Vista Buddhist Temple

Our 2nd Annual Buddhist Community Gathering will be taking place on 11/21/2020. This online event will be held from 3-5pm PST Go to https://forms.gle/GG7LfXdcptQN7gae6 to register for the event... LINK ALSO IN BIO

What activities have kept you busy during the last 7 months? Here are some things our sangha has been up to. #quarantinelife #activities #vbtallday #vistabuddhisttemple

Fall Ohigan Seminar with Rev. Harry Gyokyo Bridge Saturday Sept. 19, 2020 To register please email [email protected]

There’s Brightness Beneath the Clouds By Rev. Dr. Kenji Akahoshi, Buddhist Temple of San Diego We are at a critical point in American history. ... A worldwide pandemic has disrupted and challenged what we assumed was a basic way of life. The Black Lives Matter movement has exposed the institutional racism that permeates all levels of society. As most of our members are non-Christian Asians, we know the experience of being judged as not quite fully American. The BLM movement includes all of us. This may be a time when a new normal is being created. As America seeks solutions that can guide us to a more equitable society, Shin Buddhism offers a religious tradition with practical and spiritual benefits. Millions of Americans have discovered the benefits of meditation and mindfulness in daily life. The pandemic is demonstrating that the Buddha’s fundamental teaching of interdependence is true, as the rise and fall of infections are determined by how we interact with each other. The teachings and practices of Buddhism are being accepted as logical in thought and effective in practice. The image of Buddhism is shifting from being an exotic curiosity to being an effective guide to life. Because the pandemic has expanded the use of the internet to deliver our Shin message beyond the doors of the Hondo, Americans throughout the country are able to hear the Shin Dharma. Let us take this unique opportunity to expand our Sangha from its ethnic origins to the greater society. Our own children represent this new non-cultural Sangha. Let us ask them what they don’t find attractive and what might influence them to become temple Shin followers. Our decreasing membership may indicate that our present style of presenting Shin has not been effective. Simply translating traditional Shin concepts may not seem relevant to 21st century Americans. As an introduction, let us present Shin in a manner that Americans (including our children) are seeking. Before the 20th century, death was a constant reality at any age. Illness, injury, and death were familiar to many because they were without the present health and safety knowledge that we enjoy today. Since the actual causes of these misfortunes were unknown, religion and deities were deemed to be significant. Amazing scientific progress has been made in the past 70 years in the fields of health, medicine, food, and safety in homes, jobs and transportation. Illness and death have become inconveniences to be ignored. This point is demonstrated by the behavior of many during the COVID-19 pandemic. Religion and spirituality no longer hold the significance that they once held. The concerns of 13th century peasants were strongly about being saved from the challenges of life and the proximity of death. The concerns of 21st century Americans deal more with the stress of modern life with little regard to death. So, would it not be wise to emphasize that the teachings provide solutions to our current concerns. Shin [Buddhism] aligns with science and not belief to address the COVID-19 pandemic. We accept all people as equals to address the BLM movement. Women in clergy, women’s inequality, LGBTQ concerns, and same-sex marriage are not doctrinal issues as everyone is accepted, just as we are. Our EcoSangha activities address global warming. In recent decades, many Americans are discovering the pragmatic benefits of Buddhist principles. Let us present the benefits of Shin’s emphasis on gratitude. Shinran presents our optimistic view as he describes that the clouds of greed, desire, and hatred cover the sun, which represents truth. But he observes that beneath the clouds there is brightness, not dark. By making a crosswise leap, we can change our perspective. Even when we consider ourselves lost in our incompetence, we are accepted, just as we are. Shinran’s basic message is that we receive Amida Buddha’s compassion, which is often stated as Other Power or the efforts of others. As we realize the gift of our human birth, we respond in gratitude, uttering Amida Buddha’s Name. I have an article on gratitude in the current fall issue of the Buddhist magazine Tricycle. Presenting gratitude as an attractive introduction to Shin has been successful in attracting new members and inspiring traditional ones. Once people are welcomed into a friendly Sangha, the more traditional explanations of Shin can be provided. Beneath the clouds of this pandemic, the brightness of the internet allows us to share the Shin Dharma widely in a more contemporary manner. From the September issue of the "Wheel of Dharma" newsletter: https://www.buddhistchurchesofamerica.org//uploads/2020_09

