Michi- The Path -02

CONTENTS

01

The New MICHI, Path to the Future

BDK Newsletter 2013

The New MICHI, Path to the Future
In 1965, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai (BDK) was established by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata, the founder of Mitutoyo Corporation. His fervent wish was to spread theteachings of Buddha throughout the world. From that time on, BDK has diligently
been translating and distributing “The Teaching of Buddha” with the support andcooperation of like minded individuals and organizations.
The Japanese Government has oﬃcially approved BDK to be recognized as a “Public
Interest Incorporated Foundation” and this will be a fresh new start for BDK as ofApril 1, 2013.

BDK Mission

02
03"Sasaeatte - Kikai, Opportunity"
BDK JAPAN News 2011-2012

BDK Financial Aid for Buddhist Kindergartens in the Disaster Areas- Helping Children
The 46th BDK Cultural Awards
The Bukkyo Dendo Bunka Sho & The Newrly Presented Award, Numata Shorei Sho

Following this transition, BDK has set the ultimate goal of propagating Buddhist
wisdom found in the basics of Japanese culture by sponsoring a wide range of culturalactivities and academic programs. BDK is a non-sectarian organization, and does notpromote any particular school of Buddhism. BDK wishes to contribute to the overall
achievement of global peace and harmony.

Introducing Our Newest BDK Fellowship and More...
Establishment of BDK Fellowship for Japanese Scholars
The current BDK Fellowship- An Interview with Dr. Huanhuan He, the 2012 BDK Fellowship Awardee & Prof. Akira Saito at the University of Tokyo

Looking Back at the Experience of Receiving a BDK Fellowship

I truly appreciate your generous understanding andcontinued support of BDK activities.

- An interview with Rev. Gyoei Saile, the 2011 BDK Fellowship Awardee at Kofukuji Temple

The 42nd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai, BDK Missionary Seminar at Hieizan Enryakuji- Special Interview with Rev. Tainen Miyagi, The 52nd Monshu, Honzan-Shugenshu Shogoin-Monzeki

BDK Symposium “Questioning Buddhism and Responding Buddhism”
2012 BDK Global Meeting
BDK Japan Publication Updates

13

BDK Aﬃliate Organization Activities
World Map & Contact Info.

With Gassho,

Toshihide Numata,
Chairman

BDK America
Washington DC Ekoji Temple Welcomes New Resident Minister
Japanese Ambassador to US visits Ekoji
Numata Program in Buddhist Studies 2012 Meeting
The Mugen Project: BDKʼs Online Western-Language Bibliographical Database of Buddhism
2012 “Toshi Prize”
Update on BDK English Tripitaka Series
Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”
North American Numata Program in Buddhist Studies

BDK Canada
2012-2013 Recipient of BDK Canada Fellowship to Japan-Report from Mr. Robban A. J. Toleno-

2012 Yehan Numata Conference at the University of Toronto“Therav_da Civilizations. Thematic Continuities and Vernacular Appropriations” March 11-13, 2012 -Report form Mr. Christoph Emmrich-

BDK Hawaii
Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”
New Kindle Edition of “Teaching of Buddha”
New Strategy with Gift Shops
New Website

BDK Mexico
BDK Europe e.V.

BDK Mission
BDK is continuously involved in various activities to promote the awareness andpopularization of Buddhist culture and spirit to the world through: 1) Distribution of“The Teaching of Buddha” and a variety of BDK publications throughout the world;
2) English translation and publication of the Tripitaka (Chinese Buddhist Canon); 3)
Encouragement and support of groups/scholars which contribute to promote
Buddhist culture, studies, and spirit; 4) Presentation of Cultural Awards for exemplaryeﬀorts in the promotion of Buddhism; 5) Lead eﬀorts to modernize Buddhist music
and its popularization; 6) Sponsoring Buddhist lectures and seminars; and 7) Support
for religious educational facilities for kindergarten / preschool and other educational
institutions.

Symposium for the Numata Chair in Buddhist Studies
The 16th European Shin Buddhist Conference

BDK Taiwan & Asia
BDK South America
BDK UK

1

Michi- The Path -02

CONTENTS

01

The New MICHI, Path to the Future

BDK Newsletter 2013

The New MICHI, Path to the Future
In 1965, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai (BDK) was established by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata, the founder of Mitutoyo Corporation. His fervent wish was to spread theteachings of Buddha throughout the world. From that time on, BDK has diligently
been translating and distributing “The Teaching of Buddha” with the support andcooperation of like minded individuals and organizations.
The Japanese Government has oﬃcially approved BDK to be recognized as a “Public
Interest Incorporated Foundation” and this will be a fresh new start for BDK as ofApril 1, 2013.

BDK Mission

02
03"Sasaeatte - Kikai, Opportunity"
BDK JAPAN News 2011-2012

BDK Financial Aid for Buddhist Kindergartens in the Disaster Areas- Helping Children
The 46th BDK Cultural Awards
The Bukkyo Dendo Bunka Sho & The Newrly Presented Award, Numata Shorei Sho

Following this transition, BDK has set the ultimate goal of propagating Buddhist
wisdom found in the basics of Japanese culture by sponsoring a wide range of culturalactivities and academic programs. BDK is a non-sectarian organization, and does notpromote any particular school of Buddhism. BDK wishes to contribute to the overall
achievement of global peace and harmony.

Introducing Our Newest BDK Fellowship and More...
Establishment of BDK Fellowship for Japanese Scholars
The current BDK Fellowship- An Interview with Dr. Huanhuan He, the 2012 BDK Fellowship Awardee & Prof. Akira Saito at the University of Tokyo

Looking Back at the Experience of Receiving a BDK Fellowship

I truly appreciate your generous understanding andcontinued support of BDK activities.

- An interview with Rev. Gyoei Saile, the 2011 BDK Fellowship Awardee at Kofukuji Temple

The 42nd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai, BDK Missionary Seminar at Hieizan Enryakuji- Special Interview with Rev. Tainen Miyagi, The 52nd Monshu, Honzan-Shugenshu Shogoin-Monzeki

BDK Symposium “Questioning Buddhism and Responding Buddhism”
2012 BDK Global Meeting
BDK Japan Publication Updates

13

BDK Aﬃliate Organization Activities
World Map & Contact Info.

With Gassho,

Toshihide Numata,
Chairman

BDK America
Washington DC Ekoji Temple Welcomes New Resident Minister
Japanese Ambassador to US visits Ekoji
Numata Program in Buddhist Studies 2012 Meeting
The Mugen Project: BDKʼs Online Western-Language Bibliographical Database of Buddhism
2012 “Toshi Prize”
Update on BDK English Tripitaka Series
Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”
North American Numata Program in Buddhist Studies

BDK Canada
2012-2013 Recipient of BDK Canada Fellowship to Japan-Report from Mr. Robban A. J. Toleno-

2012 Yehan Numata Conference at the University of Toronto“Therav_da Civilizations. Thematic Continuities and Vernacular Appropriations” March 11-13, 2012 -Report form Mr. Christoph Emmrich-

BDK Hawaii
Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”
New Kindle Edition of “Teaching of Buddha”
New Strategy with Gift Shops
New Website

BDK Mexico
BDK Europe e.V.

BDK Mission
BDK is continuously involved in various activities to promote the awareness andpopularization of Buddhist culture and spirit to the world through: 1) Distribution of“The Teaching of Buddha” and a variety of BDK publications throughout the world;
2) English translation and publication of the Tripitaka (Chinese Buddhist Canon); 3)
Encouragement and support of groups/scholars which contribute to promote
Buddhist culture, studies, and spirit; 4) Presentation of Cultural Awards for exemplaryeﬀorts in the promotion of Buddhism; 5) Lead eﬀorts to modernize Buddhist music
and its popularization; 6) Sponsoring Buddhist lectures and seminars; and 7) Support
for religious educational facilities for kindergarten / preschool and other educational
institutions.

Symposium for the Numata Chair in Buddhist Studies
The 16th European Shin Buddhist Conference

BDK Taiwan & Asia
BDK South America
BDK UK

1

BDK JAPANNEWS 2011- 2012

Kikai (Opportunity)
In whatever we do, there is chance or opportunity. Once wemiss that opportunity, it is of no avail no matter how much we
may stamp our feet with vexation afterward.
We were born into this world as human beings. Having been
given that opportunity, what must we truly do? What is thesignificance of receiving this opportunity?
If we do not think of this seriously, we will lose theopportunity of having been born into human life.

The Passage on Worship and Praise says:

01
Activity“It is difficult to receive a human body. Now we have received
it. It is difficult to hear the Buddha-Dharma. Now we hear it.
If we do not deliver ourselves in this life, in what life can we
do so?”“To deliver ourselves” means to cross over from the world of
delusion to that of enlightenment. We are given theopportunity to deliver ourselves only by having been born as
human beings.

(Taken from “Sasaeatte” authored by Toshihide Numata,
BDK Chairman of the Board)

BDK Financial Aid for Buddhist Kindergartens in
the Disaster Areas

Two years have passed since the Great
Eastern Japan Earthquake & Tsunami
struck Japan. However, the area is stillplagued with reconstruction delays
and many people are still greatly suffering. Amongst these severe conditions, we find many children in the disaster area are also living under harshconditions, both physically and spiritually.
Initially, BDK made a grant under its

02
Activity“2011 BDK The Great Eastern Japan
Earthquake & Tsunami” aid for reconstruction work in the disaster areas,
and in 2012, BDK set up a financial
aid prog ram for Buddhist kindergartens established in the disasterareas in cooperation with the
Association of Japanese Buddhist
Kindergartens.
BDK received 32 applications fromkindergartens throughout the disaster

The Cultural Awards for the Promotion of Buddhism: BUNKA-SHO / NUMATA SHOREI-SHO

The BDK Cultural Awards, BUNKASHO has been established by BDK torecognize and praise those who havecontributed to the promotion of
Buddhism and Buddhist culture
through their various national andinternational activities. In 2013, BDK
will initiate a new award to be called
the NUMATA SHOREI- SHO(Numata Encouragement Award)
which will be given to individuals, who,
are already exhibiting dedicated serv-

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

It is BDK's wish that this financial aid
will help revive the wellbeing and happiness of the children in the strickenarea and will be a boost to support
their continued growth and nurturingin the years ahead.

The 46th BDK Cultural Awards

ice to Buddhism
and in time, will
become the upand-coming
contributors to
the promotionof Buddhism.

2

region, and after review by an independent screening committee, BDK
granted a total of JPY 9,200,000 to
support the affected kindergartens.

The Bukkyo
Dendo Kyokai
Cultural Award
Committeeannually selects the awardees and presents them with a gift and honorarium.
The 46th Ceremony and banquet washeld at Bukkyo Dendo Center
Building in Tokyo on October 12,
2012. Here are the 2012 awardees:
Bukkyo Dendo Bunka-sho: Rev. Dr.
Takeharu Nishirai
Born in Hokkaido, Japan in 1924. A
pioneer in utilizing his educational
background to initiate a Buddhist

counseling service over the telephone
since 1970s.
Numata Shorei-sho: Rev. Dr. Kaiun
Shiratate (Thsul khrims skal bzang)
Born in West Tibet in 1942. Long
time contributor in advancing theunderstanding of Tibetan Buddhism
and its culture at Otani University andgreatly contributed to the development of the next generation of promising scholars.
Numata Shorei-sho: Rev. Sokyu
Genyu
Born in Fukushima, Japan in 1956.
An Akutagawa Award-winning author,
whose writings appear in various publications and has spoken throughout
Japan. As a Buddhist priest, he has
greatly encouraged survivors of theGreat Eastern Japan Earthquake andTsunami through the Buddhist teachings.

3

BDK JAPANNEWS 2011- 2012

Kikai (Opportunity)
In whatever we do, there is chance or opportunity. Once wemiss that opportunity, it is of no avail no matter how much we
may stamp our feet with vexation afterward.
We were born into this world as human beings. Having been
given that opportunity, what must we truly do? What is thesignificance of receiving this opportunity?
If we do not think of this seriously, we will lose theopportunity of having been born into human life.

The Passage on Worship and Praise says:

01
Activity“It is difficult to receive a human body. Now we have received
it. It is difficult to hear the Buddha-Dharma. Now we hear it.
If we do not deliver ourselves in this life, in what life can we
do so?”“To deliver ourselves” means to cross over from the world of
delusion to that of enlightenment. We are given theopportunity to deliver ourselves only by having been born as
human beings.

(Taken from “Sasaeatte” authored by Toshihide Numata,
BDK Chairman of the Board)

BDK Financial Aid for Buddhist Kindergartens in
the Disaster Areas

Two years have passed since the Great
Eastern Japan Earthquake & Tsunami
struck Japan. However, the area is stillplagued with reconstruction delays
and many people are still greatly suffering. Amongst these severe conditions, we find many children in the disaster area are also living under harshconditions, both physically and spiritually.
Initially, BDK made a grant under its

02
Activity“2011 BDK The Great Eastern Japan
Earthquake & Tsunami” aid for reconstruction work in the disaster areas,
and in 2012, BDK set up a financial
aid prog ram for Buddhist kindergartens established in the disasterareas in cooperation with the
Association of Japanese Buddhist
Kindergartens.
BDK received 32 applications fromkindergartens throughout the disaster

The Cultural Awards for the Promotion of Buddhism: BUNKA-SHO / NUMATA SHOREI-SHO

The BDK Cultural Awards, BUNKASHO has been established by BDK torecognize and praise those who havecontributed to the promotion of
Buddhism and Buddhist culture
through their various national andinternational activities. In 2013, BDK
will initiate a new award to be called
the NUMATA SHOREI- SHO(Numata Encouragement Award)
which will be given to individuals, who,
are already exhibiting dedicated serv-

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

It is BDK's wish that this financial aid
will help revive the wellbeing and happiness of the children in the strickenarea and will be a boost to support
their continued growth and nurturingin the years ahead.

The 46th BDK Cultural Awards

ice to Buddhism
and in time, will
become the upand-coming
contributors to
the promotionof Buddhism.

2

region, and after review by an independent screening committee, BDK
granted a total of JPY 9,200,000 to
support the affected kindergartens.

The Bukkyo
Dendo Kyokai
Cultural Award
Committeeannually selects the awardees and presents them with a gift and honorarium.
The 46th Ceremony and banquet washeld at Bukkyo Dendo Center
Building in Tokyo on October 12,
2012. Here are the 2012 awardees:
Bukkyo Dendo Bunka-sho: Rev. Dr.
Takeharu Nishirai
Born in Hokkaido, Japan in 1924. A
pioneer in utilizing his educational
background to initiate a Buddhist

counseling service over the telephone
since 1970s.
Numata Shorei-sho: Rev. Dr. Kaiun
Shiratate (Thsul khrims skal bzang)
Born in West Tibet in 1942. Long
time contributor in advancing theunderstanding of Tibetan Buddhism
and its culture at Otani University andgreatly contributed to the development of the next generation of promising scholars.
Numata Shorei-sho: Rev. Sokyu
Genyu
Born in Fukushima, Japan in 1956.
An Akutagawa Award-winning author,
whose writings appear in various publications and has spoken throughout
Japan. As a Buddhist priest, he has
greatly encouraged survivors of theGreat Eastern Japan Earthquake andTsunami through the Buddhist teachings.

3

Establishment of BDK Fellowship
for Japanese Scholars
Since the BDK Fellowship for Foreign
Scholars program was established in
1991, we have supported and contributed to the development of many
foreign scholars of Buddhist studies.
In July 2012, BDK established a new
Fellowship for Japanese scholars toenable worthy scholars to engage in
research on Buddhism in foreign countries.
Applications for the first awards were
accepted on July 13, 2012 and closed
on November 10, 2012. Eight appli-

cants applied for the first fellowshipand a BDK Fellowship for Japanese
Scholar Selection Meeting was held on
December 20, 2012 at which time, thefollowing three scholars were selected
as the recipients of the f irst BDK
Fellowship for Japanese Scholars:Name : Maho IUCHI
Affiliation : JSPS Research Fellow (Kobe City University ofForeign Studies) / Post-Doctoral Associate, Department ofSouth Asian Studies, Harvard University
Theme of Research : History of Tibetan Buddhism between
11th and 13th centuries: Early history of Bka' gdams pa school.
Name : Masanori SHONO
Affiliation : Assistant Professor, Osaka University, Graduate
School of Letters / Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Institut für
Indologie und Tibetologie
Theme of Research : Study of newly identified Sanskrit fragments of the Vinayavibhan・ga
Name : Masaki MATSUBARA
Affiliation : Visiting Scholar, Center for Buddhist Studies,
University of California, Berkeley / Center for Buddhist Studies,
Stanford University
Theme of Research : Hakuin as an Invented Tradition:
Memory, Identity, and Invention in Contemporary Japanese Zen■ For further information about the scholarship program,please visit BDK website.

4

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

Interview

The current BDK Fellowship
The BDK Fellowship was established to promoteinternational cooperation and mutual understanding in Buddhist studies, and is intended to enable
researchers to engage in research on Buddhism
while in Japan. The BDK Fellowship Committee

was established in 1991 and has selected 60
promising scholars to date. Most of the recipientsare active in the front lines of today’s Buddhist
academic world.

Interview with the 2012 Recipient
The BDK Fellowship committee
selected two prospective scholars forthe 2012 grant. It is with great pleasure that we extend our welcome to oneof them at this time. Dr. Huanhuan
He, visiting scholar, Graduate Schoolof Humanities, University of Tokyoand her academic advisor, Prof. Dr.

