Orange County Buddhist Church  

    Obon 2001.  Obon this year will have special significance for me, as it will for anyone who has lost a loved one since last year’s Obon.  Unfortunately, I will not be here for the services, viz., Obon and Hatsubon, which latter is specifically held for those of us who have lost someone since last year’s Obon.  My niece’s daughter’s wedding is that weekend.  In any case, I hope that those of you who are able will attend the service, and, if you have lost someone since last year’s Obon, both services, including Hatsubon.

    It is quite likely that most of you already know the story behind Obon and, if not, that you will hear it at the service.  Let me just say a few words about why we have these services, regardless of the story.

    Reference was made above to a loss of a loved one, and, if you’ve been reading these essays or listening to my sermons, you’ll know that we all die at least two deaths; once, when we physically die and, again, when we have been forgotten.  You might, then, think of Obon and Hatsubon as attempts to forestall our final, second, deaths.  Of course, from the point of view of the teachings, especially for us followers of the Jodo Shinshu way, they are extra opportunities to hear and listen to the teachings of the Buddha.  If we are observing Hatsubon, then it becomes a time when the sermon has an extra significance, since we are listening with reference to a particular loved one and, probably, our relationships with that loved one, depending on the content of the sermon.  Each time we listen, whether Obon or Hatsubon, or whenever we give thought to those who have gone before us, those loved ones come to life, as it were, and we see that they have not died that second time.  We might hope that we might live on for a couple of generations after our physical presence is no longer here.

On the other hand, some of you may think, “Who cares?  Dead is dead.”  For you, I can only remind you that to learn Buddhism is to learn the self.  And if that is not important to you either, then Buddhism, for the moment, is of no consequence to you, and, in all likelihood, you are not reading this.  It is difficult to think, however, that you are not important to yourself.  Whether or not you read this, I hope that you are important enough to yourself that you learn Buddhism and, thereby, your true self.

Gassho,
Donkon Jaan, 
Rev. John Doami

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