Zen Dialogues

Reflections from Japan's Buddhist Traditions

I want to become a monk of the Jodo Shinshu Otani school!!

I am interested in Shugendo, and while continuing my Yamabushi practice, I have had a desire for years to become a monk of the Shingon sect. I intend to continue my own faith while working as a member of society. Meanwhile, I heard the story of a Jodo Shinshu Otani school monk I met at a...

4 responses

How to overcome remorse and self-blame

I would like some advice on how to think about regret and self-blame. Currently, I regret naming my daughter. As a result of considering the origin and number of strokes, I made the kanji sound like a kanji from a year ago and not modern. (I've written a few more details in my profile) I was...

4 responses

I changed jobs, got sick, and worried about the future

Even though it's only been a few months since I changed jobs, my mental and physical condition is getting worse, absenteeism has increased, and it's very stressful and painful to be in a situation where I have to decide whether to continue or retire. I've managed to live my life with the help of...

4 responses

I have no work experience

I'm currently 28 years old, and I haven't worked since I graduated from a correspondence high school. I've never lived alone, I have no common sense or manners, 10 years have passed, and I'm still unemployed and have no place to stay. I don't even want to do an interview, and it makes me think...

4 responses

I feel like I have to make friends

Hello. Not having any friends is very complicated. This is because I think it is the presence or absence of friends of the same sex that you feel necessary without romantic feelings affects your value. I have a partner who has been around for 5 years. We are able to be natural with each...

4 responses

Should I move on or let go

I have a lover that I've been dating for 3 years. When I'm with him, I feel as natural as my family. There's a sense of security that they accept whatever kind of person you are, and it's fun to be with them. In fact, even when we kept our distance once, I missed my time with him, and we...

4 responses

I can't accept the number of people she's dating

We are alafos to each other. (I have a divorced child, and she has no unmarried children.) It became a story about her and her past lovers, but it seems that they have dated about 30 people until now, and they said that the number of people they have experienced is about 35 people. (It is said...

4 responses

Parent trouble in club activities

The kids got into trouble with each other in club activities. This has already been resolved, but the other parent didn't seem to calm down, and when we talked today, they said a lot of criticism and dissatisfaction about my club activities, criticism of my daughter, etc. There is quite a...

4 responses

I feel sorry for myself when I was little

When I was little, when I spilled tea, my father often got angry and hit me when I had a fight with my sister. It was natural for me to cry when I was little, but I immediately got angry and hit. When I asked my mother why she didn't stop when she became an adult, she said in words that she...

4 responses

I can't sleep.

I think strength and weakness are the two extremes. Perhaps that's why they are often requested to give lectures, and they also receive medication and medical and welfare support. It may just be a coincidence, but the number of requests for lectures has increased dramatically so far. The...

4 responses

Attending a wake funeral

I'm always indebted to you. I have questions about attending funeral vigils, and I would like you to let me know. I think everything is a feeling, but in my case, the one that isn't that deep is my wife's wake They attended. That person had a husband and parents. I didn't know my parents, but...

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About suicide

I feel that people who think they have no purpose or meaning in life are the same as dying, but is suicide wrong as a means to die longer than living as a person? Is there any point in suicide?

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I want it because I can see it

Everything I wanted was traded at a high price a few years later. There is also the fact that the thing that stuck at that time was actually a rare item. Even if I narrowed it down within the last 10 years, everything that caught my eye and wanted had changed to something valuable that is...

4 responses

I've started a new job.

We have been indebted to you here since before. I decided to take the plunge and try out a new type of business. I wanted to focus on my work with a new feeling. It's been about half a month since I started working. It was much harder than I expected. It's fun, but learning new things this...

4 responses

My fortune teller told me that men can be seen.

It was last year when I had my fortune teller look at me. I was told, “There's a man behind you.” At that time, I thought it was someone who would protect me. But when I look back on my life, what if it's a ghost? That's what I thought. This is because there are 2 men who think it's unavoidable...

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The reason why ascetic monks are fat

There are a few wealthy ascetic monks, such as Eiheiji Temple and Sojiji Temple, but why is that? Aren't you going to lose weight?

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It's full of benefits, but somehow I don't like it

I'm always indebted to you. I was worried about what to do about the job I was about to apply for, and even though it was full of merits for me, I couldn't get rid of the feeling of “somehow disgusting,” so I asked a question. I'm in my fourth year as a part-time lecturer at a university, and...

4 responses

The power to have worries

Anyway, I have an anxious personality. I don't think it's possible to get rid of life and worries, so I'd like you to tell me how to expand the capacity to have worries and concerns and how to deal with them. If moles increase, you may despair if you have skin cancer, you will be terribly...

4 responses

My heart is hard even though it's my desired divorce

In April of this year, she said, “Even if I tell them I don't like it, my husband won't stop talking, and we can't have a proper discussion. We asked, “Should we continue our marital relationship as it is?” After that, we have been searching for a way to become a married couple by referring to...

4 responses

It made my boyfriend feel uneasy

I have a classmate boyfriend who is now a college student and we've been dating for almost 2 months. We met in the same department, and we always spend time together little by little on weekdays, and we go on a date about once a week for about half a day using our free time. So far, I think the...

4 responses

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