JUST SAY MAHALO®

Author: kerry

  • “What can I do” during times of disaster?

    The practice of ‘o-mimai ‘ as an Expression of Caring (PHOTO CREDIT: Matthew Thayer / The Maui News / Associated Press) As the impact of the wildfires on Maui becomes clearer each day, the all-too-human response is to become overwhelmed emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually, to be frozen into the anxiety of inaction. We are horrified,…

  • Just Bon Dance Like a Fool!

    “Persons of the Pure Land tradition attain birth in the Pure Land by becoming their foolish selves.” —Shinran Shōnin, quoting his great teacher Hōnen Shōnin, founder of Jōdo-shū, in Lamp for the Latter Ages, Fascicle 6, CWS, Vol 1, page 531 Did you know the English phrase “bon dance” is unique to Hawaii? In Japan,…

  • “In anpan veritas” IN ANPAN, TRUTH

    When people ask me what I miss about living in Japan, I honestly tell them, “Anpan!” — the perfect bun filled with sweetened bean paste! Anpan was a major discovery when I was an exchange student in Tokyo in the early 1980s—the perfect fusion of a Western-style bread and Japanese-style sweets. In the 2010s, I…

  • I Love Japanese Branding #17

    Drip Coffee “Arigatō” (“thank you”)

  • Ondokusan: Now More Than Ever

    Ondokusan: Now More than Ever (Radio Broadcast: October 2, 2022 7:45 a.m. (HST) KZOO Honolulu. Copyright (c) 2022 Moiliili Hongwanji Mission) Aloha!  I would like to take a few moments this morning to explain the meaning and significance of the gatha Ondokusan because these words of Shinran speak to us now more than ever. Such…

  • Why did the Shin Buddhist  cross the road? To get to the Other Shore.

    —Shinran-shōnin (never said that)  Higan literally means the “Other Shore” and in Jōdo Shinshū Hongwanji tradition refers to the Pure Land of Amida Buddha, Sukhavati—the Realm of Ultimate Bliss, Nirvana, Supreme Enlightenment, and Oneness with Amida. In Japanese tradition, Higan marks the seasonal equinoxes. Higan is also referred to as o-higan, using the honorific prefix…

  • What is the sound of one hand clapping?

    (photo removed due to copyright issues)

  • Sunday Fun Day Service: What’s the Magic Word that Scares Away Scary Things?

    Barkley the Dog and Lucy the Lady Bug save the day when that pesky King Tut and scary minion Coconut Monkey kidnap Sensei and give the Dharma Buddies an impossible choice: give up all their candy —OR—uncover the Secret Word That Scares Aways Scary Things!

  • BAT IN A BIRD NEST

    In the Children’s Dharma Story Time on October 24, 2021, Barkley the Dog and Lucy the Lady Bug shared the classic book, Stellaluna, by Janell Cannon, a book I fondly remember reading to our son. Stellaluna teaches a profound lesson about harmony: living together despite our differences.   Stellaluna is a fruit bat, who is…

  • The Masks We Wear: Halloween 2021

    (Minister Message, Makawao Hongwanji Buddhist Temple Newsletter, October 2021) Twelve months have passed since the Makawao Buddhist Temple hosted its first (and supposed to be only) “in-person distanced trick-or-treat” Halloween Fun Day in October 2020. This was first time in months we were able to welcome back on temple grounds our precious keiki, Dharma School…