The Buddhist Temple Of Sonoma County, Surrounded By Cows And Vineyards

The Orange County Buddhist Church located in Anaheim at 909 South Dale Avenue is one of the few temples that practices and teaches Jodo Shinshu Buddhism in America. Although Shinran Shonin first established these traditions about 800 years ago in Japan, it did not reach the United States until the late 19th century by Japanese immigrants. Since then, Shin Buddhism has grown and developed Americanized features that contribute to its message of acknowledging the interdependence of all aspects in the universe as a way to reach a state of self-realization and happiness. With the help of Buddhist believers, the establishment of Shin Buddhist temples continues to grow and more people are welcomed to absorb the unique beliefs about oneness and transcending duhkha.

I was indecisive on where to go do my site visit. While I thought about if for a couple of days, I decided I wanted to learn more about Buddhism. I was unaware that there was a temple in Grand Island until my teacher mentioned something about it in class. I also felt more comfortable that the teacher and other classmates were going to be there too. As the time got closer to go, I got a little more nervous and was really thinking about it. I was thinking about how to not be disrespectful in their temple. For instance, remembering to take off my shoes and not to shake the monks hand when I introduced myself. I was aware about Buddhism before I went there, but still did not know a lot about the religion. For example, I knew they meditated and sat on the floor in front of a big statue named Buddha. I thought I was going to see a “fat” Buddha because that is what I have seen in movies.

The stereotype that I had before attending this service was one, I thought the followers of Buddhism worshiped Buddha as a deity. Second, the assumption that they are all happy and just love the world I associated with the stereotype of them being similar to “hippies.” These notions were proven false in that Buddha is not revered as a deity and the happiness they achieve is from knowing that life is not about status and possessions, however, it is about being satisfied with yourself. The monk spoke to this when he asked the people what are the keys to happiness? After several answers the monk disclosed the five keys to happiness by a 5th century monk that are, ability to eat, walking, bowl movement, talking, and sleep. The monk explained

For this experience, I decided to explore Buddhism in order to enhance my involvement with the religion and build a strong understanding. What intrigued me about Buddhism was the social aspect and diversity that it had to offer. In order to explore this religion from a critical and analytical viewpoint, I decided to attend a weekend service offered at San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin. The San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin main temple is located in the Japantown section of Central San Jose. What made this temple stand out amongst the others was its historical standing in the community. It is one of the oldest temples established in the United States. In order to learn more about the history, environment, and community as a whole, I decided to contact the temple’s staffs. After a brief phone call, I was able to schedule a tour. In preparation, I decided to do a brief research on Buddhism to familiarize myself with the religion beforehand. With all preparations and research necessary, I was ready to visit San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin.

When I visited the Phat Da Buddhist Congregation in San Diego, a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in San Diego, I was taken by surprise that the service was given in Vietnamese. The decorations on the wall, the sacred images displayed at the altar, and the vibrant color of the monk’s robe were still familiar, but what was being said was (very) foreign to me. I quickly became impatient and preoccupied with the question on why I was there in the first place. What would I write about for my final Buddhism assignment if I could not understand what was being said? One thing was clear, the day I visited, they were celebrating Buddha’s birthday with huge display of rituals and ceremony, and a big birthday cake at the end.

The Japanese American National Museum is located in the heart of Little Tokyo, surrounded by many ramen diners, mini malls, and japanese boutiques. The museum opens up chronologically, starting off by displaying the migration of the Japanese with their aspirations to start a new life in America. After many displays of progress and struggles, the bombing of Pearl Harbor resulted in Japanese evacuation and eventually the internment of the Japanese as the United States entered World War Two. After many emotional and disheartening displays of life in the internment camps came the reparations and apologies from the American Government. In the last gallery there was pictures and displays of the modern era Japanese arts and culture.

“What does Eastern Religions mean to Americans?” Starting in the 19th century, Buddhism began to make its way to America through the immigration of the Chinese whom brought their religious traditions with them. Buddhism continued to gain popularity in America when Buddhist texts, as well as Buddhist teachers, were brought here to share and spread their religion. It wasn’t until the late 1950’s/early 1960’s that we see the interest in Buddhism, particularly Zen Buddhism, blossom throughout the country. Through the memoir “Sacred Hoops” by Phil Jackson, an NBA player and coach, we are able to see how Zen Buddhism not only altered his life, as well as his players, but how the religion also adapts to American culture. From reading both “Sacred Hoops” and learning about Buddhism throughout this semester, I would argue that Eastern religions, specifically Zen Buddhism, is not only a way for Americans to escape the reality of American culture but also provides a complete alternative to Christianity and other similar religions that are predominate in America.

