Buddhist Thoughts - Salt Lake Buddhist Temple

Buddhist ThoughtsSalt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13 issue 8web site: slbuddhist.orgSeptember, 2005Rev. Hirano’s contact numbers: Office: 363-4742,home: 299-8727, emergency 718-5755All Things Have Their PlaceJ.K. HiranoEuclid Park in OhioAutumn leaves fallingEach leaf falls in perfect timeThere are times when I have wondered howa grumpy old man such as myself was lucky enoughto have met with the Nembutsu and become a JodoShinshu priest. I am not the type of person tohumbly bow and thank the world for each and everymoment I am given. As many of you will attest to,I do not suffer fools lightly. In reality, I shouldrealize that I am the most foolish of the foolish. Yet,when I perceive something has not met myperception of right and wrong, I am the first tocomplain. As I complain, I enjoy the feel of voicingmy righteous indignation. Complaints seem to takeover my being; I bask in my foolish ego.However, among this rubble of complaints,I have been allowed to live a wonderful life. Thissummer I had two experiences that allowed me tosee just what a wonderful life I have had. Both ofthese insights were given to me by two strangers.The first of these teachers was a black jack dealer inLas Vegas.At my Bachelor’s Party in Las Vegas, I wassitting at a black jack table with my good friendWendell Hamamoto. I go to a casino and enjoysitting in front of a slot machine, losing myself in thedialogue between me and the beeping sounds of themachine. However, during a respite from themachines, I joined my friend Wendell at a black jacktable. Wendell enjoys interacting with the dealerand other players. He enjoys the human side ofgambling compared to my desire for solitude. As wesat at the table, he told the dealer, “We’re here forhis bachelor’s party,” pointing to me. The dealersmiled. Wendell added, “It’s his third time.” In mymind, I thought, “Oh no, what’s the dealer and otherplayers going to think. This guy must really be aloser to have been married three times. Why didWendell say that!?” Without pause, the dealerlooked at me and said, “You’re a very lucky man tohave been loved so much.” All of us at the tablelaughed, but a light went off within me. I am alucky man. I might be losing and not so lucky atgambling, but in life, I have been truly lucky.On contemplating my third marriage, Ithought about the fact that I am not very good atmarriage. I have tried twice before and both havebeen failures. Or at least, so I had thought. As aresult I was rather negative in viewing marriage formyself. It was something that may be fine for others,but I really wondered if it is right for me. However,failure is the description my ego had given my pastmarriages. Is loving someone else and receivingtheir love in return, even for a short time, ever afailure? On this third try, I had met someone whohas offered me another chance, just as I continue to

2 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005gamble, although I am not very good at it.Marriage, when it is right, is one of the mostpeaceful and stabilizing relationships we havecreated as humans. It allows us the opportunity tosee our lives, and ourselves, beyond our own egocentered viewpoint. Whether or not we do this is upto each person in the relationship. Marriage doeshave its benefits and I have been given thisopportunity one more time, by a woman I believe tobe the right one for me.My ex-wives had tried to create a union thatwould last, but because of the grumpy old man thatI am, neither had worked out. Up until thisrevelation, I had been thinking that I am not verylucky in gambling or love. Yet, this black jackdealer, had shed a positive light on my negativebeliefs. I have indeed been a lucky man to havebeen loved by others, to the point that they werewilling to share their lives with me. This third try atthe ring of marital bliss was something I have beenblessed with, better than hitting a monetary jackpot.My life is just right for me.The second teacher I met was an ex streethustler from Cleveland, Ohio. At our annual BCAministers research seminar, Socho Ogui had inviteda former student of his from the Cleveland Sangha tospeak with the ministers. This former street hustler’sname was Craig Jisui Horten. I do not have thetime to get into his entire dharma talk. However, itwas one of the most enlightening English Dharmatalks I had ever heard.Sensei Horten, before encountering theNembutsu teachings, had never been outside ofCleveland, Ohio. He didn’t know any Japanesepeople, for that was something outside of hisneighborhood. Yet when he began going