Reverend’s Message
May all beings be happy and well,
May no harm or difficulties come to them,
May they live in peace and harmony.
~Loving-Kindness (Metta) Meditation of Palo Alto Buddhist Temple
November is a month of feasting and gathering. It is a time of family and friends who celebrate a day
of thanksgiving. I was invited to a Thanksgiving dinner and a tradition of this family was to go to each
person and ask them what they were grateful for. This was a new one for me. I said that I was thankful
for so many things, however the most important is having friends who have become like a family to me.
I can smell the turkey roasting in the oven, pies being baked, and the rolls rising. Growing up in a
generational home, there was always mazegohan, gravy and cranberry sauce. We had candied yams
and one of my favorites was frozen peas. My mom knew I would not eat canned peas, because she
would always find the “accidently” drop canned peas on the floor, around my seat.
Our history of Thanksgiving is very different from the first settlers of Plymouth Rock. The first
Japanese pilgrim faced the same type of problems that the Pilgrims and Puritans faced when they
landed on these shores. There was uncertainty and insecurity. There was the worry of making a living to
feed families and where to settle their weary bones at night. According to the 1880 Census, there were
88 Japanese in California, with a total of 148 in the United States. By the 1940 Census, there were 914
Japanese Americans living in Guadalupe.
Our pioneer Issei came around 1899 and worked as farm laborers. Their initial intent was to work for
the Union Sugar Company in its fields or the plant in Betteravia. They eventually became owners and
sharecroppers. They owned farms with their own packing sheds.
Besides farming, other “pilgrims” opened various businesses. By 1940, there were 81 businesses
and organizations serving the Japanese community. There were hotels, a boarding house, pool halls,
fish markets and other stores. The Royal Theater was opened and owned by Arthur Shogo Fukuda and
Jack Takeuchi.
It was decided by kyogikai (a cooperative/association) to write to the Christian and Buddhist
Churches to invite them to establish a church/temple in the area. It was decided that the “first to
respond would prevail as the religious organization of the Guadalupe-Santa Maria area”[1]. We were
fortunate that the first Guadalupe Buddhist Church opened its door in 1909 by Reverend Junjo Izumida.
We are very fortunate to have the cooperative make the right decision and have Jodo Shinshu in our
area. We also put our palms together for the Buddha never abandoning us.
Our history in Guadalupe is rich. It is a history of Nembutsu that is so fitting. We are so thankful,
grateful and appreciative. Our “pilgrims” took that daring step and settled in an unknown area, yet they
saw a good place to settle. We share our Nembutsu/Namu Amida Butsu for their insight, intuition and
for our temple/church and a place where we can find our true selves.
Gassho
Rev. Seijo Naomi Nakano
.jpg)