The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1907-08-15

Christian woman, who had moved into
| the village from another town, took
delighted part. One of the American
| Bible Society's colporteurs was also
present and, in general, Shibu seemed
somewhat more familiar with Chris
! tiauity than did Kusatsu although
there are no Christian services held
there.
| Where Religion is Cheap.
The next morning the Americans.
who we're quite accustomed to creating
a stir by their appearance in native
villages. went to Nagano, where is one
of the most celebrated Buddhist tenn
pies in Japan, dating back to go A. d.,
although the oldest portion of the pres
ent structure is only six centuries old.
The high priestess of this temple is an
aunt of the emperor The temple area
| is crowded with statues and buildings
of absorbing interest. | noticed one
bronze Buddha OF heroic size holding
a baby, and some devotce had put a
modern bonnet, of cheap calico. on
the latters head On several occa-
l
gruously adorned
Thousands of devout pilgrims visit
this temple, and the emperor himself
has a sumptuous suite of apartments
therein, although the Shintoists claim
him as one of their number. IL fact.
he has rather impartialIy patroni2ed
both faiths and thousands of his sub
iects do likewise. Ordinary pilgrims
to the temple are kept outside the
wire screen before the altar, but the
missionaries, by the application of the
silver key which unlocks doors the
world over, were omitted To closer
view and a complete inspection. They
were even taken down through the
absolutely dark underground passage
where the keys of paradise may be
found, attached to huge paddock.
And assuredly those young Americans
found them, and ratified them loudly
enough for all the celestial doorkeep
ers to hear This trip in the dark is
supposed to purge the soul of sin
though, paradoyically enough the
priest who was our guide warned us
that if we had any evil in our hearts
when we entered we would come out
changed into dogs, which is the com
mon belief OF course this party
emerged barking and growing like
ours with tin cans to their tails.
IL must not be inferred that the mis-
sionaries were disrespectful to the
temple or its worshippers. They
moved about. uncovered and unshod
and were genuinely interested in the
bewildering explanations OF who's who
in this sect OF Buddhism. Among the
more than 10000 ancestral tablets
placed in one apartment, | noticed one
that was surmounted by the Harvard
Ii.
AS souvenirs Of this trip ! have &
written token trSS trSSS IL ~ s,s. gI- gr,sIs!
, That ! have performed an early morn
ing devotion at 9 CERTAIN shrile. and
have received absolutica from him In
person--although as matter of fact
It was nearly noon whom we were II
the temple, and never saw the higt
priest | bought the document II in
priest in the temple Office for one
and a half cents Similarly, have
brass charm from the imperial high
lpriestess (whom | did not meet. | am
sorry to say) guaranteeing protection
TO my body from every kind Of harm
aud all for the sum Of eight cents
, Religion comes cheap in Japan. ] saw
priests emptying the money boxes
which stand beSSre each shrine, and
later stringing tie coins together.
These are all of copper and OF the
tlowest denominations, twO sen, one
sen, half sen. rim and ran Tin. The
last two are the commonest, nad arc
worth respectively, one twentieth and
one fortieth OF an American esnt.
These are now seldom used in coTs.
mercs. and are called temple
money. The sen is worth one-half
cent.
SThe elaborate and costly Buddhist
temple and its ritual and priests was
IN sharp contrast with the impover-
lshed simple services which these un.
uniformed missionaries had been hold.
ing; but the latter had confidence
and vitality which made one foyesee
the possibility of the overthrow OF
buddhism by the plain gospel Of the
Nazarene