PACIFIC WORLD - The Institute of Buddhist Studies

280Pacific Worldof the home shrine. The “then” is encapsulated in the ritual objects withinthe butsudan (ancestor’s name, image of the Buddha). Hence, in thehousehold ritual space of the butsudan the duality between “then” and“now” is radically bridged melding together the different narratives throughthe shrine’s material objects.Connections between these objects are further articulated throughparticular interactions (of butsudan practice). I have divided these intotwo types: (re)creative and (re)orienting. These interactions are associatedwith shrine construction and shrine maintenance, respectively. Asthe individual participates in the active configuration of the shrine, shedoes so in oftentimes highly particular ways. The practitioner forges herown creative energies and desires into the butsudan through actualconstruction and arrangement. The shrine comes to physically embodythese acts of (re)creation. (Re)creative interactions for a Jødo Shin practitionerwho possesses a conventional butsudan are minimal since the organizationof the altar is already laid out. Yet, they are still worth noting sinceit is often through these interactions that the same practitioner develops hisown unique sense of practice and makes the shrine space his own.(Re)orienting interactions are achieved through the shrine’s maintenance.The adornments call forth certain relationships between the individualand the shrine’s main figures (i.e., ancestors, Buddha). Traditionally,each adornment has a unique significance: the incense speaks ofpurification; the candle, wisdom and compassion through enlightenment;the flowers, impermanence and beauty; the bell, announcement; and thefood vessel/offering, gratitude and compassion. 11 Although the accessoriespossess these dominant meanings, their significance and function canvary a great deal from practitioner to practitioner.These adornments assist the practitioner in particular acts associatedwith the altar. The individual comes before the butsudan to give thanks,meditate, remember, focus, contemplate, offer, and communicate. Theseacts establish a relationship between the individual and that which isenshrined. I hesitate here to say that the relationship is necessarily betweenthe individual and Amida Buddha or between the individual and herancestors; such a schema is too simplistic. Oftentimes, these acts allow thepractitioner the occasion to think through everyday happenings andevents within different frames of reference (suffering, connectedness,compassion, etc.) and ethically, culturally, socially, and spiritually reorienthim/herself. This (re)orientation helps the practitioner reframe theevents of his everyday life.The butsudan or home altar allows the individual a means by which tomake sense, make significant, and make good one’s life through a ritualspace and practice. It calls forth the individual to work out one’s personalstory in relation to the narrative and mythic frameworks of one’s ancestorsand the larger religious tradition. 12