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6月19日 Hangin out with the Monks of KoyasanI just got back from a two day excursion to Mount Koyasan which was an amazing experience. Its located in Wakayama prefecture which is an hour and a half south of Osaka city! A very beautiful and far less hectic environment. The trekk their was interesting to say the least. We took an express train for most of the way and then packed into this crazy looking cable car that looked like it would come crashing down any moment!But thank god it didnt! When we finally arrived at the top of the mountain we then transferred onto a bus and traveled along the winding roads that kinda reminded me of the drive I took through the Rocky Mountains where the edge is just a bit to close!
Arriving at our temple was easier then we had thought it would be, considering there are MANY of them on this mountain. Its like a community of temples all of which are run by the Monks. Our temple seemed a bit nondescript from the outside but once you stepped into it, it was pretty incredible. Of course I ALMOST commit the first sin of Buddhism by walking into the temple with my flip flops on but quickly threw them off as soon as I noticed the dozens of neatly lined up brown shoes at the entrance way. They are a one size fits all kinda deal so of course as a foreigner your bloody heals stick out and your toes are the only part of your foot basically in the shoe!!!
We were greeted by this friendly lookin Monk dressed in a traditional kimono! He led us to our room which was a very old traditional style ryokan that had the sliding doors, tatami mats, and a small table with chairs that sat directly on the floor...and that was it! Very simple yet elegant. Youre probably wondering where the bathroom was....well that was conveniently located outside our room and down the hall. Good old communal style bathrooms that you get to share with the other visitors! I was lucky because I only ended up sharing it with one other Aussie tourist!
The first day we were there we got to experience the parade that was going on. It was celebrating the birthday of the late Kobodaishi who happens to be the founder of this mountain. It was pouring ran but that didnt stop the people from marching in the parade. They had little kids playing the drums, high school students performing some kind of Japanese dance and I couldnt believe it but towards the end they actually had elderly folks being pushed in their wheelchairs, in the pouring rain! Some of them had to be well over a hundred, but then again thats a common thing here in this country considering they have the highest life expectancy.
The people there were so friendly that we had some of the performers in the parade wave up at us or shout "HERRO".....no thats not a spelling mistake, its just how most Japanese say hello, the L sound is almost impossible for them to pronounce! Its cute to see some of the little kids get so excited to see a Westerner. It almost makes you feel a bit special just for a moment!
Temple life is certainly different than what many of us are used to. Meals are served at specific times and the sound of the gong lets you know youve got to start heading down to the dining room. Well its not exactly what I would call a "dining room" its a large room with tatami mats and pillows on the ground where you park your rump down on. The meals are served in Japanese style bowls on these little tiny tables, its actually quite cute. Now whats in the bowls aint always cute! Most of the food you just have to try and eat and forget about trying to figure out what on earth it is. This one dish was a round soggy thing that made a noise when I poked my chopstick into it. That was a bit disturbing but I somehow managed to eat it and keep it down! I was a little disappointed when I didnt see any thing that would remotely resemble a dessert sitting on my tray.. I guess the pickled vegetables were the closest thing. All in all it was a nice meal that didnt leave you feeling like a glotinous pig! But man I tell ya, sitting on your knees for an extended period is uncomfortable. I was impressed to see the 86 yr old Japanese lady do it with no problems. I didnt hear her bones crack as she got up! hmmm...
After dinner it was lights out by 930 *the temple actually has a curfew* and then come 6am youd hear the sound of the gong and youd head down to the meditation ceremony which was then followed by breakfast...no hotcakes served here!! Just rice and miso soup! The meditation ceremony had reminded me of one of the scenes in the Lost in Translation movie! The monks made some interesting noises which was then followed by an eternity of silence. I sat on my knees as best I could but I was probably regarded as the jack ass that made the most shuffling noise in the entire room. One of the Japanese men waved me up to the front to go and pray with the leading Monk but I was a bit baffled as to how I would go about doing this and I eventually chickened out, as did many of us Foreigners!!
All I can say is that you cant come to Japan and not experience this kind of thing. As I have come to learn Monks are certainly one of the more patient, friendly and hospitable people youll meet. 6月14日 I felt my first TREMOR!Ever since I arrived in Japan I often wondered if Id feel a tremor from an earthquake! For the first six months I didnt feel anything! Most Japanese tell me Ive been very lucky and I believed it! However, on the morning of June 12th at around 5am I was awoken by the strangest feeling coming from underneath my futon. At first I didnt think anything of it but soon began to realize my entire bedroom was rocking from side to side. I just lied there and didnt know what to make of it. The ceiling light was moving like a pendulum! It was strange because the best way to describe the feeling is to imagine yourself on a swing. Only your not exactly swinging back and forth but instead your rocking from side to side. The walls creeked and within about 10-15 seconds it was over! It wasnt unbtil afterwards that I began to panic even though it was over but I had no idea if I would feel it again momentarily.
It turns out Japan had been rocked by an earthquake on Kyushu Island which is southwest of Honshu Island, where Osaka is located, that morning. The tremor I felt was the result of that earthquake. It was a 6.2 on the Richter scale! Its crazy to think the earthquake that caused over 3,000 deaths was a 6.3 in Indonesia a few weeks back. And it turns out there were no deaths as a result of the Kyushu quake just a handful of non-life threatening injuries! I feel so lucky to be living in a SouthEast Asian country that has its building up to standard! I also feel fortunate to be living in Osaka and not Nagoya or Tokyo where the next big earthquakes are predicted to hit! In 1995 Kobe, which is just 40 min west of Osaka, was hit by one of the deadliest quakes to hit Japan in recent times. I think it was estimated that around 6,000 people died from that! |
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