Buddhists answer call to fill void
Temples reach out to locals to regain social relevance
By HIROYASU TAKAYAMA
KAWAGUCHI, Saitama Pref. (Kyodo) About 15 mothers and children mash
up boiled soybeans at the command of Joko Yoshii, a 33-year-old
Buddhist priest clad in a black clerical garment. They are making
miso at a class in a Buddhist temple north of Tokyo.
Mothers and kids make miso under
the direction of Buddhist priest Joko Yoshii in the main hall of
Zengyoji Temple in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, in February.
KYODO PHOTO
Their final job in the main hall of Yoshii's temple, where the
principal Amida Buddha statue is enshrined, is to mix the mashed
beans with salt and "koji," a fermenting agent. The mixture will be
left for half a year to produce miso, an indispensable part of the
traditional Japanese-style breakfast.
"Miso-making was easier than I had expected. I had never visited
any temple except during Bon. But I'm surprised at the openness of
this temple," said Emiko Murakami, a 35-year-old housewife who was
attending the class with her two sons.
Buddhist temples used to thrive on support from strong networks of
local parishioners, but recently they have been criticized for
entering people's lives only in times of death as community and
family ties continue to fade in the shadow of Japan's postwar
modernization.
Yoshii, the second son of a priest of the Jodo Shinshu Honganji
branch of the Jodo Shinshu (True Pure Land) sect headquartered in
Kyoto, started his working life as a tour conductor at a travel
agency. He initially considered the idea of becoming a priest
unattractive, but changed his mind when he turned 25.
He then got a job as a preacher at a temple run by Jodo Shinshu in
Fresno, Calif., in 1999 after he passed a qualifying exam sponsored
by the sect, which has nearly 7 million members, of whom about 80
percent are Americans of Japanese origin. He spent two years
preparing for the exam.
Yoshii graduated from a Buddhist-affiliated university and launched
his own temple, Zengyoji, in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, in June
2006 with support from Jodo Shinshu based on his five-year
experience in Fresno.
Jodo Shinshu, founded by Shinran (1173-1263), is different and
independent of the Jodoshu (Pure Land School) sect, which was
founded by Honen (1133-1212). Its doctrine centers on absolute
trust in Amida Buddha's saving power. Shinran was a disciple of
Honen.
Along with preaching, Yoshii sponsors a series of traditional
seasonal festivals and ceremonies at his temple, such as
bean-throwing for "setsubun" (the seasonal divide) in spring to
"drive out devils" and the pounding of "mochi" (sticky rice) for
the New Year. The events used to draw just his wife and two sons,
but now they average about 100 people a month.
"In the past, Buddhist temples had been playing the role of local
community center in education and festival activities. I hope my
temple becomes a place where neighbors talk to each other about
both what brings them joy and pain. These events are to create such
an environment," Yoshii said at the main hall, where children were
running around chasing each other.
In his Fresno days, the temple where Yoshii served was a base for
volunteer activities and fun events, such as dancing the hula and
playing drums, with discussions on serious issues such as love and
life and death.
A husband decided to change his career from lawyer to monk after
his wife died saying a prayer to the Amida Buddha, who in Buddhist
lore is believed to live in the Western Pure Land. Yoshii also
quoted a former Christian member as saying, "Amida Buddha is to
save the lives of all beings. That is love."
"The Fresno temple was not only for the aged but for local
residents, who help each other and enjoy their life together as
people did at Buddhist temples in Japan in the past," Yoshii
said.
Noriyuki Ueda, 49, an associate professor of cultural anthropology
at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, was shocked when he heard one
of his students tell him that she visits a church rather than a
temple when she needs help because a temple is "likely to shut the
door on me."
"Modern Buddhism does not respond to our anguish," Ueda said. "The
religion has to become a 'listening' one and not a 'preaching' one.
The traditional communities have already collapsed in the face of
the widening disparities. Buddhist temples currently number less
than 80,000, but they could change Japan's mental scenery if they
listen to people's troubles and embody a place to show mercy," the
prominent anthropologist said.
A survey conducted by the Japan Buddhist Federation found that
about 70 percent of resident monks at some 2,000 temples throughout
the country said local people want the traditional Buddhist world
to provide overall care, while only 30 percent said they believed
it did so. In particular, they said not enough is done to help the
weak and protect the environment, the survey said.
But when asked whether their own temples responded to such local
expectations, some 60 percent of the polled said, "Yes."
"This gap reflects a sense of crisis and complaints about the
present Buddhist leaders by resident monks, who are trying to
respond to local hopes but feel the limits of their power," said
Satoru Eguchi, director of public relations at the
federation.
Kotaro Sugiura, a 58-year-old civil servant in Kawaguchi, paid a
visit to Zengyoji at the end of November 2006 to ask for a Buddhist
service for his elder son, who had died at age 24 one month
earlier.
The service marked the 49th day since his death, a traditional
memorial day for the recently departed in Japan. Sugiura had balked
at using a priest introduced by a funeral company.
"I felt an absence of absolutes for the first time in my life and
began to think about what religion is. I could not have taught a
way of life to my late son. I hope to play a role in listening to
others' anguish, while studying Buddhism," said Sugiura, who has
started to go to Zengyoji monthly with his family.
Outenin Temple in Osaka's Tennoji Ward is one of many Buddhist
temples like Zengyoji that aim to turn themselves into places for
"learning, healing and fun." Since 1997, the Osaka temple, which
has no parish or graveyard, has held more than 50 events such as
symposiums, movies and plays at its theater hall, where about
30,000 youths attend annually.
"It will take much time until our ideal Buddhist temples are
achieved. It took a century in the United States," Yoshii said.
"I'm satisfied if our grandchildren feel knowledge of Buddhism to
be useful a century from now."
The Japan Times: Friday, May 25, 2007
