Today was the Kaji Kito purification ceremony at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church and appended to that was the 7-Day Memorial Service for a prominent member of the church. After the service the Ven. Kenjo Igarashi offered a reminder of the purpose of this and the other memorial ceremonies.

In the first seven days after passing, the person must climb a steep hill. The difficulty of the task is compounded by the weight of the person’s bad karma. Someone who did many evil deeds would be burdened by a great weight during the climb. The prayers offered during the service and daily during the initial seven days seek to transfer our merit to the deceased in order to ease the weight of their bad karma.

Following the explanation Rev. Igarashi was quick to point out that the recently deceased church member had “no bad karma” and therefore had an easy climb.

Rev. Igarashi’s most recent newsletter lecture – The Similarities Between Ohigan and Volunteering – seeks to counter the criticism of modern Buddhism that it is too focused on funerals. There is much to agree with in his conclusion:

[D]uring this month of Ohigan, we must get together and recite the sutra and chant the Odaimoku in order to help those spirits that cannot rest in peace or are unable to cultivate their own virtue, and approach this in the same manner that we approach what is considered to be “volunteering.”