During the first full week of December, Zen Buddhists in the Japanese tradition participate in a weeklong sesshin, or meditation retreat, known as Rohatsu. Sesshin means “to collect the heart-mind” and Rohatsu is simply the Japanese for “eighth day of the 12th month.” Thus, Dec. 8 is the date observed as when the historical Buddha achieved enlightenment.

It is said that soon after his enlightenment the Buddha passed a man on the road who was struck by the Buddha’s extraordinary radiance and peaceful presence. The man stopped and asked, “My friend, what are you? Are you a celestial being or a god?” The Buddha said he was neither.

“Well, then,” said the man, “are you some kind of magician or wizard?” The Buddha answered that he was not.

“Well, my friend, then what are you?”

The Buddha replied, “I am awake.”

This story is one of the most profound in Buddhism. On one hand, the Buddha had discovered nothing remarkable; he had simply awakened. Yet, on the other hand, burdened as we all are by the conditions of our lives, to simply “wake up” is quite extraordinary.

Awaken is on Old English word that originally meant “to spring into being.” In Zen practice, this springing into being is a process of shedding who we think we are to discover who we truly are.

During Rohatsu, we spend long hours in stillness and silence to rouse ourselves from our habitual sleep. Even though sesshin take place throughout the year, Rohatsu is particularly poignant for me, happening as it does during the cold and early darkness of late autumn. Rohatsu is a time of deep stillness, before the transition to winter and the return of the light toward spring. As the world around me settles in to quiet stillness, so do I collect my mind and heart and give myself to the silence of deep meditation.

It is said that the Buddha taught one thing and one thing only: the existence of suffering and the end of suffering. Through the practice of silent meditation, we learn to watch what arises in our mind, how it can cause suffering, and how just as quickly as it arose, it can quietly dissipate. Instead of pushing away our suffering, we learn to look deeply into its causes. Over time, our suffering loosens its hold on us. This is the process of awakening, of springing into being.

Buddhism is not just about suffering. During Rohatsu, as I watch each moment arise and fall away, I realize each moment is precious, even the moments I don’t like. As I begin to appreciate the preciousness of each moment, I am less inclined to squander my energy on greed, hatred and delusion. My life has brought me pain and suffering, but it has also brought me joy and ease, love and the opportunity to practice. Ryokan expresses this poignantly in the following poem:

“Showing their backs

then their fronts

the autumn leaves

scatter in the wind

It is nothing more than this.”

Debra Anyu Savelle is a long-time member of Eugene Zendo, a Soto Zen community in west Eugene (www.eugenezendo.org). She is also working on her master’s degree in divinity at Maitripa College in Portland in preparation for training as a Buddhist chaplain. This column is coordinated by Lane Interfaith Alliance to provide inspiration, share personal spiritual experiences, and offer a deeper understanding of individual