For months, I’ve had on my to-do list to go and fix up the Wikipedia article about the nembutsu (or nian-fo in Chinese). I had started contributing to that article way back in 2006 shortly after I first got interested in Pure Land Buddhism, and occasionally update or add details. The article was flagged forContinue reading “Take Two: What Is the Nembutsu?”
Category Archives: Language
Chinese versus Japanese Character Readings
Way back in high school, like most American kids, I had to study things like Spanish, French, etc. I took German for two years in high school, but I didn’t find it very interesting, and I didn’t like my teacher very much. So, I never put in much effort. Later, one of my friends toldContinue reading “Chinese versus Japanese Character Readings”
Basic Japanese Particles, