Seattle Koyasan

Introduction to Monthly Academic Webinar Series

Suchness （真如）never can be pinned down, however, vastness could alienate people from practicing Buddhism. Shingon Buddhism’s uniqueness is to let Buddhism be tangible. If so, this is also a Seattle Koyasan’s responsibility to assist our practitioners in making tangible maps.

I came to the U.S. in 2006, assigned to Seattle Koyasan. Since then, I have realized that the American Buddhists have tendency to enter Buddhism through books.  They normally knock Seattle Koyasan’s gate after reading 5 or 10 books about Buddhism at least. Maybe, Christians in Japan would do the same when they first visit churches. Anyway, that’s why, we prioritize letting people ground down the Buddhist wisdom on their daily livings, rather than focusing on delivering knowledge. Seattle Koyasan has responsibility as a dojo that originally means a place to practice Buddhism.  

However, leading the community nearly for 20 years, I started feeling the necessity to provide accurate pieces of knowledge upon certain key topics that could help our practitioners form their map of Shingon Buddhism tangible. From this time on, we will provide wedges from which you can draw the shape of Shingon Buddhism accurately. 

The first topic is “Buddhism and Vedic Religion: Commonalities and Distinctions from a Shingon Perspective.” Is Shingon Buddhism like the “bat” in the Aesop’s fable, in this case, between Buddhism and Hinduism? The lecturers of this series are Seattle Koyasan’s proud two Buddhist scholars, Casey san and Nick san, and Taijo himself. The auspicious first seminar will be provided by Casey san. 

Register for First Webinar on June 14

Dr. Casey Collins

Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Casey Collins moved to Vancouver in 2005 to study Asian languages and cultures at the University of British Columbia. He lived in Tokyo from 2009 through 2012 while working for a Buddhist lay organization that later became the subject of his graduate research on Japanese new religions, completing his doctorate in May 2023. Casey's ongoing research interests include sacred narratives, material culture, Japanese esoteric Buddhism, and new religions. Starting in July, Casey will begin working at the Vancouver School of Theology as Director of Inter-Religious Studies and Professor of Asian Religions. 

Nick Height

Nick Height is a former scholar of Japanese Buddhism specializing in Shingon Buddhist art, architecture, and iconography. Nick is originally from North Carolina, but relocated to Seattle after finishing 2 Master’s degrees (one in East Asian Languages and Cultures and one in Religion) at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. He hopes to someday get a PhD and become a professor of Japanese religions. 

Shingon （真言）literally means “True Words” that means mantra. The core practice of Shingon Esoteric Buddhism is to chant mantras. Kobo Daishi wrote, “Mantra is beyond your thoughts. If you appreciate and chant it,  the stubbornly stained ignorance can be removed” in Hannya Shingyo Hiken (the Secret Key to the Heart Sutra). 

We will launch the Mantra Transmission Webinar on the monthly basis. The purpose is:

1. To transmit each mantra to our practitioners in a respectful manner to our lineage continuing more than 1200 years.

2. To illustrate the visualization while chanting mantra.

3. To introduce the characteristic of a Buddha, a Bodhisattva, or a Myoo of the month.

4. To practice chanting the mantra of the month under the guidance of Head Priest. 

Chanting mantra is a way to transform yourself to be someone like a Buddha, a Bodhisattva, or a Myoo in your heart. Why do we have so many deities in the pantheon of Shingon Vajrayana? Because one of them can be the corridor for you to be reunited with Dainichi Nyorai. Why don’t you go out on a journey to encounter your “spiritual best friend” in mandala.

マントラ伝授ウェビナー

真言とは文字通りには「真の言葉」、すなわちマントラです。真言密教の中心となるプラクティスは、マントラの読誦に他なりません。弘法大師は、著書『般若心経秘鍵』の中で、「真言は不思議なり。観誦（かんじゅ）すれば無明を除く」と、真言の功徳を説いています。無明とは、我われ一人ひとりの生存欲がつくる闇。貪り、怒り、愚かしさを生み出し続ける逆ブラックホールです。

このたび、月に一回のペースでマントラを丁寧にお授けするウェビナーを始めます。目的は以下の通りです。 

1200年間続く法流に敬意をもって一つひとつの真言を正確に伝える

真言を唱える時の観想を解説

月ごとに対象となる仏、菩薩、明王の「人となり」を紹介

導師にならって参加者一同で真言読誦の練習をする 

マントラを唱えることは、あなたが心に抱く仏、菩薩、明王に変身することです。心が変われば現実が変わります。なぜ密教世界には、あれほどたくさんの神仏がおわすのでしょうか？なぜなら、その中であなたが近しく感じる一尊が、大日如来とひとつになるための渡り廊下の役割を果たしてくれるからです。曼荼羅の中の「親友」を見つける旅に出ませんか？

UPCOMING WEBINARS:
12 pm (noon) Pacific, Saturday, June 7, 2025