Akira Saito at the University of Tokyo
were interviewed.

experience when I studied in Japan
from 2008 to 2010 and Japanesescholarship in my f ield indeed
impressed me very much! I therefore
decided to apply for the 2012 BDK
Fellowship in order to have a chance tostudy in Japan again.

astonishingly efficient way in which
BDK conducts its affairs because it
had only been one month and a halfsince I submitted my application andthen got the great news.

uestions to

Q Dr. Huanhuan He:
How did you find out about ourscholarship program and whatmade you decide to apply for the2012 BDK Fellowship? And how
did you feel when you found outthat you were selected for the2012 program?
While I was studying at the Universityof Tokyo in 2009, I by chance saw anannouncement for the 2010 BDK
Fellowship on the bulletin board of the
Department of Indian Philosophy andBuddhist studies. At the time, I
thought that I might apply for it in the
future, so I kept the BDK Fellowshipin my mind from that time onward.
Although I graduated from Peking
University in 2011 and was fortunate
to obtain a position at the Institute ofPhilosophy at the Chinese Academy of
the Social Sciences, I was very muchaware that I needed to gain additional
international experience and continue
to learn more about Indian philosophy
and Buddhism in a country other thanChina. Besides, I had an excellent

And I was absolutely delighted when I
learned that I had been selected for the2012 BDK Fellowship! I vividly
remember the day that I received theemail from the BDK office. Initially, I
was even a bit incredulous, and thenreality set in. I was truly amazed at the

Please tell us about your current
studies and research at the
University of Tokyo and why you
chose to cover this theme indepth.
As I wrote in my application for the
BDK Fellowship, the main focus of myresearch at the University of Tokyo is
one that flows naturally from my doc-

5

Establishment of BDK Fellowship
for Japanese Scholars
Since the BDK Fellowship for Foreign
Scholars program was established in
1991, we have supported and contributed to the development of many
foreign scholars of Buddhist studies.
In July 2012, BDK established a new
Fellowship for Japanese scholars toenable worthy scholars to engage in
research on Buddhism in foreign countries.
Applications for the first awards were
accepted on July 13, 2012 and closed
on November 10, 2012. Eight appli-

cants applied for the first fellowshipand a BDK Fellowship for Japanese
Scholar Selection Meeting was held on
December 20, 2012 at which time, thefollowing three scholars were selected
as the recipients of the f irst BDK
Fellowship for Japanese Scholars:Name : Maho IUCHI
Affiliation : JSPS Research Fellow (Kobe City University ofForeign Studies) / Post-Doctoral Associate, Department ofSouth Asian Studies, Harvard University
Theme of Research : History of Tibetan Buddhism between
11th and 13th centuries: Early history of Bka' gdams pa school.
Name : Masanori SHONO
Affiliation : Assistant Professor, Osaka University, Graduate
School of Letters / Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Institut für
Indologie und Tibetologie
Theme of Research : Study of newly identified Sanskrit fragments of the Vinayavibhan・ga
Name : Masaki MATSUBARA
Affiliation : Visiting Scholar, Center for Buddhist Studies,
University of California, Berkeley / Center for Buddhist Studies,
Stanford University
Theme of Research : Hakuin as an Invented Tradition:
Memory, Identity, and Invention in Contemporary Japanese Zen■ For further information about the scholarship program,please visit BDK website.

4

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

Interview

The current BDK Fellowship
The BDK Fellowship was established to promoteinternational cooperation and mutual understanding in Buddhist studies, and is intended to enable
researchers to engage in research on Buddhism
while in Japan. The BDK Fellowship Committee

was established in 1991 and has selected 60
promising scholars to date. Most of the recipientsare active in the front lines of today’s Buddhist
academic world.

Interview with the 2012 Recipient
The BDK Fellowship committee
selected two prospective scholars forthe 2012 grant. It is with great pleasure that we extend our welcome to oneof them at this time. Dr. Huanhuan
He, visiting scholar, Graduate Schoolof Humanities, University of Tokyoand her academic advisor, Prof. Dr.

Akira Saito at the University of Tokyo
were interviewed.

experience when I studied in Japan
from 2008 to 2010 and Japanesescholarship in my f ield indeed
impressed me very much! I therefore
decided to apply for the 2012 BDK
Fellowship in order to have a chance tostudy in Japan again.

astonishingly efficient way in which
BDK conducts its affairs because it
had only been one month and a halfsince I submitted my application andthen got the great news.

uestions to

Q Dr. Huanhuan He:
How did you find out about ourscholarship program and whatmade you decide to apply for the2012 BDK Fellowship? And how
did you feel when you found outthat you were selected for the2012 program?
While I was studying at the Universityof Tokyo in 2009, I by chance saw anannouncement for the 2010 BDK
Fellowship on the bulletin board of the
Department of Indian Philosophy andBuddhist studies. At the time, I
thought that I might apply for it in the
future, so I kept the BDK Fellowshipin my mind from that time onward.
Although I graduated from Peking
University in 2011 and was fortunate
to obtain a position at the Institute ofPhilosophy at the Chinese Academy of
the Social Sciences, I was very muchaware that I needed to gain additional
international experience and continue
to learn more about Indian philosophy
and Buddhism in a country other thanChina. Besides, I had an excellent

And I was absolutely delighted when I
learned that I had been selected for the2012 BDK Fellowship! I vividly
remember the day that I received theemail from the BDK office. Initially, I
was even a bit incredulous, and thenreality set in. I was truly amazed at the

Please tell us about your current
studies and research at the
University of Tokyo and why you
chose to cover this theme indepth.
As I wrote in my application for the
BDK Fellowship, the main focus of myresearch at the University of Tokyo is
one that flows naturally from my doc-

5

toral studies. I am now setting my sights
on the ninth chapter of Bha- viveka’s
Madhyamakaha- dayaka- rika- and his
a u t o - c o m m e n t a r y Ta rk a j v a- l a- ,namely, the one that is titled
sa- tattvanirn・aya- vata- ra. I am
Mima- m・
presently collating the Sanskrit andTibetan texts, and reading them with
Prof. Saito in his class. I intend totranslate this chapter into Chinese andEnglish, as well as inquire into theauthor’s argumentation as expressedin both texts in order to understandbetter the ways in which thisMadhyamaka intellectual describes
sa- deas.
and criticizes Mima- m
・I studied the ways in which Bha- viveka
khya, Vais' es・ika anddealt with the Sa- m
・
Veda nta schools in the above
mentioned texts for my Ph.D.
dissertation: A Study of the
Madhyamakahr・dayaka- rika- and the
Tarkajva- la- (2011). My study of thesa- chapter is the last of nonMima- m
・
Buddhist schools that Bha- viveka
discusses. It will bring to a close myintention to provide a critical edition,translation, and analytic interpretationof the non-Buddhist schools in the
Madhyamakahr・dayaka- rika- and the
Tarkajva- la- . And I hope that this willamount to a useful contribution to thestudy of Bha-vivaka and the Ma- dhyamika
school in particular, and to the field of
early Indian Philosophy in general.
Besides working on the chapter, I am
also currently revising my Ph.D. dissertation, which will be published as a
two-volume book by the China Social
Sciences Press in the early 2013. The
combination of my work with the outstanding scholar Professor Saito andthe use of the excellent librar y ofTokyo University has been an invaluable resource for my work.

6

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─I am also attending some classes andstudy meetings. I attend Prof. Marui’s
class in which we read thegraha and thePada- rthadharmasam・Nyayakandali. And I read Bha-viveka’sKaratalaratna with a Ph.D. student in aweekly study meeting. Truly, I deeply
appreciate the opportunity given to me
by BDK to study with such great scholars at the University of Tokyo.
What is the most rewarding
aspect of receiving the grantfrom BDK and why?
Nothing is better than the strong
financial support without any obligations! The BDK Fellowship gives me
the precious chance to study again at
the University of Tokyo, where I cancompletely concentrate on my researchin a worry-free situation. When I
received the Chinese Government
Scholarship from 2008 to 2010, I
incurred several obligations that I
sometimes felt limited me to fulfill myresearch plans. Many fellowships in
the US and Europe require teachingobligations, but this is not the casewith the BDK Fellowship. It asks
nothing of its beneficiaries and all that
I need to do is to work hard on myresearch, which is such a boon.
Of course, it will be my pleasure to do
whatever is within my ability for BDK
and for the promotion of the
Buddhadharma in the future.
Please tell us about your future
research plans after this year at
the University of Tokyo?
I will return to China after the BDK
Fellowship, where I will continue tostudy and work at the Chinese
Academy of Social Sciences. After
publishing my work that has been donein Japan, I would like to spend moretime on the study of Indian philosophy,

i.e., on my planned research project “AStudy of the Candra- nandavr・tti and
Early Vais' es・ika Thought.” This
project is supported by the Chinese
Government and I expect to bring it toa successful conclusion by the end of
2014. I also intend to study for a whilein the United States in the near future
in order to learn more about the ways
in which scholarship on Buddhist
thought is conducted there, and to
improve my English.

uestions to Prof. Akita

Q Saito:How did you meet Dr. He and how
would you evaluate the accomplishment that Dr. He hasachieved so far at the University ofTokyo? And what would you lookfor her to further accomplish in the
future?
It was in 2007 when I saw her in Japanfor the first time as I remember. She
saw my Ph.D. dissertation somewhere
and asked me to be her academic advisor at the University of Tokyo. Timeflies and it is now 2012 and we have
known each other for more than six
years. I believe that Dr. He’s achievement is wonderful. What she has been
doing as her research should be highly
respected. I am impressed with how
she understands and reads those texts
in Sanskrit and Tibetan side by side. I
hope and believe that she will be one of
the most active in the front line of thiscategory of research in the future.
What do you think is the merit of
the BDK Fellowship?
I have heard that the BDK fellowship
program runs the 22nd year since1991 and over 60 scholars were supported by BDK and have done theirresearch and studies in Japan. I
believe that these are tremendous contributions. I welcomed two scholars

from China before, and both of them
could fortunately received the BDK
Fellowship grants and enabled theirstudies in Japan. There are many students who are wishing to come to
Japan and study, however, it costs a lot
just to stay. I hope that the BDK
Fellowship awardee(s) should not forget what they learnt in Japan and they
will be the leading researcher(s) in thisfield of studies in the world. I strongly
believe that the BDK Fellowship program can be the bridge of the continued international academic exchange.

Please give some advice tofuture BDK Fellowship candidates.
Even though the tenure of BDK
Fellowship is only one year, I am surethat this would be the precious experience of their lifetime. Therefore, they
had better work hard on their researchand should not forget what the BDK
Fellowship has done for their academic
enrichment. Also, I would like thefuture awardees to deepen their relationship with other scholars throughout the world and take a lead in theinternational academic exchange of
Buddhist studies. Thank you.
Interviewees: Dr. Huanhuan He,
Visiting Scholar, Graduate School of
Humanities, University of Tokyo andProf. Dr. Akira Saito, University ofTokyo■ Interviewer & Photography: Kaoru
Eguchi, BDK■Location: Hongo Campus, Universityof Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan■

Looking Back at the Experience of Receiving a BDK Fellowship– An interview with Rev. Gyoei Saile, the 2011 BDK Fellowship Awardee at Kofukuji Temple
We had the great opportunity to meetup with one of the 2011 BDK
Fellowship awardees, the Rev. Gyoei
Saile (Florian Saile) at Kofukuji tem-ple in Nara. While studying in Japan,
Rev. Saile received his ordination from
Kofukuji Temple and has been pursuing his research at Ryukoku University

What was the most rewarding
aspect of receiving the grant from
BDK and why?
I came to do my research for my Ph.D.
Dissertation in the fall of 2010 at first.
I was fortunate to receive a scholarshipgrant and I decided to stay for anotheryear af ter the g rant ended . My
research theme is “The evolution ofJapanese Hosso- thought during the
Heian and Kamakura Periods, with a
special focus on the doctrine of the‘Distinction of the Five Predispositions’in Hosso- debate manuals” and I am
afraid this research is taking a lot of time
to complete.

had not been done by anyone else up
until now and I came up with the history of Japanese Buddhist ideology,
especially the vijnapti-matrata. I wassure that I would regret it for a longtime if I did not decide to do this now.

At first, when I talked with my academic advisor at UC Berkeley, I thought I
would like to write my Ph.D. dissertation about Japanese Buddhist ideology. I wanted to try something new that

Most of my advisors worried about me
and disagreed with what I was about toexplore because the theme I chose has
not been completely explained yet,however, Prof. Junsho Kusunoki from
Ryukoku University, the pioneer ofthis study field had cordially welcomed
me. I thought that I would like tobring back the changes from themedieval period into existence again.
The process of the research was justtime-consuming, but fortunately I
could take my time and focus on what I
was doing without worrying about thetime and finances due to the support

in Kyoto (Rev. Saile is currently affiliated with the University of California,
Berkeley in the U.S.).

from the BDK Fellowship. I think thiswas the best thing about my receiving
the BDK Fellowship grant.

7toral studies. I am now setting my sights
on the ninth chapter of Bha- viveka’s
Madhyamakaha- dayaka- rika- and his
a u t o - c o m m e n t a r y Ta rk a j v a- l a- ,namely, the one that is titled
sa- tattvanirn・aya- vata- ra. I am
Mima- m・
presently collating the Sanskrit andTibetan texts, and reading them with
Prof. Saito in his class. I intend totranslate this chapter into Chinese andEnglish, as well as inquire into theauthor’s argumentation as expressedin both texts in order to understandbetter the ways in which thisMadhyamaka intellectual describes
sa- deas.
and criticizes Mima- m
・I studied the ways in which Bha- viveka
khya, Vais' es・ika anddealt with the Sa- m
・
Veda nta schools in the above
mentioned texts for my Ph.D.
dissertation: A Study of the
Madhyamakahr・dayaka- rika- and the
Tarkajva- la- (2011). My study of thesa- chapter is the last of nonMima- m
・
Buddhist schools that Bha- viveka
discusses. It will bring to a close myintention to provide a critical edition,translation, and analytic interpretationof the non-Buddhist schools in the
Madhyamakahr・dayaka- rika- and the
Tarkajva- la- . And I hope that this willamount to a useful contribution to thestudy of Bha-vivaka and the Ma- dhyamika
school in particular, and to the field of
early Indian Philosophy in general.
Besides working on the chapter, I am
also currently revising my Ph.D. dissertation, which will be published as a
two-volume book by the China Social
Sciences Press in the early 2013. The
combination of my work with the outstanding scholar Professor Saito andthe use of the excellent librar y ofTokyo University has been an invaluable resource for my work.

6

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─I am also attending some classes andstudy meetings. I attend Prof. Marui’s
class in which we read thegraha and thePada- rthadharmasam・Nyayakandali. And I read Bha-viveka’sKaratalaratna with a Ph.D. student in aweekly study meeting. Truly, I deeply
appreciate the opportunity given to me
by BDK to study with such great scholars at the University of Tokyo.
What is the most rewarding
aspect of receiving the grantfrom BDK and why?
Nothing is better than the strong
financial support without any obligations! The BDK Fellowship gives me
the precious chance to study again at
the University of Tokyo, where I cancompletely concentrate on my researchin a worry-free situation. When I
received the Chinese Government
Scholarship from 2008 to 2010, I
incurred several obligations that I
sometimes felt limited me to fulfill myresearch plans. Many fellowships in
the US and Europe require teachingobligations, but this is not the casewith the BDK Fellowship. It asks
nothing of its beneficiaries and all that
I need to do is to work hard on myresearch, which is such a boon.
Of course, it will be my pleasure to do
whatever is within my ability for BDK
and for the promotion of the
Buddhadharma in the future.
Please tell us about your future
research plans after this year at
the University of Tokyo?
I will return to China after the BDK
Fellowship, where I will continue tostudy and work at the Chinese
Academy of Social Sciences. After
publishing my work that has been donein Japan, I would like to spend moretime on the study of Indian philosophy,

i.e., on my planned research project “AStudy of the Candra- nandavr・tti and
Early Vais' es・ika Thought.” This
project is supported by the Chinese
Government and I expect to bring it toa successful conclusion by the end of
2014. I also intend to study for a whilein the United States in the near future
in order to learn more about the ways
in which scholarship on Buddhist
thought is conducted there, and to
improve my English.

uestions to Prof. Akita

Q Saito:How did you meet Dr. He and how
would you evaluate the accomplishment that Dr. He hasachieved so far at the University ofTokyo? And what would you lookfor her to further accomplish in the
future?
It was in 2007 when I saw her in Japanfor the first time as I remember. She
saw my Ph.D. dissertation somewhere
and asked me to be her academic advisor at the University of Tokyo. Timeflies and it is now 2012 and we have
known each other for more than six
years. I believe that Dr. He’s achievement is wonderful. What she has been
doing as her research should be highly
respected. I am impressed with how
she understands and reads those texts
in Sanskrit and Tibetan side by side. I
hope and believe that she will be one of
the most active in the front line of thiscategory of research in the future.
What do you think is the merit of
the BDK Fellowship?
I have heard that the BDK fellowship
program runs the 22nd year since1991 and over 60 scholars were supported by BDK and have done theirresearch and studies in Japan. I
believe that these are tremendous contributions. I welcomed two scholars

from China before, and both of them
could fortunately received the BDK
Fellowship grants and enabled theirstudies in Japan. There are many students who are wishing to come to
Japan and study, however, it costs a lot
just to stay. I hope that the BDK
Fellowship awardee(s) should not forget what they learnt in Japan and they
will be the leading researcher(s) in thisfield of studies in the world. I strongly
believe that the BDK Fellowship program can be the bridge of the continued international academic exchange.

Please give some advice tofuture BDK Fellowship candidates.
Even though the tenure of BDK
Fellowship is only one year, I am surethat this would be the precious experience of their lifetime. Therefore, they
had better work hard on their researchand should not forget what the BDK
Fellowship has done for their academic
enrichment. Also, I would like thefuture awardees to deepen their relationship with other scholars throughout the world and take a lead in theinternational academic exchange of
Buddhist studies. Thank you.
Interviewees: Dr. Huanhuan He,
Visiting Scholar, Graduate School of
Humanities, University of Tokyo andProf. Dr. Akira Saito, University ofTokyo■ Interviewer & Photography: Kaoru
Eguchi, BDK■Location: Hongo Campus, Universityof Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan■

Looking Back at the Experience of Receiving a BDK Fellowship– An interview with Rev. Gyoei Saile, the 2011 BDK Fellowship Awardee at Kofukuji Temple
We had the great opportunity to meetup with one of the 2011 BDK
Fellowship awardees, the Rev. Gyoei
Saile (Florian Saile) at Kofukuji tem-ple in Nara. While studying in Japan,
Rev. Saile received his ordination from
Kofukuji Temple and has been pursuing his research at Ryukoku University

What was the most rewarding
aspect of receiving the grant from
BDK and why?
I came to do my research for my Ph.D.
Dissertation in the fall of 2010 at first.
I was fortunate to receive a scholarshipgrant and I decided to stay for anotheryear af ter the g rant ended . My
research theme is “The evolution ofJapanese Hosso- thought during the
Heian and Kamakura Periods, with a
special focus on the doctrine of the‘Distinction of the Five Predispositions’in Hosso- debate manuals” and I am
afraid this research is taking a lot of time
to complete.

had not been done by anyone else up
until now and I came up with the history of Japanese Buddhist ideology,
especially the vijnapti-matrata. I wassure that I would regret it for a longtime if I did not decide to do this now.