to thetemple, he felt the teachings spoke to him. Duringhis Dharma talk, he spoke of how he likes to wakeup early in the morning to the sound of the birds. Hetalked about one early morning waking up andwalking outside to a park near his home calledEuclid Park. As he listened to the birds and watchedthe autumn leaves falling in the park, he realizedthat none of the leaves fall at the wrong time. Asthey fall, each leaf, falls in the right place, like apiece to a puzzle. As he explained this scene, I felta light go off within me. This is the essence of thedharma in all its glory.There is a famous poem by the poet Ryokan(1758-1831) it is used by many Buddhist priests intheir Dharma talks.Maple leaves fallShowing the front,Showing the back.Yet, how many of us can live the life of a maple leaf,showing the front and back. This is almost anunattainable goal, something we can only strive for.Yet, in realizing the leaves falling in perfect time, wehave been shown the beauty of our everyday lives.As Sensei Horten described his observation of theleaves in Euclid Park, the haiku I began this articlewith, naturally formed within my mind. I had metmy first non Japanese myokonin. Myokonin aredescribed and identified throughout Jodo Shinshuhistory, as individuals with a deep understanding ofthe Nembutsu teachings. Most were not formallyeducated in Buddhism, yet through their lifeexperience, come to a deep spiritual understanding.Myokonin literally means “wonderful, exquisiteperson.” Through listening to this Dharma talk, Ihad seen that Jodo Shinshu indeed has a place inAmerica. The seeds planted by our Issei ministersare beginning to blossom into the nembutsu flowerswithin this land. Even a grumpy old man,such as myself, is embraced and given life throughNamo Amida Butsu. Horten Sensei’s dharma nameJisui means “compassionate water.” I have beenallowed to take a drink from the compassionatewater of Life. .Jodo Shinshu and the Nembutsuteachings are not something held within ourestablished temples. It is something that we will findeverywhere. It is life as it is. At a black jack tablein Las Vegas and within a small inner city park inCleveland, when we are allowed to open our eyes toit and drink the compassionate water. Like the“ahhhh” of refreshment after a refreshing drink ofwater, all I can say is Namo Amida Butsu.President’s Message

3 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005Paul TerashimaOnthJuly 29-31, the 35 MountainStates District Conference was heldat Park City, at the Best WesternLandmark Inn. The theme for this year’s conferencewas “Seek The Teaching and Share It With Others”.This year, we had a panel of four people whochanged their religion to Buddhism. The panelconsisted of Christine Clifford, Carmela Javellaneand Ivan Van Laningham from the Salt LakeTemple and Annetta Koga from the Ogden Temple.We had the young Jr and high school peopleattending this panel discussion. It was veryinteresting to listen to each panel member explainwhy and how they thought Buddhism was the rightreligion for them. I found it very interesting whythey believed that Buddhism was the right religionfor them, since I grew up as a Buddhist. I’ve hadcontact with other religions, but the panel gave me adifferent view of Buddhism and I thank the wholepanel for this.We have thanked Karen Tohinaka and hercommittee for doing such a great job putting thisconference together. They had great activities for allthe age groups. The food was great and it seemedthat everyone had a wonderful time. We had morethan two hundred people attending this conference.Thank you again Karen and your committee forsuch an enjoyable conference.August 18, Scott Watanabe and the basketballplayers refinished the gym. Again, they did a greatjob. They should, since they have been doing it foras long as I can remember. I know MikeFurubayashi and I started refinishing the floor whenwe had the Oriental Basketball League. I got Scott,Gary Koga and the older basketball players torefinish the gym floor. Now Scott and the basketballplayers have taken over and have refinished the gymfloor on they own. They have donated all the timeand equipment to do the job. The Temple thanks thisgroup of men for their hard work in keeping theTemple in excellent condition. These men alsovolunteer to bar-b-que the chicken every year at ourObon and Food Bazaar. Most of these men are notTemple members, so the Temple is very lucky tohave them. Thanks Scott for taking the initiative tomake these things happen.If you notice that the Temple have new glassbackboards. The Temple has to thank ScottWatanabe for them.The winners