Expressing Gratitude at ObonH‘wa’harmony

Higashi Hongwanji
Hawaii Betsuin
Bulletin

7
July 2017

Higashi Hongwanji
Mission of Hawaii
At Higashi Hongwanji, we remaintrue to our origins
as an open Sangha, welcoming
anyone who wishes to learn more
about the Jodo Shinshu
tradition of Buddhism.
A registered 501(c)3 organization
Rinban: Kenjun Kawawata
Minister: Koen Kikuchi
President: Faye Shigemura
Vice President: Jonathan Tani
Secretary: Debra Saiki
Treasurer: Edmund Nakano
Asst. Sec’y & Auditor: Ken Saiki
1685 Alaneo StreetHonolulu, HI 96817
Tel: (808) 531-9088
Fax: (808) 531-3265
Email: betsuin@hhbt-hi.org
Wa is published monthly byHigashi Hongwanji Missionof Hawaii for its membersand friends. Comments,
articles and other items for
publication consideration
are welcomed.
Editor: Ken Saiki

Rinban Kenjun Kawawata

ere comes obon dance season! I hope that you enjoy yourself at thebon dances at various temples and elsewhere in the community.
We should remember, though, that obon is a time to honor and express
our thanks to our ancestors. Without our ancestors, we could not have orreceive our life.
How many ancestors do you think you have if you
went back 10 generations? You, your two parents and yourfour grandparents already represent three generations. As
shown in the diagram below., for you to be born, there
were 2046 people’s lives before you in just the previous 10generations. Here’s the math, in case you’re interested:(2+4+8+16+32+64+128+256+512+1024=2046).
Your friends, of course, also have the same numberof ancestors behind them. If a single one of ourRinban Ken Kawawata
ancestors was not born, we would not have been able
to be born and exist here and now.
It is a very rare chance to be born as you are and it’s very difficult tomeet people and the friends who surround you. Each individual life issustained by many people, things and other lives.
Think about a hamburger you eat for lunch, consisting of a bun, meat,vegetables and condiments. There are many people and other lives behindthe hamburger but you don’t usually see
Ancestor Pyramidthem. For your bun, a farmer growsof 10 Generations
You
wheat, from which a mill employee
2 Parents
If just a single one of your
4 Grandparents
makes the flour, which a baker, in2046 ancestors over
8 Great-grandparents
turn, uses to make buns. For your
10 generations
16 Great-great-grandparents
was not born,
hamburger meat, a farmer
32 Great-great-great-grandparents
you would
64 Great-great-great-great-grandparents
raises the cows and people
not exist
128 Great-great-great-great-great-grandparents
who work at a meat
today.
256 Great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents
processing plant turn
512 Great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents
1024 Great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents
the raw meat into
ground beef.
Truck drivers deliver all the ingredients to the hamburger stand andits employees make your hamburger. Then your hamburger arrives at yourtable and you are finally able to eat it. We don’t know precisely how many
people’s lives are involved in getting your hamburger in front of you but weknow there are many.
Then you say, “Itadakimasu” and you begin eating. “Itadakimasu” is anexpression of your gratitude to other lives that sustain your precious life.
“Thank you very much to the many sacrificed lives which sustain my ownlife. I humbly receive this hamburger.”
At obon we express our thanks to whole lives, conditions, ties andrelations. This obon season, we enjoy bon dancing. Bon dancing is our
expression for the joy of living, gratitude for our ancestors and all lives
that susutain each individual life. At a bon dance, we re-encounter ourancestors and old friends. It’s also the place you can meet new friends.
Therefore, I would like to invite you and your friends to our Obon
Service on Sunday, July 9 at 10 am and our Bon Dance on July 14 and 15.
We will express our gratitude to our beloved ones who died before us.
Please come and enjoy bon dancing with us.
I wish that you will have a meaningful Obon time and enjoyable summer.		
Thank you in gassho,			Rinban Kenjun Kawawata

It’s Bon Dance Time!

