Ama-san, an elderly nun who lived in the temple next door, introduced me to the art of shojin ryori when I was living in a small rural village in the mountains of Japan.
The ancient weeping cherry tree in front of the temple was a cascade of pale pink as the women of the village gathered to prepare the boxed lunches for the hundred or so villagers who would be coming for the Spring Festival that afternoon. It was a fresh sunny day and we were all laughing and chatting, eagerly looking forward to the day’s celebrations. But before we started, we stood in reverent silence as Ama-san slowly and gracefully prepared three beautiful dishes of special treats and placed them carefully onto a red lacquer tray, all the while chanting prayers in a practiced melodic voice. On this tray was the food to be offered before the festivities began at the altar of Kannon, the goddess of compassion, the principle deity enshrined in the temple.
Ama-san bowed to the offering tray with her hands clasped in prayer, then turned to us all and with a big smile and clap of her hands we began preparing the festival food under her watchful eye. Although the mood was very upbeat and rowdy, there was a calmness and a reverence about the way we proceeded that had been affected by witnessing Ama-san’s ritual preparation of the altar tray. I suddenly became aware that preparing the food for the villagers and then offering it to them was also a sacred act. And the food really did taste so much better when prepared with this awareness!
This event made a deep impression on me and I began helping Ama-san in the temple kitchen several times a week, even though at that time I wasn’t really interested in Buddhism in a religious way. As well as learning about the way that food is prepared for offering on the Kannon altar, I began to learn the principles of Zen cuisine that completely changed the way I viewed cooking and eating. After becoming a Buddhist priest myself I continued to learn about shojin ryori in the kitchen of my home temple on Mt Koya under the guidance of the chef, Kinoshita-san. The knowledge I acquired from my teachers Ama-san and Kinoshita-san is what I would like to share with you in the coming instalments.
The ancient weeping cherry tree in front of the temple was a cascade of pale pink as the women of the village gathered to prepare the boxed lunches for the hundred or so villagers who would be coming for the Spring Festival that afternoon. It was a fresh sunny day and we were all laughing and chatting, eagerly looking forward to the day’s celebrations. But before we started, we stood in reverent silence as Ama-san slowly and gracefully prepared three beautiful dishes of special treats and placed them carefully onto a red lacquer tray, all the while chanting prayers in a practiced melodic voice. On this tray was the food to be offered before the festivities began at the altar of Kannon, the goddess of compassion, the principle deity enshrined in the temple.
Ama-san bowed to the offering tray with her hands clasped in prayer, then turned to us all and with a big smile and clap of her hands we began preparing the festival food under her watchful eye. Although the mood was very upbeat and rowdy, there was a calmness and a reverence about the way we proceeded that had been affected by witnessing Ama-san’s ritual preparation of the altar tray. I suddenly became aware that preparing the food for the villagers and then offering it to them was also a sacred act. And the food really did taste so much better when prepared with this awareness!
This event made a deep impression on me and I began helping Ama-san in the temple kitchen several times a week, even though at that time I wasn’t really interested in Buddhism in a religious way. As well as learning about the way that food is prepared for offering on the Kannon altar, I began to learn the principles of Zen cuisine that completely changed the way I viewed cooking and eating. After becoming a Buddhist priest myself I continued to learn about shojin ryori in the kitchen of my home temple on Mt Koya under the guidance of the chef, Kinoshita-san. The knowledge I acquired from my teachers Ama-san and Kinoshita-san is what I would like to share with you in the coming instalments.
Next installment:
"Don't Cook When You're Angry!"
Recipe: Miso soup
“When we live our life fully, our life becomes what Zen Buddhists call ‘the supreme meal’. We make this supreme meal by using the ingredients at hand to make the best meal possible…and then by offering it.”
- Bernie Glassman (American Zen master)
“When we live our life fully, our life becomes what Zen Buddhists call ‘the supreme meal’. We make this supreme meal by using the ingredients at hand to make the best meal possible…and then by offering it.”
- Bernie Glassman (American Zen master)
Beautiful presentation. Looking forward to your future offerings. Thank you.
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