Life in a Chan monastery is shaped by a highly structured rhythm that weaves meditation, ritual, work, and study into a single, continuous field of practice. The day typically begins before dawn with a wake‑up bell or wooden board, followed by quick washing and the donning of robes. Early morning is devoted to seated meditation in the Chan hall, often interspersed with periods of walking meditation to steady body and mind. This is usually followed by a morning chanting service, where sutras, mantras, or dhāraṇīs are recited and merit is dedicated to all beings. Through this pattern, the community is oriented toward clarity and devotion from the very first light of day.

Meals are themselves formal rituals of mindfulness. Breakfast and the midday meal are taken in silence, with specific chants before and after eating, and carefully prescribed gestures that express gratitude and restraint. Food is plain, typically vegetarian, and the midday meal is traditionally the last substantial meal of the day. At times, leftover food or offerings are ritually dedicated to unseen beings such as hungry ghosts, extending compassion beyond the visible community. Even in this simple act of eating, the training emphasizes awareness, humility, and interdependence.

After the morning meal, the monastery turns to work and study, yet these too are regarded as Chan practice rather than distractions from it. Manual labor—cleaning, sweeping courtyards, gardening, cooking, repairing buildings, copying texts, and attending to administrative tasks—is undertaken in a spirit encapsulated by the saying attributed to Baizhang: “a day without work is a day without food.” Study periods are devoted to Buddhist scriptures, Chan records, and monastic regulations, and may include formal Dharma talks by the abbot or senior monks. In some lineages, practitioners also meet individually with the master to discuss their meditation, including work with huatou or gong’an‑like methods.

Afternoons and evenings continue this alternation of meditation, work, and ritual. Additional periods of seated and walking meditation are held, sometimes with further instruction or completion of daily chores. Evening chanting services may include sutra recitation, repentance verses, protective formulas, and dedication of merit, often accompanied by bowing and prostrations. A light meal or tea, personal study, and quiet reflection lead into an early bedtime, with silence generally maintained in the dormitories or simple cells. Throughout the day, observance of precepts, regular confession and repentance, and participation in community rituals—such as memorial services, tea ceremonies, and observance of Buddhist calendar days—support a life in which every gesture can become an expression of Chan.

At certain times, this already disciplined schedule becomes even more intensive. During extended meditation retreats, periods of seated and walking meditation are lengthened, work is reduced, and conversation is minimized, allowing the mind to turn more fully inward. More frequent interviews with the master may be held, sharpening the inquiry into one’s own mind. Weekly or bi‑weekly head‑shaving, community meetings, and visits from teachers punctuate the routine, yet the underlying principle remains constant: meditation, ritual, work, and study are not separate compartments, but interpenetrating forms through which Chan realization is cultivated in the midst of ordinary monastic life.