for the 2005 Special Awards areJan-Richard Matsuno, Feb-Dr David A Lusty,March-Al Tokunaga, April-Richard Sekiguchi ,May-Reiko Mitsunaga, June-May Matsuda andJuly-Andrew Kyed. Thank you for supporting theSpecial Awards.BWA NewsYoshiko UnoWe want to thank all who helped makeour Obon a successful event.Our Mountain States Conferenceheld at Park City on July 29-31 was enjoyed byall. The panel discussion with panelists: KristineClifford, Ivan Van Laningham, Carmela Javallana,and Annette Koga was informative. I think many ofus who are members do not take the teachings of ourreligion as seriously as our new members. I knowthat I haven't. It was inspiring to learn that our newmembers value their participation as members of ourtemple. We want to thank them for sharing theirthoughts and feelings with us. Also we want to thankDrs. Tami and Brian Fukushima for theirpresentation on Asian health issues. As Asians weare a higher risk for some diseases than the rest ofthe population and they gave us some valuableinformation.We held our annual Steak Fry on August14th at Sugarhouse Park. We had about 75 peopleattending. It was enjoyed by all. As usual we had agreat variety of dishes to feast upon. BWA providedthe steaks and sausages. We want to thank: RubyDoi for purchasing the steaks, Jane Sakashita forordering the sausages, Terry Fujunami for setting upthe tables, Carl & Yuriko Dennison for helping withthe supplies and corn, Yuki Okubo, Chie Sugaya,Jeff Watanabe, and Ray Uno for helping with the

4 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005corn. Takeko Doi and Ruby Doi donated all thecorn. Henry Kuramoto, Neil Chow, Jeff Watanabe,Carl Dennison and Ray Uno helped with the grilling.THANK YOU to all who helped and contributedto make our annual outing a success.Brenda Koga is looking for volunteers tohelp with the fund raiser for the Homelss Shelter. AChilli Cook-off is held annually to support theshelter. Please contact Brenda if you would like tohelp.The Federation of Buddhist Women'sConference - October 7-9th will be held inFresno. If anyone is interested in attending, pleasecontact myself or go to our Temple website for moreinformation. We would like to have more peopleattend and will try to help in making arrangements.Our next meeting will be September 18thafter service. We encourage all to attend. A lightlunch will be served. We will discuss plans for ourOctober 1st Food Bazaar..Dharma School UpdateKaren TohinakaThank you to all who attend theMountain States Conference in ParkCity. The Panel discussion andpresentation on Aging were great A big thank youto all who were on the panel Ivan, Carmella,Christine, and Annette and Brian Fukushima and hiswife for the presentation on aging. Ichiro Doi andCarl Dennison did a great job in running the bingogame which everyone had fun at winning prizes andgift certificates. Congratulations to Joy Furubayashifor winning the big prize. Special thanks to the storeand restaurants who donated the gift certificates:Koyo, Yamasaki, and Oriental Food Market.Just a reminder that the Dharma School picnicthwill be on September 11 from 11am-3pm at WestBountiful Park. The address is 550 West Pages Lane(1600 No.) Salt Lake – exit 400 No. Bountiful(#321 exit), turn west and then first right (800 West– headed north). Go to Pages Lane and turn east.Please bring a salad. Looking forward to seeing youall there.Jr. YBABruce FongWelcome back to Dharma School!The Jr. YBA is selling purple“Namu Amida Butsu” wristbands for $3.00 each.They are available in Small, Medium and Largesizes. See any of the Jr. YBA members or advisorsto purchase one.We will continue to take Scrip orders during theyear. Scrip are gift cards and certificates torestaurants, retail stores and gas stations in the area.They make great gifts for birthdays, thank you’s, orany special occasion. An order form is included inthe Buddhist Thoughts each month.We will be taking orders:thSeptember 25 (Ohigan)October 9 ththOctober 30 (Halloween party)November 13 ththNovember 20 (Eitaikyo)December 4 ththDecember 11 (Bodhi Day)Orders are available for pick-up the weekafter orders are submitted. We thank the Sangha fortheir continued support of our efforts.There will be a Jr YBA meeting onthSeptember 25 to elect officers and discuss activitiesfor the new year.Temple Building UpdateReport from Special Meeting

