Obaku Zen presents a distinctive synthesis in which classical Zen disciplines are interwoven with Pure Land devotion. At its core, the school maintains the traditional practices of zazen, koan contemplation, Dharma hall teaching, and direct master–student encounters. Seated meditation is cultivated both as simple, attentive sitting and as focused inquiry into key phrases of koans under guidance. These Zen methods are not treated as isolated techniques, but as ways of realizing one’s nature within a broader liturgical and devotional environment. The overall atmosphere is one of disciplined interiority shaped by formal practice and close instruction.

Alongside this, Obaku Zen places marked emphasis on nembutsu, the recitation of Amitābha Buddha’s name. This chanting is often rhythmic and may be integrated into meditation sessions, so that recollection of Amitābha and contemplative stillness support one another. Devotional ceremonies honoring Amitābha, together with visualization of the Buddha and the Pure Land, express a trust in other-power that stands beside the Zen stress on self-cultivation. Merit is dedicated for the sake of rebirth in the Pure Land, not as a departure from Zen, but as a complementary orientation of faith and aspiration. In this way, remembrance of the Buddha becomes both a contemplative focus and an expression of humility.

Monastic and communal life in Obaku Zen further reflects this integration. Daily liturgical services combine sutra chanting, offerings, and repentance practices with the formal style characteristic of Zen temples. Observance of monastic precepts is emphasized as a framework for ethical conduct and communal harmony, giving concrete shape to the inner work of meditation and devotion. Community work practice, tea ceremony, and calligraphy are taken up as extensions of the path, where mindfulness and aesthetic refinement are cultivated together. Through this constellation of practices, Obaku Zen embodies a path in which sudden insight, disciplined effort, and reliance on Amitābha’s compassionate vow are held in a single, mutually illuminating vision.