Omoiyori: Proactive Kindness

The term omoiyari (oh-moh-ee-ya-ree) 思いやりis Japanese term that embodies empathy and consideration.

木漏日 komorebi

There is a Japanese word, komorebi, which has no direct equivalent in English. It roughly translates as “the sunlight filtering through the leaves in the trees.” It is written with 3 kanji. The first kanji 木 means tree(s); the 2nd one 漏 menas “escape” or “leaking through”; the 3rd kanji 日 is “sun.” The interplay of […]

Activity of the Soul

Consider a man sitting quiet and contemplating, with no purpose or aim except that of experiencing himself and his oneness with the world. He is considered to be “passive,” because he is not “doing” anything. In reality, this attitude of concentrated meditation is the highest activity there is, an activity of the soul, which is […]

Root Booster

This week we treated our newly planted forest friends (70 new beings in total) to Root Booster. As we were carefully measuring out each tree’s portion, I reflected on the similarities between the growth needs of trees and humans. We were counseled by our arborist that we must help these young trees establish broad, strong […]

Trees and Divinity

What is the relationship between kami and trees? And why do we refer to the forest here at Shin Mei Spiritual Centre as “Chinju no Mori” 鎮守の杜, or “Sacred Forest”? The scholar Norinaga Motoori (1730-1801) explained the word “kami” this way: In general, the word kami refers to, first of all, the various kami of heaven and earth spoken […]

Divinity in the Forest

Above: Kinomori Jinja in transit