Zazen gi (Japanese:坐禪儀), also known in various English translations such asThe Standard Method of Zazen orPrinciples of Zazen, is a book of theShōbōgenzō by the 13th centurySōtōZen monkEihei Dōgen. The book appears tenth in the 75 fascicle version of theShōbōgenzō, and it is ordered 58th in the later chronological 95 fascicle "Honzan edition".[1] It was presented to his students in the eleventh month of 1243 at Yoshimine shōja (吉峰精舍), a small temple where Dōgen and his sangha practiced briefly following their sudden move toEchizen Province from their previous templeKōshōhōrin-ji earlier in the same year and before the establishment ofEihei-ji. Unlike other books of the Shōbōgenzō, it is not as much a commentary on classicalChinese Chan literature as it is a guide for the practice ofzazen. The title comes from earlier Chinese texts of the same name and purpose, with a well known example found in theChanyuan qinggui, from which Dōgen quotes extensively. His more famousFukan zazengi, as well asEihei shingi'sBendoho, also owe much to this Chinese text and are thus closely related to the Shōbōgenzō'sZazen gi.[2][3]