5 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005Brenda KogaOn June 25, 2005 a special meetingregarding the direction of the templebuilding project was held at thetemple. Prior to that meeting a letter was sent to allcontributors to the building fund inviting them toparticipate in the meeting and decision makingprocess.Information was shared to update the attendees onthe history and progress of the project with a reporton the current status of the building project.Initially, the building committee was formed toaddress issues resulting from a growing membership.However, since that time the membership hasstabilized and in fact, is actually on the decline.Financially, the temple building fund is not adequateto support the construction of a new building withoutacquiring major debt, which the board andmembership has strongly opposed since the inceptionof the project.Participants were invited to ask questions andseveral options were discussed regarding the futuredirection of the building committee in addressing theneeds regarding the facilities. Those optionsincluded 1) relocating to build a new facility or tooccupy an existing building that meets thecongregation’s needs, 2) stay on the current site andremodel the exiting facility or 3) stay and build anew temple.At the conclusion of the meeting the participantsvoted to stay at the current site and remodel andupgrade the current facility. Thus, the buildingcommittee has initiated an assessment of the templeneeds spearheaded by Ernest Kyed. The committeewill prioritize those needs and begin to address themusing resources within our membership as much aspossible to keep costs to a minimum. Furtherquestions or concerns should be directed to BrendaKoga or Paul Terashima.Anyone interested in assisting with these projectsshould contact Ernie or Brenda Koga.YBAWes KogaThe YBA extends a very heartfelt “ThankYou” to the following people who workedso hard to make the YBA concessionstand successful at Obon:Purchasing necessary supplies: Dave & ErinSekinoCooking the azuki beans: Maya Chow,Connie Sakashita, Erin Sekino & DebbieKogaPreparing snow cone syrup: Erin Sekino &Debbie KogaSetting up snow cone flavor bottles: SharonMatsuura & Erin SekinoSetting up the trailer with supplies: SeanSekino, Shawn Koga, Keith Chow, MichaelFong & Erin SekinoConcession stand workers: Michael Iwasaki,Emily Iwasaki, Nick Sueoka, Tyler Koga,Sidney Furubayashi, Allison Spehar, SeanSekino, Andrew Sekino, P.J. Nakamura,Eric Koga, Blake Akimoto, AliciaMatsuura, Shawn Koga, Michael Fong,Cory Sakashita & Keith ChowDonation of hot dogs: Troy and JudyWatanabeA big thank you to those who stayed to cleanup after we were already so tired!– ConnieSakashita, Cory Sakashita, Erin Sekino, SeanSekino, Shawn Koga, Keith Chow, Michael Fong,Blake Akimoto, Chad Tohinaka & Debbie KogaA special thank you to Erin Sekino forscheduling the concession shifts, supplying cleaningsupplies, coolers, utensils, towels, and a lot of hardwork and dedication!

6 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005Obon ReportBruce FongThe annual Obon Festival was held onJuly 9th. Hot temperatures did notdeter the crowds from making theweekend a huge success. The energetic crowddanced and celebrated well into the night andlingered in the street long after the dancing ended!Last year’s successful mini-food bazaar was triedagain this year. Drawing from last year’sexperience, a few small changes were made in theway that food was prepared and served. In an effortto speed the lines along, the somen crew pre-cookedand refrigerated the noodles the night before theObon. This also eased the workload in the kitchenon the day of the Obon.The BWA along with a few Dharma Schoolparents arrived early in the morning to prepare thesushi. These volunteers deserve special recognitionfor their dedication. At every Obon and FoodBazaar, these same volunteers arrive at 4am to startcooking 250 pounds of rice and laying out tables forpreparing the sushi. They work until 10am after allthe sushi rolls have been cut and assembled intotake-out packages. Many of these dedicatedvolunteers help in the kitchen throughout the daybefore taking time to enjoy dinner and dancing.Their hard work is greatly appreciated!This year, the Ogden Buddhist Temple was kindenough to lend us their huge propane grill forbarbequing chicken. Having the grill meant thatonly 3-4 barbequers were needed to cook about 200chicken and shrimp skewers per hour. The barbequecrew started at noon and easily kept pace with thedemand for chicken and shrimp skewers until 8pm.Held over from last year were teriyakimeatballs, edamame, Oriental salad, and fruit salad.The salads were again prepared fresh throughout theday.The food servers were up to the task thisyear, as the only noteworthy line occurred whenlarge crowds arrived in the hour just prior to theTaiko drum performance and Obon