The Manto-e Tradition:
Decorating the summer sky
with “10,000 lanterns”

Long ago in India, wherever the Buddha delivered asermon, the sangha—those who came to listen—would each light a candle. The sangha became sonumerous that on these occasions, the lights came to becalled Manto, or 10,000 lights.
The tradition of Manto-e was started in Japan about
1,200 years ago during the reign of Emperor Shomu.
Once a year 10,000 lights were lit in honor of the Buddha
around the Todaiji Temple in Nara.
Higashi Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii celebrates thetradition of the Manto-e at our bon dance. Our Manto-e
service is held at 6:30 pm on July 14 and 15 at the footof the yagura. With your help, we’d like to decorate thesummer sky with “10,000 lanterns.”
With your donation of $20 for each lantern you may
wish to offer in memory of a departed relative or friend,
we will write his or her name, along with your name as
the donor, on a small tablet to be hung from each lantern.
The custom-made lanterns from Japan can be picked up
and are yours to keep after the bon dance.
MANTO-E LANTERN APPLICATION FORM
万灯会提灯申込書
Here’s my donation of $________ for ______ lanterns in memory of:Name 名前Dharma name 法名___________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ ____________
Donor’s name 寄付者名

Phone 電話___________________________ ____________
Make check payable to Higashi Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii
1685 Alaneo St., Honolulu, HI 96817 • ☎ 531-9088

2President Faye ShigemuraW

hy do you go to a bon dance? Some would
say, “To greet and send off the spirits of mygreat ancestors,” or perhaps a more Jodo Shinshu-like,“To express gratitude to those who came before us.”
Not!
When I was growing up in Kalihi, I couldn’t containmy excitement as I watched people streaming in to
the temple yard on bon dance night.
The cool factor...
Teenagers were the “COOL”, an active part of thebon dance. The older teens, girls gathering in one
section, boys in another, eventually merged to one
group as the night wore on.
The finale, the “Fukushima Ondo,” was always thefavorite for youths. As the “normal” dancers kept up
the beat on the outer circle, this band of energetic
teens seemingly exploded into the inner dancecircle like a herd of stampeding elk. The dance thenbecame a youthful version of Fukushima Ondo, andwas called “Beccho.” The increasing speed toward theend of the song added to the frenzy. Kakko ii!
These days, the “cool” has expanded to include
young children, pre-teens, and even older post-teens,including post-auntie and -uncle ages.
Bon Appétit!
Good eats has always been an excuse to spend
the evening at bon dances and ours is no exception!
Whether you’re in the mood for a sumo-sized Hawaiian
plate or nishime with saimin and just some coolingshave ice, this is the place. We’ve got you covered!
Calling all volunteers!
We’re in the count-down stage, and it’s ALL
HANDS ON DECK! We can always use help with foodpreparation. We start prepping from Wednesday
7/12 with the stringing of BBQ sticks at 10 am, andThursday 7/13 would be vegetable chopping, startingat 10 am on 7/12.
Our food concessions open at 5:30 pm, so thatmeans cooking from 3 pm on Friday and Saturday.
Please call the temple at 531-9088 if you are free
to help, and we can get you placed on our scheduleboard. Donations are also welcome. If you are
not able to come to the temple, we can pick up
your donations, and receipts will be issued for tax
purposes. Mata kotoshimo ganbarimasho!
Be there or be square!
Whether you can help or not, we look forward toseeing you and all of the island’s “cool” folks at ourHigashi Hongwanji Betsuin bon dance on July 14 and15, Friday and Saturday!

News on theBetsuin Wirelesson Fri., 7 pm Urabon service on Sat.)338-1847
July 28-29: Palolo Hongwanji bondance (6:30 pm following 6 pm
service, Hatsubon service July 16 at 10am. 732-1491
Aug. 12: Hilo Higashi Hongwanji
bon dance (7 pm following 6:00 pm
Hatsubon service, 10 am Ulla Bon
service Sun. Aug. 13) 935-8968
Rev. Marcos Sawada led discussion atthe Local Dharma Gathering “Awakeningto Your Deepest Wish,“ held in Otani
Center at the Betsuin on Sat., June 3.

Summer obon season offers
many opportunities to take part
While the Betsuin’s Hatsubon/Bonand Manto-e service schedule islisted in our calendar of events, there
are other opportunities to attend
and/or volunteer your help at
various bon observances being held
throughout the District.:
July 1: Kaneohe Higashi
Hongwanji bon dance (6:30 pm
following 6 pm service) 247-2661
July 15: UJSH obon memorialservice for pioneer immigrants at
Makiki cemetery (9 am) 941-5889
July 21-22: Waimea Higashi
Hongwanji bon dance (7:30 pm
following 6:30 pm Hatsubon service

