Buddhist Japan's "Silver Week"

LiveJapan.com, 8/24/23; CC Liu, Crystal Q., Sheldon S. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Japan's famous Buddha statue is not the Buddha but Mahayana Daibutsu (livejapan.com) 

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Ghostly modern Japanese beauty

In September, Japan experiences a week with numerous national holidays known as "Silver Week," making it prime travel season.

Various events and festivals take place during this time. Particularly in the capital, Tokyo, there are many annual traditions and significant gatherings such as the Asakusa Samba Carnival and the Tokyo Game Show.

The kami shapeshifting spirit beings of Shinto

For those planning to visit Tokyo in September, let's introduce some recommended events. Be sure to check them out and consider visiting.

What to do in Tokyo in September 2023: Asakusa Samba Carnival, Tokyo Game Show, more fun events | LIVE JAPAN Travel Guide

With more radiation than anywhere in the world (US war crimes killing citizens in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the very suspect failure of Fukushima), how do Japanese live so long?

Buddhist "Lent" (Rains Retreat) Begins

Buddhist monks on Asanha Puja Day, the eve of Buddhist Lent, in Nakhon Pathom province, outerBangkok, 7-26-10 (Reuters/Chaiwat Subprasom). PHOTOS

Vassa (the annual Rains Retreat) is observed as it has been from the time of the Buddha. The rainy season in northern India led to the institution of a monastic rule to go into retreat for intensive practice. Buddhist recluses were originally "wandering ascetics" (samanas). But the rainy season meant a burst of new life -- crops, amphibians, insects, and sprouts all covered the land -- all of which would be harmed if wanderers were to tread on them.

So like other ascetic traditions of his day, the Buddha responded to requests to have his disciples take up temporary residence in one location rather than wandering about. This period is utilized for intensive meditation practice, study, and teaching. Lay Buddhists visit temples and abbeys to practice as well, sometimes adopting Eight Precepts for the day.

This tradition is observed throughout Los Angeles and other ethnically diverse cities with Theravada temples. The Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara (a Sri Lankan monastery) in Pasadena has weekly Dharma sermons, free meals (dana), and meditation instruction for visitors. These are all echoes of a much more vibrant living tradition in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, and other Buddhist countries that keep the original Indian ideal going.

A wandering samanera (novice recluse) in Burma (Flickr/Dvlazar).

There it is a big deal that monks will be taking up residence. A special ceremony was held in each American Theravada temple this past weekend (in accordance with the lunar calendar) "inviting" monks to observe the Rains Retreat for the next three months. The Dhammakaya Thai Buddhist temple also temporarily ordained men wishing to observe Vassa as monastics.

• The connections to be drawn with Lent are no coincidence. Customary acts of self-purification, for example almsgiving and fasting, in Christianity were directly borrowed from Eastern practices.

Spirit Rock Retreat Listing (San Francisco)

• 4/30/2010: Spring Insight Meditation Retreat (9 nights) - Ends May 9 with Jack Kornfield, Trudy Goodman, Howard Cohn, Wes Nisker, Noah Levine, Spring Washam, Anushka Fernandopulle, Franz Moeckl (qigong)

• 5/2/2010: Women in Meditation (7 nights) - Ends May 9 with Christina Feldman, Narayan Liebenson Grady, Mary Paffard (yoga)

• 5/10/2010: Natural Liberation: an Insight Meditation Retreat (5 nights) with Wes Nisker, Pascal Auclair, Nina Wise

• 5/10/2010: Meditation and Creativity: Making a Dharma Art Journal (5 nights) with Anna Douglas, Janice Gates (yoga)

• 5/16/2010: Insight Meditation and Contemplative Inquiry (7 nights) with Sharda Rogell, Eugene Cash, Martin Aylward

• 5/16/2010: Befriending Ourselves and Coming Alive: A Retreat Cultivating Embodiment, Joy & Love (7 nights) with Arinna Weisman, Jean Esther

• 5/24/2010: Essential Dharma Meditation Retreat (7 nights) with Anna Douglas, Howard Cohn, Mark Coleman

• 6/2/2010: Awakening in the Body: Meditation with Qigong (7 nights) with Julie Wester, Phillip Moffitt, Debra Chamberlin-Taylor, Pascal Auclair, Franz Moeckl (qigong)

• 6/10/2010: Holistic Awareness: Monastic Retreat (LOTTERY) (9 nights) with Ajahn Sucitto, Ajahn (Sister) Metta