34, 41, and 121. These numbers are not the numbers to a combination for a safe, nor are they numbers for a secret code. These numbers have significance in my li...fe, and they all have something to do with Sept. 1st. The first number, 34, is how many years I have served as a minister. I started Sept. 1st, 1986. The second number, 41, is the number of years I have been married. My wife and I were married on Sept. 1st, 1979. The third number, 121, is the number of years in the history of our BCA. Sept. 1st, 1899 is the BCA Founding Day. It’s easy for me to remember my anniversary date because it is also the anniversary of my ministerial career and the Founding Day of the BCA. I have a hard time remembering how many years I have been married though, because we got married in the odd year of 1979. We should have waited until 1980 to get married so it would be easier for me to do the math. There is another way that the numbers are all connected. If BCA was never founded, I would never have become a minister. If the BCA had never been founded, then my home temple in Ontario, Oregon, would never have existed, and I would not have known or met my wife, Gail. Her parents were my Jr. YBA advisors when I was in high school. My father-in-law was the person who first encouraged me to attend an IBS summer session, which was pivotal in my becoming a minister. Over the years, in attending many BCA meetings, I have often heard people criticize the BCA, some even questioning why we had it. I guess some people feel like their temple assessments are too high, or that they feel like we don’t need a national organization to have to financially support. Such thoughts have never occurred in my mind. Without the BCA, having been founded in 1899, Shin Buddhism would not have been introduced to this country. It made its way to the Japanese communities that built and established churches and temples across our country. Many temples were literally built by the hands of its members. My home temple in Ontario, Oregon, when it was built, had only one professional carpenter. The rest of the labor was all done by the members of the temple, whom were basically all farmers in those days. They built it during the winter, when farmers didn’t have work in the fields. My uncle broke his arm, falling from a ladder during the construction. Many of our BCA churches and temples have such stories. Our pioneering members literally built our churches and temples with their own hands. Thanks to the fact that the BCA was started, and my home temple was started, I came to encounter Shin Buddhism, which eventually led to becoming a minister, and now even more unbelievably, to be serving as the Bishop of the BCA. My life is limited and who knows how many years I will have to serve, and how many years I will have to live, and how many more anniversaries I will be able to celebrate with my wife. Hopefully we can make it to our Golden Wedding Anniversary someday. But Sept. 1, 1899, will go way beyond my lifetime. It is my hope that even centuries from now, Buddhist history will note the significant date of when the BCA was founded and when Shin Buddhism came into this country. Whether the BCA has a future that goes into the next centuries, depends on us, today. We are the ones who must dig deep into the teachings, then share those teachings with others, of all backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientation. It is my hope that the BCA will someday observe a 200 year anniversary, and a 300 year anniversary, and on and on. I wish I could see it. What a celebration it will be.

BCA Virtual Obon Dance is this weekend, Saturday August 15th! VBT submitted a video of one of their all time favorites, Ichi Tatsu Ichi - One Plus One. Thank you to our VBT Obon dance instructor, Elaine Marume, and her assistants for representing Vista! If you would like to join the August 15 event you must register via the link provided on the attached flyer, https://forms.gle/93mDAbuVAVrkQvjG6 Once you are registered a Zoom link will be emailed to you a day before the e...vent. Join in and be a part of history as BCA brings together their members and Dharma friends virtually for the first time to the "Gathering of Joy". Dance in gratitude, dance in remembrance, just dance and enjoy the moment.

Dear VBT Sangha & Dharma Friends, For the safety and welfare of the Sangha, your VBT Board of Directors have extended the temple closure through September 30, 2020. Your temple leaders continue to closely monitor the COVID-19 situation in San Diego County, follow the guidance for places of worship from the California Department of Public Health and the CDC, and are in communications with the Orange County Buddhist Church and the Buddhist Churches of America. The VBT ...Temple Reopening Ad Hoc Committee is currently working on safety and disinfecting guidelines so that the temple will be in compliance with the local and state mandates and ready for when we can have an in-person gathering again. Receiving the Dharma online and via the telephone is the way to keep our Sangha and community safe and well. We hope you are experiencing the many Dharma opportunities provided by VBT www.vbtemple.org OCBC https://www.ocbuddhist.org BCA https://www.buddhistchurchesofamerica.org Please take care, stay safe and be well. Gassho - Palms together in gratitude VBT Your Board of Directors Vista Buddhist Temple 760-941-8800 www.vbtemple.org

Missing all of our temple friends #vistabuddhisttemple #vista #vistacalifornia #socal #buddhist #buddhisttemple #vbtallday #friends #obon #season

Our odori instructor and her assistants #obon2014 #vistabuddisttemple #vbtallday #obon #bonodori #buddhist #buddhisttemple #vista #vistacalifornia #california #summer #buddhistchurchesofamerica #southerncalifornia

Hello VBT Sangha & Dharma Friends, The Vista Buddhist Temple has extended the temple closure through August 31, 2020. Much work has gone into thinking thru limited services at the temple, but safety precautions make it prohibitive at this time. Your temple leaders continue to closely monitor the COVID-19 situation in San Diego County, follow the guidance for places of worship from the California Department of Public Health and the CDC, and are in communications with the O...range County Buddhist Church and the Buddhist Churches of America. The good news is that there is plenty of Dharma opportunities all around us 24/7. We hope you are experiencing the many Dharma opportunities provided by VBT, OCBC and BCA. You can find the links and Dial the Dharma phone number down below. Please take care, stay safe and be well. Gassho, Vista Buddhist Temple Board of Directors Links listed below VBT Website: https://vbtemple.org/ OCBC YouTube: bit.ly/ocbc-yt OCBC Podcast: bit.ly/ocbc-ww Buddhist Churches of America - https://www.buddhistchurchesofamerica.org Telephone: Dial the Dharma 1 (800) 817-7918 Press 1 for English, Press 2 for Japanese

1990 Obon festival #vista #california #vistabuddhisttemple #obon #obonfestival #buddhistchurchesofamerica #bonodori #danicing #food #fun #throwback

it’s always fun to watch our Shokenji Taiko group play at our festivals #vistabuddhisttemple #vista #california #sandiego #buddhistchurchesofamerica #buddhistchurch #obon #festival #taiko #taikodrums #taikodrumming #shokenjitaiko #fun #vbtallday #2013