At first, when I talked with my academic advisor at UC Berkeley, I thought I
would like to write my Ph.D. dissertation about Japanese Buddhist ideology. I wanted to try something new that

Most of my advisors worried about me
and disagreed with what I was about toexplore because the theme I chose has
not been completely explained yet,however, Prof. Junsho Kusunoki from
Ryukoku University, the pioneer ofthis study field had cordially welcomed
me. I thought that I would like tobring back the changes from themedieval period into existence again.
The process of the research was justtime-consuming, but fortunately I
could take my time and focus on what I
was doing without worrying about thetime and finances due to the support

in Kyoto (Rev. Saile is currently affiliated with the University of California,
Berkeley in the U.S.).

from the BDK Fellowship. I think thiswas the best thing about my receiving
the BDK Fellowship grant.

7

Please tell us about your current
life at Kofukuji and what madeyou become a priest here? And
what are the moments thatcaused you the most hardshipand yet are the most meaningful
and provided you with a fulfilling
experience?
I was aff iliated with Ryukoku
University when I first came to Japan,
so I naturally thought that I shouldhave lived close to the university in
Kyoto, but then I thought why not live
in Nara? Both Kofukuji and Yakushiji
are still existing and I thought it madegood sense that I should be closer tothe subjects of my research. While I
was trying to learn about rituals, etc.
directly from the priests at those temples, I was quite lucky to have theassistance of Prof. Kusunoki who
introduced me to many of these priests
and then I realized how much I wasinto their life styles and the details andparticular manners of the Buddhist rituals and so on.
In August 2011, a great opportunity
suddenly arose for me. One of the
Kofukuji priests asked me to be his
doji, a priest who takes care of his senior/colleague during the entire period
when the priest shuts himself up for an
intensive three-week training andpractices called Rongi. To be honest, I
was overwhelmed when he asked me toplay such a major role and I thought I
could not do it. However after a few
moments, I realized that this would be
the perfect opportunity for me to experience everything including a real
Rongi and the accompanying ancient
rituals for myself! I could not afford to
miss such a chance and immediately
said “yes” to the request. So, in order
to become a “doji” I had to become apriest myself. Therefore, I decided tostart a new life as a Buddhist priest

8

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

here.
Since I am a foreigner, I did not know
at all about the traditions, so I had to
impose on others around me all thetime, and yes, I sometimes felt that thetraining and practices were quite hard.
However, when I started to feel thatway, I would always remember what mypriest friend told me. He said, “Youshould not think that you like or dislike
the trainings and practices. If you
think in this way, what you are doing is
not a training or a practice anymore. It
becomes merely a hobby.” Therefore,
I always train and practice for the sakeof everyone and everything in thisworld, not for myself and self-esteem.
I keep questioning myself how can I
live as a priest? This is something that I
believe is necessary to do.
I have experienced many good things,
however, I cannot recall everything.
As a researcher, I am the first foreign
researcher who has ever experienced
the real Hosso- study at Kofukuji andthis is priceless. The Chinese characters for Shukke, meaning “to become apriest” are “leaving the house” andthis means that you leave yourworld/home where you were nurtured
and become a monk. I am entering my
new home, in my case, Kofukuji
Temple. Therefore, I am, one of thepriests of Kofukuji temple and will
carry this feeling with me forever, evenwhen I return back to the UnitedStates and move on in my career.
We have heard that your life at
Kofukuji with your Japanesefamily will come to an end soon.
Please tell us about your futureplans after this year.
Well, I am planning to go back to UC
Berkeley in August 2013. I think that
I have done enough research in Japanand I would like to finish my Ph.D. dissertation under my academic advisor
in the U.S. as I had originally planned.
I believe that being a Buddhist is a wayof life, so I would like more people,
especially the younger generations likecollege students to become aware ofthis philosophy. My dream job would
be to become a lecturer at a Japanese
university while I am a priest, however,I must say that it is very difficult tomake this dream become reality at thismoment. I know that if it were possible, I would like to stay in Japan as a
Kofukuji priest forever, but the decision cannot be made by myself. No
one knows what is right and I will be
the best that I can be in any place
where people would like me to be. But
I truly appreciate BDK and all the people who have helped me during my stayin Japan and I will do my best to complete my Ph.D. dissertation as soon as
possible. Thank you!

The 42nd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai, BDK
Missionary Seminar at Hieizan Enryakuji– Special Interview with Rev. Tainen Miyagi, The 52nd Monshu, HonzanShugenshu Shogoin-Monzeki
BDK hosted the 42nd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai at
Hieizan Enryakuji from May 30th to June 1st andwelcomed over 60 priests and their temple family
members from throughout Japan. The first Jissen
seminar was held as a small discussion grouporganized by BDK founder, the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata in 1970. BDK has sponsored this event
every single year since then, and the seminar has
gradually become popular amongst Japanese
Buddhist priests and more than 2,200 priests andmembers have attended these Jissen Fukyo semi-nars since that time. Annually, this seminar is heldat the headquarters of a different Japanese
Buddhist sect, and each host sect enthusiasticallysupports BDK in hosting this event which enables
everyone to enjoy and learn a great deal from thisopportunity each year. At this year’s 42nd seminar, we proudly welcomed Rev. Tainen Miyagi
from Shogoin-Monzeki, the Honzan-Shugen sectas our special guest/participant for this year’s
seminar.

As Rev. Saile strongly stated, it is
BDK’s desire to assist up-and-coming
scholars from all over the world tocome to Japan and pursue their studies
and research with BDK support. The
2014 BDK Fellowship application willappear online at the beginning of
October 2013. BDK most certainly
welcomes all promising scholars toapply for consideration of the BDK
Fellowship in next year’s program.
(For more information about the
BDK Fellowship, please visit
http://www.bdk.or.jp)
Interviewer & Photography: Kaoru
Eguchi, BDK■ Location: Kofukuji Temple, Nara,
Japan■

First of all, we understand thatyou have wanted to attend andparticipate in our seminar forthe last twenty-five years! What
made you decide to be a part ofour event this year?
Yes, that is true. I first applied for theseminar twenty-five years ago, but inthe end I could not make it because we
had a very important conference for
our Honzan-Shugenshu on the exact
same dates. So I missed that opportunity but kept the thought of attending
the BDK seminar in my mind eversince that time.

One day, I heard that BDK will holdthe seminar at Hieizan-Enr yakuji
again, and that it would include thesame one day experience called“Kaihogyo,” so I thought that I should
not miss this opportunity again since I
am one who practices Shugendo! In
addition to that, I could attend the9Please tell us about your current
life at Kofukuji and what madeyou become a priest here? And
what are the moments thatcaused you the most hardshipand yet are the most meaningful
and provided you with a fulfilling
experience?
I was aff iliated with Ryukoku
University when I first came to Japan,
so I naturally thought that I shouldhave lived close to the university in
Kyoto, but then I thought why not live
in Nara? Both Kofukuji and Yakushiji
are still existing and I thought it madegood sense that I should be closer tothe subjects of my research. While I
was trying to learn about rituals, etc.
directly from the priests at those temples, I was quite lucky to have theassistance of Prof. Kusunoki who
introduced me to many of these priests
and then I realized how much I wasinto their life styles and the details andparticular manners of the Buddhist rituals and so on.
In August 2011, a great opportunity
suddenly arose for me. One of the
Kofukuji priests asked me to be his
doji, a priest who takes care of his senior/colleague during the entire period
when the priest shuts himself up for an
intensive three-week training andpractices called Rongi. To be honest, I
was overwhelmed when he asked me toplay such a major role and I thought I
could not do it. However after a few
moments, I realized that this would be
the perfect opportunity for me to experience everything including a real
Rongi and the accompanying ancient
rituals for myself! I could not afford to
miss such a chance and immediately
said “yes” to the request. So, in order
to become a “doji” I had to become apriest myself. Therefore, I decided tostart a new life as a Buddhist priest

8

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

here.
Since I am a foreigner, I did not know
at all about the traditions, so I had to
impose on others around me all thetime, and yes, I sometimes felt that thetraining and practices were quite hard.
However, when I started to feel thatway, I would always remember what mypriest friend told me. He said, “Youshould not think that you like or dislike
the trainings and practices. If you
think in this way, what you are doing is
not a training or a practice anymore. It
becomes merely a hobby.” Therefore,
I always train and practice for the sakeof everyone and everything in thisworld, not for myself and self-esteem.
I keep questioning myself how can I
live as a priest? This is something that I
believe is necessary to do.
I have experienced many good things,
however, I cannot recall everything.
As a researcher, I am the first foreign
researcher who has ever experienced
the real Hosso- study at Kofukuji andthis is priceless. The Chinese characters for Shukke, meaning “to become apriest” are “leaving the house” andthis means that you leave yourworld/home where you were nurtured
and become a monk. I am entering my
new home, in my case, Kofukuji
Temple. Therefore, I am, one of thepriests of Kofukuji temple and will
carry this feeling with me forever, evenwhen I return back to the UnitedStates and move on in my career.
We have heard that your life at
Kofukuji with your Japanesefamily will come to an end soon.
Please tell us about your futureplans after this year.
Well, I am planning to go back to UC
Berkeley in August 2013. I think that
I have done enough research in Japanand I would like to finish my Ph.D. dissertation under my academic advisor
in the U.S. as I had originally planned.
I believe that being a Buddhist is a wayof life, so I would like more people,
especially the younger generations likecollege students to become aware ofthis philosophy. My dream job would
be to become a lecturer at a Japanese
university while I am a priest, however,I must say that it is very difficult tomake this dream become reality at thismoment. I know that if it were possible, I would like to stay in Japan as a
Kofukuji priest forever, but the decision cannot be made by myself. No
one knows what is right and I will be
the best that I can be in any place
where people would like me to be. But
I truly appreciate BDK and all the people who have helped me during my stayin Japan and I will do my best to complete my Ph.D. dissertation as soon as
possible. Thank you!

The 42nd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai, BDK
Missionary Seminar at Hieizan Enryakuji– Special Interview with Rev. Tainen Miyagi, The 52nd Monshu, HonzanShugenshu Shogoin-Monzeki
BDK hosted the 42nd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai at
Hieizan Enryakuji from May 30th to June 1st andwelcomed over 60 priests and their temple family
members from throughout Japan. The first Jissen
seminar was held as a small discussion grouporganized by BDK founder, the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata in 1970. BDK has sponsored this event
every single year since then, and the seminar has
gradually become popular amongst Japanese
Buddhist priests and more than 2,200 priests andmembers have attended these Jissen Fukyo semi-nars since that time. Annually, this seminar is heldat the headquarters of a different Japanese
Buddhist sect, and each host sect enthusiasticallysupports BDK in hosting this event which enables
everyone to enjoy and learn a great deal from thisopportunity each year. At this year’s 42nd seminar, we proudly welcomed Rev. Tainen Miyagi
from Shogoin-Monzeki, the Honzan-Shugen sectas our special guest/participant for this year’s
seminar.

As Rev. Saile strongly stated, it is
BDK’s desire to assist up-and-coming
scholars from all over the world tocome to Japan and pursue their studies
and research with BDK support. The
2014 BDK Fellowship application willappear online at the beginning of
October 2013. BDK most certainly
welcomes all promising scholars toapply for consideration of the BDK
Fellowship in next year’s program.
(For more information about the
BDK Fellowship, please visit
http://www.bdk.or.jp)
Interviewer & Photography: Kaoru
Eguchi, BDK■ Location: Kofukuji Temple, Nara,
Japan■

First of all, we understand thatyou have wanted to attend andparticipate in our seminar forthe last twenty-five years! What
made you decide to be a part ofour event this year?
Yes, that is true. I first applied for theseminar twenty-five years ago, but inthe end I could not make it because we
had a very important conference for
our Honzan-Shugenshu on the exact
same dates. So I missed that opportunity but kept the thought of attending
the BDK seminar in my mind eversince that time.

One day, I heard that BDK will holdthe seminar at Hieizan-Enr yakuji
again, and that it would include thesame one day experience called“Kaihogyo,” so I thought that I should
not miss this opportunity again since I
am one who practices Shugendo! In
addition to that, I could attend the9seminar with my wife this time, andthat made me more enthusiastic about
participating. I realized this coincidence because my wife had plannedand organized the first women-only
BDK Missionar y Seminar held at
Hieizan-Enryakuji in 1978. (Since
that seminar was such a sensational
idea at that time, Ken Sato of the Asahi
Newspaper, one of the most popular
newspapers in Japan, published special
articles for two week s about the
women’s seminar.) I know that in theeyes of the Buddha, there is no differ-ence between women and men, however, it was the first opportunity for
women to be in a real Kaihogyo practice in Japanese history. BDK enabledthat to happen and I was impressed
and grateful for that achievement. I
was simply happy to be a part of history.
Having said that, I thought this
BDKseminar is supposed to be foryounger generations. Being a
Monshu, I was a bit concerned that mystatus might make the situation diffi-

cult and inconvenience the people
around me by having them pay too
much attention to me. However, there
was no need for such anxiety on mypart and gratefully, everyone was quite
friendly to me. This was quite a wonderful experience.
After the discussion with otherparticipants, you finally tried theone day Kaihogyo experience foryourself. How was it?
To tell you the truth, I was expecting
so much. I joined the seminar because

because they prepared bread and some
soft-drinks for everyone. It was easy to
swallow and gave me energy again(recalling the breakfast scenes). It wasafter that, that I realized that I was having trouble with my leg and it started
hurting so bad. I could have easily
stopped and called it quits, but thatwas too easy for myself and would havebeen such a disappointment.

ProfileVen. Reverend Tainen MIYAGIThe 52nd Monshu of ShogoinMonzeki, Kyoto, Japan. Born inKyoto in 1931. Graduated from
Ryukoku University. Also known as
the anti-war activist, served as theformer Commissioner for the Japan
Council of Religions for Peace.
Serves as a Visiting Professor at
Ryukoku University. Executive
Director of Kyoto Buddhist
Association.

of the Kaihogyo experience. (Taking a
deep breath) I learned so much!
First of all, the Yamagake practice andthe Kaihogyo practice are two completely different things. As journalists
usually write about Kaihogyo, they
compare it to “walking like f lying.”
That was it. I thought that it was pretty
fast, but I could follow the group. Andeven faster… For our Yamagake practice, we walked for two, three, and fourdays with ups and downs and finally
got to the top of the huge hill. We
were supposed to start at 1 am and finish at 8 am for this experience, so I
guess that it was not that bad.
However, I got a cramp in my leg after
the several hours straight of this“climbing like f lying.” We had aquick breakfast at Shigain-Monzeki on
the way, it was such a nice meal

10

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

Then all of a sudden, someone, most
likely another participant of the seminar, put his hand on my lower back andgently supported me without saying
anything. It was such a gentle and natural act of kindness. That act helped a
lot to keep my footing going up andforward. It did not cure my leg cramp,
but it was so helpful and such a priceless support that I had never experienced before.
I have supported and helped many
people throughout my life, however, I
have never been helped by someone inthis manner. I am not strong at all, andI could finally realize what it feels liketo be supported by another. I thinkthat a strong person, who is strong
inside and out, should also come toknow what it is like to be weak.
Wow, you were able to experience a lot more than you
expected during this Kaihogyo.
What do you think about the
BDK seminar itself and is there
anything you would like to suggest for future BDK programs?
It is obvious that BDK has done a wonderful job of organizing this seminarfor 42 years now and it is a tremendous
program. There are various Buddhist
sects in Japan, however, it is impossible for them to do the same type ofthing that BDK is able to do. I think
this kind of opportunity is importantand everyone should have the chance
to experience this program.
I frequently travel to many countries
around the world, and I often find thebright orange-covered book, “The
Teaching of Buddha” in each hotel
room. They are even written in a local
foreign language! This is just amazing
and it is a small happiness I can findduring my busy traveling schedule toeach country. BDK even hands out asmall booklet called “Message of the
Buddha” at no cost to Buddhist temples. These small but important
processes and methods of introducing
the basics of Buddhism should be studied and evaluated even further.
The Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai, theBDK Missionary Seminar should becontinued in the future and I hope that
BDK will continue to be the leadingorganization to plan these types ofprograms, including more programs
throughout the world. I believe that
we should not keep to ourselves only inthis small world but we should
exchange thoughts and communicate
with each other in the big world.
When many people from all over theworld are living under one roof, only
BDK can call them all at once and say“the dinner is ready.” I think we are all
one big family with the same Buddhist
teachings.
The 43rd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai,
BDK Missionary Seminar will be heldat Minobusan-Kuonji. (For more
information about the seminar, please
visit http://www.bdk.or.jp)
Interviewer & Photography: Kaoru
Eguchi, BDK■ Location: Honzan-ShugenshuSohonzan, Shogoin-Monzeki, Kyoto,
Japan
■

11

seminar with my wife this time, andthat made me more enthusiastic about
participating. I realized this coincidence because my wife had plannedand organized the first women-only
BDK Missionar y Seminar held at
Hieizan-Enryakuji in 1978. (Since
that seminar was such a sensational
idea at that time, Ken Sato of the Asahi
Newspaper, one of the most popular
newspapers in Japan, published special
articles for two week s about the
women’s seminar.) I know that in theeyes of the Buddha, there is no differ-ence between women and men, however, it was the first opportunity for
women to be in a real Kaihogyo practice in Japanese history. BDK enabledthat to happen and I was impressed
and grateful for that achievement. I
was simply happy to be a part of history.
Having said that, I thought this
BDKseminar is supposed to be foryounger generations. Being a
Monshu, I was a bit concerned that mystatus might make the situation diffi-

cult and inconvenience the people
around me by having them pay too
much attention to me. However, there
was no need for such anxiety on mypart and gratefully, everyone was quite
friendly to me. This was quite a wonderful experience.
After the discussion with otherparticipants, you finally tried theone day Kaihogyo experience foryourself. How was it?
To tell you the truth, I was expecting
so much. I joined the seminar because

because they prepared bread and some
soft-drinks for everyone. It was easy to
swallow and gave me energy again(recalling the breakfast scenes). It wasafter that, that I realized that I was having trouble with my leg and it started
hurting so bad. I could have easily
stopped and called it quits, but thatwas too easy for myself and would havebeen such a disappointment.

