Dharma Articles

Namo Amida Butsu is Amida’s call and an expression of gratitude. We say the nembutsu probably most often at services where the leader says, “Namo Amida Butsu” and everyone responds “Namo Amida Butsu”. We repeat this three times. This practice of saying the nembutsu

To quote the late great Bill King (radio announcer for the Warriors, Raiders, and A’s), “Holy Toledo!!”. I am writing this on Monday, July 10th, a day after our Obon ended, and I am still amazed at what I saw this past weekend. This

When a person dies a funeral service is usually conducted. It is at this funeral service that a Homyo (Buddhist name) is presented. The Homyo acknowledges the person’s relationship with the Dharma. The funeral is the only time when a Homyo is presented that

The first 3 months of 2023 have come and gone, and as always in life, some good things have happened and some not so good. We experienced a couple more atmospheric rivers during the middle of March that were good and bad. Unfortunately, it

We observe two Ohigan services each year. One in spring and one in fall. Each service coincides with an equinox. The equinox is when the length of day and night are equal. Ideally a time for everyone to take stock and pay more attention to

In our world, we have words. Words are tools, so to speak, used to point to certain things. Therefore, the word itself is not the same as the thing itself. Just as you see a red round fruit and use the word "apple" to describe