Impacts Of The Shikoku Pilgrimage

Rituals have been an important aspect of Buddhism since the time of the Buddha. They made emphasis on rituals because they believed that it was an essential part in the transformation of the inner spiritual nature of man. In their point of view, a ritual can be “justified only to the extent that it contributes to a spiritual transformation” .Their rituals revolve around the Buddha and strengthening their connection to the Dharma as well as and the purpose and respect associated with it. Like the Virgin Mary in Eric Wolf’s article, “The Virgin of Guadalupe: A Mexican National Symbol”, the rituals of the Buddhist as well as the Buddhist image has provided a cultural style through which meaning and teachings can be expressed. The Guadalupe stands for “life, for hope, for health” while the Buddha symbolizes grace, balance, compassion, and wisdom. One of the rituals that Buddhist practice the most is that making offerings to their ancestors and the Triple Gem- Buddha, Dharma (Buddha’s teachings) and Dangha (the Buddhist community). The purpose of making offerings is not for approval, but to create positive energy, show gratitude, and perform the teaching of the Buddha. It is these admirable acts that reminds them not to be greedy or selfish.

“Than longen folk to goon on pilgrimages,” said Gregory Chaucer in his book, The Canterbury Tales, meaning people long to go on religious pilgrimages. The act of pilgrimage during the Middle Ages had been a very popular and traditional practice in the Christian society. This visit to shrines or holy places was an act of religious devotion and played a role in the lives of many Europeans, especially those in the western regions of Medieval Europe. In order to understand the importance of pilgrimages, we will emphasize the purpose of pilgrimages, the diversity of pilgrims that took part in them, and the various shrines pilgrims visited.

Shrines are sacred places because of there connection to religious event, a saint, a holy relic, or the presence of a god (Bellows,201). They can be temples or caves, in cities or in the wilderness. Shrines are considered ancient landmarks for places where religions may have lived or died. A place where a miracle is said to have occurred or some divine manifestations. Shrines are sacred for a variety of reasons, but all have a sacred connection.

For this experience, I decided to explore Buddhism in order to enhance my involvement with the religion and build a strong understanding. What intrigued me about Buddhism was the social aspect and diversity that it had to offer. In order to explore this religion from a critical and analytical viewpoint, I decided to attend a weekend service offered at San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin. The San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin main temple is located in the Japantown section of Central San Jose. What made this temple stand out amongst the others was its historical standing in the community. It is one of the oldest temples established in the United States. In order to learn more about the history, environment, and community as a whole, I decided to contact the temple’s staffs. After a brief phone call, I was able to schedule a tour. In preparation, I decided to do a brief research on Buddhism to familiarize myself with the religion beforehand. With all preparations and research necessary, I was ready to visit San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin.

In his 2001 journal article “Ise Shrine and a Modernist Construction of Japanese Tradition” of The Art Bulletin, Jonathan M. Reynolds examines the differing representation of the Ise Shrine through time, emphasizing on the changing cultural significance of the Ise after the second world war. Reynolds discussion of the Ise Shrine centers on its representation in texts and images. The texts and images in which Reynolds analyzes date as early as the 8th century with the Nihon Shoki, and as recent as the 20th century.

Throughout the book, Reid explores the very ideals and concepts of Confucianism and its relation to the Japanese society in which he encounters. His encounters bring a greater understanding of the Japanese culture and its relationship to the culture of more western nations. The book explains the ideals of respect, responsibility, and family dynamics within the Japanese culture, and their effects on Asian life.

Introduced by a mission from Korea in 552 C.E., Buddhism has long been a central theme in Japanese artwork. Since the king of Paekche, a kingdom in the South East of the Korean peninsula, first gave the Japanese emperor a bronze Buddha statue, the Buddhist art forms that were periodically introduced from China and Korea were tempered in the crucible of local custom and usage, to yield a rich tradition of religious art.

First, let’s talk about Ise Jingu situated in Japan. It is the largest Shinto shrine located in the city of Ise. Millions of people make their pilgrimage to this shrine for either tourism or religious purposes. It holds a lot of both spiritual and historical value of Japan. Spiritually as the shrine was made in light of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu Omikami, and the traditional progenitor of the imperial Japanese family, later another God Toyaku Okami being another sacred being, being worshipped. (Pletcher) The architectural design of the shrine consists of many rows of buildings but the most distinct are two large huts, being the inner (Naiku) and outer shrine (Geku). (Pletcher) Naiku was first constructed, which had the Goddess of Amaterasu, later Geku with the intention of worshipping Toyaku Okami, the god of food and benevolence. (Pletcher) The shrine is surrounded by a thick forest, which the buildings were made from. Using the essence of nature, or “ke”, the priests and priestesses used the surrounding trees as the buildings blocks of the shrine, as the trees had much devotion and spirituality of the Japanese people.