ProfileVen. Reverend Tainen MIYAGIThe 52nd Monshu of ShogoinMonzeki, Kyoto, Japan. Born inKyoto in 1931. Graduated from
Ryukoku University. Also known as
the anti-war activist, served as theformer Commissioner for the Japan
Council of Religions for Peace.
Serves as a Visiting Professor at
Ryukoku University. Executive
Director of Kyoto Buddhist
Association.

of the Kaihogyo experience. (Taking a
deep breath) I learned so much!
First of all, the Yamagake practice andthe Kaihogyo practice are two completely different things. As journalists
usually write about Kaihogyo, they
compare it to “walking like f lying.”
That was it. I thought that it was pretty
fast, but I could follow the group. Andeven faster… For our Yamagake practice, we walked for two, three, and fourdays with ups and downs and finally
got to the top of the huge hill. We
were supposed to start at 1 am and finish at 8 am for this experience, so I
guess that it was not that bad.
However, I got a cramp in my leg after
the several hours straight of this“climbing like f lying.” We had aquick breakfast at Shigain-Monzeki on
the way, it was such a nice meal

10

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

Then all of a sudden, someone, most
likely another participant of the seminar, put his hand on my lower back andgently supported me without saying
anything. It was such a gentle and natural act of kindness. That act helped a
lot to keep my footing going up andforward. It did not cure my leg cramp,
but it was so helpful and such a priceless support that I had never experienced before.
I have supported and helped many
people throughout my life, however, I
have never been helped by someone inthis manner. I am not strong at all, andI could finally realize what it feels liketo be supported by another. I thinkthat a strong person, who is strong
inside and out, should also come toknow what it is like to be weak.
Wow, you were able to experience a lot more than you
expected during this Kaihogyo.
What do you think about the
BDK seminar itself and is there
anything you would like to suggest for future BDK programs?
It is obvious that BDK has done a wonderful job of organizing this seminarfor 42 years now and it is a tremendous
program. There are various Buddhist
sects in Japan, however, it is impossible for them to do the same type ofthing that BDK is able to do. I think
this kind of opportunity is importantand everyone should have the chance
to experience this program.
I frequently travel to many countries
around the world, and I often find thebright orange-covered book, “The
Teaching of Buddha” in each hotel
room. They are even written in a local
foreign language! This is just amazing
and it is a small happiness I can findduring my busy traveling schedule toeach country. BDK even hands out asmall booklet called “Message of the
Buddha” at no cost to Buddhist temples. These small but important
processes and methods of introducing
the basics of Buddhism should be studied and evaluated even further.
The Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai, theBDK Missionary Seminar should becontinued in the future and I hope that
BDK will continue to be the leadingorganization to plan these types ofprograms, including more programs
throughout the world. I believe that
we should not keep to ourselves only inthis small world but we should
exchange thoughts and communicate
with each other in the big world.
When many people from all over theworld are living under one roof, only
BDK can call them all at once and say“the dinner is ready.” I think we are all
one big family with the same Buddhist
teachings.
The 43rd Jissen Fukyo Kenkyukai,
BDK Missionary Seminar will be heldat Minobusan-Kuonji. (For more
information about the seminar, please
visit http://www.bdk.or.jp)
Interviewer & Photography: Kaoru
Eguchi, BDK■ Location: Honzan-ShugenshuSohonzan, Shogoin-Monzeki, Kyoto,
Japan
■

11

BDK Affiliate Organization Activities

BDK Symposium:“Questioning Buddhism and Responding Buddhism”

On September 3, 2012, BDK
held a symposium on the themeof “Questioning Buddhism andResponding Buddhism.” Today wefind Buddhism’s role in responding topresent day issues such as suicide andpoverty being questioned and challenged. In order to clarify the meaningand potential of Buddhism’s role incurrent social issues, BDK invited four
outstanding young priests, the Rev.

Tesshu Shaku, Rev. Junsho Oka, Rev.
Ryuho Ikeguchi, and Rev. Daiko
Matsuyama to serve as panelists forthis symposium.
An overf low crowd of 120 people
attended the symposium. The four
panelists made their presentations byquestioning themselves on this symposium theme and each shared the premise that Buddhism has a great potential
to serve the needs of present society.

World Map & Contact Info.

After the symposium, there was much
positive feedback from many of theparticipants. BDK would like to continue to challenge and further develop
the positive meaning and purpose ofJapanese Buddhism in present society
through these types of symposiums
and events in the future.

BDK EUROPE e.V.

(EKOHaus der Japanischen Kultur e.V.)
Brüggener Weg 6, 40547 Düsseldorf, F.R. GERMANY
Tel: +49(211)577918-0 Fax: +49(211)577918-219
E-mail: pool@eko-hause.de
http://www.eko-haus.de/

BDK U.K.

※For further information on this symposium, please browse the BDK website.

he Second BDK Global Meeting
was held on October 25 and 26,
2012 at the BDK Tokyo office.
Representatives from the various BDK
affiliated organizations (BDK America,
BDK Hawaii, BDK Canada, BDK
Mexico, BDK Germany, and BDK U.K.)
came together to discuss and share theirrespective programs, ideas and goals inachieving the overall BDK mission of“promoting the Buddhist spirit and cul-ture, and its academic research.”
During this meeting, representatives ofeach organization shared how they arecarrying out their Buddhist promotional
activities based on the needs of these different cultures and societies. Based onthese successful examples, we then discussed how we can cooperate together forthe overall promotion of Buddhism
throughout the world.

A common theme throughout the twodays meeting was the necessity to haveinsight for the current world society andto create innovative promotional activities
based on time-honored traditions in the
rapidly changing society of today. We
would like to deepen the relationship with
our affiliated organizations through theexchanging of information and toenhance our activities with each otherfrom now on.

guest rooms of major hotels aroundthe world and served as an introduction to Eastern thought since 1965.
TTOB has now been published in 46
languages and 8 million copies havebeen distributed all over the world todate. BDK has compiled a large number of sutras (Buddhist scriptures) into
one book called “TTOB” which isreader-friendly with its modern choiceof words. The book guides you
through different situations of life, andcovers lifestyles, communications withothers, religious faith, the role of thefamily, education, economics, and pol-12

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

itics. This year alone, BDK has dis-

the TTOB book to Buddhist schools
and education centers throughout theworld through organizations such as
the University of Madrid in Spain, theTraditional Buddhist Association in
Nepal, etc. Many educational institutes use the TTOB book as classroom
reading material, as a textbook or invarious other ways for their students.
In addition to the distribution of “The
Teaching of Buddha” to schools
around the world, we are proud tointroduce the newest BDK publication
called “Bukkyo-no-Himitsu,” or “TheBDK HAWAII

3

4
2

1
5
6

7

9

Secret of Buddhism” in Februar y
first manga or comic book made especially for elementary school students.
This educational manga book introduces the basic ideas of Buddhism
through the life experience of Hazukichan, a fifth grade young girl who
faces the death of her pet dog, gains anawareness of her situation and overcomes her sadness with the help of the
Buddhist teachings. The story is easy
to follow and makes for great readingfor children and even adults. BDK has
already distributed the book to morethan 23,500 elementary schools and
3,000 public libraries in Japan.

61757 Algaroba Street, Honolulu, HI 96826, U.S.A.
Tel: +1(808)942-1511 Fax +1(808)942-2622
E-mail: bdkshi@hotmail.com
http://www.bdkhawaii.com/

3"T (TTOB)” has been placed in tributed more than 60,000 copies of 2013. “Bukkyo-no-Himitsu” is our5

2620 Warring Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 U.S.A.
Tel: +1(510)843-4128 Fax: +1(510)845-3409
E-mail: orders@bdkamerica.org
http://www.bdkamerica.org/

3-14, Shiba 4-chome, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, JAPAN 108-0014
Tel: +81(3)3455-5851 Fax: +81(3)3798-2758
E-mail: bdk@bdk.or.jp
http://www.bdk.or.jp/

BDK Japan Publication Updates
he Teaching of Buddha

BDK AMERICA2

BDK JAPAN

4

c/o Mitutoyo Canada Inc. 2121 Meadowvale Blvd.
Mississauga, ON, CANADA L5N 5N1
Tel: +1(905)821-1261 Fax: +1(905)821-4968
E-mail: honjo@bdkcanada.com

c/o Mitutoyo(UK)Ltd. Joule Road, West Point
Business Park, Andover, Hants SP10 3UX U.K.
Tel: +44 1264-353123 Fax: +44 1264-354883
E-mail: bdk@mitutoyo.co.uk

2012 BDK Global MeetingT

BDK CANADA

1

8

BDK TAIWAN

7

c/o Mitutoyo Taiwan Co., Ltd.
4F., No.71, Zhouzi St., Neihu Dist.,
Taipei City 114, TAIWAN (R.O.C)
Tel: +886(2)8752-3636 Fax: +886(2)8752-3267
E-mail: sharon@mitutoyo.com.tw

BDK ASIA
c/o Mitutoyo Asia Paciﬁc Pte. Ltd.
24 Kallang Avenue, Mitutoyo Building,Singapore, 339415, SINGAPORE
Tel: +65 6294-2211 Fax: +65 6299-6666
E-mail: bdk@mitutoyo.com.sg

10

BDK MEXICO

9

Prolg. Eugenia No. 17, Col. Nápoles, C.P.03810
México D.F., MEXICO
Tel/Fax: +52(55)5669-1088
E-mail: bdkmexico@prodigy.net.mx

8

BDK SOUTH AMERICA 10
a/c Mitutoyo Sul Americana Ltda.
Av. João Carlos da Silva Borges, 1240 CEP 04726-002,
Cx. Postal 4255, Santo Amaro, São Paulo-SP, BRAZIL
Tel: +55(11)5643-0006 Fax: +55(11)5641-3745
E-mail: bdk@mitutoyo.com.br

13

BDK Affiliate Organization Activities

BDK Symposium:“Questioning Buddhism and Responding Buddhism”

On September 3, 2012, BDK
held a symposium on the themeof “Questioning Buddhism andResponding Buddhism.” Today wefind Buddhism’s role in responding topresent day issues such as suicide andpoverty being questioned and challenged. In order to clarify the meaningand potential of Buddhism’s role incurrent social issues, BDK invited four
outstanding young priests, the Rev.

Tesshu Shaku, Rev. Junsho Oka, Rev.
Ryuho Ikeguchi, and Rev. Daiko
Matsuyama to serve as panelists forthis symposium.
An overf low crowd of 120 people
attended the symposium. The four
panelists made their presentations byquestioning themselves on this symposium theme and each shared the premise that Buddhism has a great potential
to serve the needs of present society.

World Map & Contact Info.

After the symposium, there was much
positive feedback from many of theparticipants. BDK would like to continue to challenge and further develop
the positive meaning and purpose ofJapanese Buddhism in present society
through these types of symposiums
and events in the future.

BDK EUROPE e.V.

(EKOHaus der Japanischen Kultur e.V.)
Brüggener Weg 6, 40547 Düsseldorf, F.R. GERMANY
Tel: +49(211)577918-0 Fax: +49(211)577918-219
E-mail: pool@eko-hause.de
http://www.eko-haus.de/

BDK U.K.

※For further information on this symposium, please browse the BDK website.

he Second BDK Global Meeting
was held on October 25 and 26,
2012 at the BDK Tokyo office.
Representatives from the various BDK
affiliated organizations (BDK America,
BDK Hawaii, BDK Canada, BDK
Mexico, BDK Germany, and BDK U.K.)
came together to discuss and share theirrespective programs, ideas and goals inachieving the overall BDK mission of“promoting the Buddhist spirit and cul-ture, and its academic research.”
During this meeting, representatives ofeach organization shared how they arecarrying out their Buddhist promotional
activities based on the needs of these different cultures and societies. Based onthese successful examples, we then discussed how we can cooperate together forthe overall promotion of Buddhism
throughout the world.

A common theme throughout the twodays meeting was the necessity to haveinsight for the current world society andto create innovative promotional activities
based on time-honored traditions in the
rapidly changing society of today. We
would like to deepen the relationship with
our affiliated organizations through theexchanging of information and toenhance our activities with each otherfrom now on.

guest rooms of major hotels aroundthe world and served as an introduction to Eastern thought since 1965.
TTOB has now been published in 46
languages and 8 million copies havebeen distributed all over the world todate. BDK has compiled a large number of sutras (Buddhist scriptures) into
one book called “TTOB” which isreader-friendly with its modern choiceof words. The book guides you
through different situations of life, andcovers lifestyles, communications withothers, religious faith, the role of thefamily, education, economics, and pol-12

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

itics. This year alone, BDK has dis-

the TTOB book to Buddhist schools
and education centers throughout theworld through organizations such as
the University of Madrid in Spain, theTraditional Buddhist Association in
Nepal, etc. Many educational institutes use the TTOB book as classroom
reading material, as a textbook or invarious other ways for their students.
In addition to the distribution of “The
Teaching of Buddha” to schools
around the world, we are proud tointroduce the newest BDK publication
called “Bukkyo-no-Himitsu,” or “TheBDK HAWAII

3

4
2

1
5
6

7

9

Secret of Buddhism” in Februar y
first manga or comic book made especially for elementary school students.
This educational manga book introduces the basic ideas of Buddhism
through the life experience of Hazukichan, a fifth grade young girl who
faces the death of her pet dog, gains anawareness of her situation and overcomes her sadness with the help of the
Buddhist teachings. The story is easy
to follow and makes for great readingfor children and even adults. BDK has
already distributed the book to morethan 23,500 elementary schools and
3,000 public libraries in Japan.

61757 Algaroba Street, Honolulu, HI 96826, U.S.A.
Tel: +1(808)942-1511 Fax +1(808)942-2622
E-mail: bdkshi@hotmail.com
http://www.bdkhawaii.com/

3"T (TTOB)” has been placed in tributed more than 60,000 copies of 2013. “Bukkyo-no-Himitsu” is our5

2620 Warring Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 U.S.A.
Tel: +1(510)843-4128 Fax: +1(510)845-3409
E-mail: orders@bdkamerica.org
http://www.bdkamerica.org/

3-14, Shiba 4-chome, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, JAPAN 108-0014
Tel: +81(3)3455-5851 Fax: +81(3)3798-2758
E-mail: bdk@bdk.or.jp
http://www.bdk.or.jp/

BDK Japan Publication Updates
he Teaching of Buddha

BDK AMERICA2

BDK JAPAN

4

c/o Mitutoyo Canada Inc. 2121 Meadowvale Blvd.
Mississauga, ON, CANADA L5N 5N1
Tel: +1(905)821-1261 Fax: +1(905)821-4968
E-mail: honjo@bdkcanada.com

c/o Mitutoyo(UK)Ltd. Joule Road, West Point
Business Park, Andover, Hants SP10 3UX U.K.
Tel: +44 1264-353123 Fax: +44 1264-354883
E-mail: bdk@mitutoyo.co.uk

2012 BDK Global MeetingT

BDK CANADA

1

8

BDK TAIWAN

7

c/o Mitutoyo Taiwan Co., Ltd.
4F., No.71, Zhouzi St., Neihu Dist.,
Taipei City 114, TAIWAN (R.O.C)
Tel: +886(2)8752-3636 Fax: +886(2)8752-3267
E-mail: sharon@mitutoyo.com.tw

BDK ASIA
c/o Mitutoyo Asia Paciﬁc Pte. Ltd.
24 Kallang Avenue, Mitutoyo Building,Singapore, 339415, SINGAPORE
Tel: +65 6294-2211 Fax: +65 6299-6666
E-mail: bdk@mitutoyo.com.sg

10

BDK MEXICO

9

Prolg. Eugenia No. 17, Col. Nápoles, C.P.03810
México D.F., MEXICO
Tel/Fax: +52(55)5669-1088
E-mail: bdkmexico@prodigy.net.mx

8

BDK SOUTH AMERICA 10
a/c Mitutoyo Sul Americana Ltda.
Av. João Carlos da Silva Borges, 1240 CEP 04726-002,
Cx. Postal 4255, Santo Amaro, São Paulo-SP, BRAZIL
Tel: +55(11)5643-0006 Fax: +55(11)5641-3745
E-mail: bdk@mitutoyo.com.br

13

Japanese Ambassador to US visits Ekoji

BDK America
Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai America (BDK America)
was founded in 1978 by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata, founder of BDK Japan. The mainemphasis of the foundation’s work in America
includes supporting the BDK English Tripitaka
Series project and the distribution of “The
Teaching of Buddha” books to hotels, prison
inmates and public facilities throughout thenation.
Seven Numata Programs in Buddhist Studies
have been established in the USA, and BDK con-tinues wor5king with major institutions such as
UC Berkeley, Harvard, Chicago, Hawaii, Smith
College, the Institute of Buddhist Studies andUCLA in advancing Buddhist Studies in the USA.
Major academic conferences on various Buddhist
topics are also organized and supported by thefoundation as well. The foundation also supports
the MUGEN PROJECT, an academic databaseresource project based in Shin Buddhist temples
in the northeastern section of the USA founded by
the late Rev. Kenryu Tsuji.

