KYOTO -- For many Japanese, particularly among the young, Buddhist temples are a place for funerals and periodic family gatherings to remember deceased relatives, and little else.
Some Buddhist priests and nuns are trying to change that by making the holy places a little more fun.
On a Saturday night in April, the estate of Seigan-ji Temple in central Kyoto was packed with people waiting for folk duo Kissaquo to play. The hundred seats set up for the event were full.
Sayuri Somatori, a 57-year-old local, got two seats front and center for herself and her younger sister. "We support them. It's just like love for a son," Somatori said. She was sporting a Kissaquo T-shirt sold exclusively at the concert. She has a lot of the duo's merchandise, from CDs to postcards.
Musical message
The pair consists of Kanho Yakushiji, a priest, and Satoshi Yamamoto, who calls himself an "ordinary man."
The two singers began their performance by bowing to the large statue of Buddha sitting behind them. Their simple but powerful songs, along with the sound of acoustic guitars and harmonica, move the crowd. Between numbers, Yakushiji entertained fans with priestly anecdotes: "I used to have fuller hair," he said of his shaved head. "The priest outfit is comfortable to play a guitar in, except that its hot."
The duo performed 14 songs during the two-hour concert. They also led the audience in a Buddhist chant.
After the show, the singers took photos with their fans. It is an opportunity to promote the group to a wider audience. "You can tweet that two singers, one with hair and another without, were performing," Yamamoto said with a smile.
Yakushiji and Yamamoto formed Kissaquo more than 10 years ago. As professional artists, they have mostly played in small clubs. Three years ago Yakushiji became a priest, as he has plans to take over the temple run by his family in the future. Kissaquo has since also held concerts at temples, mainly in Kyoto and Yakushiji's hometown in Ehime Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku.
According to Yakushiji, temple halls, with their high ceilings and excellent acoustics, are ideal concert venues. Sitting on a zabuton cushion rather than a chair enhances the feeling that one is in a temple. The calm, reverent atmosphere seems to help visitors communicate with each other in a friendlier way. "I want people to enjoy meeting those they would not otherwise know," said Yakushiji.
Itaru Sanno, a 53-year-old office worker, became fan of Kissaquo after he saw the duo's clips on YouTube. "This is the first time I have seen a live performance at a temple," said Sanno. "It blew away my gloomy image of temples."
He traveled from Hyogo Prefecture for the event.
Mai Hayashi, a 25-year-old Kyoto resident, came to the event after work. She usually listens to pop music, but she likes Kissaquo's songs. "They are calm, but gripping, and somehow nostalgic," she said. "I felt hesitant to enter a temple, but not anymore."
Techno nun
Kissaquo is not the only Buddhist-flavored musical act doing the rounds in Japan. One Buddhist nun, is trying to bring younger people into temples. Her first performance was in a small club in Kyoto. Going by the stage name "Idol-bosatsu," she dresses in a costume that evokes the image of a bosatsu, a Buddhist saint. Framed against an electric nimbus, she sings techno-pop tunes created by professional writers.
Idol-bosatsu, 35, is the daughter of the chief priest of a temple. As a little girl, she dreamed of being a pop idol, later taking voice lessons. At first she hid her artistic endeavors from her father, but he was surprisingly supportive when he learned what she was up to. "He felt my music could help young people feel a stronger connection to Buddhism," she said.
After her concerts, Idol-bosatsu said, young people began visiting her temple, chatting frankly with her about Buddhism and their everyday worries.
The singer said she has accomplished what she initially set out to do: draw people's attention with an eye-catching look. "I no longer have to do that," she said.
"I want to strive to do good as my real self from now on." She will soon change her stage name to her proper Buddhist name and perform in the clothing of a traditional nun.
Priest Tadato Wakabayashi runs a Buddhist magazine that introduces unique activities by priests and nuns. Wakabayashi welcomes these activities as a way of overcoming a fundamental challenge that many of the nation's temples face: a dearth of visitors. "I hope the efforts of younger priests can help people feel closer to Buddhism," he said.
