A trip to Mount Kurama

Reiki Dharma Newsletter Volume 14, October 25, 2004

Dear friends! Welcome to the 14th Reiki Dharma Newsletter.

A few turbulent months have passed since the last newsletter and I trust that you are all well and full of zest for life. What a blessing each and every moment of life is!

This time I would like to tell you about a very special trip I took recently. In September I spent one week with a group of 40 Reiki practitioners in Kyoto, the birthplace of Reiki. We had all met at the airport in Frankfurt, because except two of us we were all Germans (can you imagine so much seriousness in one place?) Several of the participants had never been on an airplane before, and were departing on the demanding 11- hour trip with a group of strangers. This courage touched my heart and even though most of us did not know each other, the group helped those who flew for the first time to relax and enjoy themselves.

We arrived at Kansai International Airport early in the morning and were instantly carried off by an air-conditioned bus to our hotel, which was located right next to the Kyoto Central Train Station. The trip took about 90 minutes, during which the tour guide who had met us at the arrival hall, did not take a single breath. I noticed that some of the participants were getting a little annoyed with all this babble, but we were all bent on experiencing this new culture intensively and with an open heart.
The drive from the airport through Osaka is mind- boggling. There seems to be no infra- structure: houses, factories, electric wires, concrete, cars- trucks- trucks and cars, skyscrapers, baseball grounds, golf driving ranges and a whole lot more is- all mixed up in a great hotchpotch for the senses... Exhausted, but too thrilled to retire to our rooms, we set out to visit our first temple, and thus the journey to the heart of Reiki begun. I had arranged quite a tight itinerary trying to fit all of Kyoto's 1600 Buddhist temples and 400 Shinto Shrines into one week... How many does that make per minute???

The highlight of our visit were the two days we spent at the Kurama Temple where Dr. Usui encountered Reiki. As you all know this is the place where he had a religious experience(satori) after a 21 day fasting/meditation retreat in March of 1922.

Kurama History

The Kurama temple is located about one hour by public transport to the North of Kyoto. It was established by the monk Ganten in the year 770, to spiritually protect the city of Kyoto from the North. The temple was part of Tendai Buddhism until 1949, when it embarked upon its own path- under the wings of Buddhism.

Kurama Philosophy

The similarities between the Kurama cosmology and our Reiki philosophy are striking. The Kurama religion is held together by three main deities. Each of those deities is represented by a Sanskrit symbol and each one has an inner quality. Those three deities form a trinity called "Sonten". The Kanji (Chinese character) for Sonten is the same that we use as the Reiki- Master Symbol. Sonten is translated as "Universal Life Forceﾓ (sounds familiar?). Sonten permeates the whole cosmos and manifests on Earth as love, light and power. Each one of those qualities contains in it the whole... One of the deities of the Kurama Temple is called Senju Kannon- the thousand armed Bodhisattva, an emanation of the Amida Buddha. This deity is represented by the Sanskrit letter "Hrih". Its quality is love and it is connected to the Moon. The Hrih-symbol- a Sanskrit seed- sylable from the Siddham writing style, is the origin of our mental healing symbol. The second deity is Bishamonten, who is represented by another Sanskrit letter and stands for Light. This deity is connected to the Sun. The third deity is Gohomaoson, a deity only to be found at the Kurama Temple- which is represented by another Sanskrit letter that stands for Power. Gohomaoson is connected to the Earth. So we have Love- moon, Light- Sun, and Power- Earth that unify every living being sentient and non- sentient. The result of the three manifests as Sonten- the ultimate principle that exists everywhere and is beyond religion, race and philosophy. It makes humanity one...and pulsates in our heart and soul.

The Kurama Temple suggests three rules of conduct: 1- Don't talk badly about others, and don't do anything unethical. Work on your self. 2- Be honest and work for the good of humanity. 3- Emerge your self in the Universal Life Force and trust it unconditionally. Then it will carry you. I suppose between these suggestions and the Five Reiki- Principles we have covered everything that is meaningful in life. Once all of this is taken care of, what else is there to do except to live life joyously...

My personal story with the Kurama Temple

My personal connection with the Kurama Temple dates back to 1994, when I visited Kyoto for the first time. I expected to have a "great spiritual experienceﾓ, and as it goes- my expectation probably prevented it. During that initial visit I asked at the temples entrance gate about Reiki and no one knew about it. I was told that Reiki had nothing to do with the Kurama Temple and its ancient religion. It was a great disappointment for me, because I had expected to find all sorts of imaginary treasures.( More expectations...) Later on that initial visit, I asked one of the monks if there was a place to meditate there and they said no, but that I could sit in the main hall for a while and soak up the energy. But I am a stubborn character. On my next visit I asked again about Reiki and still no one knew about it. Then I asked about a tradition of 21- day- retreats and I was told that there was no such tradition at Mount Kurama. I talked about Dr. Usui and asked if the Kurama Temple used to hold theses retreats in the past. The person I spoke to declined and said that they did not do it in the past and that they are not planning to do it in the future either! But they said that most probably Usui- Sensei must have sat somewhere on the mountain by himself.
Remembering this, another situation comes to my inner eye. Years later, I received an email from England. The sender asked me if I knew a cheap place to stay in Kyoto- maybe even a campground. I answered that the tourist information office would know it better than I and wished the person good luck. A year or so later someone in a workshop came up to me and asked me if I remembered that email. The young man told me that it was he who had written and that he actually pitched his tent on Mount Kurama!