Washington DC Ekoji Temple Welcomes New Resident Minister
The Washington DC
Ekoji Temple was founded
in 1981 and has since had
three resident ministers(jyushoku) but with theappointment of the Rev.
Kurt Kyosei Rye to the
Washington DC temple asof January 1, 2013, Rev.
Rye becomes the f irst
non-Japanese person toserve as resident ministerof any Ekoji Temple
throughout the world.
Rev. Rye was bor n in
Anchorage, Alaska but
spent his early years in the
Washington DC area. He moved to
Washington state during his highschool years and graduated with adegree in psychology. He started his
career working for the chronicallymentally ill in Seattle. He then moved
to Japan where he taught English for
four years and was first exposed to
Buddhism. He attended the English
Buddhist Academy in Tokyo and also
took several courses on Japanese
Buddhism at Taisho University.
Returning to Seattle, Rev. Rye became

14

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─On July 14, Japanese Ambassador to
the United States, His Excellency
Ichiro Fujisaki, made his first visit to
the Washington DC Ekoji Temple andparticipated in Ekoji’s Obon Odori
Festival.

Addressing over 800 participants and attendees at
the Obon Festival,
Ambassador Fujisaki
expressed his surprise tof ind a beautiful andvibrant Buddhist temple
such as Ekoji in thegreater Washington DC
area, and he was even more surprised
to see such a wonderful Obon festival
as you would find in Japan, Hawaii or
the West Coast here at Ekoji.
Ambassador Fujisaki’s interest in
America started in the early 1960’s

when he attended a junior high schoolin Seattle, Washington and later studied at Brown and Stanford universities
as well.
He was appointed
Ambassador to the USA in June 2008
and has maintained a very vigorous
schedule visiting all parts of the UnitedStates, especially to convey his thanks
for the outpouring of support fromthroughout the US after the tragic
Great Easter n Earthquake andTsunami of 2011.
BDK and Ekoji were greatly honoredwith Ambassador Fujisaki’s presenceat this year’s Obon Festival.

Numata Program in Buddhist Studies 2012 Meeting
On November 15-16, the annual meeting of the Numata Program coordinators for North America was held at theAmerican Academy of Religion conference in Chicago.

an active member of the Seattle Nishi
Hongwanji Betsuin temple.
Deciding to switch his career path,
Rev. Rye received his Tokudo ordination from the Nishi Hongwanji denomination in the fall of 2003 and thenbegan his studies at the Institute of
Buddhist Studies in Berkeley. He
graduated in the Fall of 2007 andreceived his Kyoshi certification fromthe Nishi Hongwanji in 2007. In
2008, he received his first appointment at the Fresno Nishi Hongwanji

Betsuin temple, where he served for
four years before being assigned to the
Ekoji temple on January 1, 2013.
Rev. Rye looks forward to the challenges and opportunities of sharing
the Buddha-Dharma with many newcomers and serving the needs of theexisting Sangha as well. Being in thenation’s capital, where Rev. Rye spentpart of his childhood, inspires him to
go do his very best to carry on the
dream and vision of Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata and Rev. Kenryu T. Tsuji.

This year, Professor Shoryu Katsura,
BDK Assistant Director Tadashi Ikuta
and Naoyuki Ogi from BDK participated in the meeting with Brian Nagata(BDK America & Canada) and Yasuo
Honjo (BDK Canada) to speak individually with each coordinator about
their respective Numata program andthe state of Buddhist studies at their
institution.

Attending this year’s
meeting were: Dean
Margaret
Mitchell(University of Chicago);
Robert Buswell (UCLA);Peter Gregory and Jamie
Hubbard (Smith College);
Janet Gyatso and Charles
Hallisey(Har vard);
Richard Payne (Institute of Buddhist
Studies); Robert Sharf (UC Berkeley);
Michel Mohr (University of Hawaii);
Christoph Emmrich (Toronto); James
Benn and Mark Rowe (McMaster
University); Lara Bratstein (McGill);and James Apple (Calgary).

The annual gathering concluded withthe annual Appreciation & Year-end
Dinner sponsored by BDK America at
Itto Sushi. Next year’s meeting will beheld in Baltimore, Maryland.

The Mugen Project:
BDK’s Online Western-Language Bibliographical Database of Buddhism
During 2012, the Mugen Project continues to expand in its ambitious quest
to develop a comprehensive, online,
searchable, database of every book,journal article, edited volume, chapters in edited volumes, book reviews,

newspaper articles, films and online
resources dealing with Buddhism.
This past year saw thousands of new
inputting data and their tagging for
entries related to Japanese Buddhism.

After two “taggers” retreats and ameeting of the advisory board, we are
well into the second phase of the project, where we will be expanding into
tens of thousands more entries on
Buddhist material beyond Japan at

15

Japanese Ambassador to US visits Ekoji

BDK America
Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai America (BDK America)
was founded in 1978 by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata, founder of BDK Japan. The mainemphasis of the foundation’s work in America
includes supporting the BDK English Tripitaka
Series project and the distribution of “The
Teaching of Buddha” books to hotels, prison
inmates and public facilities throughout thenation.
Seven Numata Programs in Buddhist Studies
have been established in the USA, and BDK con-tinues wor5king with major institutions such as
UC Berkeley, Harvard, Chicago, Hawaii, Smith
College, the Institute of Buddhist Studies andUCLA in advancing Buddhist Studies in the USA.
Major academic conferences on various Buddhist
topics are also organized and supported by thefoundation as well. The foundation also supports
the MUGEN PROJECT, an academic databaseresource project based in Shin Buddhist temples
in the northeastern section of the USA founded by
the late Rev. Kenryu Tsuji.

Washington DC Ekoji Temple Welcomes New Resident Minister
The Washington DC
Ekoji Temple was founded
in 1981 and has since had
three resident ministers(jyushoku) but with theappointment of the Rev.
Kurt Kyosei Rye to the
Washington DC temple asof January 1, 2013, Rev.
Rye becomes the f irst
non-Japanese person toserve as resident ministerof any Ekoji Temple
throughout the world.
Rev. Rye was bor n in
Anchorage, Alaska but
spent his early years in the
Washington DC area. He moved to
Washington state during his highschool years and graduated with adegree in psychology. He started his
career working for the chronicallymentally ill in Seattle. He then moved
to Japan where he taught English for
four years and was first exposed to
Buddhism. He attended the English
Buddhist Academy in Tokyo and also
took several courses on Japanese
Buddhism at Taisho University.
Returning to Seattle, Rev. Rye became

14

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─On July 14, Japanese Ambassador to
the United States, His Excellency
Ichiro Fujisaki, made his first visit to
the Washington DC Ekoji Temple andparticipated in Ekoji’s Obon Odori
Festival.

Addressing over 800 participants and attendees at
the Obon Festival,
Ambassador Fujisaki
expressed his surprise tof ind a beautiful andvibrant Buddhist temple
such as Ekoji in thegreater Washington DC
area, and he was even more surprised
to see such a wonderful Obon festival
as you would find in Japan, Hawaii or
the West Coast here at Ekoji.
Ambassador Fujisaki’s interest in
America started in the early 1960’s

when he attended a junior high schoolin Seattle, Washington and later studied at Brown and Stanford universities
as well.
He was appointed
Ambassador to the USA in June 2008
and has maintained a very vigorous
schedule visiting all parts of the UnitedStates, especially to convey his thanks
for the outpouring of support fromthroughout the US after the tragic
Great Easter n Earthquake andTsunami of 2011.
BDK and Ekoji were greatly honoredwith Ambassador Fujisaki’s presenceat this year’s Obon Festival.

Numata Program in Buddhist Studies 2012 Meeting
On November 15-16, the annual meeting of the Numata Program coordinators for North America was held at theAmerican Academy of Religion conference in Chicago.

an active member of the Seattle Nishi
Hongwanji Betsuin temple.
Deciding to switch his career path,
Rev. Rye received his Tokudo ordination from the Nishi Hongwanji denomination in the fall of 2003 and thenbegan his studies at the Institute of
Buddhist Studies in Berkeley. He
graduated in the Fall of 2007 andreceived his Kyoshi certification fromthe Nishi Hongwanji in 2007. In
2008, he received his first appointment at the Fresno Nishi Hongwanji

Betsuin temple, where he served for
four years before being assigned to the
Ekoji temple on January 1, 2013.
Rev. Rye looks forward to the challenges and opportunities of sharing
the Buddha-Dharma with many newcomers and serving the needs of theexisting Sangha as well. Being in thenation’s capital, where Rev. Rye spentpart of his childhood, inspires him to
go do his very best to carry on the
dream and vision of Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata and Rev. Kenryu T. Tsuji.

This year, Professor Shoryu Katsura,
BDK Assistant Director Tadashi Ikuta
and Naoyuki Ogi from BDK participated in the meeting with Brian Nagata(BDK America & Canada) and Yasuo
Honjo (BDK Canada) to speak individually with each coordinator about
their respective Numata program andthe state of Buddhist studies at their
institution.

Attending this year’s
meeting were: Dean
Margaret
Mitchell(University of Chicago);
Robert Buswell (UCLA);Peter Gregory and Jamie
Hubbard (Smith College);
Janet Gyatso and Charles
Hallisey(Har vard);
Richard Payne (Institute of Buddhist
Studies); Robert Sharf (UC Berkeley);
Michel Mohr (University of Hawaii);
Christoph Emmrich (Toronto); James
Benn and Mark Rowe (McMaster
University); Lara Bratstein (McGill);and James Apple (Calgary).

The annual gathering concluded withthe annual Appreciation & Year-end
Dinner sponsored by BDK America at
Itto Sushi. Next year’s meeting will beheld in Baltimore, Maryland.

The Mugen Project:
BDK’s Online Western-Language Bibliographical Database of Buddhism
During 2012, the Mugen Project continues to expand in its ambitious quest
to develop a comprehensive, online,
searchable, database of every book,journal article, edited volume, chapters in edited volumes, book reviews,

newspaper articles, films and online
resources dealing with Buddhism.
This past year saw thousands of new
inputting data and their tagging for
entries related to Japanese Buddhism.

After two “taggers” retreats and ameeting of the advisory board, we are
well into the second phase of the project, where we will be expanding into
tens of thousands more entries on
Buddhist material beyond Japan at15

www.mugenproject.com.
To accomplish this, we have recently
signed an institutional licensing agreement with the world’s largest library
database, OCLC (Online Computer
Library Center) that will allows us toaccess up to 100,000 monographs
and edited volumes on Buddhism forour database. We are also negotiating
an institutional-level agreement with
ATLA (American Theological Library

Association) for a major data-miningof their extensive database for journal
articles and book reviews on
Buddhism in religion journals.
Much of this past year has also beentaken up with major improvements tothe backend administrative staff interface and the end-user interface so thata seamless system of feedback andimprovement exists now between thetech team, the data inputting and data

corrections team, and the general user.

Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”

We have also developed manuals for all
levels of the team – data inputters, taggers, and approvers.

In an effort to expand our solicitation
efforts to place copies of “ The
Teaching of Buddha” in lodging properties throughout the continental
United States, BDK America joined
the Asian American Hotel Owners
Association (AAHOA) in 2011. TheAAHOA national organization was

As in 2011, in November 2012, weshowcased the Mugen Project alongside BDK’s booth at the American
Academy of Religion annual meeting
and will continue to do this at future
meetings of this scholarly society.

In 2009, the Toshihide Numata Book
Prize in Buddhism was established andtwo excellent recipients have been recognized since the Prize’s inception. In
2012, thirteen books on Buddhist
subjects and themes (published in2011) were submitted for nomination,and four of these titles were then submitted to the independent and external
evaluation committee. However, after
careful review and consideration of allof the titles, the committee came to theconsensus that none of the titles merit-ed to be recognized in 2012 and that it
would be best to maintain the highstandards which had been set over the
past two years. Therefore, no “Toshi
Prize” was awarded in 2012.

2012-published titles for consideration in 2013 may be submitted toRobert Sharf, head of the “Toshi
Prize” organizing committee at:

It was also reported to BDK, that the2011 “Toshi Prize” awarded title“Sugata Saurabha: An Epic Poem from
Nepal on the Life of the Buddha by
Chittadhar Hridaya,” translated by Dr.
Todd Lewis and Subar na Man
Tuladhar had also been awarded theProfessor Robert Sharf, Chair
Center for Buddhist Studies
2223 Fulton Street, Room 512
Berkeley CA 94704 USA

The North American Numata Program
has three basic formats. One is the traditional visiting scholar who comes toteach for one semester and the newer

Khyentse Foundation Prize for
Outstanding Translation.

ence was held in Atlanta, Georgia and
BDK America secured orders for nearly 6,000 copies of “The Teaching of
Buddha” through attending this twoday conference. The 2013 AAHOA
conference will be held in Houston,
Texas in March 2013.

The 2012 AAHOA national confer-

North American Numata Program in Buddhist Studies
The late Rev. Dr. Yehan Numata established the first Numata Chair programat his alma mater of the University ofCalifornia, Berkeley in 1984. Since
that time, the program has grown to
include ten schools in North America
and has become one of the premierprog rams in advancing Buddhist
Studies in the world.

2012 “Toshi Prize”

founded in 1989 to serve the needs
and concerns of Asian American hotel
and motel property owners and today
has more than 11,000 members owning more than 200,000 hotels andmotels in the USA.

protocol invites a variety of lecturers
who speak on a myriad of Buddhist
topics. The third option is a standing
chair or position sponsored throughthe Numata Program.
The 2012 Numata Visiting Professor
at UC Berkeley was Professor Musashi
Tachikawa who spoke on “ The
Buddhas of the Kathmandu Valley.”
Harvard’s Charles Hallisey serves as
the Yehan Numata Senior Lecturer on
Buddhist Literatures and the
University of Chicago Numata

Professor is Matthew Kapstein who
offered courses in Indian Philosophy
and Yogacara thought.
Dr. Elisabetta Porcu of the Universityof Leipzig is the most recent Numata
professor at the University of Hawaii
and lectured on Japanese religion andPure Land Buddhism in Japan. Dr.
Richard Payne at the Institute of
Buddhist Studies (IBS) in Berkeley
offered a most interesting course on“Eff icacious Buddhist Practice inCommunity and Groups.” The IBS

Update on BDK English Tripitaka Series
In 2012, the “Expository Commentaryon the Vimalakirti Sutra” [Taisho
2186] translated by Jamie Hubbard
was published. Attributed to Japan’s
Sho- toku Taishi (574-622), thisvolume is a commentar y on
Kuma- rajiva’s translation of theVimalakirti Sutra and is known as oneof the “ Three Commentaries”(Sangyo- gisho) written by Sho- toku

Taishi. This volume is available at theretail price of US$50.00 from the
Buddhist Book store in Berkeley,
California or through the University of
Hawaii Press.

Upcoming Volumes
The next new volumes to be published will include:＊ TIENTAI LOTUS SCRIPTURES [Taisho 276, 277, 1519 and 1931]＊ The MADHYAMA AGAMA – The Middle Length Discourses [Taisho 26]＊ NIRVANA SUTRA, Vol. #1 [Taisho 374]
＊ THE COLLECTION FOR THE PROPAGATION AND CLARIFICATION OF BUDDHISM [Taisho 2102],
Volumes 1 & 2＊ THE ALL PLEASING: A Commentary on the Rules of Discipline [Taisho 1462]＊ DISCOURSE TO PRINCE CANDRAPRABHA [Taisho 639]

University of California, Los Angeles

16

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─17

www.mugenproject.com.
To accomplish this, we have recently
signed an institutional licensing agreement with the world’s largest library
database, OCLC (Online Computer
Library Center) that will allows us toaccess up to 100,000 monographs
and edited volumes on Buddhism forour database. We are also negotiating
an institutional-level agreement with
ATLA (American Theological Library

Association) for a major data-miningof their extensive database for journal
articles and book reviews on
Buddhism in religion journals.
Much of this past year has also beentaken up with major improvements tothe backend administrative staff interface and the end-user interface so thata seamless system of feedback andimprovement exists now between thetech team, the data inputting and data

corrections team, and the general user.

Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”

We have also developed manuals for all
levels of the team – data inputters, taggers, and approvers.

In an effort to expand our solicitation
efforts to place copies of “ The
Teaching of Buddha” in lodging properties throughout the continental
United States, BDK America joined
the Asian American Hotel Owners
Association (AAHOA) in 2011. TheAAHOA national organization was

As in 2011, in November 2012, weshowcased the Mugen Project alongside BDK’s booth at the American
Academy of Religion annual meeting
and will continue to do this at future
meetings of this scholarly society.

In 2009, the Toshihide Numata Book
Prize in Buddhism was established andtwo excellent recipients have been recognized since the Prize’s inception. In
2012, thirteen books on Buddhist
subjects and themes (published in2011) were submitted for nomination,and four of these titles were then submitted to the independent and external
evaluation committee. However, after
careful review and consideration of allof the titles, the committee came to theconsensus that none of the titles merit-ed to be recognized in 2012 and that it
would be best to maintain the highstandards which had been set over the
past two years. Therefore, no “Toshi
Prize” was awarded in 2012.

2012-published titles for consideration in 2013 may be submitted toRobert Sharf, head of the “Toshi
Prize” organizing committee at:

It was also reported to BDK, that the2011 “Toshi Prize” awarded title“Sugata Saurabha: An Epic Poem from
Nepal on the Life of the Buddha by
Chittadhar Hridaya,” translated by Dr.
Todd Lewis and Subar na Man
Tuladhar had also been awarded theProfessor Robert Sharf, Chair
Center for Buddhist Studies
2223 Fulton Street, Room 512
Berkeley CA 94704 USA

The North American Numata Program
has three basic formats. One is the traditional visiting scholar who comes toteach for one semester and the newer

Khyentse Foundation Prize for
Outstanding Translation.

ence was held in Atlanta, Georgia and
BDK America secured orders for nearly 6,000 copies of “The Teaching of
Buddha” through attending this twoday conference. The 2013 AAHOA
conference will be held in Houston,
Texas in March 2013.

