Daijingu Temple of Hawaii is a Shinto shrine, quietly located in Nu'uanu. During an actual Kona…read morestorm downpour, the temple was still open. We were the only patrons, but I enjoyed the serenity and the sound of heavy rainfall. Our group paid our respects, doing a silent offering, 2 bows, 4 claps, prayer, and a final bow. This is different from the typical nirei-nihakushu-ichirei "2 bows-2 claps-1 bow", therefore take care to note each shrines prayer customs! The shrine attendant was very helpful in explaining the different protection charms for sale and also explained the yakudoshi "years of calamity" concept to us. If you like to visit a Shinto shrine in Hawaii, Daijingu Temple of Hawaii was a beautiful place. Highly recommend!

12-30-23 Learning from a previous year, pre-order your omamori for the new year on line and pick…read moreup before New Year's Eve or day is much easier if you don't like waiting in long lines. Today we could pick up our order in the main upstairs blessing area instead of in the basement. We could also receive our blessing today too. The person manning the orders and doing the blessing has you double check your order. Ours had 42 items and cost $186.00. I got protection omamori for: Personal safety Children Pets Traffic Health Home: fire, robbery, harmony Fortune slips Safe return Water safety for grandson Academic success for granddaughter I'm glad this system worked perfectly, we could park right there instead of at the park and we could choose our day and time slot for pick up. Happy New Year for 2024.

Enjoyed my $35 quilting class here. I called and showed up the next day. Cash only. They provide…read morefabric and you can park in their lot. No AC. Just fans.

This is a review for the bon dance that the temple hosts every year. Was a little disappointed this…read moreyear to be honest. [HANDICAP] Was able to get handicap parking so that was definitely a plus, was actually prepared to be dropped off by my wife and have her go wait somewhere so it was nice when we were able to get a spot. [FOOD] No pota-gi (Portuguese sausage andagi) or andagi when we went on Friday so that was disappointing. They sold catered Filipino food. By the time we got there a lot of the food was sold so that's why no food pics. Shimazu does their shave ice.

Been visiting Liliha Shingon Mission for more than three decades for New Year's blessing. It's an…read moreolder church, but is still in great condition for its age. The people who work here are very kind - particularly Rev Kawanishi and Rev Higa. I highly recommend this place for other patrons.

Reverend Higa at Liliha Shingon Mission was of great assistance to my Japanese (from Japan, not…read morelocal) mother-in-law when her husband passed last summer. Reverend Higa explained the difference to her between US and Japanese practice even though the temple was Japanese. In Japan after cremation, some of the remaining bone fragments are kept and have religious significance. Since that is not possible here, having a Japanese speaking local helped my mother-in-law understand why the cultural practices had to be adjusted. Aside from Reverend Higa, the temple itself is ornate on the inside. It was a relaxing environment to honor my father-in-law.

I have been attending service at this church for over a couple years with my grandmother. It was a…read morebit overwhelming at first because the entire service is in Japanese. It's a good think my grandmother is there to help translate things for me. Other than the language barrier, there were other things that struck me as different (in our current society). One thing that stuck out is the men and women sit separated, men on the right and women on the left. Also, men go first with everything from putting incense to eating. Extremely traditional Japanese culture at work here. But the main reason why my family comes to this particular church is because of the Sensei, she...yes it is a female...she is very wise beyond her young age. She has a lot of good and positive messages (in Japanese only) that she gives us after each service. I guess you can say that I have started to embrace my Japanese culture. And I look forward to learning more about the beliefs and traditions that built the country where my ancestors were from...

[HANDICAP ACCESSIBILITY] If I have recommended this temple…read morefor their bon dance in the past because of the great handicap parking and you were affected by it this year I am deeply sorry. This year they took away the handicap parking and made all of the front stalls for the workers and volunteers to park including the marked handicap parking stall. The minister when asked if non handicaps would be parked in the handicap stall he stated yes. When asked what about people who come on their own since I have recommend to fellow disabled people that drive themselves the minister stated he had to ask the bon dance committee. No matter how unpopular this makes me within the Japanese community this is the truth. The main tenant of Buddhism is compassion. Think about that. [TO YELP] I posted this on the church page and not the event page because this review in the end is a comment/review about the Minister and those that run the temple.

Yelp 100 Challenge #60/100…read more This review is for the Bon Dance. I honestly have never been to this Bon Dance before so I was excited to check it out. Went there on Saturday around 6:00 pm. Parking was getting full at the school and I was lucky to find some street parking a little down the ways. After we parked the fam headed to the bon dance. Once there I saw a bunch of chairs and pews to sit on. We brought our chairs just in case too. Then I headed to the Shimazu shave ice stand. They had I believe all or most of their flavors that is usually at the store. It was $4.00 for a bowl and an add on like condensed milk, haupia, li hing, mochi, or azuki was $.75. Come to think of it I ordered mine with azuki beans and didn't get it with my order. Oh well. But the shave was great and refreshing and we got one later after we were taking a break from dancing. The line moved quickly and there was hardly a wait. Then there was andagi which was good as they had something called poto-gi andagi which was a portuguese sausage wrapped in the andagi batter for $1.00. It was a small sized sausage and tasted pretty good. Almost like a small version of a KC waffle dog. I did like the andagi which was very hot and fresh. It was $1.50 for either 3 original or cinnamon and sugar. I tried the cinnamon/sugar and it tasted good. I would get that again in the future. They had a system to order food. It was in rec sized area which was pretty big and there were seats and tables in there too. I walked up to look at the menu and someone was there to take my order. This is pretty organized. I had the beef curry rice and spam musubi. I then got an order slip and paid inside. Two ladies rang me up and pointed to an area to pickup my food and gave me an order number. I then got my order about 1 minute later. Did I say this was very organized. The beef curry was okay, but I didn't try the musubi so I can't comment on that. The Mrs. tried the nishime and said that the vegetables weren't washed good or something and it tasted nasty. I was bummed for her as I read someone had the nishime and liked it. The Bon Dance was great as it wasn't that crowded and I loved the live performances. They had a troupe of older obachan's singing and then a little girl with musical Japanese instruments in the background. Then midway in the Bon Dance the Okinawan drum troupe showed up and they were great as well with tons of energy as always. Overall this Bon Dance was great and I loved it. I will definitely be coming back to this one. Great job to the HIgashi Hongwanji Mission! See you again and Aloha!

