TOKYO (Reuters) - He raps. He chants. And this month, Japan's famed hip-hop loving monk, better known as MC Happiness, will tap dance on stage, in the name of Buddhism.
Kansho Tagai heads the 400-year-old Kyoouji Temple in central Tokyo, offering softly chanted prayers throughout the day amid traditional bell chimes and wafts of incense.
But once in a while he raises the volume, and the tempo, of these prayers, going before an audience to rap Buddhist sutras, or teachings, to hip-hop beats in modern Japanese.
"When I listened to rap music for the first time, it was in English so I couldn't understand a word," Tagai told Reuters.
"I realized that the same can be said for Buddhist sutras because most people can't understand a word. And the thing is, listening to rap music makes you feel good even though it may be incomprehensible." More>>
"I realized that the same can be said for Buddhist sutras because most people can't understand a word. And the thing is, listening to rap music makes you feel good even though it may be incomprehensible." More>>
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