Tendai Buddhist Home Liturgy Example

Greetings readers! I have had a bit of extra time this week due to much-needed time off from work, and have been going through old projects, half-finished blog posts and such. One project I found today, which I decided to finish, was post a romaji (Romanized Japanese) version of the Tendai Buddhist home liturgy for anyone who needs it.

The Tendai sect in Japan has a nice homepage (Google Translated page), but almost nothing in English for doing the home service. Tendai information in English is pretty scattered (though there are some great websites),¹ so I decided to go back to the source, and just translate it directly using romaji (romanized Japanese) for easy pronunciation.

Some quick notes:

1. I chose the shortest, simplest elements of the service, based on Tendai’s recommendation in the link above, and also through the book うちのお寺は天台宗 (双葉文庫) which I picked up some years ago. There’s a more extended version of the home service, but both the book and website explain that the essentials are the following elements that I am posting below.
2. Where possible, I chose to use the Sino-Japanese pronunciation. The website above lists both, and either option is fine (obviously English is fine too). The Sino-Japanese version, in my opinion, is the easiest to pronounce and chant, and ties back to the larger Buddhist tradition, so that’s my personal preference. The YouTube videos on the Tendai site sometimes provide an alternate native, liturgical Japanese version, and it’s perfectly fine to use this too.
3. Finally, traditions and liturgical styles vary, so don’t be surprised if another Tendai community does it differently. If in doubt, just do it like your local community does.

The webpage also lists some tips (roughly translated below):

• First, before you begin, double-check the offerings at your home altar make sure everything is in order: flowers, water, a candle,² and any other offerings you wanted to make.
• Before the service, take a moment to freshen up, rinse your mouth and hands with water, etc. That way, you can sit before the altar in a more purified state.
• Drape any rosary you have over your left hand, and if you are holding a sutra book, lift it up gently and bow ever so slightly.³
• When you do gassho, put your hands together in front of your chest at a natural angle (45 degrees is common based on personal experience).
• When chanting, use a mild, even chanting voice, enunciating each word equally. (If you feel like you don’t chant as well as the video links, don’t feel bad: these are professional monks chanting.)
• If you have a bell, there are certain times to ring it: twice at the beginning, once after reading each part, and three times at the end. (I’ve added prompts to the liturgy below.)
• When done, close the Buddhist altar (if possible), and place the sutra book back on its stand.
• Lastly, the book in particular mentions that any Buddhist sutra is OK to recite. The most common one is obviously the Heart Sutra, but any other Buddhist sutra, or an excerpt of a sutra, is fine too. Find what you like, and feel free to recite that.

Minimal Tendai Buddhist Home Liturgy

The service provided below is given as an example home service, but my book on Tendai Buddhism also states that among these different bits of liturgy, you can add or reduce as many as you see fit. Even if you only recite one bit of liturgy per day, that’s enough. The important thing is to make it sustainable. You can always adjust later if it’s too simple or too difficult.

Sanrai: Gratitude Toward the Three Treasures

(ring twice)

Ish-shin cho rai jip-po ho kai jo ju san bo

(repeat 3 times, ring once)

“I reverently praise the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, which permeate the cosmos”

Youtube: https://youtu.be/JDZXXPFaQzg

Sangémon: Renunciation of One’s Past Transgressions

Ga shaku sho zo sho aku go-
Kai yu mu shi ton jin chi
Ju shin go i shi sho sho
Issai ga kon kai san ge

(ring once)

(See this post for more details)

Youtube (alternate version): https://youtu.be/WfNzd44EIZI

Shiguseigan: The Four Bodhisattva Vows

Shu jo mu hen sei gan do
Bon no mu hen sei gan dan
Ho mon mu ryo sei gan chi
Mu jo bo dai sei gan sho

(ring once)

(See this post for more details)

Youtube (alternate version): https://youtu.be/HbMQQs7GiW0

Sutra Chanting

Note: both my book and the website state that any sutra in the Buddhist canon (or excerpt of a sutra) is OK to recite. Popular choices include:

• The Heart Sutra
• The verse section of the Lotus Sutra, 2nd chapter (hobenpon in Japanese)
• The verse section of the Lotus Sutra, 16th chapter (jigagé in Japanese)
• The Kannon Sutra, which is the verse section of the Lotus Sutra, 25th chapter.
  • There is an even shorter version called the “Ten Verse Kannon Sutra”.
• The verse section of the Immeasurable Life Sutra
• The Amitabha Sutra

For Japanese Buddhism, simply reciting the sutra without any other liturgy is a perfectly acceptable home practice, by the way.

Daishi Hogo: Homage to the Founder of Tendai, Saicho

Namu shuso konpon dengyo daishi fukuju kongo

(repeat 3 times, ring once)

“Homage to the founder, Master Saicho”

Youtube (alternate version): https://youtu.be/0OoTMvXQpL8

Ekomon: Dedication of Merit to All Sentient Beings

Gan ni shi ku do ku
Fu gyu o is-sai
Ga to yo shu jo
Kai gu jo butsu do

(ring three times)

(See this post for more details)

Youtube: https://youtu.be/Z_j1cTE6JCQ

End of Service

Thanks everyone and I hope you find it useful. I will likely post updates and corrections as time goes on.

Namu amida butsu
Namu kanzeon bosatsu

¹ There are, from what I can see from a cursory search, a number of Tendai communities in both the US and the UK. If you’d like to know more, I encourage you to contact such communities. I have no affiliation with any of these groups, however. I am just DIY.

² Japan also sells LED Buddhist altar candles. Halloween goods also offer LED candles. Great for avoiding fire hazards.

³ This custom is also found in other Japanese-Buddhist sects as a gesture of humility.