The next time I went to Kyoto, I asked one of the Kurama residents about the statue of Senju Kannon at the templeﾕs entrance. He was surprised that I knew a little bit about the Kurama philosophy. He told me that more and more foreigners were visiting the temple and that they all came equipped with a small book... Yes, I knew the book...

After this visit to the Kurama Dera, I signed up for the Kurama newsletter (in Japanese) and several month later found an article by an American Reiki teacher published in it. This article told all the old fairy tales of Dr. Usui being a Christian monk and the principle of Doshisha University and so on. I got discouraged at first, thinking that the real Reiki- history would never take foot in the Reiki community and that the old fairy tales would continue to be told forever... But then I realized that this was a potential opening.
I called the Kurama Temple office and told them that I had read the newsletter and that was happy to read about Reiki, but unhappy with the historical part of the story. I offered to send my first book " The Reiki Fireﾓ to clear up what was mistakenly written in the article. I also copied the inscription of Dr. Usuiﾕs memorial for the Kurama Temple, so they could find out for themselves what was genuine. To my great surprise I received an answer and a present from the temple a few days later and a big surprise. I was told that my book had been dedicated to Sonten, the ultimate principle of the Kurama Temple in a ceremony. It still moves me deeply when I remember it now.

On the following trip, I was invited by the Abbess of the Kurama Temple for a cup of tea. This was a great honor and I will never forget it. She is one of the rarest flowers I have come across on my journeys. Light as a feather, with tremendous energy and a purity of heart from another planet! While talking to her, I noticed that her hands were swollen and I carefully inquired, if she would mind me giving her Reiki. She looked at her hands and said "Oh, I wasnﾕt aware of that until you said itﾓ and I then gave her Reiki for fifteen minutes or so. This was one of the highlights of practicing Reiki in Japan for me. Another situation that touched my heart similarly was when I was allowed to give a treatment to my teacher Chiyoko Yamaguchi years later.

Over the years I visited the Kurama Temple eight or nine times, and every time I go there, it is like returning home. We still have not solved the mystery of Dr. Usuiﾕs spiritual experience on the Mountain- and maybe we never will. It is still unclear where he sat and maybe this is a blessing. Satori comes as a surprise gift from the Universe and it can not be tempted or forced. Yet Mount Kurama is our spiritual home and I suggest to all of you to go and pay your respects to this magical place at least once.

The address of the Temple is: Kurama Dera (Temple) Kurama Honmachi Sakyo- Ku , Kyoto, Japan

The September 2004 Tour

But now back to the journey in September 2004. We arrived at the templeﾕs main gate and to my surprise, the ladies at the gate recognized me and said that the group was invited to come in for free. I tried to refuse the offer, and to talk my way out of it but to no avail...so we accepted it gratefully. After this warm welcome at the gate, we were greeted by the statue of Senju Kannon- the thousand armed Bodhisattva, and walked on with our hearts filled with love and compassion. Many of the participants bowed before her, and performed a Japanese purification ritual before entering the temple. Then we embarked on the five- hour journey of Mount Kurama, its temples and shrines.

I had made an appointment with the Temple authorities in the afternoon and around lunchtime we arrived at a beautiful sub- temple below the main hall. The first floor of this place used to be a restaurant that served light meals, but they had meanwhile changed and were only serving sweets and tea now. I had planned to eat there with the group and when the nuns saw my disappointed face, they offered every one of us an ice cream, tea or whatever we wanted as a gift. I felt quite embarrassed, but there was no way out without saying YES. How difficult it can be to accept a gift! When we reached the main hall of the temple- called Honden- I went to the templeﾕs office to say hello and was met by a radiant nun whom I knew from before- and the Abbess herself. We had a little talk and then the Abbess asked me if I would like her to welcome the group. I could not believe my ears, and couldnﾕt wipe the silly smile off my face for the rest of the day. She came out to meet the others with me and talked to us about the oneness of all things, sentient and insentient. She wished for us to experience and soak up this oneness on Mount Kurama and to take that home with us- and I know that everyone present did just that: an un- forgettable experience.

After this we were shown around by the nun, who took us to the Kurama Museum, which holds several very fine statues. One statue of Senju- Kannon in particular is worth the visit. You will never forget her face...it will haunt you in your dreams... After this, we went up to the top of Mount Kurama to a small hall called Mao-Den, which is erected just in front of a sacred Cedar tree. On the way to the hall one walks through a lovely road called " ki no michi "the road of trees- or is it "the road of energy?".

After our arrival I gave those of the group who wanted it a Reiju attunement- an initiation in the style of Dr. Hayashi. An hour later we went back down to the entrance gate of the temple where we had a wonderful meal, called Shojin Ryori- the traditional food of Buddhist monks/nuns. After dinner we visited the Kurama Hotsprings resort to round off the day in a wonderful mineral bath ten minutes walk from the Kurama Temple, before returning to our hotel in Kyoto.

On the last day of our journey we visited the Kurama temple again, to complete the circle, and now I am sitting on a plane from Greece to Germany. I realize that I could talk and talk and talk and write and write and write, but I will leave it here for I donﾕt want to bore you with my ramblings...

Thank you for listening to me, with love and gratitude from above the clouds, your friend, Frank Arjava Petter

Copyright © by Frank Arjava Petter, 2004