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| Maura & Kara in cable car |
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| Dinner at the temple |
Temple Rituals
We stayed at a shukubo, a temple lodging for people making a religious pilgrimage to Mt. Koya (Note: We're tourists, not pilgrims. But we did run into some people on pilgrimage during our stay.) We made it just in time to join the ajahn meditation.The monk who led the meditation encouraged us to keep our eyes half open and half closed so that we're neither completely of the world nor removed from it (deep stuff!) We sat in meditation for about 20 minutes--the kids did great, but our old(er) legs kept falling asleep. It was challenging and made us very aware of how little time we spend in silence during our regular days.
We stayed at a shukubo, a temple lodging for people making a religious pilgrimage to Mt. Koya (Note: We're tourists, not pilgrims. But we did run into some people on pilgrimage during our stay.) We made it just in time to join the ajahn meditation.The monk who led the meditation encouraged us to keep our eyes half open and half closed so that we're neither completely of the world nor removed from it (deep stuff!) We sat in meditation for about 20 minutes--the kids did great, but our old(er) legs kept falling asleep. It was challenging and made us very aware of how little time we spend in silence during our regular days.
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| Goma fire ritual |
The monks served a traditional vegetarian
dinner of rice, mountain root vegetables, tofu
and miso soup, which hit the spot after a long day of travel. At night, we made use of the onsen (public
bath). We’ll cover this in our blog about Kinosaki. For now, suffice it to say that it's an incredibly beautiful and social experience once you get used to it.
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| Kara demonstrating feats of strength at Oku-no-in |
Next was a 6:30 am service led
by two monks in the main hall. They do this every day in appreciation and reverence for the work of the
buddhas and bodhisattvas in the world. We were in darkness except for the
candlelight. The monks chanted sutras (Buddhist text), supplemented with
regular drumming and the use of bells.
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| Scene from our walk through Oku-no-in |
Immediately after, we went to the Goma fire
ritual led by two different monks in an adjacent hall. We sat with about 15 other people in a 10 x 10 room with a central altar and fire pit. The ritual involved more intense chanting, drumming and the building of a fire offering (with wood & oils) to the buddhas. It definitely woke us up!
Oku-non-in
Breakfast was at the temple, then we walked to a massive cemetery of the Oku-no-in. It’s said that this is where Miroku Buddha (the next appearance of the Buddha) will manifest, so hundreds of thousands of people’s remains are interred there with the hope of having front-row seats for the big event. At the front gate, as instructed, we offered prayers for deceased family members and friends.
Breakfast was at the temple, then we walked to a massive cemetery of the Oku-no-in. It’s said that this is where Miroku Buddha (the next appearance of the Buddha) will manifest, so hundreds of thousands of people’s remains are interred there with the hope of having front-row seats for the big event. At the front gate, as instructed, we offered prayers for deceased family members and friends.
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| Meditation garden |
After a really long walk up to the temple, we saw the place where, legend has it, Kukai has been meditating for 1,150 years. (And we
thought a 20 minute meditation was difficult!) We stopped at Kongobu-ji (the headquarters of Shingon sect of Buddhism), shared tea and spent a few minutes enjoying the meditation garden.
We walked through a light rain in Mt. Koya, popping in and out of shops before boarding the cable car that would take us to the bus that would take us to the train station. Next stop: Nara!
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| Hall of Lanterns |
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| Walking sticks for pilgrimage |
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