This month marks two years that we have been living through this pandemic experience. Temple activities, family gatherings, and our friendships have all been affected, but looking back on the ways Covid-19 has impacted our lives, it seems to me that the greatest challenge for me was having our kids out of school and studying from home for over a year. Doing our best to support their online learning, while also attending to our responsibilities with work and household matters made us feel pushed to the limit. We struggled daily to set boundaries to keep our sons on task with the work they needed to do and steer them away from the distractions and mischief that would interrupt their learning.
Continue reading “The Kind Eyes of the Buddha”Covid-19
Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Ritual
Wednesday, March 2, 2022
7:00 p.m.
Rev. Ko’e
Umezu
Assistant Minister
West Los Angeles
Buddhist Temple
Rev. Ko’e Umezu will share her insights on the meaning and
importance of Buddhist ritual in the Jodo Shinshu tradition. This session will also include a conversation about ritual practice as part of virtual services during
these pandemic times.
We welcome you to join us via Zoom Meeting from the comfort and safety of your own home on Wednesday, March 2 for this Dharma session.
To join us for this online Dharma Session, CLICK HERE and sign up for “Study Classes and Seminars”. To protect the privacy of online participants and encourage free and open discussion, this session will not be recorded.
Sangha Speaker David Chin (Sept. 26)
This Sunday our service will be led by our Sangha members. San Mateo Buddhist Temple President David Chin will share a Dharma Talk with reflections on how the Buddha’s wisdom has supported him through the challenges of this past year.
Schedule
(Shoshinge chanting will resume next Sunday on Oct. 3)
9:00 a.m. BCA Art Exhibit Virtual Tour with Dharma School Superintendent Yuko Suruki
9:30 a.m. Dharma Service with talk by David Chin
10:30 a.m. Dharma Discussion
To join us for this online Dharma Service, CLICK HERE to sign up for “Live Broadcast of Services”.
Pine, Bamboo, and Plum
As we turn the page on the truly extraordinary year that was 2020, some of our Sangha members will be adorning their homes with branches of pine, bamboo, and plum (shōchikubai) to welcome the New Year 2021 with these auspicious symbols that embody the virtue of resilience in the face of adversity.
Pine remains ever green, even in the cold of winter. It expresses consistency and stability. Bamboo does not break when bent by winter storms or piling snow. It shows us that there is great strength in remaining flexible during challenging times. Plum flowers blossom in the cold months and remind us that winter gives way to springtime. Just as our pleasurable experiences do not last forever, neither do the times of pain and difficulty. The beauty of the plum flower blossoms in the season of cold and darkness.
Continue reading “Pine, Bamboo, and Plum”Gratitude in the pandemic
At the time of writing this article, the students and staff at the Adams Ichinomiya Elementary School are enjoying fall break. This week, we have happily traded our usual Covid-19 distance learning routine of online meetings and trips back and forth between our desks and the scanner to submit schoolwork online for days spent freely playing samurai in the backyard, splashing around in the river at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park and digging for sand crabs at the beach.
Even as I recognize how fortunate we are to be in good health and living in a neighborhood that has not been threatened by the Hurricanes and wildfires that have impacted so many people across the country in recent weeks, I have to admit that there have been times when I have felt exhausted by all the precautions that we have had to adopt over the past eight months to prevent the spread of coronavirus. When I think about a Halloween with no trick-or-treating, and a holiday season without the big gatherings of family and friends that we look forward to each year, at times it can be difficult to feel gratitude.
Continue reading “Gratitude in the pandemic”What is Essential? Finding the Nembutsu in COVID-19
Wednesday, October 7, 2020
7:00 p.m.
John Mullins
Ministerial Aspirant
Institute of Buddhist Studies
We welcome you to join us via Zoom Meeting from the comfort and safety of your own home on Wednesday, October 7 for this free Dharma session.
To join us for this online Dharma Session, CLICK HERE and sign up for “Study Classes and Seminars”.
When we meet, we will smile
Each year during our Obon and Hatsubon Service, I am reminded of the power of the Buddhadharma to provide guidance and support for us as we navigate our feelings of grief. As school for my sons usually begins a few days after our San Mateo Buddhist Temple Obon Observance, I have come to associate our Obon with the end of summer. Opening the freezer at the temple to put away the Obon service manju for an occasion when we can all enjoy them together, I noticed three large bags of frozen hamburgers. I was suddenly reminded of the delicious hamburgers grilled at the temple picnic and all the experiences that we did not get to have this summer: bazaar—which marks the start of summer in my mind, the annual BWA service at the Japanese Cemetery in Colma, followed by brunch with BWA members at Denny’s in South San Francisco, a family trip to Japan, our summer Terakoya day camp, spam musubi at Obon Odori practices, and chanting together with a Hondo full of attendees at our Obon and Hatsubon service.
Continue reading “When we meet, we will smile”