Hello from Tamonin (Bishamonten Temple) in Matsuzaki, Japan. I’ve been in Japan for about two weeks. Tamami and I arrived on May 13th and she left Japan Sunday, the 22nd While Tamami was here she helped me get settled into Tamonin, the temple we live at in Japan. We had an important meeting with the Tendai Overseas Charitable Foundation (the Jigyodan), spent two very pleasant days with the Reverend Sono (he is Vice Chair of the Jigyodan) at his temple and a magnificent onsen (hot springs) resort in Gunma Prefecture.
It was my intention to start a blog as soon as I arrived in Japan. However the best laid plans . . . Japan is one of the most advanced technological countries in the world. I did not foresee an inability to get on the internet Tamonin. As a matter of fact my cell phone sporadically works here. The closest populated area has no public WiFi that I can use. The mechanism by which this is being sent is tortuous. I won’t go into detail, except to say thank you to Bob O’Haver for working with me on getting this out.
Let me give you a picture of where I’m staying. The closest train station and accompanying dense populated area is Chiba New Town Chuo. At one time this area was completely farmland, very rural and off the beaten track.
Starting about 20 years ago a new commuter/intercity passenger rail line was put through this area that now connects downtown Tokyo to Narita airport, a distance of about 45 miles. Chiba New Town Chuo, was as the name implies, is a new town that sprang up at one of the stations along the way. The commuter train ride from the station to downtown Tokyo is about 1 ½ hours. It is now a suburban bedroom community of Tokyo, and has in the last few years become an educational and commercial center of its own. So in a 15 minute drive away from the temple to the train station there is a hub of commerce, activity and a very modern area. It’s like I’m living in a time warp. The temple is still in the 50’s and Chiba New Town Chuo is fully in the leading edge of 21st century.
The explicit reason for my being in Japan is to work on a translation of esoteric texts from Japanese and Sanskrit into English. More about that in a later blog. Some days sensei drives to Tamonin for our work and I have made an arrangement with Ichishima-sensei to go to his temple every several days to use the Internet. Ichishima-sensei and I are working on translation every day, and that feels good. We’re not sure how much progress we will make during my stay but we will do our best.
At Tamonin there is some evidence of the recent earthquake. Most notably inside one of the buildings the main image, Amida, was shaken right off of the Shumedan (platform) on which it rested and was damaged. It is currently out of the temple for repair. It seems very strange to be in that building and not see the familiar Amida (he seems like an old friend) in its normal place. However, I can still feel its presence.
There is some minor structural damage inside, a section of interior wall that fell down, for instance. Outside many of the family tombs are knocked over, and there are other structures, such as small stupa, that have been severely damaged. A walk around the area reveals walls toppled over, tiles fallen off roofs, and other relatively slight damage.
Two months after the earthquake, in northern Chiba and Tokyo, the only effects of the quake are inconveniences. In order to conserve electricity (due to the destruction of the nuclear reactors) escalators are often out of service, in certain areas that were brightly lit previously are now dimly lit, and the trains often do not run as punctually as they did before the earthquake.
There are reports in the newspapers regarding radiation threats, further information on the nuclear reactors failure, and concern about radiated food supplies. The televised news shows former residents of the tsunami ravaged areas that are also in the radiation zone conducting memorial services in protective suits and sifting through the debris for any evidence of their former lives. People provide tearful testimony of the family members they have lost, while lamenting that their lives have been irrevocably uprooted, their dreams nothing but ash.
There are smaller earthquakes that still occur almost every day. A week ago for instance there was a 5.0 earthquake and Ichishima-sensei, Tamami and I just continued to work right through it. Now these earthquakes, that at one time would have seemed noteworthy, are just an annoyance to most of the people around the area. This is not to diminish the very real tragedies still being lived moment to moment among the evacuees and those most severely affected by the earthquake and tsunami less than 60 miles north of where I write this.
For people outside of the direct disaster area the greatest concerns regarding radiation are the long term consequences. No one knows. Chernobyl is the closest analogy. According to the Daily Yomiuri newspaper the radiation in Japan is one tenth that of Chernobyl. But, because of the suppression of information and the subsequent fall of the then Soviet government, meaningful long term health studies were never conducted.
On a personal level living at Tamonin at this time seems a bit peculiar. Most of the temple is pretty much the way we left it 17 years ago. Of course Amida is not where he should be. There are improvements which have been made, such as a new o-furo, (traditional Japanese bath), our old one being of a very rustic character, new flush toilets (in the past we had what amounted to an out-house), and a completely renovated kitchen. A few of our pieces of furniture are still present and are being used. So there is a mix of familiar and new which seems a bit surreal though welcome.
I hope to provide a blog of interest and get it out every few days. In the meantime you are all in my thoughts and prayers.
Gassho . . . Monshin