The 2012 AAHOA national confer-

North American Numata Program in Buddhist Studies
The late Rev. Dr. Yehan Numata established the first Numata Chair programat his alma mater of the University ofCalifornia, Berkeley in 1984. Since
that time, the program has grown to
include ten schools in North America
and has become one of the premierprog rams in advancing Buddhist
Studies in the world.

2012 “Toshi Prize”

founded in 1989 to serve the needs
and concerns of Asian American hotel
and motel property owners and today
has more than 11,000 members owning more than 200,000 hotels andmotels in the USA.

protocol invites a variety of lecturers
who speak on a myriad of Buddhist
topics. The third option is a standing
chair or position sponsored throughthe Numata Program.
The 2012 Numata Visiting Professor
at UC Berkeley was Professor Musashi
Tachikawa who spoke on “ The
Buddhas of the Kathmandu Valley.”
Harvard’s Charles Hallisey serves as
the Yehan Numata Senior Lecturer on
Buddhist Literatures and the
University of Chicago Numata

Professor is Matthew Kapstein who
offered courses in Indian Philosophy
and Yogacara thought.
Dr. Elisabetta Porcu of the Universityof Leipzig is the most recent Numata
professor at the University of Hawaii
and lectured on Japanese religion andPure Land Buddhism in Japan. Dr.
Richard Payne at the Institute of
Buddhist Studies (IBS) in Berkeley
offered a most interesting course on“Eff icacious Buddhist Practice inCommunity and Groups.” The IBS

Update on BDK English Tripitaka Series
In 2012, the “Expository Commentaryon the Vimalakirti Sutra” [Taisho
2186] translated by Jamie Hubbard
was published. Attributed to Japan’s
Sho- toku Taishi (574-622), thisvolume is a commentar y on
Kuma- rajiva’s translation of theVimalakirti Sutra and is known as oneof the “ Three Commentaries”(Sangyo- gisho) written by Sho- toku

Taishi. This volume is available at theretail price of US$50.00 from the
Buddhist Book store in Berkeley,
California or through the University of
Hawaii Press.

Upcoming Volumes
The next new volumes to be published will include:＊ TIENTAI LOTUS SCRIPTURES [Taisho 276, 277, 1519 and 1931]＊ The MADHYAMA AGAMA – The Middle Length Discourses [Taisho 26]＊ NIRVANA SUTRA, Vol. #1 [Taisho 374]
＊ THE COLLECTION FOR THE PROPAGATION AND CLARIFICATION OF BUDDHISM [Taisho 2102],
Volumes 1 & 2＊ THE ALL PLEASING: A Commentary on the Rules of Discipline [Taisho 1462]＊ DISCOURSE TO PRINCE CANDRAPRABHA [Taisho 639]

University of California, Los Angeles

16

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

17also hosted a conference entitled“Domestic Dharma: Beyond Texts,
Beyond Monasteries” featuring
keynote speakers Dr. Paula Arai ofLouisiana State University and Dr.
Lisa Grumback of Kyoto’s Ryukoku
University.
The newest Numata Program in the
USA is at the University of California,
Los Angeles. This last term’s speakers
included James Benn (McMaster);Mark Teeuwen (Univ. of Oslo);
Osmund Bopearachchi (French
National Centre for Scientif ic
Research); Zen Master Subul Sunim(Seon Center at Dongguk University);
Mark Rowe (McMaster); Akira

Nishimura (K agoshima Univ.);
Katherine Bowie (Univ. of WisconsinMadison); George Keyworth (Univ. of
Saskatchewan) and Morton Schlutter(Univ. of Iowa).
In Canada, the Buddhist Studies faculty at the University of Toronto works
together with McMaster University indirecting the Numata Prog ram.
Recent speakers include Shaman
Hatley (Concordia University);
Matthew Kapstein (Chicago/Universite
La Sorbonne); Robert Campany(Vanderbilt); Cristina Scher rerSchaub (Lausanne); Geoffrey Samuel(Cardiff Univ.); Lori Meeks (USC) andJens-Uwe Hartmann (Maximilians-

Universitat, Munich).
At the University of Calgary, a search
is cur rently under way to f ill the
Numata Chair position after the passing of Leslie K awamura, but a
Kawamura Memorial Lecture featuring Professor Gregory Schopen of
UCLA was held in the fall of 2012.
The North American Numata Programin Buddhist Studies is grateful for theadvice and direction we receive fromthe world’s leading Buddhist scholars
as we continue to see vast contributions to the advancement of Buddhist
Studies in North America and theworld.

BDK Canada
The Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai Canada (BDK Canada)
was originally started as the Canadian Society for
the Promotion of Buddhism in 1987. In 2004,
BDK Canada established the “BDK Canada
Graduate Scholarship in Japan” which provided
an advanced graduate student in Buddhist studies
the opportunity to study for one year at aJapanese university to carry out doctoral
research. The fellowship is open to any full-time
graduate student in a Canadian university or a citizen studying full-time at a university outside of
Canada. The Fellowship program is administeredby the School of Graduate Studies at McMaster

University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
The 2012-2013 recipient was announced by the
Selection Committee, and Dr. James Benn reported that Robban A.J. Toleno has accepted the fellowship. Toleno was at the time a PhD candidatein the Department of Asian Studies, University of
British Columbia, where he is supervised by Dr.
Jinhua Chen (a former BDK Japan Fellowshiprecipient) and Dr. Edward Slingerland. In Japan,
he conducted his research at Toyo University,
Tokyo under the supervision of Prof. Atsushi Ibuki.

2012-2013 Recipient of BDK Canada Fellowship to Japan-Report from Robban A. J. TolenoGenerous support from a Bukkyo
Dendo Kyokai Canada Graduate
Fellowship has afforded me an opportunity to conduct dissertation researchin Japan during the 2012-2013
Japanese school year. My host in Japanis Professor Atsushi IBUKI of Toyo18

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

University in Tokyo, an expert on
Chan (Zen) Buddhism in China.
The opportunity to carry out researchin Japan has proven invaluable.
Scholarship in Buddhist Studies is performed at a very high level in Japan,

where many Western, Korean, andChinese-trained scholars of Buddhism
also visit to conduct research and givetalks. The result is a uniquely richresearch environment. Toyo University
is one of four Tokyo universities forming a consortium for the study of

Buddhism, so in addition to resourcesat my host institution, I have also beenable to access resources at other consortium schools, such as Komazawa
University. Toyo University is conveniently situated near the University ofTokyo and the International College
for Postgraduate Buddhist Studies,both of which maintain superb librarycollections.
Tokyo resources have allowed me,
indeed, to answer a set of researchquestions that I could not satisfactorily
answer while at my home institution,
the University of British Columbia,
Vancouver, Canada. Before coming toJapan, I researched a short Songdynasty Buddhist text, the Chan bencao‚ 禪本草, which is embedded in acollection called the Luohu yelu 羅湖
野録. At the To- yo- Bunko library,which houses many rare manuscripts, I
was given permission to look at what isprobably the oldest extant edition of
the Luohu yelu. I found other old
manuscripts at the National Archivesof Japan and the Diet Library's rarebooks room that helped me clarify the
relationship of the Chan bencao to a
Ming-dynasty work called the Chanbencao bu 禪 本 草 補 Thank s toresources that are not available outsideof Japan, I was able to correct an erroneous attribution of authorship thathas caused confusion for several centuries. I presented my findings, inJapanese, to members of the ResearchSociety for East Asian Buddhism(Higashi Ajia Bukkyo- Kenkyu- Kai),
gaining feedback that helped me
improve my paper and submit it for
publication in a Japanese journal,
To- yo- gaku Kenkyu- , where it was
accepted. I am indebted to Prof. Ibuki
for his kind help throughout thisprocess. These research gains would
not have been possible without the
BDK award allowing me to spend thisyear in Japan.
At the time of writing, I am in the last
three months of my stay in Japan,
deeply occupied with dissertation
research on food and eating (shi 食) in
Buddhist leishu 類書 (encyclopedia
and lexicons) of medieval China. Verylittle has been written on Buddhist
leishu in any language, but one
Japanese scholar, Prof. Rika MIYAI,
published a useful discussion onwhether such a designation even exists
and, if so, what it might include. At
the last meeting of the ResearchSociety for East Asian Buddhism, I had

the good fortune to meet Prof. Miyai inperson––we happened to sit next toeach other, so I was delighted when I
discovered who she was. My stay inJapan has been punctuated by manysuch fortuitous meetings and discoveries, which are possible only because I
am here, surrounded by the human,
print, and manuscript resources thatmake Japan a center for research on
Buddhism. Thank you BDK for making this all possible!

2012 Yehan Numata Conference at the University of Toronto“Therava- da Civilizations: Thematic Continuities and Vernacular
Appropriations” March 11-13, 2012
-Report form Mr. Christoph EmmrichThe March 2012 Yehan Numata
Conference was inaugurated by a wellattended public keynote address by theprominent speaker Steven Collins andbrought together the most eminent
scholars in the study of Therava- da
Buddhism and more generally the histor y of Buddhism in South andSoutheast Asia. Through this conference BDK has made a tremendous historical contribution towards strengthening the field of Therava- da Studies,promoting scholarly exchange amongits members and showcasing ongoing
cutting-edge research on Buddhism inSouth and Southeast Asia.

Steven Collins’ opening lecture “PaliPractices of the Self” was attended byan audience of about 60 people, andproposed the idea of the civilizing
power that Buddhism and particularly
Therava- da Buddhism has had on thehistorical development of societies inSouth and Southeast Asia.

19also hosted a conference entitled“Domestic Dharma: Beyond Texts,
Beyond Monasteries” featuring
keynote speakers Dr. Paula Arai ofLouisiana State University and Dr.
Lisa Grumback of Kyoto’s Ryukoku
University.
The newest Numata Program in the
USA is at the University of California,
Los Angeles. This last term’s speakers
included James Benn (McMaster);Mark Teeuwen (Univ. of Oslo);
Osmund Bopearachchi (French
National Centre for Scientif ic
Research); Zen Master Subul Sunim(Seon Center at Dongguk University);
Mark Rowe (McMaster); Akira

Nishimura (K agoshima Univ.);
Katherine Bowie (Univ. of WisconsinMadison); George Keyworth (Univ. of
Saskatchewan) and Morton Schlutter(Univ. of Iowa).
In Canada, the Buddhist Studies faculty at the University of Toronto works
together with McMaster University indirecting the Numata Prog ram.
Recent speakers include Shaman
Hatley (Concordia University);
Matthew Kapstein (Chicago/Universite
La Sorbonne); Robert Campany(Vanderbilt); Cristina Scher rerSchaub (Lausanne); Geoffrey Samuel(Cardiff Univ.); Lori Meeks (USC) andJens-Uwe Hartmann (Maximilians-

Universitat, Munich).
At the University of Calgary, a search
is cur rently under way to f ill the
Numata Chair position after the passing of Leslie K awamura, but a
Kawamura Memorial Lecture featuring Professor Gregory Schopen of
UCLA was held in the fall of 2012.
The North American Numata Programin Buddhist Studies is grateful for theadvice and direction we receive fromthe world’s leading Buddhist scholars
as we continue to see vast contributions to the advancement of Buddhist
Studies in North America and theworld.

BDK Canada
The Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai Canada (BDK Canada)
was originally started as the Canadian Society for
the Promotion of Buddhism in 1987. In 2004,
BDK Canada established the “BDK Canada
Graduate Scholarship in Japan” which provided
an advanced graduate student in Buddhist studies
the opportunity to study for one year at aJapanese university to carry out doctoral
research. The fellowship is open to any full-time
graduate student in a Canadian university or a citizen studying full-time at a university outside of
Canada. The Fellowship program is administeredby the School of Graduate Studies at McMaster

University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
The 2012-2013 recipient was announced by the
Selection Committee, and Dr. James Benn reported that Robban A.J. Toleno has accepted the fellowship. Toleno was at the time a PhD candidatein the Department of Asian Studies, University of
British Columbia, where he is supervised by Dr.
Jinhua Chen (a former BDK Japan Fellowshiprecipient) and Dr. Edward Slingerland. In Japan,
he conducted his research at Toyo University,
Tokyo under the supervision of Prof. Atsushi Ibuki.

2012-2013 Recipient of BDK Canada Fellowship to Japan-Report from Robban A. J. TolenoGenerous support from a Bukkyo
Dendo Kyokai Canada Graduate
Fellowship has afforded me an opportunity to conduct dissertation researchin Japan during the 2012-2013
Japanese school year. My host in Japanis Professor Atsushi IBUKI of Toyo18

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

University in Tokyo, an expert on
Chan (Zen) Buddhism in China.
The opportunity to carry out researchin Japan has proven invaluable.
Scholarship in Buddhist Studies is performed at a very high level in Japan,

where many Western, Korean, andChinese-trained scholars of Buddhism
also visit to conduct research and givetalks. The result is a uniquely richresearch environment. Toyo University
is one of four Tokyo universities forming a consortium for the study of

Buddhism, so in addition to resourcesat my host institution, I have also beenable to access resources at other consortium schools, such as Komazawa
University. Toyo University is conveniently situated near the University ofTokyo and the International College
for Postgraduate Buddhist Studies,both of which maintain superb librarycollections.
Tokyo resources have allowed me,
indeed, to answer a set of researchquestions that I could not satisfactorily
answer while at my home institution,
the University of British Columbia,
Vancouver, Canada. Before coming toJapan, I researched a short Songdynasty Buddhist text, the Chan bencao‚ 禪本草, which is embedded in acollection called the Luohu yelu 羅湖
野録. At the To- yo- Bunko library,which houses many rare manuscripts, I
was given permission to look at what isprobably the oldest extant edition of
the Luohu yelu. I found other old
manuscripts at the National Archivesof Japan and the Diet Library's rarebooks room that helped me clarify the
relationship of the Chan bencao to a
Ming-dynasty work called the Chanbencao bu 禪 本 草 補 Thank s toresources that are not available outsideof Japan, I was able to correct an erroneous attribution of authorship thathas caused confusion for several centuries. I presented my findings, inJapanese, to members of the ResearchSociety for East Asian Buddhism(Higashi Ajia Bukkyo- Kenkyu- Kai),
gaining feedback that helped me
improve my paper and submit it for
publication in a Japanese journal,
To- yo- gaku Kenkyu- , where it was
accepted. I am indebted to Prof. Ibuki
for his kind help throughout thisprocess. These research gains would
not have been possible without the
BDK award allowing me to spend thisyear in Japan.
At the time of writing, I am in the last
three months of my stay in Japan,
deeply occupied with dissertation
research on food and eating (shi 食) in
Buddhist leishu 類書 (encyclopedia
and lexicons) of medieval China. Verylittle has been written on Buddhist
leishu in any language, but one
Japanese scholar, Prof. Rika MIYAI,
published a useful discussion onwhether such a designation even exists
and, if so, what it might include. At
the last meeting of the ResearchSociety for East Asian Buddhism, I had

the good fortune to meet Prof. Miyai inperson––we happened to sit next toeach other, so I was delighted when I
discovered who she was. My stay inJapan has been punctuated by manysuch fortuitous meetings and discoveries, which are possible only because I
am here, surrounded by the human,
print, and manuscript resources thatmake Japan a center for research on
Buddhism. Thank you BDK for making this all possible!

2012 Yehan Numata Conference at the University of Toronto“Therava- da Civilizations: Thematic Continuities and Vernacular
Appropriations” March 11-13, 2012
-Report form Mr. Christoph EmmrichThe March 2012 Yehan Numata
Conference was inaugurated by a wellattended public keynote address by theprominent speaker Steven Collins andbrought together the most eminent
scholars in the study of Therava- da
Buddhism and more generally the histor y of Buddhism in South andSoutheast Asia. Through this conference BDK has made a tremendous historical contribution towards strengthening the field of Therava- da Studies,promoting scholarly exchange amongits members and showcasing ongoing
cutting-edge research on Buddhism inSouth and Southeast Asia.

Steven Collins’ opening lecture “PaliPractices of the Self” was attended byan audience of about 60 people, andproposed the idea of the civilizing
power that Buddhism and particularly
Therava- da Buddhism has had on thehistorical development of societies inSouth and Southeast Asia.

19

The conference featured a total of 17
speakers, 4 additional discussants anda public audience made up of faculty,
graduate and undergraduate students
and other interested visitors, andaddressed questions that both preoccupy current Therava-da Studies as wellas dominate discussions in the social
sciences and the humanities. The conference format featured short position
papers introducing extensive discussions based on readings distributed
well in advance to participants.
The meeting began auspiciously bytalking about “the gift” and asking
how to understand better and more
specifically to consider what happensin acts of gifting by looking at performances such as donations to thesangha or offerings to the Buddha,
particularly by asking what constitutes
a gift and what constitutes a good gift?
The second day saw both morning sessions dedicated to the question ofsa?” contrasting“what is a local vam
・
the locality and the trans-locality of

Therava- da historiog raphies. The
conference concluded as auspiciously
and as interested in theory as it had
begun with a panel dealing with the
Buddha’s parinibba- na and its visual
representations and ref lections on
which questions about absence, loss
and sorrow pose for theorizing visuality and affect in countries exposed to
Therava-da.

The participants unanimously
expressed their enthusiasm about theoutstanding academic level of the discussions and the flawless organizationof the conference and explicitly conveyed their gratitude to the Numata
family and BDK as well as to the
University of Toronto/McMaster
University Yehan Numata Buddhist
Studies Programme.

Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”
From January to August, 2012, our distribution has been as follows:
HotelsNon-hotels
Total

ReplenishedNew
Sub-total
2,266 copies
194 copies
2,460 copies
TemplesCompanies
Individuals free Individuals sold Sub-total
4,820
684
105
50
5,659
8,119

As these numbers show, our distribution is primarily to temples, especiallyduring the summer when temples havetheir bon odori festivals, which havebecome very popular with the generalpublic, and existing hotel accounts.
The hotel that distributes the mostcopies of TTOB is the Waikiki HaleKoa, which is a U.S. military hotel.

