JON RIKI KARAMATSU

I’m feeling much happier today, September 18, 2017 after feeling anxiety in my personal life and career for the past 11 days or so.  At 8:00 A.M., I had the first part of my annual physical at the hospital.  Throughout the morning, I was texting my business partners in a different time zone/country.  Then at 10:00 A.M., I took the minutes of the Hawaii Buddhist Council (Higashi Hongwanji, Mission of Hawaii, honda Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii, Jodo Mission of Hawaii, Koyasan Shingon Mission of Hawaii, Nichiren Mission of Hawaii, Soto Mission of Hawaii, and Tendai Mission of Hawaii) as it Secretary for 2017.  After the meeting, Jodo Mission of Hawaii Bishop Emeritus Gensho Hara gave me a gift.  Next, I reviewed and signed an EPA review for the repair and maintenance that we are contracting a Hawaii company to repair and repaint our buildings for Jodo Mission of Hawaii.  Also, I reviewed a trust from a deceased member of Jodo Mission of Hawaii who was the secretary for my political influencer, Governor John A. Burns, and she had left some money for our organization.

When I returned home, I received a couple of good news from my business partner who I was texting in the morning in regards to traction for our project.  Then I opened my gift from Bishop Gensho Hara, and was so delighted to see this glass display of Buddha.  As President of Jodo Mission of Hawaii for 7 years, I was fortunate to have worked with Bishop Hara who served as Bishop for 8 years.  He has shared with my so many teachings of compassion, and touching stories of people who have come to his temple at Lahaina, Maui from different walks of life and with diverse ethnicities.  They sought refuge from life’s problems, and prayed/meditated for strength to attain inner peace.  One 30-something-year-old Vietnamese woman prayed everyday at about 5 A.M. before the large statue of Buddha at his temple, and she’s now becoming a leader of Buddhism on the U.S. mainland.  A middle-aged Caucasian male who was a U.S. military veteran of the Vietnam War would visit him, enjoying the rice that Bishop Hara’s wife made.  He was sad with the passing of his wife a couple of years ago, and ended up shooting himself to death.  It’s these touching stories that taught me the importance of love, compassion, empathy, mindfulness, and gratitude.  When I told Bishop Hara that someday, after I make money, I can do more, he would gently shake his head with a slight smile – I understood his gesture, that even our simple acts of kindness can go very far to touch another’s soul.  We can spread peace, even without money.

#peace #innerpeace #compassion #empathy #love #mindfulness #gratitude #aloha #buddhism #jodoshuhawaii #jodomissionofhawaii #jodoshu #jodomission

Bishop Gensho Hara and I at the Hawaii Council of Jodo Missions 41st Biennial Convention