When you read the scriptures, there is no use just passing your eyes over and over them. Rennnyo Shonin advised, "Make a point of reading the scriptures over and over." Also, there is a saying, "If you read a passage a hundred times, its meaning becomes clear by itself."

Sensei Miyakawa chanting at the Kamloops Buddhist Temple

In August, we had our second 12-Hour Marathon Chanting Event in memory of the victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Last year we had a similar event in Kelowna on August 9th marking the anniversary of the tragedy of Nagasaki. This year, in the Kamloops community, we honored the memory of the victims of Hiroshima. This event was supported by many of our dharma friends within the BC Interior. We had planned this for the previous three months, and had asked people to fold a paper crane as a symbol of peace and hope.

We all remember the story of Sadako, a child who died of leukemia as a result of the radiation effects of the bomb, who began the tradition of folding paper cranes in her hopes to regain her health. As we prepared the temple hondo for the event, we were all deeply touched by the sheer numbers of paper cranes that we received. These were carefully placed throughout the hondo, shrine areas, windows and floor. We estimated that there were more than 15,000 paper cranes that had been folded by members of our community throughout the province. This outpouring of effort was indescribable, casting an aura of reverence among all of us.

Throughout the chanting, visitors were invited to offer incense, strike the bell, fold a paper crane, or join with us in chanting the Pure Land Sutras. We began at 6.00am and continued non-stop until 6.00pm.

Towards the back of the Hondo, a film documentary on the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was also shown. The film included interviews with a number of the survivors, who described their experiences. The degree of devastation caused by the bombing of Hiroshima will remain vividly in our memories. Those who have visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial in Japan know the degree of destruction. Most find their visit to the Memorial an unforgettable and emotionally moving experience. Participants came and went throughout the day, some to watch, others to participate in the chanting. A small group of anti-nuclear activists participated in the chanting for a period of time. Although non-Buddhist, and unfamiliar with chanting, some described their experience as "deeply spiritual" and that it ìallowed a sense of connection with the victims of Hiroshima and the survivors. Someone said after about half an hour, "I began to feel very comfortable with the flow of the chant and the spirituality that was built into it." This gave me a sense of humility and privilege in sharing a spiritual connectedness with all of them.

Over the 12-hours, we chanted in English almost three complete cycles of our three Principal Sutras the Larger Sutra, the Contemplation Sutra, the Amida Sutra, as well as Shinran’s Shoshinge. For some participants, this represented the first real opportunity to directly encounter, in English, the words of Shakymuni Buddha and Shinran Shonin. For others, each repetition seemed to bring increased understanding and insight, and a sense of appreciation to the participants.

As we mark the anniversary of the tragedy of Hiroshima, we remember those who lost their lives, and those whose lives became forever changed. Let us not forget Hiroshima and the horrors of nuclear war. As we read the scriptures over and over, we are also reminded of Shinran Shonin’s wish for humankind as he wrote, "May there be peace in the world and may the Buddha’s teaching spread."

In Gassho, Rev. Yasuhiro Miyakawa

(Sensei Miyakawa is the Minister at the Kelowna Buddhist Temple serving the interior of the province of B.C. He is also the former Minister at the Manitoba Buddhist Temple.)

COURTESY THE NEW DHARMA EXPRESS, THE NEWSLETTER OF THE KELOWNA BUDDHIST TEMPLE...
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At the beginning of December, a group from the Buddhist House in Narborough village, just south of the city of Leicester in England gathered for their annual Bodhi Retreat. One of the rituals on this retreat is the wonderful chanting of the "24 Hour Nembutsu". Starting at noon, the group recites the Nembutsu until noon the following day. This was the third year they have held this marathon event.

Here is one person's recollection from the first time the group did it in 2005:

"Its hard to put into words this experience. There is much joy… as one settles into the nembutsu there are periods when everything else falls away; you become a communal act of worship, a coming together of people who share a similar path. The sound of the nembutsu at times almost shimmers around the hall. It is quite beautiful.Then there are times whem bombu nature kicks in. “Why are we doing this… I’m hungry… so-and-so is chanting flat… our team is struggling - why doesn’t someone from the other team swop and help us…. namo amida bu namo amida bu… i’m tired… namo amida bu… namo amida bu….”There’s a whole soap opera going on in one’s head, in each other’s heads and yet it is all held by the communal nembutsu… just as you are, just as it is. There are times when it may feel like the practice is very goal-oriented, about trying to last the whole 24 hours, or as long as one can, and then there are times when you realise that you have completely missed the point, that no one can do this by their own, unaided. That the whole twenty four hours enacts out our dependence; on Amida, on each other. The whole experience is transformed into a collective thank you! "

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This article by Jeff Wilson was found on the Tricycle Blog:

One aspect of aging that many Japanese greatly fear is memory loss. To combat this scourge, a number of Buddhist options have appeared. A popular one is pillow covers blessed by Buddhist monks to ward off dementia. These items are purchased at temples and taken home to be put on your bed pillows. As you sleep on them, the power of the Dharma helps ward off senility and other mental problems. Perhaps this is the religious equivalent of students putting their textbooks under their pillows so they'll pass a test the next day.
The Japan Times carried a story about another strategy. Some temples, such as Honjuin, a Tendai temple in Tokyo, offer Sutra copying to visitors in order to prevent memory loss. This is an ancient practice: laypeople have been sponsoring the copying of Sutras or doing it themselves for centuries in an effort to bring about all sorts of results, medical and otherwise. But now there seems to be some science to back the practice up. Dr. Kawashima Ryuta of Tohoku University discovered that copying Sutras promotes brain activity in senior citizens.

Want to try it out yourself? You don't even have to go to temple. Higashi Honganji, one of the largest Buddhist denominations in Japan, offers English-speakers the chance to copy a holy text online. Technically, it's a commentary, not a Sutra, though the text itself (Tannisho) is revered above many Sutras in the Jodo Shinshu tradition. Higashi Honganji doesn't promise memory retention, only that it can help settle your mind.

Jeff Wilson is a contributing editor to Tricycle magazine and the web site, Killing The Buddha. A Ph.D. candidate in Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he is dual-trained in Buddhist Studies and American Religious History. Jeff is a certified Lay Teacher in the Jodo Shinshu Buddhist tradition.