Stopped by for the 2016 Obon Festival. I love Japanese things for good reason and who knew that there's a little Japanese enclave in DT Salt Lake City. And the temple has a basketball court in it....
I will say, that both Pure Land and Japanese cultural tradition are very well preserved here.
I am sorry, but I really need to correct a review as I am a former member of the sister-Temple in Ogden and have serious doubts the reviewer has ever set foot in a Jodo-Shinshu Temple. While the review is positive, it is based on stereotypes. The original review is as follows:
Lovely temple attended by both Japanese and American Buddhists. The Zen tradition is well preserved here.
I'm glad to see positive reviews, but it's even better when they happen to be based on actual experience.
"Lovely temple attended by both Japanese and American Buddhists. The Zen tradition is well preserved here."
Beautiful temple interior servicing a tight-knit community with an interesting history. Very welcoming to all.
Second, and most glaringly: I am not sure how the "Zen tradition" is so well preserved here, since this is not a Zen temple - It is a Jodo-Shinshu Temple in the Pure Land tradition of Mahayana Buddhism. Zen is a Mahayana sect but is a meditative sect, not Pure Land. Pure Land Buddhism focuses on recitation of a sutra (usually Nembutsu) with little to no focus on mediation. Zen focuses on Meditation. The two are very different and anyone who spends even two minutes making conversation in a Jodo-Shinshu setting will be made aware of this fact. Maybe the reviewer meant to review the Zen Temple and didn't realize there were other Japanese Buddhist sects in Utah?
First, the temple is attended by people of multiple racial backgrounds. The "Japanese" who attend are Americans. According to the review, it seems as though Japanese Buddhists (As is Buddhists whose genetic lineage is Japanese) are not "Americans" but it is assumed the Japanese Buddhists (as in practitioners of Japanese Buddhism) who are White (Japanese and Caucasian are the predominant demographics at this temple) are "Americans".
Great job by the organizing group for putting flyer's up. I found out about this at a Starbucks the morning of.
I went on a tour once. They had displays talking about the Topaz Japanese internment camps. Really sad stuff but also quite enlightening.
Salt Lake Buddhist Temple is a US Place Of Worship based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Salt Lake Buddhist Temple is located at 211 W 100 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84101, USA.
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