The 4 and 8 Sufferings (Part 1 - A 4 part series)
Life is a tree that blooms flowers of suffering. We must overcome all kinds of troubles and obstacles during our lifetime. We are never...
The Purpose of Buddhism is Removing Suffering and Imparting Ease
The Buddhist chapel room in Shimane Kaikan, which just opened in September, contains a large framed work of calligraphy 抜苦与楽 that reads...
Why Do We Extend Our Lives?
It’s been a month since I moved to Los Angeles. Previously, I was in Hokkaido, which is the coldest part of Japan, so I feel more...
The Far Away Hills Appear Greener
I recently heard again the story from the sutras of Sakyamuni and a woman who was attempting to commit suicide. She had been betrayed in...
“Today is My Last Day...”
Bells ring out for New Year’s Eve on a cold, cold night... Under the cover of darkness, a figure delivers treasure from mailbox to...
“It’s Always Darkest Before the Dawn”
The pain I had was like glasses piercing my whole body. It wouldn’t stop even after taking more than 40 pills and injecting some type of...
What We Choose To Believe In Becomes Our Faith
The end of the world was supposed to happen on May 21 at 6pm, according to a Mr. Harold Camping, an uncertified fundamentalist minister,...
