Letter from Kyoto

cardiac infarction

In April last year I was taken to the hospital for the treatment of cardiac infarction, but happily now I am now getting better though I will have to enter the hospital again this time for bypass surgery soon. I must have been overworking before I was struck down by illness. Though I could leave the hospital after a month, I was obliged to quit my job and to stay at home. I quitted my job at schools. When I recovered my health and could walk a little bit around my house, I set about writing the manuscripts for the books I am to publish this year. Writing is a tough work, it is true, but I would have recovered my self. I cannot do without fear that there is no knowing when I will have a fit of cardiac infarction again as I have not recovered completely from my illness.
We are having a mild winter this year here in Japan. The cherry blossoms may bloom earlier this year.

Cherry blossoms in Kyoto

I went to see the cherry blossoms at Sagano the other day.  As I was busy this year and I had thought it would not be possible to make time I was happy to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom.
The first temple I visited was Adashino Nenbutsuji which is about thirty minutes' walk from Saga Arashiya station.

This is the picture of Nisonin, where two Tathagatas are worshipped.

This picture shows cherry blossoms which are wet with rain. You can see waterdrops which reflect this world like monads.

 
As a result of the rainfall, Katsura River rose some centimeters above normal levels.

It is really surprising that cherry blossoms burst into flower at this time of the year without fail.

gankake (prayer)

While I was giving a lecture at a community center in Nagaokakyo-city, a beautiful wood caught my eye. I asked the woman who was in charge of my lectures what that wood is. She said to me, 'That is where Nagaoka Tenman shrine lies.'

Next time when I came to the center, I visited the shrine. There I prayed for my friend so that she could go through an examination. As I had some time before I began my lecture, I rambled around the precinct of the shrine. The leaves were turning in autumn.

Prayers or petitions to a Shinto or a Buddhist deity to obtain a specific request is termed gangake in Japanese. It was a beautiful autumn morning, when I wished to be a mystic.

ema (votive pictures)

Taking hitogata in hands, I blew breath in it. The papers on which we wrote the names and ages were to be purified. Such rites occur throughout Japan during nagoshi observance.

Another shrine we visited was Kitano shrine to write ema, which is a votive picture presented as offering to Michizane Sugawara. As he is believed to be God of learning, people pay visits in the hope of passing examinations. When we visited this shrine, it was raining very hard. I still remember very clearly the sound of rain and the scent of Indian ink.

Hitogata

I went around Kyoto last year to show a friend of mine the sights of Kyoto. As I myself am not familiar with them though I live in Kyoto, it was a thrill experience for me too. The picture shows Hirano shrine, which is famous for cherry in spring. It was in June when we visited. Hitogata (literally, “dolls”) happened to catch our eyes. It is a paper in the form of human effigies used as a scapegoat in the exorcism of evil influences. We wrote down our names on it and prayed for our health and happiness. The long and unforgettable summer was about to begin.

Lotus

I visited Kyoto botanical garden the other day. It began to rain hard immediately after entering at the gate. Some may dislike rain but flowers look beautiful even in the rain or rather by the grace of rain.
I should have visited the garden early in the morning to see lotus in full blossom but the view of lutus with raindrops on leaves healed my sorrow.

Temples in Kyoto

There are many temples here in Kyoto, Japan. Many people come to visit Kyoto every year from various cities in the world. It is often pointed out that those who live in kyoto seldom visit temples probably because they think they can visit them anytime they wish. Therefore we (as I myself live in the suburbs of Kyoto I may use 'we' instead of 'they') may know less about the historical buildings than those who are willing to absorb everything they see in Kyoto while staying there. The photo shows the Adashino Nenbutshu-ji (temple), which is famous for many small figures of the Buddha.