Zen Ritual: Studies of Zen Buddhist Theory in Practice

The volume opens with Dale S. Wright’s introduction, “Rethinking Ritual Practice in Zen Buddhism,” which argues that Zen life is deeply structured by ritual, despite the well-known anti-ritual rhetoric found in some classical Zen texts. The book then brings together studies by leading scholars on Japanese Zen ritual, Chinese Chan preaching ceremonies, Eisai’s rituals for protecting the country, Dōgen’s Eiheiji and its Chinese models, zazen as enactment ritual, women’s ritual practices in Sōtō Zen, rituals glorifying the emperor, walking meditation, and dharma transmission. The essays collectively show that Zen ritual is not merely external form, but a disciplined mode of practice through which doctrine, authority, embodiment, community, and awakening are enacted in concrete institutional life.