[creewespock]

I am going to go on a silent retreat later in the year - 10 days, and have never done this before, I am looking forward to it. I am curious though about the process and what evolves through it ...

That is a great news Blueseasparkling,

In Soto Zen we have what is known as a Seshin. A seshin is the great chance we have to be concentrated like in a retreat for the practice of Zazen and between lagre periods of sitting meditation (za-Zen) we can have one or two teishos (a short speech form the experience of the roshi) in the Koan style.

It is important to say that the environment we have in a seshin is of an absolut and tight silence. And it is wonderfull. I realy enjoy that so much! So there is no room for speaking to each other even when we are washing dishes. Also there are no cafee brakes to speack. At the end of the seshin we have a time for a feed back of our experience and then we leave the dojo.

I was told that some time before, some new members go through what is like the process of drug detoxication... the first days they seem highly anxious... and uncomfortable... That is why a seshin is just recomended by the roshi by invitation only and after an intense and regular practice of zazen.

Now, a Koan (the essence of a Teisho) makes you stop your chattering, discursive and scattered mind so to make it silent and develop a direct insight or knowledge: this is the meaning of Negemisho or the way of silent teaching. This ]Here[/url] and here also you can find an exaple of what we mean by silent teaching.

Silent learning has to be achieved through the practice of zazen and bringing that into our daily life. A silent mind is that mind that has reached the state of dispasion through the practice of the middle way and zazen.

Zazen is the backbone of Soto Zen school. Silent learning comes with a deep awareness of the middel way so disspasion. We need seshins very much so to practice silence starting with not talking but to evolve as an insight so that with practice, even when you are speaking your mind is still, mindfull and dispasionate.