Laughter awaits at every corner
in July’s movie, Adrift in TokyoFumiya Takemura (TomokazuMiura) has been a university student
for eight years and owes money toloan sharks. One day, Aiichiro
Fukuhara (Joe Odagiri) comes tocollect the loan, which Fumiya
cannot pay. So Fukuhara makes a
proposition: He will cancel the debt
and pay ¥1 million as long as Fumiya
agrees to walk with him across Tokyo
from Kichijoji to the Kasumigaseki
police station, where he intends toturn himself in for a crime he deeply
regrets. Not having much choice,
Fumiya accepts the deal.
The duo starts to bond and thischarming film directed by Satoshi Mikireminds us that the world is full ofsmall and large beauties. From The
Japan Times review: “a masterpiece…agreat comedy from start to finish.”Todd Brown of the indie news website
Twitch called the movie “one of theDharma school happenings: While the adults attend Sunday service across the hall, thechildren huddle together in the conference room at Sunday school. Jeanne Kawawata
describes the illustrations from the picture book favorite, Where the Wild Things Are.

five best films in the world for 2008.”
Awards include the 12th Fantasia
International Film Festival Best Script(Satoshi Miki) and Special Mention of
the Jury (Odagiri and Miura duo) and81st Kinema Junpo Awards Best
Supporting Actor (Tomokazu Miura).
Also stars Kyoko Koizumi andYuriko Yoshitaka. Showtime: 6:30 pm,Tues., July 25, 101 min. Color.
Japanese audio, English subtitles.
Free admission. Light refreshments,or bring to share!

転々 (てんてん)

大学8年生の竹村文哉(三浦友和)。借金を抱えており返済の当ても無い彼に、借金取りの福原愛一郎(オダギリジョー)が、「借金をチャラにする代わりに自分の東京散歩に付き合って欲しい。」と持ち掛ける。更に、その報酬として100万円を貰えると言われ、胡散臭さを感じながらも福原の提案を受け入れ、2人の散歩が始まる。
受賞歴：2008ファンタジア国際映画祭：脚本賞: 三木聡、審査員特別賞：オダギリジョーと三浦友和のデュオ；第81回キネマ旬報日本映画助演男優賞：三浦友和；その他。
監督：三木聡；出演者：オダギリ、三浦、小泉今日子、吉高由里子； 公開 :2007年、カラー 、言語 : 日本語、 字幕: 英語 、映時間 : 101分、7月25日(火)午後6:30時 、入場無料。

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Margaret Hamachi

Margaret Hamachi has been on theBetsuin board of directors since 2014. The
chocolate chip cookies she prepares eachweek for after-service otoki are legend.
People keep coming back for more andsome jokingly ask if there’s some habitforming ingredient in them. Wa finallycaught up with busy Margaret and asked
her to tell us a little about herself to sharewith other temple members.

You might say I was born into
Buddhism. I grew up in West
Covina, which is east of Los Angeles.
My parents were active in theBuddhist church, so as a kid I always
went to the temple on Sundays.

I have fond memories of Obon,
performing Obon odori as soon as
I could walk. My mom says I would
watch and copy, so I was always one
step behind.
I also remember watching the“grown ups” get sworn in as temple
board members, holding candles aspart of the installation ceremony.
Now that’s me!
I still feel like akid, as I am learning
a lot from fellow
board members,
especially Faye, Kenand Ed, who give somuch of their timeand knowledge
to the Betsuin. I
hope to be able
Margaret Hamachi
to contribute in asmall way, to help sustain the temple
for generations to come. This is oneof the issues the board is discussing
at the moment.
I have a degree in Microbiology
and am a Medical Technologist for
Diagnostic Laboratory Services. I amthat person who is testing your bloodand urine when you kindly “donate”
them as directed by your doctor. I

work the evening shift in the lab at
Queen’s Medical Center West Oahu,supervising the shift as well as doing
patient testing.
I have three children, Cody, Paigeand Hannah. We moved to Hawaii in2005 while they were in their middle
and high school years. Although they
weren’t crazy about moving at thetime, I think they are happy to bewhere they are now and I am glad
they learned about impermanence
and perseverance at a critical point intheir lives.
In my spare time, I like to read,relax at the beach and jog. I did theGreat Aloha Run, Ekiden relay andHonolulu Marathon this past year.
I also got the travel bug (thedesire to travel, not the disease) after
trips to Japan and London. One of thebooks I read recently was by a Korean
Buddhist monk, Haemin Sunim, titled,
The Things You Can See Only When
You Slow Down. When we always
seem to be rushing from one thing
to the next, and being somewhat
self-absorbed—me, anyway—I findcoming to the Betsuin grounding anda way to shift my focus by listening tothe teachings.

