Because he breaks the darkness of ignorance, he is named the Buddha of Wise Light. All the Buddhas and vehicles of three stages together praise his virtue.

Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to our temple today. It is something we often overlook in our daily lives, but there is a truth: “We tend to judge things based only on the visible part, but the connections that are truly important exist precisely where they cannot be seen.” Today, I would like to speak a little about this.

Usually, when we meet someone we do not agree with or someone who seems harsh, we tend to judge them only by that visible part, such as their “harshness” or “stubbornness,” and think of them negatively. However, behind that harshness, it may just be that they were hurt in the past or are hiding a gentle side to protect something. In this world, there are no people who are solely gentle, nor are there people who are solely harsh. Everyone, just like you, carries gentleness and harshness, joy and sadness, all within their hearts as they strive to live.

In this way, the function of the mind that tries to notice “no, that is not all,” without being caught only by visible appearances, is called “Wisdom” in Buddhism. And in a world where we cannot see everything, the only existence that gazes into the very depths of your heart and embraces you completely is what we call “Amida Tathagata,” or Buddha. The Buddha grants us this Wisdom.

Let us now direct this eye of the heart, granted by the Buddha, toward our connection with our departed loved ones. Today, you have come to the temple holding the memorial tablets of your loved ones, carrying their memories in your chests. Their bodies and lives indeed no longer exist in this world. We can no longer see them with our eyes or hear their voices. However, as long as we keep their presence in our hearts and try to listen to their voices from the past, those precious individuals continue to support our steps today as a warm, invisible presence. The existence that continues to support and heal us even after death—that indeed is the Buddha.

This feeling of treasuring our connection with loved ones leads us to the Nembutsu, which is the heart that aspires for birth in the Pure Land, relying on the compassion of Amida Tathagata. To see the world as it truly is means nothing less than striving to see the invisible part: the compassion from the deceased that is easily overlooked. Although our lives are certainly finite, the flow of history connecting us from our ancestors to ourselves and on to future descendants is bound today by a single, unbreakable line that transcends time and space.

The words Namu Amida Butsu have been passed down from person to person since ancient times until today. Reaching this great milestone of the 10th anniversary today was possible precisely because of this invisible bond of the Nembutsu with those who came before us. It is with heartfelt joy that we welcome this precious page of our history, woven together with the dedicated efforts of Rev. Shimizu, Mr. Horii, the Shibata family, and many others, and that we are all gathered here to recite the Nembutsu together.