Temple Reopens for Spring Ohigan - Reservation Only
WELCOME BACK
With the renewal of Spring we are able to renew our ability to meet together as a Sangha, with only a few restrictions.
Reserve Your Spot Here
Please log in to make your reservation now. We are limiting attendance to 100 people in the Hondo at this time. We believe this limit will still allow almost everyone who hopes to attend. Please Note: We are not admitting walk-in visitors to this service. Only parties with advanced reservations are allowed. We appreciate your understanding, and we hope to reopen more completely in the future.
Click here to make your reservation now. Please make your reservations by Midnight, Saturday, March 19.
Alternative: Attend by Live Stream
The reopening committee at the Temple has arranged for a true livestream of the service if you are caution about moving too fast in this stage about the pandemic. The livestream will be on YouTube, open to all and no reservation or signup required. We will send out more information on the livestream soon. Our tests of new equipment, including new cameras and connectors to audio, show a marked increase in quality from previous live Zooms.
Can I Chant? Can I Offer Incense?
Yes. Attendees will remain masked but can chant together and sing gathas. In place of offering incense (oshoko) we will be setting time aside to approach the altar at each incense burner and gassho and offer the Nembutsu.
A Few Questions Answered
WHY RESERVATION ONLY?
In this transitional period, as we return to a more normal way of offering services, we are asking for you to reserve a spot for several reasons. Chief among them is to facilitate contact tracing if we later learn someone at the service comes down with Covid.
WHAT RESTRICTION DO YOU HAVE?
The Board has established a policy for reopening, which relies on certain conditions. Anyone with the first signs of even minor illness (sniffles, sore throat, congestion) is asked not to attend. All attendees must wear a mask. We are not requiring proof of vaccination or a recent Covid test.
WILL THERE BE HOSPITALITY AFTER THE SERVICE?
Ues. Current plans are to offer hospitality in the Annex after the service, for attendeees only. Masks are recommended. Please be advised that as in the case of restaurants, people will be taking their masks off to eat and drink; please follow your own comfort level in this environment.
WILL THERE BE MORE LIVE SERVICES?
As long as health conditions allow, the Temple plans to host roughly two live services each month for the immediate future.
About Ohigan
What is Ohigan?
“Higan” means the other shore, and is a poetic image of our desire to live in spiritual harmony with all living things. “O” is an honorific.
Japanese Buddhism in particular observes Ohigan twice a year, on the occasion of the Spring and Fall Equinoxes. We stand on this shore of difficulty (samsara, to use the Sanskrit term). The other shore is what our lives would be like were we fully awakened like the Buddha.
In Jodo Shinshu (Shin Buddhism), we use the service to understand the value of balance and equanimity, following the model of those more advanced on the Buddha path. After all, during the Equinox day and night are close in length. The weather is not too hot or too cold. For such reasons we reflect on the Six Perfections of the Bodhisattva (the person close to Buddhahood), or the Six Paramitas. Paramita is the Sanskrit term. We will recite the Six Paramitas at the service.