.
As monks, this gives us the
opportunity to consider what it is
that we are doing and appreciate the
generosity that allows us to continue
and deepen our practice.
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In our practice of living
from the alms bowl, we find
that we don't always get
everything that our mind
may want, and in actuality
we get everything that we
need. In our tradition of
Buddhism, we take great
care in the way that food
offerings are prepared and
presented. Everything is
treated with great respect
and tenderness. Thus we
truly enjoy our food and
do not over-indulge in it,
using it for the real purpose
of furthering our training.

The Buddha found that purposely
starving oneself led only
to more suffering. It was
after he took the kind food
offering of Sujatha that
he was able to establish
himself in a steady practice.
As
Great Master Dogen wrote
in the Shushogi: "...your
body is deeply significant.
Both your life and
your body deserve love
and respect for it is by
their agency that Truth
is practiced and the Buddha's power exhibited..."
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The ancient
tradition of making and receiving
offerings gives opportunities
for both the giver and the
receiver to train in the Buddhist
Way. It points directly to
the interdependence and mutual
gratitude of human beings.
Enlightenment and everyday
life being one and the same
thing, what more grounded activity
could we participate in than
selfless generosity in giving
and receiving. In helping each
other in this way, we share
in the activity of a Buddha.
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Since the time
of the Buddha, the lay Sangha
has offered food to the monastic
Sangha. It is a customary practice
in Buddhism to offer a meal,
or perhaps a part of a meal
for a relative or friend who
has died, or simply out of
gratitude for the practice.
The first Segaki was a food
offering for Mogallana's mother,
the merit of which helped her
put down her burden of suffering.
We begin our meal with the
expressed intention of the
donor and offer the merit of
the meal according to the intention
of the donor.
Food is a very tangible offering
of generosity to sustain monks
as they train. It is one of
the four traditional requisites
that the lay Sangha has kindly
provided for monks.
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Expanding your kitchen to
include the monastic Sangha
can take many forms. You can
offer some of the many staples
that are part of a nutritional
meal. You can help either cooking
a meal, or some part of it,
for the monastic community
and this can be done as a memorial
for a loved one.
When monks
are on retreat, it is possible
to come here to cook and provide
a meal for the community. The
Wesak celebration meals have
been prepared and offered by
our lay Sangha, preparing food
for over a 100 people. On New
Year's Eve, we have a potluck
for the retreat that combines
many wonderful offerings from
the Sangha.
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As Great Master Dogen says
in the Chief Cook's Instructions
(Tenzo-kyokun):Because
of the sincerity of mind with
which a woman offered the Buddha
a bowl of milk, it was foretold
that she would become
a Pratyekabuddha in the following
life. Because King Asoka, as
his last good action, offered
half a piece of fruit to the
priests attending him on his
deathbed, he was free from
all suffering at the moment
of death.
From this it may be seen that small
acts of charity, made in a devotional
spirit, are beneficial not only
in the present but in the future
also. However minute may be the
offerings we make to the Buddha,
they must be given in the spirit
of true religion and sincerity.
Such deeds are the right action
of all men.
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Given
in the spirit of true religion
and sincerity,
these offerings
are a wonderful expression
of dana.
We are grateful
for the myriad ways you show
your generosity of spirit.
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You
can make an offering
of food in a way that
seems good for you.
This may include:
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food
offerings of various
sizes,
kitchen staples,
a memorial meal,
some part of a meal,
a dessert or a treat,
cooking a meal for the community,
or
inviting the Sangha to your house
for a meal.
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Because
of our monastic tradition,
we ask that no garlic,
scallions, horseradish,
meat or alcohol be included
in a donation.
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