When I first heard I was going on a trip to Japan, my first thought was....SHOPPING! But I soon realized that I would gain a lot more then material souvenirs on this trip.
Our journey started in Kyoto. We visited Kyoto Imperial Palace, Nijo Castle, as well as a temple, Myokenji Temple (1st Nichiren temple in Kyoto).
After Kyoto we traveled by bus to Minobusan where Kuonji Temple (Mother temple of Nichiren Shu) is located. Minobusan is a beautiful, serene village located in the mountains, you can appreciate why Nichiren Shonin decided to live there for nine years. We attended an early morning service, it was a "chicken skin" experience, from the very beginning when a minister rang the huge bell @ 6 a.m., to watching all the ministers walk into the temple chanting the odaimoku and the huge and I mean HUGE taiko beating out its rhythm making your whole body vibrate. It was an awesome experience.
We left Minobusan and headed for Tokyo. On the bus ride there, we got to see a clear view of Mt Fuji. We arrived in Tokyo and headed to Ikegami Honmoji temple which is where Nichiren Shonin passed away. Then we headed to Nichiren Shu headquarters for a meet and greet with Bishop Ogawa.
Our last day in Japan we visited Nakayama Hokekyoji which is a temple where they preserved Nichiren Shonins handwritten documents from over 750 years ago. We were very lucky that it was a bright and sunny day, and we got to view the treasured documents. Our last stop on our journey was to Sogenji temple. As we were leaving Sogenji we witnessed beautiful Japan sunset to send us on our journey back home to Hawaii.
This trip taught me a lot about Nichiren Shonin and the history behind each temple, how these temples persevered after numerous disasters and how its followers stayed loyal throughout. This journey also brought me closer to my grandma and aunties and made me realize what an important influence Nichiren Shonin has in their lives and mine, and it made me feel good to have been brought up as a Nichiren.