Since their destruction, the international community has risen up in protest, and endless discussions on its reconstruction have been hashed out as further studies are done on the remains. The interaction with religious ideology complicates and stigmatizes the situation, causing many discussions to go nowhere. The Bamiyan Buddhas hold significant cultural value, providing not only a religious sanctuary for many, but also by attracting travelers with their beauty. By leaving the niches empty, we risk the well-being of the Bamiyan Valley, as well as a loss of a key part of history. In restoring the Buddhas, the international community can also see it as a restoration of the Bamiyan Valley

As a scholar taking the class ‘Introduction to World Religions”, I had the opportunity to take part in a culture that is not normally found in the western world. I entered the Mon Buddhist Monastery in Akron, Ohio on October 2nd, 2016 only to be amazed at their way of life. Going into the temple, I knew of the basic religious practices and traditions that the monks and Buddhists had participated in daily. When I was coming up to the monastery, it did not look like anything other than an old brick building, but once we were inside it looked like a recreational area. Somewhere where they would meditate, hold daily activities, and teach the younger Buddhist about their way of life. On the far back wall, there was a stunning shrine dedicated to the Buddha where one would pray. Many figurines were displayed as well as flowers and offerings along it.

The travelling route includes a modern city of Osaka, the mountain temple of Koyasan and the Japanese Imperial Shrine at Ise in the southern part of the Kii Peninsula. Kumano Sanzan, the focal point of the pilgrimage, consists of three grand shrines: Hongu-taisha, Hayatama-taisha and Nachi-taisha. Kumano Kodo pilgrimage is religiously associated with Buddha and Shinto, which are two popular religions in Japan. Buddhism involves many different traditions, beliefs and spiritual practices in relation to teachings about Buddha. Buddhist ethics include six virtues – charity, observance of the precepts, patience, devotion, meditation, and wisdom. These doctrines are frequently found and depicted in the mountains along the Kumano route. For example, there are statues of Buddhas in the theme of death and rebirth where religious practices are

G. These shrines and temples are the only places you'll find crowded during New Year's in Japan because most businesses usually close at the end of December for the holiday. Transition: All in all Japanese celebrations and festivities show others a slight glimpse into their deep culture. IV. Conclusion: A. Summary of Main Points: After examining the Coming of Age holiday, Valentine's and White Day, and New Year's Day we now have a deeper understanding of the Japanese culture.

Since Hawaii became a part of the U.S., it has been portrayed as an alternate reality in order to escape the problems that we face in our daily lives (Trask, 1999). This portrayal has forced the Hawaiian people to perform and exploit their culture for the benefit of the tourism industry. Some aspects of their beliefs, traditions, and practices have been promoted for the benefit of the industry and the satisfaction of tourists (Trask, 1999 & Conley, 2015). Therefore, even though it is good to learn the traditional culture in order to understand and increase our knowledge, I believe that the merge of the touristic side and the traditional side now encompass the culture of Hawaii.

The pilgrimage is indeed an amazing phenomenon, which brings people together at a common goal, which is believed to be the essence or starting point of life and the ‘door’ to the afterlife. As we will discover, pilgrimages require great sacrifice, both financially and physically. Pilgrimages may give the impression of an act that is traditional and not ‘fit’ for our modern world. However, one who has not walked the pilgrimage may never see the insight that the pilgrims themselves see. One fact is certain and striking. The numbers of pilgrims at the world’s major shrines are still increasing.

During the same time, in order to get the rebirth in modern society, the temple in Mainland China tried their best to develop the tourism and attracts visitors.They ignored the cultural value of the religious temple and add the modern or western elements to the traditional temple blindly with the aim to get more and more earnings getting the doubt from publics. However, Sik Sik Yuen concentrated on the spread of own belief and culture, which attracted the continuous visitors and donator. It is not hard to see the cost is much lower than the harvest in cultural publicity for the religious architecture. And there is no doubt that the positive cultural influence also cannot be ignored.