The conference concluded with a debate
on the impact ofsome of the discussions over the last
three days may havefor the future of
Therava-da Studies aswell as about how tofurther institutionalize and thus maximize the contribution of Therava- da
Studies to the fieldof Buddhist Studies
as a whole.

It has been difficult securing new
hotels to accept placement of the
TTOB on their properties. We havelooked into joining a hotel association,

University of Toronto

In June 2012, BDK Hawaii launched a
Kindle edition of “The Teaching of
Buddha (TTOB),” thus making available

History of BDK Hawaii

20

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

our books for religious reasons. Other
hotels do not allow any religious literature within their properties. We areconcerned about the increasing number of cancellations as well. In 2011,
eleven hotels on the neighbor islands
and eleven hotels on Oahu islandclosed their accounts with us. Many ofour books were discarded, a few werereturned. Up through August, 2012,
we had 7 hotels on the neighborislands and 2 hotels on Oahu close
their accounts.

Now we are finding more hotels refuse

New Kindle Edition of “Teaching of Buddha”

BDK Hawaii

Mr. Ralph Honda, a local business and civic leader
with the generous support of the Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata, founder of BDK Japan, established the
BDK Sudatta Society in 1978. Honda served as

but have found that the most effective
way is to approach hotels directly. In
January, 2012, we contacted 60 hotels
directly, and secured 5 hotels as new
accounts for a total of only 194 copies
of TTOB. This is about an 8% return,and we are currently contacting about
50 other hotels. We have contacted
the new president of the Hawaii
Lodging and Tourism Association tosee if we can develop new accounts
through their Association.

the first BDK Hawaii President from its founding
until 1998. From 1998 until 2009, the Rev.
Yoshiaki Fujitani, retired Bishop of the Honpa
Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii served as the second president. In March 2009, Dr. George
Tanabe, Professor Emeritus of Religion at the
University of Hawaii, became the current president of the organization which changed its nameto BDK Hawaii in 2010. Rev. Clyde Whitworth,
who holds ordinations in the Fo-guang Shan, Soto
Zen and Jodo traditions, is the current distribution
manager for “The Teaching of Buddha” book project.

this classic work as an eBook for sale on
the Amazon.com website. The Kindleversion, which is priced at $4.99, is thesame price as the iPhone and iPad versions available through BDK Japan.
In the initial three months of sales, wesold about a hundred Kindle version
copies in the United States and Europe.
This is not a large amount, but we areimpressed by the geographical reach ofKindle books, and the fact that we haddone nothing in the way of advertising.
People from all sorts of places havesearched the Amazon site, found TTOB,
and have bought the Kindle book.
One of our projects for next year is toadvertise the Kindle version by email.
We have identified over 1,200 Buddhist
organizations on the U. S. mainland andwill send out flyers to them by email.
The wonders of technology!

New Strategy with Gift Shops
Because of the resistance we areencountering from hotel managements, we are developing a new strategy. We have noticed that the gift shopat the Valley of the Temples Cemetery,which is a very popular tourist site on

Oahu because of the Byodoin temple
replica built there, sells a significant
number of TTOB books for us. In
2011, tourists bought 865 copies andfor 2012, we delivered over 700
copies of the TTOB books to the

Byodoin gift shop. While we do not
expect to receive anything back fromtheir sales, the gift shop donates back$2.00 per copy to BDK Hawaii.
Obviously, the books are popular with
tourists.

21

The conference featured a total of 17
speakers, 4 additional discussants anda public audience made up of faculty,
graduate and undergraduate students
and other interested visitors, andaddressed questions that both preoccupy current Therava-da Studies as wellas dominate discussions in the social
sciences and the humanities. The conference format featured short position
papers introducing extensive discussions based on readings distributed
well in advance to participants.
The meeting began auspiciously bytalking about “the gift” and asking
how to understand better and more
specifically to consider what happensin acts of gifting by looking at performances such as donations to thesangha or offerings to the Buddha,
particularly by asking what constitutes
a gift and what constitutes a good gift?
The second day saw both morning sessions dedicated to the question ofsa?” contrasting“what is a local vam
・
the locality and the trans-locality of

Therava- da historiog raphies. The
conference concluded as auspiciously
and as interested in theory as it had
begun with a panel dealing with the
Buddha’s parinibba- na and its visual
representations and ref lections on
which questions about absence, loss
and sorrow pose for theorizing visuality and affect in countries exposed to
Therava-da.

The participants unanimously
expressed their enthusiasm about theoutstanding academic level of the discussions and the flawless organizationof the conference and explicitly conveyed their gratitude to the Numata
family and BDK as well as to the
University of Toronto/McMaster
University Yehan Numata Buddhist
Studies Programme.

Distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha”
From January to August, 2012, our distribution has been as follows:
HotelsNon-hotels
Total

ReplenishedNew
Sub-total
2,266 copies
194 copies
2,460 copies
TemplesCompanies
Individuals free Individuals sold Sub-total
4,820
684
105
50
5,659
8,119

As these numbers show, our distribution is primarily to temples, especiallyduring the summer when temples havetheir bon odori festivals, which havebecome very popular with the generalpublic, and existing hotel accounts.
The hotel that distributes the mostcopies of TTOB is the Waikiki HaleKoa, which is a U.S. military hotel.

The conference concluded with a debate
on the impact ofsome of the discussions over the last
three days may havefor the future of
Therava-da Studies aswell as about how tofurther institutionalize and thus maximize the contribution of Therava- da
Studies to the fieldof Buddhist Studies
as a whole.

It has been difficult securing new
hotels to accept placement of the
TTOB on their properties. We havelooked into joining a hotel association,

University of Toronto

In June 2012, BDK Hawaii launched a
Kindle edition of “The Teaching of
Buddha (TTOB),” thus making available

History of BDK Hawaii

20

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

our books for religious reasons. Other
hotels do not allow any religious literature within their properties. We areconcerned about the increasing number of cancellations as well. In 2011,
eleven hotels on the neighbor islands
and eleven hotels on Oahu islandclosed their accounts with us. Many ofour books were discarded, a few werereturned. Up through August, 2012,
we had 7 hotels on the neighborislands and 2 hotels on Oahu close
their accounts.

Now we are finding more hotels refuse

New Kindle Edition of “Teaching of Buddha”

BDK Hawaii

Mr. Ralph Honda, a local business and civic leader
with the generous support of the Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata, founder of BDK Japan, established the
BDK Sudatta Society in 1978. Honda served as

but have found that the most effective
way is to approach hotels directly. In
January, 2012, we contacted 60 hotels
directly, and secured 5 hotels as new
accounts for a total of only 194 copies
of TTOB. This is about an 8% return,and we are currently contacting about
50 other hotels. We have contacted
the new president of the Hawaii
Lodging and Tourism Association tosee if we can develop new accounts
through their Association.

the first BDK Hawaii President from its founding
until 1998. From 1998 until 2009, the Rev.
Yoshiaki Fujitani, retired Bishop of the Honpa
Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii served as the second president. In March 2009, Dr. George
Tanabe, Professor Emeritus of Religion at the
University of Hawaii, became the current president of the organization which changed its nameto BDK Hawaii in 2010. Rev. Clyde Whitworth,
who holds ordinations in the Fo-guang Shan, Soto
Zen and Jodo traditions, is the current distribution
manager for “The Teaching of Buddha” book project.

this classic work as an eBook for sale on
the Amazon.com website. The Kindleversion, which is priced at $4.99, is thesame price as the iPhone and iPad versions available through BDK Japan.
In the initial three months of sales, wesold about a hundred Kindle version
copies in the United States and Europe.
This is not a large amount, but we areimpressed by the geographical reach ofKindle books, and the fact that we haddone nothing in the way of advertising.
People from all sorts of places havesearched the Amazon site, found TTOB,
and have bought the Kindle book.
One of our projects for next year is toadvertise the Kindle version by email.
We have identified over 1,200 Buddhist
organizations on the U. S. mainland andwill send out flyers to them by email.
The wonders of technology!

New Strategy with Gift Shops
Because of the resistance we areencountering from hotel managements, we are developing a new strategy. We have noticed that the gift shopat the Valley of the Temples Cemetery,which is a very popular tourist site on

Oahu because of the Byodoin temple
replica built there, sells a significant
number of TTOB books for us. In
2011, tourists bought 865 copies andfor 2012, we delivered over 700
copies of the TTOB books to the

Byodoin gift shop. While we do not
expect to receive anything back fromtheir sales, the gift shop donates back$2.00 per copy to BDK Hawaii.
Obviously, the books are popular with
tourists.

21

Since most gift shops in Hawaiian
hotels are operated by companies
other than the hotel company, we will
be approaching hotel gift shops to see
if they will distribute TTOB. We havedeveloped a simple book display standand will ask hotel gift shops to makethem available to their visitors for free,or to sell them at $4.00 a copy. The
gift shops can keep all proceeds, which
will add to their incentive to display

our books. In this way, we can get ourbooks into hotels, even if hotel managements refuse to place them in guest
rooms. We will use this same
approach with hospital gift shops.

Whitworth designed and manages thesite. The website contains a link to an
online TTOB discussion group on

Yahoo! Groups, which is administered by
Rev. Whitworth. The website also has alink to the Kindle version of TTOB.

We do not know how well this strategy
will work, but on the basis of our experience with the Valley of the Temples
gift shop, we are hopeful.

younger generations to maintain their mind stablethrough the Buddhist way of thinking. Alva Edison
University has 1,800 students and 80 instructors
and the chancellor has distributed TTOB books toeach one of them. Koichi Todaka, head priest of
Mexico Eko-ji, regularly visits the campus andholds Buddhist seminars and lectures as well.
The “CHA-EN” tea salon supported by BDK Mexico
serves traditional Japanese cuisine and fresh
green tea from Japan. As a part of its activities,

CHA-EN introduces a wide range of Japanese culture through such cultural arts as Sado, theJapanese tea ceremony and the Japanese culinary
culture to Mexican society. “CHA-EN” is locatedwithin the BDK Mexico cultural centre complex in aquiet neighborhood surrounded by residences andoffices. Here in Mexico, you can only find this highquality green tea at “CHA-EN” and our hospitablestaff members are happy to welcome any customers who are willing to enjoy a little “OMOTENASHI” mind, the hospitality of Japan.

New Website
In Febr uar y, we launched a new
website, which can be accessed atwww.bdkhawaii.com. Rev. Clyde

BDK Mexico
BDK Mexico was established in 1985 by the late.
Rev. Dr. Yehan Numata. One of its main efforts isthe distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha” books
to hotels and public facilities throughout the country. Over 1,000 hotels in Mexico have placed thebook in their rooms, and the number of distributed
books is nearly 190,000 copies as of 2012.
BDK Mexico also operates a non-sectarian
Buddhist temple called Mexico Eko-ji in Mexico
City. Temple activities are conducted in the Spanish language
and include a weekly Sunday
service, bi-weekly meditation
sessions, weekly Buddhist
seminars, and a Buddhist
ika,Studies camp called Va- rs
・held four times a year.
Additionally, the temple conducts Buddhist weddings,
funerals, memorial services,
etc. on a regular basis.
BDK Mexico and Mexico Eko-ji
also introduce various cultural22

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

activities such as Kendo- , Karate, Igo, Yoga, and
Aikido- to the local community. For over 20 years,
BDK Mexico has been making an effort to share
the humane heart and spirit of Buddhism with thepeople of Mexico. Also BDK Mexico has distributed the copies of “The Teaching of Buddha(TTOB)” books to Alva Edison University which
operates both a high school and college and islocated in Puebla, the fourth largest city of
Mexico. They use those books to help the

BDK Europe e.V.
Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai Europe (BDK Europe e.v.),
also known as the EKO Temple / Japanese Cultural
Centre and Kindergarten, is located in Düsseldorf
on the left bank of the Rhine River. The EKO
Temple, which is unique to Europe because of its
traditional Japanese Buddhist temple architecture,
was consecrated in September 1992 by Rev. Ko- shoOhtani, the retired head of the Jo- do Shinshu
Hongwanji-ha Buddhist denomination. Since thattime the temple has become a spiritual oasis for all
Buddhists and many Buddhist activities are hosted
at the temple and Centre. In 1999, the EKO
Kindergarten was established and provides preschool education for thirty German and thirty
Japanese children. The school’s goal is to raise
open-minded international citizens in the hopes ofcreating a peaceful society in the future. Visitors canalso enjoy the beautiful Japanese gardens plantedwith seasonal local flora in front of the temple andsurrounding the re-assembled old Japanese guesthouse brought from Japan.

offers exhibitions, concerts, as well as courses inJapanese calligraphy, language, dance, Ikebana(Japanese art of flower arrangement), Koto
(Japanese harp), etc. For the Japan Day event in
2012, EKO Centre welcomed Mr. Satoshi Katano,
the Shinobue (Japanese bamboo flute) player, Mr.
Kenko Sanyutei, the Rakugo (Japanese traditional
comic storyteller) performer, and Ms. Eri Onda, theShamisen (three-stringed Japanese guitar) player.
Moreover, BDK Europe e.V. has distributed copies
of “The Teaching of Buddha (TTOB)” mainly to thehotels, Buddhist organizations, etc. in Germany andsurrounding European countries such as the
Netherlands, Greece, Austria, Italy and many more.
The Steigenberger Hotel group prefers to place
TTOB books and they request copies of the bookevery time they open a new hotel in Germany.
Educational institutes and correctional facilities also
request the books to be distributed, and BDKEurope e.V. has donated 28 lanaguage versions for
total this year upon their requests.

-

The EKO Japanese Cultural Centre presents
programs on Japanese culture, which is based on
the Buddhist tradition, to German and other
European people. To deepen the cultural exchange
between East and West, the Centre hosts a wide
range of activities: it organizes academic symposiums, publishes the Buddhist journal “Ho- rin” andpublishes a German translation of a Japanese encyclopedia of Buddhism. Furthermore EKO Centre

BDK Europe e.V. has established Numata Chairs for
Buddhist Studies at Leiden University in the
Netherlands, University of Vienna in Austria,
University of Hamburg in Germany. For the year of
2011, each university has invited the professors
from Austria, Italy, and the USA and opened thecourses. (For more information about the Numata
Chair Program, please inquire at BDK Europe e.V.)

23

Since most gift shops in Hawaiian
hotels are operated by companies
other than the hotel company, we will
be approaching hotel gift shops to see
if they will distribute TTOB. We havedeveloped a simple book display standand will ask hotel gift shops to makethem available to their visitors for free,or to sell them at $4.00 a copy. The
gift shops can keep all proceeds, which
will add to their incentive to display

our books. In this way, we can get ourbooks into hotels, even if hotel managements refuse to place them in guest
rooms. We will use this same
approach with hospital gift shops.

Whitworth designed and manages thesite. The website contains a link to an
online TTOB discussion group on

Yahoo! Groups, which is administered by
Rev. Whitworth. The website also has alink to the Kindle version of TTOB.

We do not know how well this strategy
will work, but on the basis of our experience with the Valley of the Temples
gift shop, we are hopeful.

younger generations to maintain their mind stablethrough the Buddhist way of thinking. Alva Edison
University has 1,800 students and 80 instructors
and the chancellor has distributed TTOB books toeach one of them. Koichi Todaka, head priest of
Mexico Eko-ji, regularly visits the campus andholds Buddhist seminars and lectures as well.
The “CHA-EN” tea salon supported by BDK Mexico
serves traditional Japanese cuisine and fresh
green tea from Japan. As a part of its activities,

CHA-EN introduces a wide range of Japanese culture through such cultural arts as Sado, theJapanese tea ceremony and the Japanese culinary
culture to Mexican society. “CHA-EN” is locatedwithin the BDK Mexico cultural centre complex in aquiet neighborhood surrounded by residences andoffices. Here in Mexico, you can only find this highquality green tea at “CHA-EN” and our hospitablestaff members are happy to welcome any customers who are willing to enjoy a little “OMOTENASHI” mind, the hospitality of Japan.

New Website
In Febr uar y, we launched a new
website, which can be accessed atwww.bdkhawaii.com. Rev. Clyde

BDK Mexico
BDK Mexico was established in 1985 by the late.
Rev. Dr. Yehan Numata. One of its main efforts isthe distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha” books
to hotels and public facilities throughout the country. Over 1,000 hotels in Mexico have placed thebook in their rooms, and the number of distributed
books is nearly 190,000 copies as of 2012.
BDK Mexico also operates a non-sectarian
Buddhist temple called Mexico Eko-ji in Mexico
City. Temple activities are conducted in the Spanish language
and include a weekly Sunday
service, bi-weekly meditation
sessions, weekly Buddhist
seminars, and a Buddhist
ika,Studies camp called Va- rs
・held four times a year.
Additionally, the temple conducts Buddhist weddings,
funerals, memorial services,
etc. on a regular basis.
BDK Mexico and Mexico Eko-ji
also introduce various cultural22

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

activities such as Kendo- , Karate, Igo, Yoga, and
Aikido- to the local community. For over 20 years,
BDK Mexico has been making an effort to share
the humane heart and spirit of Buddhism with thepeople of Mexico. Also BDK Mexico has distributed the copies of “The Teaching of Buddha(TTOB)” books to Alva Edison University which
operates both a high school and college and islocated in Puebla, the fourth largest city of
Mexico. They use those books to help the

BDK Europe e.V.
Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai Europe (BDK Europe e.v.),
also known as the EKO Temple / Japanese Cultural
Centre and Kindergarten, is located in Düsseldorf
on the left bank of the Rhine River. The EKO
Temple, which is unique to Europe because of its
traditional Japanese Buddhist temple architecture,
was consecrated in September 1992 by Rev. Ko- shoOhtani, the retired head of the Jo- do Shinshu
Hongwanji-ha Buddhist denomination. Since thattime the temple has become a spiritual oasis for all
Buddhists and many Buddhist activities are hosted
at the temple and Centre. In 1999, the EKO
Kindergarten was established and provides preschool education for thirty German and thirty
Japanese children. The school’s goal is to raise
open-minded international citizens in the hopes ofcreating a peaceful society in the future. Visitors canalso enjoy the beautiful Japanese gardens plantedwith seasonal local flora in front of the temple andsurrounding the re-assembled old Japanese guesthouse brought from Japan.

offers exhibitions, concerts, as well as courses inJapanese calligraphy, language, dance, Ikebana(Japanese art of flower arrangement), Koto
(Japanese harp), etc. For the Japan Day event in
2012, EKO Centre welcomed Mr. Satoshi Katano,
the Shinobue (Japanese bamboo flute) player, Mr.
Kenko Sanyutei, the Rakugo (Japanese traditional
comic storyteller) performer, and Ms. Eri Onda, theShamisen (three-stringed Japanese guitar) player.
Moreover, BDK Europe e.V. has distributed copies
of “The Teaching of Buddha (TTOB)” mainly to thehotels, Buddhist organizations, etc. in Germany andsurrounding European countries such as the
Netherlands, Greece, Austria, Italy and many more.
The Steigenberger Hotel group prefers to place
TTOB books and they request copies of the bookevery time they open a new hotel in Germany.
Educational institutes and correctional facilities also
request the books to be distributed, and BDKEurope e.V. has donated 28 lanaguage versions for
total this year upon their requests.

