Cultural exhibit spotlights rich history of Buddhism

By Mary Kaye Ritz
Advertiser Religion & Ethics Writer

•	'Sacred Treasures of Mount Koya' Sept. 1 to Nov. 10 Honolulu Academy of Arts Hours: Tuesdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Sundays 1-5 p.m. $7 ($4 military, students 13 and older, those 62 and older; free for members and children 12 and younger) 532-8700, honoluluacademy.org

"I thought I lost her," the University of Hawai'i-Manoa religion professor said, shaking his head at the memory of Willa Tanabe, dean of UH's School of Hawaiian, Asian and Pacific studies and a Buddhist art history scholar, in art bliss.

Alongside the couple, lifting up shrouds — after politely asking permission, of course — was Julia White, Asian art curator for the Honolulu Academy of Arts.

The trio had been invited to view the artifacts as part of planning what was then conceived as a small exhibit, coinciding with the centennial of the Hawaii Shingon Mission.

What a treasure hunt that turned out to be. The resulting forays grew bigger than anyone expected, and turned into "Sacred Treasures of Mount Koya: The Art of Japanese Shingon Buddhism," an exhibit set to make its Honolulu-only debut at the art academy next month.

Most major exhibits take years of research and planning. Not "Sacred Treasures."

"A year and a half ago, this wasn't even an inkling," White said.

"Literally, it's overnight," agreed Reyn Yorio Tsuru, director of the Shingon Shu Betsuin Hawaii, the headquarters of the Shingon Mission of Hawaii.

In 1998, negotiations began in Japan to see if the artifacts could be sent to Hawai'i, Tsuru recalled.

"They needed permission to move them out of Japan, since they've never left the country," he said. "Very few (Shingon) ministers have actually seen these pieces."

The Japanese director of foreign missions first came up with the idea to do something big for the momentous occasion of the Shingon mission centennial here.

"Hawai'i is a very important part of their mission, given the amount of temples (here) ... They wanted to do something really special, not only to promote Shingon Buddhism, but interest in Buddhism as a whole," Tsuru said.

As the time for the celebration nears, all eyes will turn to the 15 temples in Hawai'i, the largest concentration in the world outside Japan, which has about 20,000.

The Honolulu exhibit has become such a big deal in Japan that more than 1,000 people in Japan have signed up for tours to come here to view the exhibition of 91 objects from esoteric Shingon Buddhism, including paintings, sculptures, textiles and printed works dating from the Heian period (794-1185) to the Showa period (1926-1989).

Twenty to 30 Shingon monks and priests from Japan are scheduled to attend the opening ceremony.

Several important cultural items will be on display, notably these designated "national treasures":

• A Kamakura-period (1185-1335) sculpture of the attendant figure Eko Doji, one of the eight great boy Hachidaidoji, or kinsmen to the Buddha, who defend the deity Fudo Myoou.
• A miniature Tang-period (eighth century) "pillow" shrine carved in sandalwood, which Shingon founder Kobo Daishi himself brought from China.

Cultural treasures will abound, too, including sutras painted in gold on indigo paper and Edo-period printing blocks. Cultural treasures are significant because they were either constructed by disciples of Kobo Daishi or the disciples oversaw their construction, and were used every day by early Shingon followers — "probably aristocrats," Tsuru notes.

The occasion also marks a time to look forward to the next centennial, Tsuru said, asking tough questions about the fate of Buddhism in Hawai'i.

Religion professor Tanabe noted that the Shingon sect in Hawai'i reached its peak popularity in the 1930s and '40s. But like all things Japanese after the invasion of Pearl Harbor, Shingon Buddhism became suspect. The nisei and sansei generations of Hawai'i also began moving away from the Buddhism of their parents, with a marked decline in the 1960s, he said.

"Can and will Buddhism survive?" asks Tsuru. "So many things local people do are connected to Buddhism: cranes at weddings, yakudoshi parties. All our religions are connected in our melting-pot culture, even though Buddhism did suffer after World War II a drastic decline."

Tsuru said he hopes to awaken in today's generation the sense that Buddhism is as relevant now as its message of tolerance and compassion was 100 years ago.

"This exhibit and anniversary are extremely important as instruments to transmit what Buddhism is about," he said. "I'm hoping with this exhibit, they realize we do have a rich, rich history."