• 6/20/2010: Meditation and Yoga Retreat (7 nights) with Mark Coleman, Anna Douglas, Howard Cohn, Anne Cushman (yoga), Janice Gates (yoga)

• 6/28/2010: Living Dharma Study Retreat (7 nights) with Sally Clough Armstrong, Andrea Fella, Richard Shankman

• 6/28/2010: Mindfulness, Wise Speech, and Compassionate Communication (7 nights) with Donald Rothberg, Oren Sofer (NVC teacher)

• 7/2/2010: Vajrapani Insight Meditation Retreat (9 nights) with Mary Grace Orr, Gil Fronsdal, Noah Levine

• 7/7/2010: People of Color Meditation Retreat (LOTTERY) (7 nights) with Larry Yang, Gina Sharpe, Bhante Buddharakkhita, Anushka Fernandopulle

• 7/16/2010: Metta Retreat (7 nights) with Sally Clough Armstrong, James Baraz, Sharda Rogell, Anushka Fernandopulle, Selene Seltzer (qigong)

• 7/23/2010: Insight Meditation Retreat (LOTTERY) (9 nights) with Joseph Goldstein, Kamala Masters, Steve Armstrong

• 8/4/2010: Family Retreat (LOTTERY) (4 nights) with Ajahn Pasanno, Gil Fronsdal, Betsy Rose (music), Heather Sundberg

• 8/9/2010: Young Adults' Insight Meditation Retreat (6 nights) with Debra Chamberlin-Taylor, Marvin Belzer, Dori Langevin, Will Kabat-Zinn, Teja Bell (qigong)

• 8/16/2010: Concentration Retreat (9 nights) with Phillip Moffitt, Sally Clough Armstrong, Richard Shankman, Andrea Fella

• 8/26/2010: Mindfulness in Education-- A Retreat and Training (3 nights) with Diana Winston, Susan Kaiser Greenland, Richard Shankman, Spring Washam, Megan Cowan

Los Angeles: insightla.org

Meditation: Re-"treat" yourself this summer

Lara Levitan (photo and text, Chicago Examiner)

Retreats can deepen spiritual practice or energize a stagnant meditation routine. Though the practice of meditation is personal, joining a group of like-minded individuals on a short retreat may provide the support and affirmation needed to stay focused. The following is a round-up of Chicago area temples and centers offering a peaceful refuge.

• Diamond Way Buddhist Center, Weekend Retreat in Yorkville, Illinois.

Students of Diamond Way, or Vajrayana practice, in the Karma Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism will appreciate the Diamond Way Buddhist Center in Ukranian Village. It is part of an international non-profit network of more than 500 meditation centers in the Karma Kagyu lineage. Retreats include personal practice, lectures, and meals.

• Jewel Heart Chicago, Joyful Summer Retreat in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Under the leadership of Gelek Rimpoche, Jewel Heart is an educational and cultural institution practicing Tibetan Buddhism in Chicago, Ann Arbor, Cleveland, New York, and Lincoln, Nebraska. Jewel Heart was the spiritual home of Beat legend Allen Ginsberg, who was a student of Gelek Rimpoche from 1989 until Ginsberg's death in 1997. Some retreats include guided healing meditations, teachings led by Rimpoche, and opportunities for creative expression through the arts.

• Blue Beryl Dharma Center, Medicine Buddha Retreat: Yoga, meditation, traditional Tibetan healing, tantric ceremonies in Peshawbestown, Michigan.

The Blue Beryl Dharma Center is a Rime Tibetan Buddhist meditation center dedicated to Tibetan Buddhist teachings and culture with a focus on healing practices. According to the center's website, "The name Blue Beryl refers to the earliest known illustrated treatise on Tibetan medicine, 'the Blue Beryl Treatise'....The original paintings from the Blue Beryl Treatise [are] hung on the walls of Tibet's first medical college, Chagpoori Medical Institute." Specialized retreats include yoga, purification ceremonies, healing circles, and vegan meals.

• Insight Chicago, Autumn Residential Retreat in Frankfort, Illinois.

Insight Chicago is a Vipassana meditation group in the Theravada, Thai forest tradition. Retreats are held in "noble silence" -- a strict period of quietude is observed except in cases of emergency and in meetings with the teacher (in one upcoming retreat, Gloria Taraniya Ambriosia). Activities include sitting and walking meditation, with a fee covering all lodging, food, and use of the venue.

Keep in mind that a Buddhist meditation retreat is more intense than a weekend at the beach. If you have questions or concerns, be sure to call the specific temple or center in advance. They're very friendly and welcoming of sincere inquiries no matter what your concern.