The Aikido Ohana cordially invites you to a FREESENIOR FALL SAFETY CLASS

WHEN: Every Sunday, 2 - 3 pm, except holidays		
and when other temple functions held (TBA)

According to the Hawaii Fall Prevention Consortium, falls
are the leading cause of injury-related hospitalizations
among Hawaii residents age 65 and older.
Although this class is designed with that in mind­—toprovide seniors with a method to receive falls safely—the class is open to all adults. The class covers:• Strengthening/Limbering Exercises• Understanding Balance/Unbalancing• Aikido-Based Method to Receive Falls Safely• Situational Awareness

WHERE: Higashi Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii		Otani Center (Punchbowl side of parking lot)		
1685 Alaneo St., corner N. Kuakini St.		
Honolulu, HI 96817

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WEAR:								Loose-fitting comfortable clothing, such as
sweatpants/T-shirt/training wear.
For more information, contact:
The Aikido Ohana
www.aikidoohana.org • 732-7066

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Higashi Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii
1685 Alaneo Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817

NON-PROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
Honolulu, HIPermit No. 693

Address Service Requested

In this issue of WA...
• Expressing gratitude at obon p. 1
• The Manto-e tradition p. 2
• It’s bon dance time! p. 2
• News on the Betsuin Wireless p. 3
• District obon observances p. 3
• July movie: Adrift in Tokyo p. 3
• In the Spotlight: Margaret Hamachi p. 4
• Senior Fall Safety Class p. 4
• Acknowledgments p. 5• July shōtsuki service p. 5
• Temple activities calendar p. 6

Temple Activities CalendarJULY
7/2 Sun 10 am Shōtsuki service/Sunday school
7/2 Sun 12 pm The Larger Sutra study class			 led by Rinban Kawawata in Japanese
7/3 Mon 10 am Betsuin study class
7/9 Sun 10 am Obon/Hatsubon service/Sunday school
7/11 Tue 3 pm Ukulele class/band practice
7/11 Tue 6 pm Bon dance practice at Otani Center			
(6 pm: Ryukyu, 7 pm: Fukushima)
7/13 Thu 7 pm The Larger Sutra study class (English)
7/14 Fri 6:30 pm Mantō-e service/Bon dance
7/15 Sat 6:30 pm Mantō-e service/Bon dance
7/16 Sun 9 am Bon dance cleanup (no Sunday service)
7/17 Mon 10 am Betsuin study class
7/18 Tue 7 pm O-kō: Dharma discussion at Kaneohe
7/22 Sat 10 am Oahu MAP class
7/23 Sun 10 am Sunday service/Sunday school
7/23 Sun 12 pm Betsuin board meeting
7/23 Sun 12 pm Art of Paper Folding class
7/25 Tue 3 pm Ukulele class/band practice
7/25 Tue 6:30 pm Movie night: Adrift in Tokyo - 転々
7/28 Fri 10 am Shinran Shōnin memorial service
7/30 Sun 10 am Sunday service/Sunday school

64AUGUST
8/5 Sat 10 am Oahu MAP class
8/6 Sun 10 am Shōtsuki service/Sunday school
8/6 Sun 12 pm The Larger Sutra study class			 led by Rinban Kawawata in Japanese			
Fukuhara conference room
8/7 Mon 10 am Betsuin study class
8/8 Tue 3 pm Ukulele class/band practice
8/10 Thu 7 pm The Larger Sutra study class			 led by Rinban Kawawata in English			
Fukuhara conference room
8/13 Sun 10 am Sunday service/Sunday school
8/13 Sun 12 pm Art of Paper Folding class
8/15 Tue 7 pm O-kō: Dharma discussion at Betsuin
8/19 Sat 10 am District meeting at Betsuin
8/20 Sun 10 am Sunday service/Sunday school
8/20 Sun 12 pm Betsuin board meeting			Fukuhara conference room
8/21 Mon 10 am Betsuin study class
8/22 Tue 3 pm Ukulele class/band practice
8/22 Tue 6:30 pm Movie night: Key of Life - 鍵泥棒のメソッド
8/27 Sun 10 am BBQ chicken & musubi sale			 (no Sunday service)
8/28 Mon 10 am Shinran Shōnin memorial service

Everyone is welcome to join the morning chanting held at 7 am daily (except on Sundays & the 28th day of the month) in the Betsuin main hall.

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