I visited Red Clay Sangha (Atlanta) (https://redclaysangha.org) on February 19th. Red Clay Sangha is a young Buddhist community which offers meditation, chanting, study and fellowship. Around 100 people belong to the community. This community is dedicated to bringing the compassion and wisdom of Buddha's teachings and practice to all without disparagement. Their organizational and spiritual leaders are chosen their own to represent the values of RCS as a whole. Their policy is that all members should feel that their voices are heard. They are dedicated to consensus as a process of decision making.

In the article “Ritual and Presentation in Early Buddhist Religious Architecture” by Lars Fogelin, the readers are introduced to Buddhism and ritual which include the stupas. Stupas were build according to Buddha’s dying wish, his reason for doing so was “indented for the laity who, with their poorer grasp of Buddhism principles, required the aid of direct worship to ease them toward the path to enlightenment” (Forgelin, pg. 3). The argument that Forgelin brings up is that the designers had to accommodate the needs of Buddhist worshipers “while attempting to provide mechanisms to foster group cohesion”(Forgelin, pg.1), which is shown in the open-air and rock-cut stupas. Forgelin’s thesis stated he will address the main topic by first presenting Buddhist’s goal and how to attain this goal referred to as nirvana, then who are the three principal groups who practice their rituals at a stupid, and how the designers had to incorporate the different styles of practice into the design of the stupas.

In American religion has expanded over time with many categories. In many specific religions, Americans have found interest in the something new and different. In the nineteenth century, Buddhism in America became the new form of religion. In “The American Counter With Buddhism,” Tweed researched the depth of the Victorian culture in relations to the expansion of American Buddhism.

It was here where Shōtoku taught the idea that Buddhism could exist with Shrine to which was the official Religion of Japan. The structure had an asymmetrical layout, which differed from any of the temples. The Buddhism Period continued through the Nara period, Buddhism extended from the religious temples to the courts. This is where Japan becomes a hierarchical society, all of the powers come from the emperor. As religion shifts from the temples and made its way into politics, the location of the settlement did as well. Instead of settling in the rural parts of the country, they settled in the city. Although they settled in the city, they still used the land and built close to their natural materials. The shift to the city made the gap between

The Peoples Temple was a racially integrated church established in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Temple with much push from investigations eventually made its way to the Northwest District of Guyana. The Temple where Jim Jones preached stressed the need for brotherhood and unity among all people. The congregation began with good intentions; helping feed the poor and give them jobs. However it quickly became a religious movement that manipulate its members into abiding by every word of their father (Jim Jones). The Temple began to ask more from its member than other churches during the 1970s did at the time. They required the members to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas with Temple family instead of just your own. It also began a process known as

Considered as the oldest Shinto shrine in Japan, there are no documents that recorded the exact date on which Izumo Taisha was constructed. The country’s oldest chronicles, Koijiki (Record of Ancient Matters), however, reveals that it had already existed by the beginning of the eighth century. Believed to be originally about fifty meters tall, the Main Hall (Honden) of Izumo Taisha is still the tallest of its kind and was built in the Taisha-zukuri architectural style. It is very austere in its appearance with unpainted walls made from Japanese cypress wood and a thatched bark roof. In addition, this building is enclosed by two sets of fences, separating the inner sanctuary from the rest of the shrine’s site. Izumo Taisha’s Main Hall had underwent

Hindu and Buddhist cultures are both rich in religion and expressing their faith through art. The Buddhist culture was formed by Buddha who went out to discover the causes of pain and suffering. Once Buddha realized what the cause was, he provided a set of four guiding principles know as the “Four Noble Truths” that are exercised in Buddhism (Kleiner, p. 13). The Four Noble truths are “Life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, one can overcome and extinguish desire, the way to conquer desire and end suffering is to follow Buddha’s Eightfold Path…” (p. 13). These truths are expressed in the following of Buddhism and commonly carried out through art. Buddhism is practiced throughout Southeast Asia and southern India where

Virpur is a little town something like 52 K.m from Rajkot.it is arranged on National Parkway No. 8b.this town had gotten sacred after the conception of Shri Jalaram Bapa.