Very peaceful and tranquil. If you don't feel Closer to your…read moreancestors when visiting here than something is wrong with you. Get your fortune read and make sure you donate. It's a great cause.

Zen! Even in Japan…read moretemples are placed in the midst of life as if it's a sign for you to come in and take a moment for yourself, Juan Yin Temple is no different as it's right in the midst of busy Vineyard Boulevard right beside Foster Botanical Garden. Here I did come for a specific reason...their stunning water lily flowers which they have two pots of and it's constantly growing and on other visits there were just buds so instead took in the view and enjoy this lovely gem. Today on the eve of the upcoming Lunar New Year I made a bangle I designed back in November that I had made for some friends for the New Years and it's a infinity blended into a lotus flower, one of my favorite since it represents so much to me. The symbolism of the Lotus is spectacular and making my bangle had the same issues of forming it with struggles with the vision to have the colors only for it to be altered with then end result of something still beautiful. Yes I took several pictures respectfully as this temple is free to the public to pray, offer incense or just take a moment. I'm just so grateful for their generosity to their open doors I do constantly make an offering and give thanks, it's another humbling experience and timing to capture what I've been searching and am feeling so blessed. Thank you and a Happy Lunar New Year!

After hiking Nuuanu Pali this Sunday morning went to Myohoji Temple in Nuuanu where l use to train…read moreAikido and Sumi-e classes over 30 years ago haven't been back since but a was nice visit this Sunday morning walk sadly there are no flower Ikebana class or tea ceremony classes or Sumi-e class but they are open for Aikido Karate Kendo and now even Yoga look up their website for classes scheduled times Great place for self meditation too very quiet and surrounded with good vibes and surreal surroundings great for your soul spiritual practice file:///var/tmp/com.apple.messages/com.apple.MobileSMS/LinkedFiles/8492EE91-34D6-4829-9318-BAC037BD562C/IMG_4058.HEIC file:///var/tmp/com.apple.messages/com.apple.MobileSMS/LinkedFiles/8E3B2A3C-D77A-4EEE-9078-0E12BC4CF891/IMG_4053.HEIC file:///var/tmp/com.apple.messages/com.apple.MobileSMS/LinkedFiles/8B091496-F36E-4D51-8EAE-372481EAF186/IMG_4054.HEIC file:///var/tmp/com.apple.messages/com.apple.MobileSMS/LinkedFiles/D13A3987-D15C-42DA-92AC-A467F3AF95DC/IMG_4052.HEIC

The other day, I had the wonderful fortune of visiting Myohoji with two friends. We were able to…read moremeet the resident minister: Reverend Takamasa Yamamura. He was in credibly friendly. We were allowed to visit the hondo (the temple) and the multi-purpose complex. We had a wonderful time talking with Rev. Yamamura about a number of topics. And then he was kind enough to invite us to a tea ceremony (urasenke). The history of Myohoji is quite fascinating. And we were so glad to have had the opportunity to learn more about the temple, it's resident minister, and the various activities that take place. We are looking forward to visiting again in the near future. :)

I remember going to the Buddhist Study Center as an undergraduate at UH Manoa in the 1980's. I…read moredidn't realize that the Buddhist Study Center was built in 1972 which makes this the 50th Anniversary. This is a notable achievement since there are very few Buddhist Study Centers across the USA. I feel that as a biracial male (Irish/Japanese) knowing my cultural background is very important, especially in the context of living in the multicultural setting that is the State of Hawaii. I remember the staff of the Buddhist Study Center as being very welcoming and supportive. The spirit of welcoming was then and still remains very important as we seek to navigate through the effects of Covid-19 and as we seek to attain greater knowledge of ourselves through attending various educational opportunities. The proximity of the Buddhist Study Center to the University of Hawaii at Manoa and the Manoa Community is a blessing. The contributions of scholars such as Dr. Alfred Bloom is a true enhancement in the overall quality of learning. The Buddhist Study Center sits unobtrusively amongst the residences along University Avenue. Yet, in its quietness lies wisdom. To those whose foresight and vision inspired the Buddhist Study Center 50 years ago, thank you so very much. May Peace Prevail. Mahalo, Mark Kazuo Bradley

Just got off the phone with the receptionist. Very nice lady. I'm doing research for a friend and…read morewill definitely recommend he study here.