“I will gather the true words so they may help others to practice the way for Birth. My wish is that those who have attained Birth may lead those who come after them and those who aspire Birth may follow their predecessors, thus following one after another, endlessly and uninterruptedly, until this boundless sea of Birth-and-Death is exhausted.”  From Doshaku’s Anraku Shu quoted by Shinran Shonin toward the end of his Kyogyoshinsho) I think of this quote from Shinran Shonin’s Kyogyoshinsho when I think about our Issei (1st generation Japanese immigrants) and our...

On January 7, 2024 Idaho-Oregon Buddhist Temple held our Reopening/Dedication Service, celebrating our recovery after the fire in July of 2022. Rev. Jerry Hirano officiated the service and invited our two Assistant Ministers, Rev. Kathy Chatterton and Rev. Anne Spencer to share their thoughts as the temple reopened.   Photo (left to right): Mike Iseri (Temple President) Rev. Anne Spencer, Rev. Jerry Hirano, Rev. Anne Spencer at the Hoonko & Grand Reopening Service on Jan 7 2024.  In this blog, we are sharing summaries of Rev. Kathy's and Rev. Anne's reflections on the reopening...

January 1, 2024 Happy New Year! Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu! あけまして おめでとう ２０２４ Congratulations on the beginning of a new year! Yesterday at our temple's New Year’s Eve service, we rang the kansho--the big  bell behind the altar--108  times. Everyone who attended in person was able to line up and ring the bell 4 times each. It is interesting to me how each person, using the same bell and mallet, manages to make a slightly different sound. Listening to the different tones and tempos we each create is a wonderful reminder of the uniqueness of each one of us. Image: Hitting...

As we approach the winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere, the days are getting shorter, the sun is making fewer appearances through the clouds, we spend more time inside, and life is just a bit darker.  As sunlight gets scarcer, it is a great time to intentionally appreciate the limited light that we do have.  Many cultures have holidays, such  as Christmas, Diwali, Kwanza, and Chanukah that celebrate light.  And even non-religious people will put up extra decorative lights to brighten the darker days.  In our tradition of Buddhism, on December...