Hi, hello, how are you?
I’ve been slack in writing blog posts about this Japanese adventure. We have been so busy with training and cultural activities that it barely leaves any downtime to write. Starting yesterday I made the commitment to write every single day in the small opportunities that this training trip affords me.
Forgive me in advance, I don’t really have time to edit any of these blog posts as I literally have 23 minutes until I need to jump into the van and go to morning swim practice! We are in the last third of our trip and I’m trying my best to balance everything adequately while also doing this trip justice with words.
During our time here we’ve visited 2 different temples and both have been beautiful for different reasons. The first temple we visited, which was a scheduled visit, is called the Kiyomizu Temple in the city of Miyama. Kiyomizu is the name of the triple tower temple as seen here:
The Kiyomizu Temple (Miyama City, Fukuoka)
The Kiyomizu temple is beautiful and the best time to visit is spring, when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, or in the autumn, when the leaves start to turn a different color and fall. We didn’t get to enter the temple this time, but we could admire the beauty from the outside.
The Kiyomizue Dera (Miyama, Fukuoka)
The main gate of the Kiyomizu Dera was built in 1745 by Sadanori Tachibana and this beautiful archway, along with the Kiyomizu temple, are both designated Fukuoka Prefectural Cultural Properties.
Beyond these gates, there’s a statue of the thousand-armed Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy), whom is worshiped as a deity of fertility and matchmaking. Countless couples hoping to become parents make the hike to this place and pray. Couples who have recently given birth to a baby come to pray here. In fact, our designated interpreter, Kauro, told us her mother took her to this very temple as a baby after she was born.
There's a smaller shrine on the property specifically dedicated to praying, this is further into the grounds. And above this smaller shrine is another temple with a shrine inside, which was definitely my favorite part of this visit. Inside this temple and next to the shrine were doors that opened up to a beautiful back porch, open to the woods with a calm and serene pond.
Next to a shrine with special Buddhist beads
As a group we sat and looked at the tranquil nature, listening to the crickets buzzing. It was incredibly peaceful and a place many Buddhist monks come for learning and introspection, taking inspiration for calmness from the surface of the water. I made sure to wear some very special Buddhist beads around my wrist while I soaked up the peacefulness and tranquility.
I stood and walked out onto a small platform close to the woods and listened to a cricket chirping especially close on a tree next to me. I love listening to crickets. I love trying to find out where they are in trees, knowing that they’re camouflaged and trying to go unnoticed apart from their loud buzzing. I have a strange relationship with bugs, I seem to attract them and sometimes I feel like I can steer them in directions. Well, not really, but at least I like to think so.
I thought about the time I was at a boy’s apartment in Brooklyn. There were flies flying around his kitchen. I remember opening up the window and talking to the flies, coaxing them with my hands, and telling them to move outside. I talked to them as if they were children: “C’mon now! You don’t want to be stuck in this house, you want to be outside. Shoo! Go on. Fly outside. I know you want to.” We watched in fascination as the 3 of the flies flew outside and into the fresh summer air.
The boy whose apartment it was, had a simpler way of getting the flies to disappear. He swatted them with his big beautiful hands, and used paper towels to scoop up the remnants.
I feigned horror and used an Edina Monsoon quote from Ab Fab, crying out jokingly: “Don’t kill them! In the Buddhist religion, I could come back as one of those you know!” Making a sissy dramatic fuss.
“Death is a part of life.” he said matter-of-factually while he threw the fly corpse into the garbage bin.
As I was thinking about this cute little moment, the cricket quit buzzing and jumped off the tree, revealing itself to me while making a direct bee-line for my face. 3 or 4 feet away from me, the cricket veered left and flew back into the trees to be among nature.
Apparently bugs are attracted to light. Is this what draws them to me?
I giggle, knowing the notion is ridiculous, but in my fantastical, whimsical, creative, and imaginative mind, this is why I have a special relationship with bugs: they’re drawn to light.
I love visiting Japanese Buddhist temples. I always leave feeling so peaceful and relaxed.
Stay tuned for my next blog post, which will be appropriately named: “I Love Japanese Buddhist Temples pt. 2” - in this one I’ll discuss The Daihonzan Naritasan Kurume Temple, which houses the largest statue in Japan!
