Mindfulness originally stems from Buddhist meditative practice.Yet in modern society, it has been reconstructed as a psychological technique, stripped of religious context. People are encouraged to “pause in the present moment,”purchasing experiences and consuming services as a means of stabilizing the self. Self-regulation, performance optimization, internalization of dissatisfaction, and personal responsibility for isolation—All of these trends shift our orientation from “changing society” to “accepting oneself.” This is not enlightenment.It is a stress management tool.Not salvation, but maintenance. And ironically, the more one becomes aware of this structure,the harder it becomes to actually feel anything. ⸻ Why Do We Feel the Need to Feel? Why do people obsessively cling to the […]
When I first signed up for ChatGPT, my initial prompt was a request for help writing an article for a temple project. From that point on, for several days, ChatGPT seemed to be under the impression that I was a Buddhist monk. I didn’t bother to correct it, but even when I shifted the topic, it would still steer the conversation back toward temples or Buddhism in its suggestions. Later, I learned about the “memory” feature through a suggestion from ChatGPT, and began using it to store only key facts about myself. That said, I no longer feel much need for it. The reason is simple: I find it necessary […]
— A Quiet Accumulation of Prayer Once a month, before dawn breaks, I climb Mount Inari.While it is known as the sacred mountain of the famous tourist destination Fushimi Inari Taisha, the mountain itself is not a sightseeing spot. That said, the shrine’s main grounds are flooded daily with crowds of tourists—almost like rush hour.There’s a popular belief that offering a 5-yen coin (for its phonetic link to “good fate”) is best, but I’d suggest offering more if possible, to help preserve this cultural heritage. In truth, most Japanese people have little understanding of what Inari deities actually are.Myself included. Even local Shinto priests often don’t know exactly what they […]
I am afraid of death.Yet, no matter how much I study death, I realize it’s something I cannot truly understand until I face it myself.That’s why I’ve come to believe that living as rightly as I can—so I’m ready for death at any time—brings me peace of mind. One of the most beautiful things I can do now is quietly visit shrines and temples passed down through generations.While many of these places are treated as tourist attractions today, few people now engage with them in true faith.In fact, some of the staff themselves view them purely as tourism resources. Rather than distant mysteries or the words of fiction writers, I […]