Oyuki kigan 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 Well, maybe not. But i was calling around Kyoto yesterday asking about shukubo (temple housing for pilgrims) vacancies for my dad and i, and one of them outright refused me because i was gaijin. The lady first asked `will you be with a Japanese person?`, and when i said no, she said that i couldn`t make a reservation. When i asked why, she said that they don`t let foriegners stay by themselves. Again, i asked why, and she flatly said that they don`t understand the language or culture. The whole conversation took place in Japanese, and even after i told her that i had been in Japan for 4 years and the cultural differences might not be an issue, she still refused, and i left it at that. Now, i have had this treatment before at bars in Hokkaido, but i did not expect it from a buddhist temple. So now i am forced to go the Ryokan route, although they seem very eager to accomedate foriegners, if the amount of english websites for the individual ryokans is any example. but i`m still pissed... Link to post Share on other sites
thursday 1 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 come on, be sensitive to their culture. they don't want you so why force them? Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 That must sting getting treated like that. I suppose if they are a non-commercial entity then they have the unique liberty to make their own decisions, rather than having $money make the decisions for them. There is some irony in that (assuming that they are non-commercial) Don't worry mate, they will all burn in eternal goat-raped agony for not believing in the one true lord and saviour. Quote: Originally posted by thursday: come on, be sensitive to their culture. they don't want you so why force them? Are you joking, Thursday. Is that post sarcasm? He didn't force them at all, he walked away and humbly posted about it with only one pissy word at the very end. Dont be so quick to jump on your wagon. Link to post Share on other sites
bushpig 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 methinks sarcasm. a " " might have gone down well there... Link to post Share on other sites
misorano 1 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 Koyasan is bit more Gaijin friendly but there are places there that refuse them too. Link to post Share on other sites
daver 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 still, not a very buddist way of acting/thinking. if you want to do a buddist retreat, go to doi sutep. Link to post Share on other sites
daver 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 what if you were a foriegn buddist? Link to post Share on other sites
gerard 6 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 Yeah that would piss me off. Racist Buddhists... I was in Koya staying at a temple and one of the halls was decked with rising sun flags, pictures of WW2 battle ships and other paraphernalia. I thought "What's with that?!" --I might not have been as surprised had it been a Shinto place. Seems like there's a right wing nationalist faction in Japanese Buddhism. Link to post Share on other sites
bobby12 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 Racist Buddhists - that should be the name of a band. Link to post Share on other sites
bushpig 0 Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 Quote: Originally posted by ger: Yeah that would piss me off. Racist Buddhists... I was in Koya staying at a temple and one of the halls was decked with rising sun flags, pictures of WW2 battle ships and other paraphernalia. I thought "What's with that?!" --I might not have been as surprised had it been a Shinto place. Seems like there's a right wing nationalist faction in Japanese Buddhism. Bear in mind that for quite a few centuries Shinto has taken a back seat to Buddhism in regards to the influence enjoyed on those in power. The various buddhist sects fought for influence over the rulers of Japan and some were even militaristic, with fighting monks. It really isn't all that much of a surprise if you keep this in mind. Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 Quote: fighting monks And I thought they were all peaceloving, like all other religious types. Link to post Share on other sites
gerard 6 Posted September 10, 2006 Share Posted September 10, 2006 That evokes a strange image. suddenly a huge mass of cloaked monks is coming at you. Chanting in strange tongue... taking casualties but continuing to advance... slowly but steadily. Could be a good b-rate war flick. Link to post Share on other sites
bushpig 0 Posted September 10, 2006 Share Posted September 10, 2006 Here's a link about some of the stuff that went down with the warrior monks. http://www.geocities.com/azuchiwind/monks.htm Link to post Share on other sites
snobee 0 Posted September 10, 2006 Share Posted September 10, 2006 Bushy - thanks for that link. Good stuff. Instead of thinning the backlog of "duties" today, I've just spent a few hours reading that link, leaving precious time to do things before the family arrive home. Move quick! Link to post Share on other sites
bushpig 0 Posted September 10, 2006 Share Posted September 10, 2006 hehe, well done snobee! You better get your arse into gear! Link to post Share on other sites
Yuki's Passion 1 Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 >shukubo (temple housing for pilgrims) Were you and your father on a pilgrimage? Are you buddhist? Were you looking to study Soto, Rinzai, or Nichiren? Or, most likely Zen? Link to post Share on other sites
Oyuki kigan 0 Posted September 11, 2006 Author Share Posted September 11, 2006 if i had to put a name to what i believe, then yeah, i am buddhist. And no, its not a pilgrimage, but i was really looking forward to experiencing that side of Kyoto. I was hoping to participate in the morning cleaning and meditation. Ad for sects, i`ll study anything, but i kinda lean towards Soto. But the shukubo was Shingon, i believe. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 > I was hoping to participate in the morning cleaning and meditation. You wouldn't have understood it anyway. Link to post Share on other sites
bushpig 0 Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 (Sorry O11, I know you hate those) Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 Oyuki, is it (the place that turned you away) a commercial operation? Or do they make these tough decisions based on their own free morality, absent any financial coercion? Link to post Share on other sites
jgraves 0 Posted September 12, 2006 Share Posted September 12, 2006 That warrior-monk link cracked me up. The topic of warrior buddists written about on an website devoted to Oda Nobunaga is like the history of warrior muslims hundreds of years ago being told on a website devoted to George W. Bush. Loved this quote in particular: "It might seem severely fantastic to you, stories of monks and killing devices, and monks and concubines and procreating processes, and monks and booze, and monks and barbeque parties -- even more so because Buddhism is sort of too philosophical to get itself mummified into something distinguishably dead system of belief. But it did happen anyhow. Monasteries and temples had already been lairs of lazy bums and village bullies even before they got routine escapists from this dirty but at least not so hypocritical world. Buddhist monasteries in Japan started to get new members from the Imperial House and noblepersons' family trees in the end of the first thousand years after Jesus is said to have been born." Link to post Share on other sites
bushpig 0 Posted September 12, 2006 Share Posted September 12, 2006 Yeah nice! Admittedly I didn't sit and read through that site. But the fact remains that there were warrior monks or buddhist sects with their own warriors, who pursued political goals. Link to post Share on other sites
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