Gareth Young's Bohemian Lifestyle

Instructions for Cleaning the Kitchen

From ancient times in communities practicing the Buddha’s Way there have been offices established to serve the sangha. In our community the office with responsibility for the cleaning of the kitchen is one such office. Although this work is just that of cleaning the kitchen, it is in spirit different from the work of an ordinary kitchen cleaner. Dogen said:

It is with this attitude that you should undertake the activity of cleaning the kitchen. Among the first things that this task requires you to do is to clean the floor, and the countertops in the kitchen and porch, and to cooperate and coordinate with the person responsible for cleaning the appliances, since you will need to keep these surfaces clean, although the person with specific appliance responsibility will perform a more thorough cleaning on a less frequent basis. The responsibilities also include keeping the kitchen and porch tidy, and ensuring that all dishes, food, towels, and so forth, are put away. As Dogen said, “Put those things that naturally go on a high place onto a high place, and those that would be most stable on a low place onto a low place; things that naturally belong on a high place settle best on a high place, while those which belong on a low place find their greatest stability there.”

The basic aspect of keeping the kitchen floor clean is to sweep it once a week. Be thoroughgoing in this effort. Make a small bow before commencing the task. Move items to give yourself the ability to sweep all parts of the floor, including the corners of the room, and then replace the items. While sweeping, examine the floor, and if there are spots where food or drink have marked the floor, use a damp cloth to wipe the floor clean. You should wash the floor monthly, and more frequently if it is dirty and requires it. Washing the floor should be done with a bucket of soapy water and a cloth. Using a mop for the majority of the floor is acceptable, but is no substitute for using a cloth in those parts of the floor that are most inaccessible, or where there is a stubborn mark requiring close attention. You should change the water frequently. The procedure for washing the floor is as follows. You should start in the corners farthest from the reception area, and work your way backwards towards the reception area, never walking on the clean floor until it is thoroughly dry. You should do this at a time when no one will be requiring access to the kitchen, since in this way you will neither inconvenience others, nor will others walk on and make dirty the wet floor. Once you have completed the task make a small bow and move on.

At all times pay the closest attention to your activities at work and the activities of your mind, and harmonize them. As Dogen says, “Both day and night allow things to come into and reside in your mind,” and “It is vital that we clarify and harmonize our lives with our work, and not lose sight of either the absolute or the practical.”

You should thoroughly rinse the cloth you use in the kitchen sink, wring dry, and then store in the bucket which should be replaced in the porch, so that it not be confused with the cloths used for other purposes, including cleaning the counter tops and the dishes.

You should likewise keep the floor of the porch clean. This requires you to vacuum on a weekly basis, commencing and finishing with a small bow, and to look diligently at the floor in the same manner described above, picking up any loose dirt that the vacuum cleaner does not. You must use a brush to clean out the edges into the middle of the floor before using the vacuum cleaner in order to thoroughly clean the floor. You should examine the floor for stains or marks, and if you see any you should use soapy water or cleaning chemicals to remove them, applying with the same cloth you use to clean the floor.

You should clean all countertops, including appliance surfaces weekly. You should use soapy water and a cloth, but ensure that the cloth is different from that used to clean the floor. You should thoroughly examine the surfaces as you clean then, and may need to go over some areas several times in order to remove stubborn marks. You should pay particular attention to door and drawer handles, which are usually heavily used and can get very dirty. You should also wipe the outside of the cupboards and the appliances down, to remove dust and any unnoticed spilled food or drink that is there.

If there are any dirty dishes, you should either wash them and put them away, or you should place them in the dishwasher. You should also open and look into the dishwasher on a weekly basis, to ensure that dirty dishes do not stay there for more than a week, and that if it has been run through and there are clean dishes, you should remove them and put them away. You should make a small bow in mindfulness before opening the dishwasher, and after completing this task, before moving on.

The level of concentration and attention you apply to these tasks should be supreme. A monk asked Ummon, “What is absolute concentration which comprehends every single particle of dust?” Ummon said, “Rice in the bowl, water in the bucket.” This related to the activities of the tensho, but equally relates to the activities of keeping the kitchen clean and tidy. Similarly, when a monk asked Joshu for instruction, Joshu asked, “Have you had your breakfast?” and upon the monk saying “Yes, I have,” he told the monk, “Then wash your bowls.” The responsibilities of keeping the kitchen and porch clean and tidy are indeed a great opportunity for practice.

You should work with this spirit to keep the dishes clean and tidy, and to the extent that those who have used and dirtied dishes did not clean and put them away, it is your responsibility on a weekly basis to do so. Plates should be stored in the cupboard above the kitchen sink, or in the appropriate container in the porch; pots and pans mostly on the shelves in the porch; and cutlery in the drawers by the kitchen sink. You should likewise ensure that all food and so forth that is in the kitchen is kept in its proper place. On a weekly basis you should examine the porch to ensure that it is kept tidy, and that the shelves are properly organized. You should also ensure that there are clean towels and washcloths. Old washcloths should be thrown in the trash, and dirty towels placed into the laundry basket in the closet just outside the bathroom once per week. You should replace each dirty towel with a clean one from the bottom drawer in the kitchen.

It is important that you remember the words of Dogen cited earlier as you work at this task, and “put your whole attention into the work, seeing just what the situation calls for. Do not be absent minded in your activities, nor so absorbed in one aspect of the matter that you fail to see its other aspects. Do not overlook one drop in the ocean of virtue. Cultivate a spirit which strives to increase the source of goodness upon the mountain of goodness.”