Visit
Feel gratitude and pray
There are no specific rules of visiting Kongoji Zen Temple. In what way you visit the temple and in which order you visit the different buildings is up to each person. As long as the visit is made by heart, there is no specific rule to follow. Even if there are no rules there are a few simple manners which can be followed if one decides to.
When entering or leaving the temple ground, visitors put the hands together and bow once, facing the main sanctuary. This can be done at the temple gate or in front of the entrance to the main hall.
Donations which are made on the temple ground are used to support the temple. Putting a donation inside the boxes or baskets is up to everybody and no must.
Visiting the main sanctuary
1. Bow slightly once before starting.
2. Receive a stick of incense as an offering which can be bought at the temple reception for 50 yen. Take one stick of incense.
3. Light it from a candle.
4. Place it in an incense burner to make your offering.
5. Put your hands calmly together in front of your chest and reflect on yourself with gratitude of your daily life. (Do not clap your hands)
6. Fan the fire of the candle with your hand to put out the fire. (Do not blow it out.) And bow again slightly.
Visiting the side sanctuaries
1. Ring the so called waniguchi, a round instrument which is used as a bell. (If you have incense sticks with you, you may light it up and put it inside the incense holder in front of you.)
2. Put your hands together in front of the sanctuary.
Visiting the ancestors
1. Clean a grave by scraping stains off with a brush or by pulling weeds around the gravestone. Wash flower vase and sweep up around.
2. When finishing cleaning, put flowers in a vase in front of the gravestone and offer food or drinks which the deceased person liked.
3. Light a bundle of incense sticks and put them inside the incense holder. Matches or lighters can be borrowed at the temple reception.
4. Put the hands together in prayer. One can pray and give gratitude to once ancestors.
Visiting the temple bell
1. Before ringing the temple bell, put the hands together and bow slightly.
2. Ringing the temple bell at Kongoji Zen Temple can be done before or after visiting the cemetery..
There are different explanations why people ring the temple bell:
There are different explanations why people ring the temple bell:
- It sound will clear once mind for those who hit the bell and those who heard the sound of it.
- With the sound of the temple bell once feelings will reach the ancestors.
- The sound of the bell will reach to different parts of the world and will make people aware of the truth of existence.
3. After ringing the temple bell, put the hands together.
4. At the end bow slightly.