-

The EKO Japanese Cultural Centre presents
programs on Japanese culture, which is based on
the Buddhist tradition, to German and other
European people. To deepen the cultural exchange
between East and West, the Centre hosts a wide
range of activities: it organizes academic symposiums, publishes the Buddhist journal “Ho- rin” andpublishes a German translation of a Japanese encyclopedia of Buddhism. Furthermore EKO Centre

BDK Europe e.V. has established Numata Chairs for
Buddhist Studies at Leiden University in the
Netherlands, University of Vienna in Austria,
University of Hamburg in Germany. For the year of
2011, each university has invited the professors
from Austria, Italy, and the USA and opened thecourses. (For more information about the Numata
Chair Program, please inquire at BDK Europe e.V.)

23

TTOB Distribution
Individuals/Groups
Hotels
Total

2011

2012
1,018
3,080
4,098

586
7,308
7,894

Symposium for the “Numata Chairs in Buddhist Studies Program”

BDK Europe e.V. hosted a symposiumfor the European Numata Chair universities in September, 2012. This
opportunity was the first time since1990 when BDK first established a
Numata Chair prog ram at Oxford
University for the Numata Chair universities to come together for a sympo-

sium. Professors from Budapest
University and Lieipzig University alsojoined in the symposium which was
also opened to the general public
interested in Buddhist Studies.
The Symposium was honored with thepresence of BDK Chairman Toshihide
Numata who addressed the event. Thiswas followed by a lecture by Professor
Richard Gombrich from Oxford
University. Following Professor
Gombrich‘s lecture, Professors
Michael Zimmer mann (Hamburg
University), Klaus-Dieter Mathes(Vienna University) and Jonathan Silk
(Lieden University) made presentations which stimulated many questions
and responses. The overwhelming
response from symposium attendees
was that this symposium which covereda wide spectrum of Buddhist studies ingeneral was a great success. At theend of the symposium, Professor
Shor yu K atsura from Ryukoku
University reviewed the history andsuccessful results of the global Numata
Chair program which was first established by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata.

The 16th European Shinshu Conference
Shinmon Kojun Ohtani, (MonshuDesignate) of the Jo- do-Shinshu
Hongwanji sect visited EKO-Haus in
Düsseldorf for the 16th European
Shin Buddhist Studies Conference(August 31 - September 2, 2012).
The theme of the conference was “TheImportance of Sangha.” This conference which was first convened thirty
years ago is held ever y two years.
Attendees at the conference were not
only from throughout Europe but alsocame from the United States, Nepal,
etc., and provied a perfect opportunity
for everyone to share and exchange of
their opinions about the conference24

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

theme.
On the first day, the five presentations
were sponsored by IASBS(International Association of Shin
Buddhist Studies), starting with apresentation by Prof. Kenneth Tanaka

from Musashino University. The presentation topics varied on such topics
as Disciplines of Buddhism, psychology, the Brain, Death, etc. On the second day, the conference was sponsoredby IABC (International Association of

Buddhist Culture) and the presentations created stimulating discussions.
On the f inal day, a Kikyo-Shiki
Ceremony was conducted in the main
Buddha Hall of the EKO temple.
Thirteen people from Germany, theUK, Belgium, the Netherlands andRomania received their Homyo(Buddhist Names) from Shinmon
Ko- jun Ohtani.

BDK Taiwan & Asia (Singapore)
When the Taiwan Institute of Buddhist Studies
was established in 1970, Mitutoyo Corporation’s
agents, Sing Lung Trading Co. and Jain Dah
Trading Co., were also engaged in the distribution
activities of “The Teaching of Buddha.” With theestablishment of Mitutoyo Taiwan in 1986 andBukkyo Dendo Kyokai Taiwan (BDK Taiwan) in
2000, a more active effort was begun in promotional activities. The BDK Taiwan office is now
located inside the Mitutoyo Taiwan complex in
Taipei and Chia-min Hung. BDK Asia was established in Singapore in 1985, and both organizations are currently distributing copies of “The
Teaching of Buddha (TTOB)” to hotels in various
Southeast Asian countries.
For the year 2012, 1,346 copies of TTOB in
Chinese/English and 204 copies in Japanese/English
have been distributed in Taiwan however, there
was a decline in the TTOB distribution especiallyin Thailand. It was difficult to make any substantial progress in Indonesia and Vietnam as well.
For those countries, BDK Asia will continue tomake an effort in 2013 to enhance our distribution
activities and hope that more people in Southeast
Asia will have an opportunity to take a look at“The Teaching of Buddha.”
The 25th anniversary exhibition of Mitutoyo
Taiwan was held from October 3rd to 5th, 2012.
We had a BDK exhibit corner and used PPT to
introduce the BDK activities. During this anniversary exhibition, 240 TTOB copies were distributed
and a request for 300 copies to be distributed to a
hotel was also received. More than 600 customers came to join the event.

The biannual convention of BDK Taiwan took
place on December 3, 2012. Mr. Numata and Mr.
Ikuta from BDK Japan also attended, and they
introduced BDK Japan and its activities sharingthat BDK Japan sponsored several activities forthe victims/survivors of the East Japan Great
Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011. They alsoannounced that BDK Japan had just published acomic book (manga) which is geared especially forchildren around elementary school age groups tointroduce the basics of Buddhism.

25

TTOB Distribution
Individuals/Groups
Hotels
Total

2011

2012
1,018
3,080
4,098

586
7,308
7,894

Symposium for the “Numata Chairs in Buddhist Studies Program”

BDK Europe e.V. hosted a symposiumfor the European Numata Chair universities in September, 2012. This
opportunity was the first time since1990 when BDK first established a
Numata Chair prog ram at Oxford
University for the Numata Chair universities to come together for a sympo-

sium. Professors from Budapest
University and Lieipzig University alsojoined in the symposium which was
also opened to the general public
interested in Buddhist Studies.
The Symposium was honored with thepresence of BDK Chairman Toshihide
Numata who addressed the event. Thiswas followed by a lecture by Professor
Richard Gombrich from Oxford
University. Following Professor
Gombrich‘s lecture, Professors
Michael Zimmer mann (Hamburg
University), Klaus-Dieter Mathes(Vienna University) and Jonathan Silk
(Lieden University) made presentations which stimulated many questions
and responses. The overwhelming
response from symposium attendees
was that this symposium which covereda wide spectrum of Buddhist studies ingeneral was a great success. At theend of the symposium, Professor
Shor yu K atsura from Ryukoku
University reviewed the history andsuccessful results of the global Numata
Chair program which was first established by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan
Numata.

The 16th European Shinshu Conference
Shinmon Kojun Ohtani, (MonshuDesignate) of the Jo- do-Shinshu
Hongwanji sect visited EKO-Haus in
Düsseldorf for the 16th European
Shin Buddhist Studies Conference(August 31 - September 2, 2012).
The theme of the conference was “TheImportance of Sangha.” This conference which was first convened thirty
years ago is held ever y two years.
Attendees at the conference were not
only from throughout Europe but alsocame from the United States, Nepal,
etc., and provied a perfect opportunity
for everyone to share and exchange of
their opinions about the conference24

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

theme.
On the first day, the five presentations
were sponsored by IASBS(International Association of Shin
Buddhist Studies), starting with apresentation by Prof. Kenneth Tanaka

from Musashino University. The presentation topics varied on such topics
as Disciplines of Buddhism, psychology, the Brain, Death, etc. On the second day, the conference was sponsoredby IABC (International Association of

Buddhist Culture) and the presentations created stimulating discussions.
On the f inal day, a Kikyo-Shiki
Ceremony was conducted in the main
Buddha Hall of the EKO temple.
Thirteen people from Germany, theUK, Belgium, the Netherlands andRomania received their Homyo(Buddhist Names) from Shinmon
Ko- jun Ohtani.

BDK Taiwan & Asia (Singapore)
When the Taiwan Institute of Buddhist Studies
was established in 1970, Mitutoyo Corporation’s
agents, Sing Lung Trading Co. and Jain Dah
Trading Co., were also engaged in the distribution
activities of “The Teaching of Buddha.” With theestablishment of Mitutoyo Taiwan in 1986 andBukkyo Dendo Kyokai Taiwan (BDK Taiwan) in
2000, a more active effort was begun in promotional activities. The BDK Taiwan office is now
located inside the Mitutoyo Taiwan complex in
Taipei and Chia-min Hung. BDK Asia was established in Singapore in 1985, and both organizations are currently distributing copies of “The
Teaching of Buddha (TTOB)” to hotels in various
Southeast Asian countries.
For the year 2012, 1,346 copies of TTOB in
Chinese/English and 204 copies in Japanese/English
have been distributed in Taiwan however, there
was a decline in the TTOB distribution especiallyin Thailand. It was difficult to make any substantial progress in Indonesia and Vietnam as well.
For those countries, BDK Asia will continue tomake an effort in 2013 to enhance our distribution
activities and hope that more people in Southeast
Asia will have an opportunity to take a look at“The Teaching of Buddha.”
The 25th anniversary exhibition of Mitutoyo
Taiwan was held from October 3rd to 5th, 2012.
We had a BDK exhibit corner and used PPT to
introduce the BDK activities. During this anniversary exhibition, 240 TTOB copies were distributed
and a request for 300 copies to be distributed to a
hotel was also received. More than 600 customers came to join the event.

The biannual convention of BDK Taiwan took
place on December 3, 2012. Mr. Numata and Mr.
Ikuta from BDK Japan also attended, and they
introduced BDK Japan and its activities sharingthat BDK Japan sponsored several activities forthe victims/survivors of the East Japan Great
Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011. They alsoannounced that BDK Japan had just published acomic book (manga) which is geared especially forchildren around elementary school age groups tointroduce the basics of Buddhism.

25

Mr. Liao Yi, a former Minister of Ministry of theInterior, who is now the president of Associationof East Asian Relations also attended the BDK
convention. He was greatly impressed to hearthat the cultural exchange between Japan andTaiwan has been enhanced through Buddhism
and congratulated BDK on their activities.

BDK South America
BDK South America was established in Sao
Paulo, Brazil in 1980. In the thirty-two years since
its establishment, current president, Takashi
Mizutani and eight local staff members have beenin charge of carrying out BDK SA’s administrationand operations throughout the region.
In Brazil, the variety of races andethnic groups areresiding together
as we call it amelting pot. We
can see the life
stories of the people coming fromall over the world.
Brazilian people
are friendly andwelcoming, andso is the living environment. There is a bird called“Bem te vi” which means “I am glad to see you” inPortuguese. The way they sing sounds like they
are whispering, “Ichigo-Ichie” in Japanese.
“Treasure every encounter, for it will never recur”
might be a translation into English from the bird
language of the “Bem te vi.”
The 2012 “The Teaching of Buddha” distribution
status to hotels and temples is shown in graph 1
and 2. In addition to it, individual inquiries have
gradually increased from 2011-2012. 11% of
those individual inquires is from JapaneseBrazilians, and 89% is from Non-JapaneseBrazilians (see the graph3). Brazil is one of thefastest growing countries in the world, and more
foreign businesses are breaking into the Brazilian
market. Therefore, the inquiries from hotels to26

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

obtain the English and Chinese versions of “The
Teaching of Buddha” are getting more popular inthese days.

BDK UKBDK United Kingdom was established in 1988
and is currently located in the headquarters building of Mitutoyo (U.K.) Ltd. in Andover, Hampshirein South England. Since its establishment, BDK
UK has been distributing “The Teaching of
Buddha” to hotels, schools, hospitals, jails etc
throughout the UK, and also supporting lecturesof Buddhist Studies at Oxford University (Balliol
College) and at the University of London (Schoolof Oriental & African Studies).
Currently, Rev. Ganshin E. Rock and BDK UK
director Takaji Katayama are working closely
together to carry on the work of BDK UK. Rev.
Ganshin E. Rock is a Buddhist priest of the Tendai
sect who was ordained in 1986 at the Senzo-ji
Temple in Chiba, Japan. In 1991 he was appointed as a Consultant to BDK with responsibility for
distributing “The Teaching of Buddha” throughout
the UK. Ganshin is also a Buddhist Representativeon the Standing Advisory Council for Religious
Education for the County of Hampshire, and has
given Buddhist presentations at local schools andcolleges. He is also a member of the Buddhist
Chaplaincy Endorsement Authority, of the

Department of Defense, which is responsible forthe recruitment of Buddhist Chaplains to theArmed Forces. Apart from the above activities,
Ganshin at 85, now undertakes various voluntary
works in his local area in Hampshire energeticallyfor the further advancement of Buddhism.
With the tremendous efforts of Ganshin, BDK UK
has distributed 1,675 copies of the “The Teachingof Buddha” to hotels, schools, hospitals, correctional facilities, etc. However, there is concernthat the number of copies for hotels has been
decreased as other BDK offices have also experienced.
The “Numata Chair for the Buddhist Studies” program at Oxford University cordially welcomed
Prof. Stefano Zacchetti (Ca' Foscari University of
Venice) as a Numata Professor on October 1,
2012. Prior to Zacchetti’s assumption of the position, Rev. Toshihide Numata, Chairman of BDK,
visited Oxford University in June. BDK UK has
also been working to solidify the Numata programat London University as well.

Oxford University27

Mr. Liao Yi, a former Minister of Ministry of theInterior, who is now the president of Associationof East Asian Relations also attended the BDK
convention. He was greatly impressed to hearthat the cultural exchange between Japan andTaiwan has been enhanced through Buddhism
and congratulated BDK on their activities.

BDK South America
BDK South America was established in Sao
Paulo, Brazil in 1980. In the thirty-two years since
its establishment, current president, Takashi
Mizutani and eight local staff members have beenin charge of carrying out BDK SA’s administrationand operations throughout the region.
In Brazil, the variety of races andethnic groups areresiding together
as we call it amelting pot. We
can see the life
stories of the people coming fromall over the world.
Brazilian people
are friendly andwelcoming, andso is the living environment. There is a bird called“Bem te vi” which means “I am glad to see you” inPortuguese. The way they sing sounds like they
are whispering, “Ichigo-Ichie” in Japanese.
“Treasure every encounter, for it will never recur”
might be a translation into English from the bird
language of the “Bem te vi.”
The 2012 “The Teaching of Buddha” distribution
status to hotels and temples is shown in graph 1
and 2. In addition to it, individual inquiries have
gradually increased from 2011-2012. 11% of
those individual inquires is from JapaneseBrazilians, and 89% is from Non-JapaneseBrazilians (see the graph3). Brazil is one of thefastest growing countries in the world, and more
foreign businesses are breaking into the Brazilian
market. Therefore, the inquiries from hotels to26

BDK Newsletter Michi

─The Path─

obtain the English and Chinese versions of “The
Teaching of Buddha” are getting more popular inthese days.

BDK UKBDK United Kingdom was established in 1988
and is currently located in the headquarters building of Mitutoyo (U.K.) Ltd. in Andover, Hampshirein South England. Since its establishment, BDK
UK has been distributing “The Teaching of
Buddha” to hotels, schools, hospitals, jails etc
throughout the UK, and also supporting lecturesof Buddhist Studies at Oxford University (Balliol
College) and at the University of London (Schoolof Oriental & African Studies).
Currently, Rev. Ganshin E. Rock and BDK UK
director Takaji Katayama are working closely
together to carry on the work of BDK UK. Rev.
Ganshin E. Rock is a Buddhist priest of the Tendai
sect who was ordained in 1986 at the Senzo-ji
Temple in Chiba, Japan. In 1991 he was appointed as a Consultant to BDK with responsibility for
distributing “The Teaching of Buddha” throughout
the UK. Ganshin is also a Buddhist Representativeon the Standing Advisory Council for Religious
Education for the County of Hampshire, and has
given Buddhist presentations at local schools andcolleges. He is also a member of the Buddhist
Chaplaincy Endorsement Authority, of the

Department of Defense, which is responsible forthe recruitment of Buddhist Chaplains to theArmed Forces. Apart from the above activities,
Ganshin at 85, now undertakes various voluntary
works in his local area in Hampshire energeticallyfor the further advancement of Buddhism.
With the tremendous efforts of Ganshin, BDK UK
has distributed 1,675 copies of the “The Teachingof Buddha” to hotels, schools, hospitals, correctional facilities, etc. However, there is concernthat the number of copies for hotels has been
decreased as other BDK offices have also experienced.
The “Numata Chair for the Buddhist Studies” program at Oxford University cordially welcomed
Prof. Stefano Zacchetti (Ca' Foscari University of
Venice) as a Numata Professor on October 1,
2012. Prior to Zacchetti’s assumption of the position, Rev. Toshihide Numata, Chairman of BDK,
visited Oxford University in June. BDK UK has
also been working to solidify the Numata programat London University as well.

Oxford University27