Sunday, March 15, 2015

Meadows of Blog

A  L  O  H  A   from   Honolulu!
" My religion is Love. 
Every heart 
is my temple.” 
                    Rumi










Linking to
I Love Macro

Love is what We share
in Our meadows
of the WorldWideWeb.

Thank YOU
for being a
unique part-
                       Your Neighbor, cloudia

Shingon Shu Hawaii

A  L  O  H  A   from   Honolulu!
Shingon Shu Temple, Honolulu
click on photos!

Built in 1917-1918 by Nakagawa Katsutaro, 
a master builder of Japanese-style temples.
 Renovated in 1929 by Hego Fuchino,
  first person of Japanese ancestry 
to become a licensed architect 
in Hawaii. 

Note the steep, hipped-gable  
"Irimoya" roof.




Placed on the 
National Register of Historic Places 
 26 April 2002.







Just inside the gate, 
one may relax and prepare
to commune with the eternal verities.
Click on photo to see the taps (right)
where one may wash and make clean.

[yes, that is a lotus pool]









Statue of Kūkai 

 Known posthumously as Kōbō-Daishi
"The Grand Master 
Who Propagated the Buddhist Teaching"
[in Japan] 774–835 B.C.E
Monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, artist
engineer & founder of 
the Shingon or "True Word" 
school of Buddhism. 

Kūkai is famous as a calligrapher  
and inventor of the kana, 
the characters with which, in combination 
with Chinese characters kanji, 
the Japanese language 
is written to this day!









As you climb the stairs,

you must pass Füjin,

 Shintö god of wind 

to your left.

[See his bag of winds?]













On your right,

Raijin, god of thunder.

[Look at all his percussion!]



[ This IS a Buddhist temple,
but it is also very Japanese
to mix faith traditions.
This was a piece of 'Home'
to hardworking immigrants! ]










"The bell of mindfulness
 is the voice of the Buddha 
calling us back
 to ourselves. -
















- We have to respect 
each sound of the bell, 
stop our thinking and talking,
 and get in touch 
with ourselves, 
breathing and smiling. 
This is not a Buddha 
from the outside.
 It is our own Buddha 
calling us home."
                            Thich Nhat Hanh













Shall We Enter?












Click Photos!















Ceiling Detail

Like Being in a Jewel Box









Many of These Appointments

Were Brought from Japan




















The glittering altar 

 Anthuriums = Hawaii
















Imbued With 

Lessons & Meaning











Side View: Altar

Note Tibetan Singing Bowl











Turning to Leave

I feel suffused by light













 View From McDonald's Parking
















Oh My!


Linking to


Thank You
for visiting
one of my favorite
Honolulu buildings!
                        Warmly, cloudia