The head priest and lecturing priests make lectures about Buddhist scriptures and preachings against Buddhists and other priests, and especially in the Zen sect, it is called 'Jodo Seppo' to make preachings up on the hoseki (seat for preachers), and the contents of the preachings, which are called jodogo, are recorded in goroku (collection of quotations) such as 'Rinzai Roku' (the record of Rinzai's teachings).
住職や講義僧がここで経典の講読や説法を信者や他の僧侶に向けて行い、特に禅宗では、ここで法席に昇って説法することを「上堂説法」と言い、そこで話された内容を上堂語と言い、『臨済録』などの語録に収録されている。