Enryaku-ji Kechien Kanjō

When I was 51, I received the Kechien Kanjō for the first time at Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei.
It is not a place you would call a tourist spot.

The sound of swaying trees, the air that seeps into your body, and the sunlight filtering through the trees that seems to envelop your entire being are enough to purify you.

After receiving instructions, I was blindfolded and walked slowly, placing my hands on the shoulders of the person in front of me along a long corridor.
I could hear loud chanting.
When the blindfold was removed and I stretched my hands forward, a single leaf was placed on them.
I quickly opened my hands, and depending on where the leaf fell, I formed a karmic connection with the Buddha who would watch over me for the next year.

At 51, I formed a connection with Bhaisajyaguru (Medicine Buddha).
Personally, I had hoped for Vairocana or Amitabha, but...
That evening, a young monk told me about Bhaisajyaguru, saying that Bhaisajyaguru can perform magic-like feats, such as healing past wounds and purifying the causes of what is happening now! Everyone takes stomach medicine immediately when they have a stomachache, right?
Bhaisajyaguru instantly deciphers from the data what you ate in the past that caused the reaction, where it is affecting you, why such a thing was necessary, and what feelings led to it.
Can he really do that?! I think I might like Bhaisajyaguru! (A change of heart)
That year, I truly had many connections with people facing various physical and mental pains, and Bhaisajyaguru was very active. Bhaisajyaguru, who travels back and forth between the past and future to purify, plays the role of purification, healing, and clearing.

How wonderful! Clearing Bhaisajyaguru.
Bhaisajyaguru Mantra.
Om huru huru candali matangi svaha.

At 52, I formed a connection with Amitabha.

He made a vow to save all living things and guide them to the Pure Land.
Mantra: Om amrta teje hara hum.

"Amitabha"
It means infinite light. "Light" is the power of the Buddha.
There is no place that the light of Amitabha does not reach, meaning it is spatially limitless, and
it means infinite life.
Since the life of Amitabha is limitless, it is temporally infinite.

It is the truth that makes everyone truly happy, unchanging in both space and time.

What a magnificent Tathagata! I can feel the universe! Spectacular Amitabha!

Talking with the Ajari (high priest).
When I told him I was a hairdresser, he was very surprised and welcomed me with a smile, saying, "The era has come where hairdressers visit us. I am so glad you came."

Stomach-friendly shojin ryori (Buddhist vegetarian cuisine), morning services, and fun conversations with the young monks.

Ah, I've become a good person (I'm simple-minded).

The sutras I have been reciting since I was a child are ingrained in my body, so hearing them makes me feel calm.
I love the scent of incense and the sounds of bells and wooden fish.

Should I become a monk?

Even if you don't, this place is a place of training, after all!

Thank you for reading today as well.

Next time,
I will write about how I became an artist four years ago.