Feeding the Hungry Heart

Calling all you hungry hearts

Everywhere through endless time

You who wander, you who thirst

I offer you, this Bodhi Mind

Calling all you hungry spirits

All the lost and the left behind

Gather round and share this meal

Your joy and your sorrow, I make it mine. —Kanromon

Giving awakens the unbounded heart. What in our lives isn’t already shared?

If we open to all the inter-relationships that make up our lives, we begin to see that this life is vast, and full of uncounted kindnesses.

In the Zen tradition, we have ceremonies and rituals for awakening unbounded generosity. One seasonal ceremony is Sejiki, the Ceremony for the Hungry Ghost. During the ceremony we offer on the altar something for the hungry heart—the part of us that looks for satisfaction in things that often bring more pain, confusion and harm to ourselves and others.

We often fear the hungry ghost. We sometimes feel haunted by it. We often feel a lot of shame around what it reaches for, want it seems to want.

This ceremony invites us to meet this energy, this part of us—from a place of non-judgmental acceptance, loving kindness, curiosity.

Welcoming them out of the shadows, we feed them an offering of something that they truly desire, consciously—with awareness—we let ourselves feel their hunger, as well as perhaps the nourishment of generosity, of kind acceptance and care.

What happens when we when make an offering to our ghosts from a place of unbounded generosity and love?

We practice Sejiki once a year, but the spirit of making offerings to the hungry heart can continue beyond this one ceremony. Transformation often happens through sustained care, dedication and vow. Below are some daily rituals I have practiced in relationship to the hungry heart.

* Making offerings on my personal altar—I have a plate or bowl on my altar where I place offerings to my hungry heart. Whenever I interact with my altar, before or after meditation—I see the offering and have an opportunity to connect with the part of me that hungers.

* Offering a bite of food—this practice comes from the Zen practice of oryoki, where we place a few morsels of food in an offering dish for the hungry heart with the prayer, “may all be equally nourished.” The offerings in the dish can be placed outside or in the compost feeding whoever next comes in contact with them.

* Chanting the Kanromon—at the monastery we would chant the Chant to the Hungry Spirits or Kanromon every October. When I was on a two month private retreat and feeling the energies of the hungry heart strongly, I chanted this chant before every meal and sometimes more. Its a song about offering, about turning towards those lost and left behind with unbounded generosity.

If you want to sing along, here is a recording of Krishna Das singing the Kanromon.

Thank you! For the month of November Mud Lotus Sangha is sending 50% of our donations to the Clintonville-Beechwold Community Resource Center to help those in our neighborhood who are struggling with food insecurity this month. All of our communities can use extra support and there are many ways to practice generosity. Thank you for all the ways that you show generosity to me and the other beings in your life.

Weekly Online Meditation Event

Monday Night Dharma — 6P PT / 9P ET Join weekly for drop-in meditation and dharma talk. We are currently exploring the Faith in Mind poem by the 3rd Chinese Ancestor.

Feel free to join anytime. Event lasts about 1.5 hours. ZOOM LINK

In-Person in Oregon

Universe Somatic: The Bright Thread in the Dark — January 22nd - 25th

Universe Somatic is a practice that integrates group meditation, movement and energy work with a spirit of experimentation and playfulness. We explore the union of spaciousness and embodied energies in a contemplative practice that is embodied and expressive.

The theme for this Universe Somatic is The Bright Thread In the Dark. We will play in knowing and not-knowing, hope and despair, yin and yang, creation and destruction, dancing in deep relationship with these polarities while also listening for the thread that doesn’t get stuck on either side.

Light of the Ancestors Sesshin—May 11 - 17 at Great Vow Zen Monastery

In-Person in Columbus, Ohio through Mud Lotus Sangha

Weekly Meditations on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

Retreats, Meditation instruction and other events can be found on our website.

Save the Dates! 2026 Mud Lotus Sesshins at Saranam Retreat Center in West Virginia

Mountains and Rivers Sesshin March 18 - 22

Interdependence Sesshin June 29 - July 5

I’m Amy Kisei. I am a Zen Buddhist Teacher, Spiritual Counselor, Astrologer and Artist. I offer 1:1 Spiritual Counseling sessions using IFS and Hakomi (somatic mindfulness). I also offer astrology readings. Check out my website to learn more. I currently live in Columbus, OH and am a supporting teacher for the Mud Lotus Sangha.