dancing. Withthe exception of some teriyaki chicken skewers, allof the food was completely sold out by 8pm. Way togo food servers!Again, most of the comments have beenhighly favorable, and the quality of the food hasincreased from previous years. Last year wereported that gross food sales were increased 15-20% over previous years. We are happy to reportthat food sales increased an additional 15% over lastyear. Thanks to all the food preparers, handlers andcleaning crews for putting forth the extra time andeffort necessary to turn out quality products!The Obon committee is also extremelygrateful to the many, many needed donationsreceived in recognition of this important event thathelps sustain our temple. Thanks to all those whogave monetary donations in recognition of the Obonand Obon practices. Also, many thanks to QualityProduce for their generous donations of fruit andvegetables.Although the Obon is our temple's secondlargest fundraising event, it is even more importantand gratifying to see all the organizations workingtogether to make a truly festive and fantastic day.There was a lot of long, hard work involved but veryfew complaints. The dedicated and hardworkingmembership is the true strength of our temple!Many thanks to the temple's generalmembership, BWA, Dharma School, YBA, Jr YBA,Building Fund committee, and the many nonmemberswho showed up to volunteer! Our temple'slargest fundraising event, the Food Bazaar, is nearlyupon us. Please step forward to help wherever youcan.With Gassho,Bruce Fong and David Sekino2005 Obon ChairpersonsBWA DonationsYuriko DennishoTammura Kuramoto Donation-Steak Fry Picnic$20.00

7 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005Kiyo Okumura Donation-Steak Fry Picnic$25.00David Shiraiwa & Fusae Nakanishi Special$60.00*Jane SakashitaYuriko DennisonCynthia KidaRae LouieSetsuko NagataConnie SakashitaConnie NakaharaSeptember Toban*Carl DennisonJeff KidaRolen YoshinagaShig NagataPhillip SakashitaMike FurubayashiDot RichaedaSalt Lake Dharma School – please bring asaladOgden Dharma School – please bring adessertDirections:Ogden – exit I-15 at Centerville (Exit #322),turn west on (Parrish Lane) and take first left(1250 W est – headed south). Go to PagesLane and turn east.Salt Lake – exit 400 No. Bountiful (#321 exit),turn west and then first right (800 W est –headed north). Go to Pages Lane and turneast.Call LaVerne Kyed at 557-1548 if you getlostDharma SchoolBack-To-School PicnicthSunday, September 11 ,200511 a.m. – 3 p.m.West Bountiful Park*550 West Pages Lane (1600No.)West BountifulAugust/SeptemberShotsuki HoyoSeptember 25, 10:00 a.m.(*Please note the change in location fromlast year –see map on back)Fun and games for all ages – all templemembers invited!

8 Salt Lake Buddhist Temple: 211 West 100 SouthSalt Lake City, Utah 84101, volume 13issue 8 web site: slbuddhist.org September, 2005Deceased Date of Death Next of KinAkimoto Hideko 8/8/82 George AkimotoAkiyama, Takeo 8/26/85 Genevieve AkiyamaDoi Sekizo8/27/67 Ichiro DoiHirase Torae 8/5/89 Eunice YamaneImada Izumi 8/2/52 Shizuko ImadaKano Dessie8/12/94 Lynn KanoKuwahara Alice 8/12/84 Arnold KuwaharaMatsuura Hana 8/26/45 Doris MatsuuraNinomiya TasuoYoshiko NinomiyaSakashita Etsuno 8/24/73 Hiroshi AramakiSakashita Fukutaro 8/2/55 Hiroshi AramakiSakinada Shoji 8/29/85 Henry HaraguchiSugita DenzoJerry TsuyukiTaknaka Matsuzo 8/5/67 Takenaka FamilyTersawa Kuniko 8/2/91 Kazuko TerasawaAkino Hideshima 8/14/00 Tad HideshimaFred Toshiyuki Seo 8/11/01 June SeoMilja Park-Yea 8/12/01 Evelyn MatsumuraMitzie Tsuyuki 8/13/02 Mark TsuyukiWallace Doi8/28/67 Mary DoiMitsuno Hata8/11/88 Suzanne HataJames Konishi8/25/04 Jeanne KonishiHiroshi Mitsunaga 9/24/03 Faye EngShizuye Susie Nakai 9/4/04 Eleanor SasakiHiroshi Ikegami 9/27/04 Rick IkegamiSeptemberAkimoto Fukuichi 9/24/54 George AkimotoAkimoto Setsuko 9/1/83 George AkimotoDate Tsune 9/9/70 Hiroshi MitsunagaDoi Emiko9/11/70 Ichiro DoiEndo Yoshiko9/10/87 Xan MatsudaFujii Naka 9/2/92 Ritsuko HayashiFujinami Kichi 9/26/95 Mitsuru FujinamiFukunaga Koma 9/27/92 Ben FukunagaHirase Hikotaro 9/11/53 Eunice YamaneInouye Mika 9/5/33 Miye AokiIwata Chubei9/13/66 Tsuruko ImaiKasubuchi Isa9/12/68 John KasubuchiKasubuchi Otomatsu 9/19/28 John KasubuchiKato Kikuyemon 9/1/49 Dan TsukamotoMasuda Haruko 9/22/85 Edna ShiotaniMasuko Hisao9/28/68 Matsue KasubuchiMitsunaga Masami 9/13/34 Hiroshi MitsunagaMori Masumi9/20/83 Marilyn BouyerNiwa Shozo9/19/83 Pat NinomiyaOgi Toru 9/22 Tomoko OgiSudoko Kotomi 9/20/94 Jun SudokoTakagi Michael 9/3/89 Nancy TakagiTsuyuki Kimiko 9/20/62 Jerry TsuyukiUsui Fumiko9/17/84 Nancy HikoedaEndo Michiye9/26/00 Stan Endo