WHERE WE WORSHIP
Hongwanji draws from Amida Buddha's vision
By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| The Rev. Shinkai Murakami leads a service at the Pearl City Hongwanji Mission. Murakami, the temple's ninth minister, came to Pearl City from a Kaua'i temple in 1995.
Photos by Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser |
Our denomination or affiliation: Jodo Shinshu Nishi Hongwanji, a Japanese Buddhist sect based in Kyoto, Japan.
Where we are: 858 Second St., Pearl City
Our numbers: About 300 members. Temple services are held in English 8:30 a.m. every Sunday and in Japanese 10 a.m. on the second Sunday of every month.
Our minister: The Rev. Shinkai Murakami, who was ordained by Jodo Shinshu Nishi Hongwanji.
What's special about us: Jodo Shinshu is the largest Buddhist sect in Japan and Hawai'i. In terms of membership, Pearl City Hongwanji Mission is the ninth largest temple of the 36 Hongwanji temples in the state.
Our history: The temple was established nearly 100 years ago when the Rev. Joen Ashikaga, a minister from Waipahu Hongwanji Mission, shared the Jodo Shinshu teachings to the plantation workers in Pearl City, Murakami said. Ashikaga founded Pearl City Hongwanji Mission in April 1905.
For the first several years, members met for services in "a little gathering place" in Pearl City, Murakami said. The actual temple was built around the early 1920s at the current property, donated by the O'ahu Rail & Land Co.
The first resident minister was the Rev. Seiho Aoyama, who came to Pearl City from Japan in 1910. Murakami, the temple's ninth minister, is from Japan. His first assignment was at a mission in Kapa'a in 1988. He left the Kaua'i temple in 1995 to become minister of the Pearl City temple.
What we believe: As Jodo Shinshu Buddhists, members believe in Amida Buddha, their central figure of worship, Murakami said.
Members believe that Amida Buddha's "wisdom and compassion always reaches into our hearts," Murakami said. "So by following his teachings, we are able to awaken from the inside ... and see the truth."
Jodo Shinshu Buddhists follow the teachings of Nembutsu, or the voice of Amida Buddha, which represents "infinite life and light," Murakami said. Nembutsu is also a practice in which believers assert their faith in Amida by invoking or chanting Amida's name.
Members seek to be "humble and sincere in the world, and indeed, to be responsible citizens of our society and to share with others the teachings of Jodo Shinshu," Murakami said.
Pearl City Hongwanji Mission was founded in April 1905 under the Rev. Joen Ashikaga, who shared Jodo Shinshu teachings to plantation workers in Pearl City.
The main text that members follow is Kyo Gyo Shin Sho, written between the 1220s and 1240s by Saint Shinran, founder of the Jodo Shinshu denomination.
What we're excited about: "Our biggest event is our centennial celebration in 2005," Murakami said.
As part of the celebration, members are planning to renovate the temple's social hall to accommodate a new adult daycare center, open to people of all ethnic and religious backgrounds, Murakami said. Construction is scheduled to begin in September 2003.
Members of Pearl City Hongwanji Mission are also devoted to helping the community, Murakami said. The temple has a volunteer group called Project Dana, a Buddhist word that means "selfless giving." About 80 members provide free transportation for the elderly, taking them shopping or to medical appointments.
Project Dana serves about 200 clients every year and is open to everyone in the community, Murakami said. The temple also has a choir that sings at adult day care centers as a community service, Murakami said.
Contact: Call 455-1680 or e-mail mshinkai@hotmail.com.
If you'd like to recommend a faith organization for Where We Worship, e-mail faith@honoluluadvertiser.com, call 525-8035 or write: Where We Worship, Faith Page, The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802.
Correction: Pearl City Hongwanji Mission has about 300 members. Its choir sings at adult day care centers as a community service. A previous version of this story had incorrect information.
