How to Create a Home Zendo

A Zendo is the traditional place for Zen study and meditation. Think church, synagogue or mosque if you like although the idea of a zendo is much more personal and directed. If you have a spiritual practice such as meditation, prayer or yoga (art qualifies!) then you already know the importance of having a special, even safe sacred and sacrosanct space in which to explore self-growth, insight and conscious contact with a higher power. Trying to meditate or center amidst dinner preparation, phone calls and normal clutter can most definitely be brake on what should be a speedy home vehicle for enlightenment. You most likely already have given some thought to preparing a safety zone for the sacred somewhere in your living space.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Choose a space in your home, perhaps a corner of your bedroom if you practice alone.
2. Cleanse the area by smudging it with a sage stick, incense or by merely sitting there quietly and thinking of the future uses to which you’ll dedicate the area.
3. Decorate the space in accordance with your own yearnings. In other words, if you’re Christian, hang a picture of Jesus or some dried palms from Palm Sunday. A Buddhist will, of course, include a Buddha statue signifying the goal of the work done in the space. A small low table can be used for statues, ritual objects and anything else you can think of. The objects in your sacred space are tools, really. Think of yourself as a spiritual craftsman. The space is both your workshop and toolbox.
4. Scents affect us more powerfully than any other sense we are told so give some thought to incense, a vase for flowers, or touches of essential oils.
   People engaged in yogic practice will include a mat, meditators a zafu (round cushion) and Christians might consider a kneeling bench.
5. Name the space. Mine, in the spirit of Zen, is called “Right Here” A Wicca practitioner might choose an earth-based name such as “Grove of the Goddess.” You get the idea. Naming is a powerful tool in itself and will make the space even more special.
6. Include sacred or special books, texts and poems. A small library of essential reading material including the Bible, sutras, or even an inspirational poem on the wall will magnify the impact of the space. In fact, think of the space as an amplifier for your acoustic instrument. (You are the instrument on which the divine plays its tune!)
7. Clean the area regularly! In many traditions, the condition of your place of worship, such as a shrine or altar, reflects in a very real way the state of your mind and soul. Keeping the space in order is in itself perhaps the most essential spiritual practice of all. But perhaps the biggest lesson you’ll learn is that you can invite the sacred to dwell anywhere. All you need is already at hand in your home. All you need to do now is to put it together.