Mahalo nui loa, arigato, and thank you very much again to each and every member and friends of our temple who contributed a great deal of time, effort, and support in making our annual Obon festivities and bazaar a successful and enjoyable one.

This is my sixth Obon season at our temple and I continue to be greatly impressed with all of you as you came to plan, prepare, implement, and cleanup the many details which make for a successful and busy weekend. Your cooperation and hard work are the real highlight of the many activities that occur. They are very, very evident. I am very grateful to your dedication, commitment, and involvement in supporting this annual event in our temple life - spiritually, socially, and financially.

I was again reminded too that our annual Obon season is our largest temple gathering and participation for the year. We are energized by our sangha members, friends, guests, and others with fellowship and fun while working, playing, talking, and sharing side by side. The deep value of our relationships are highlighted in coming together for the weekend, even if briefly.

Each moment is an encounter that leaves its imprint in our memory. Each encounter is a moment in time which is unrepeatable. Memories may recall those moments, but memories cannot replicate that moment as it was. Each moment passes and opens us to other meaningful encounters. Our Obon weekend may hold such encounters and memories.

May those memories gained from our Obon season with each other resonate with a smile and appreciation like the smile and appreciation that I am feeling at this moment. Again, mahalo nui loa, thank you very much.

The Nembutsu is the sound of the universe.
It is the sound of the wind
as it rustles the leaves;
It is the roar of the waves
as they rush toward the shore;
It is the song of the robin, the whippoorwill
and the chorus of cicadas on a summer evening.
The Nembutsu is naturalness...
The first cry of the baby
as it emerges into the world
from the darkness of the mother’s womb;
It is the powerful cry of independence
of individuality, of selfhood;
But it is also the great cry of awakening
to its dependence on something greater than self...
for its sustenance.
The Nembutsu is the proclamation of the Buddha...
"Above heaven and below heaven,
I alone am the World Honored One."
It is the ultimate declaration of life;
I alone hold my destiny in my hand
leading to perfect Buddhahood.
When I touch the heart of reality,
It is Namu Amida Butsu:
What else can I say?
When I truly share someone’s happiness,
it is Namu Amida Butsu;
And in that moment of deep grief

over a loved one’s death,
it is just Namu Amida Butsu.
Namu Amida Butsu
it is the sound of gratitude
not of my finding the Buddha,
but Buddha finding me.


In Gassho,

Kenryu T. Tsuji

(reprinted from Udumbara: the Journal of Ekoji,
Volume I: Summer, 1985)