Japanese Temples and Shrines

On New Year’s Day, the Japanese visit shrines or temples to pray for health and happiness in the coming year. People who do not go to shrines or temples in their everyday lives go there at New Year’s time. It is an opportunity for women to dress up in beautiful kimonos.

After praying at the shrine, many Japanese get an Omikuji fortune. The Omikuji tells your fortune for the coming year in various grades – from great blessings to bad luck – on thin rolls or strips of paper. For my family, the Omikujis indicate our destiny for the year! The Omikujis we get at the Hie Shrine, where we go every year, contain a poem and come with short explanations about your prospects in health, love, money, and so on.

One of the times that we feel how Buddhist temples are rooted in the Japanese lives is when we hear the striking of the temple bells on New Year’s Eve.  As midnight nears at the end of the year, the bell at every temple is rung 108 times as the old year goes out and the new year comes in.  The bells are rung 108 times to encourage us to forswear what Buddhism teaches are the 108 impure human desires.

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Temple’s challenge to respond to the changing needs

On the way back from Tsukiji Fish Market to Ginza, you’ll notice a big, authentic temple. That is Tsukiji Hongwanji Temple, one of the major Jodo Shinshu temples in Tokyo.

Unlike other temples, its architecture, with a unique design based on ancient Indian Buddhist style, is impressive. When you step through the entrance, there are more blend of cultures.

You’ll see conventional Japanese ornamentation, stained glass, chandeliers, and a large pipe organ from Germany. For young people, the temple is famous for a funeral service for a member of the popular rock band, X-Japan.

In Japan, the social roles of local Buddhist temples are fading. Their ties with the local community are also diminishing. As a result, people have recently questioned the costly funerals and related ceremonies provided by Buddhist temples.

Recently, there has been a trend of people becoming more practical and spending less, despite an aging society.

Many temples are losing offerings, memberships, or supporters in their communities, which have been their main sources of income. In fact, many Japanese do not have ties with temples in their everyday lives.

According to a recent survey by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, there are approximately 77,000 temples all over Japan. This number is large compared to the 55,000 convenience stores in the country.  Temples are rich cultural assets, but some failed to cater to the needs of the community.

Under such circumstances, the temple is undergoing major reforms led by Mr. Yasunaga, a former banker, aimed at creating a more open temple to the public. Tsukiji Hongwanji’s challenge is attracting attention.

First, Mr. Yasunaga created a “common grave” or “cemetery” in the temple grounds. Everybody, regardless of religion or sect, can apply for the cemetery for only JPY300,000 or more. The temple manages the grave responsibly.  They received a flood of orders, with more than 7,000 applications, especially from people without a family grave.

They offer many Japanese Buddhist teaching classes. They also provide an English Dharma Service for everyone to teach Jodo Shinshu teachings in English. It is open to the public, and anyone attend.

Visitors take a rest at the café. The breakfast set offers 18 kinds of dishes and rice gruel. It is so Instagrammable. There are lines in the early morning.

A bookshop is selling a variety of fashionable goods. It also offers Buddhist fittings, souvenir, and a cookbook about shojin (vegetarian) cuisine.

They perform a monthly pipe organ concert at the main hall free of charge.

Moreover, he set up a “Ginza Salon” to provide counseling services to businesspeople working in the city.

Thanks to such efforts, the Tsukiji Hongwanji is showing a way for other temple their role in society. Yasunaga is quoted as saying, “Temples and companies are the same. Companies pay dividends to shareholders, and temples return benefits to the public.  When I visited the temple the other day and stepped through the entrance into the main hall, I feel a welcoming atmosphere. Tsukiji Honguanji is a model for other temples that failed to accommodate the needs of people living today.