October 2009

2009 Oeshiki-Ichijo Festival Held in Tokyo

On October 18, Rissho Kosei-kai held its annual Oeshiki-Ichijo Festival at the headquarters in Tokyo. Some 7,000 members from Dharma Centers across Japan and overseas joined the One Vehicle Parade, which moved from Rissho Kosei-kai's Former Headquarters through neighborhood streets to the Horin-kaku Guest Hall at the present headquarters. Some 18,000 spectators lined the parade route.

The Oeshiki-Ichijo Festival commemorates the anniversaries of the deaths of the thirteenth-century Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren and Founder Nikkyo Niwano, who devoted his life to social reform by saving people in the spirit of the One Vehicle (Ichijo) as taught by the Lotus Sutra. The event is a time for Rissho Kosei-kai members to rededicate themselves to bodhisattva practice in a spirit of gratitude for the two great teachers' compassion.

At the opening ceremony on the morning of October 18 in the Great Sacred Hall, President-designate Kosho Niwano expressed her hopes for the parade's success. In the afternoon, the parade began in the garden of the Former Headquarters, with the marchers at the head carrying flags from the headquarters and 23 Dharma Centers in Tokyo. Forty four contingents from across Japan and overseas marched from there to the Horin-kaku Guest Hall.

Many floats were decorated with lotus flowers, the famous symbol of the Lotus Sutra. Floats from the Meguro and Kashima Dharma Centers, for instance, were topped by gigantic papier-mâché lotus flowers. The parade participants flourished matoi (traditional Japanese firemen's standards) and carried mando (portable lighted pagodas). Some mando from the Suginami and Nagaoka Dharma Centers displayed pictures of lotus flowers symbolizing the joy of encounters with the Dharma. The floats from many Dharma Centers were also decorated with local symbols. The Aomori Dharma Center's float, for instance, featured a large statue of a warrior, mainly made of paper, bamboo, and other wood native to northern Honshu. Participants from its South Asia dissemination division wore picturesque traditional costumes.

Fifteen booths and a number of attractions for children were set up in the square before the Great Sacred Hall by Rissho Kosei-kai headquarters staff, various Dharma Centers, and nongovernmental organizations.

One marcher said, "Today I took part in the parade for the first time as a member of my Dharma Center. I was very impressed by the words of the president-designate at the opening ceremony. I would like to share my pleasure with fellow members of my Dharma Center who couldn't join the parade today."

After the marchers reached the parking lots in front of the Horin-kaku Guest Hall, they put on a final, enthusiastic performance with the matoi and mando before the closing ceremony. In his speech at the ceremony, President Niwano said, "Today I was encouraged by participants' amazing vitality shown in the parade. It is also important for us channel our energy into dissemination of the Dharma." He concluded, "We Buddhists must study and understand the Dharma, and practice it constantly in daily life."

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