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Baby Buddha’s Birthday Party: The Story of Hanamatsuri
Dharma Talk for Children at Makawao Hongwanji Buddhist Temple in Historic Makawao Town on the beautiful island of Maui in the great State of Hawaiʻi. Ever wonder why we pour “sweet tea” over a statue of the Baby Buddha in a “flower palace” for “Hanamatsuri” every year? Rev. Kerry explains the meaning and significance of…
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The Pain is ME: You’re Only Human
Aloha kakou! Aloha everyone! Ohayo gozaimasu! Good morning! Let’s begin with wisdom of Shinran Shōnin, the founder of Jodo Shinshu. My fervent wish is this: Whether monk or layperson, when on board the ship of the great compassionate Vow, let pure shinjin be the favorable wind, and in the dark night of ignorance, let the…
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The Only Thing to Hate is Hate Itself
Dharma Talk at Makawao Hongwanji on the beautiful island of Maui in the great state of Hawaiʻi on March 21, 2021.
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The Other Shore? You’re Standing on It.
Dharma Talk for Spring Equinox Service (Shunki Higan Hoyo) at Makawao Hongwanji Buddhist Temple in Historic Makawao Town on the beautiful island of Maui in the great state of Hawaiʻi. The Equinox, when day and night, light and dark, are exactly equal is the perfect time to pause and reflect on the balance between our…
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“LOCK HIM UP!”
A reflection on my personal reactions to the horrific insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and how as Shin Buddhists, we can try to respond to the relentless images of violence and destruction. From a Buddhist perspective, there are no “winners” or “losers”, no “good” or “evil”, no “right” and “wrong”, just us, ordinary human beings…
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To Vaccine or Not to Vaccine, that is the Question
“To vaccine or not to vaccine, that is the question.” From a Buddhist perspective, there is no question: get the vaccine! Based on the Buddhist principle of ahimsa “non-harm,” protecting oneself and others from infection by receiving a COVID-19 vaccination is intuitively obvious. The Dharma of the Buddha’s Teachings consistently emphasizes causality, empiricism, and logical…
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Amida’s Absolute Ahola: “…bits of rubble turned into gold.”
Let’s begin with the wisdom of Shinran Shōnin. Please join me in putting our palms together in gasshō. “(Amida) Buddha, in the causal stage, made the universal Vow: When beings hear my Name and think on me, I will come to welcome each of them, Not discriminating between the poor and the rich and wellborn,…
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“A Great Torch in the Dark Night of Ignorance”
Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii Online Dharma Message on November 1, 2020: “A Great Torch in the Dark Night of Ignorance”. Grateful for the opportunity to give an Online Dharma Message today—because it means I woke up not dead! In reflection, everything in my life has led me to this moment, every person I encountered…
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「時間があり過ぎる」
本派本願寺ハワイ別院の「本願寺アワー」というラジオ番組の為のミニ法話をするご縁に恵まれました。二十何年も経っているが、まだまだ日本語の発音などに聞き苦しいところがあると思いますが、どうぞよろしくお願いいたします。 This is a Japanese-language “mini” Dharma Talk originally broadcast on KZOO-AM as part of the Hongwanji Hour radio program that Hawaii Betsuin has sponsored for many years. The English title is “There’s Too Much Time” and my essay on this experience can be found here. Even after having lived in Tokyo for 25 years,…
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Let’s Make Rainbows
Once upon a time in a magical place called Hawaii, eight islands in the middle of the big blue sea, there lived many happy children who loved to play together. One day, the children noticed they were all different colors. “I’m black!” “I’m white!” “I’m purple!” The children started arguing. “I’m best because I am…
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