Jodo Shinshu Buddhism for everyone
By Julien Le Coz
Since becoming Buddhist 15 years ago, I dreamed of visiting Japan. In my home country France, Rev. Miki Nakura conducted my kikyoshiki Buddhist name ceremony, then last Fall, we finally met in Kyoto.
Continue reading “Kyoto Pilgrimage”
Arriving at Higashi Honganji mother temple in Kyoto for shūren (ministers retreat), I had only a rough idea of what awaited. After receiving initial tokudō ordination, I needed training for full kyōshi ordination, which would enable me to work as a temple minister. But nothing—absolutely nothing—prepared me for the intensity, discipline, and emotional weight of this monastic-like experience.
It wasn’t quiet meditation, peaceful strolls in nature, and reflective periods of reading sutras, rather relentless activity that was physically and mentally demanding, highly structured, and ultimately deeply transformative for me. By week’s end, I learned more about myself than years of academic study could ever teach. Continue reading “Minister Training in Kyoto”
By Joseph Deschenes
Karma sent me to Japan. At least that’s how I felt after visiting Higashi Honganji’s main temple in Kyoto. And karma allowed me to encounter Shinran Shonin and Jodo Shinshu. Continue reading “Call it Karma”