Monday Trip - Part A

We've been contemplating day trips on the Mondays Rick has off, but few have come to fruition. We spent this Monday with our good friends who are moving back to the States and wanted to visit Japan's largest Buddha before leaving the country. A cultural experience all around.

Near the entrance.

A small shop to purchase incense and other offerings (we declined).

"Gojunotou" in the background; detail of the woodwork below.


(This one was not identified in English)

We all paused to pray (to our God) at the sight of these: pinwheels placed by parents to entertain the spirits of their children lost by abortion.

"Showa Daibutsu" also named "Dainichi Nyorai" aka the Big Buddha by local Americans (aren't we original?!). This is the largest Buddha in Japan, standing 70 feet tall and weighing 220 tons. Inside were two circular halls, the outer one lined with the names of donors and pictures of heaven and hell, the inner one with books and mementos for sale. (The depictions of hell should be enough to scare anyone to live well!) Upstairs was an altar and metal plates for the Japanese soldiers who lost their lives in WWII. At the center was a small sanctuary with a gold Buddha. Below is the inscription upon exiting the circular walk. From my worldview, good general principles for living, but they won't do much for avoiding sorrow after death--that requires Jesus.

We learned, on our first visit to a Buddhist temple, that worshippers ring the bells to gain the gods' attention before offering prayers. Ricky and Maykayla tried, but were too small to ring this one. I'm glad that I don't need to go to a temple or ring a bell to know that I have God's full attention.

"Fudoh-Myooh"

As with most info in this post, this is taken from the English guide given to us at admission. "This god's mission is to cut off the worldly wrong desires of people and give a helping hand, with his sword and chain, to anyone who did wrong. That is to say, he is a god of mercy and love." What a contrast: God's mercy and love sent Jesus to the cross for me and by his Spirit at work in my life, he sets me free from wrong desires.

Shikoku island is a pilgrimage of 88 steps, with praises chanted on each stone. The stepping stones visible on the right hand side of the picture circled the pond. Below are shoes and staffs with bells for making the pilgrimage (we didn't make the pilgrimage).

This bell was not explained in our English guide, but Rick absolutely could not resist ringing it--respectfully, of course. It produced a low, deep tone--very majestic.

This captures Ricky's opinion of the day: the rocks ROCK!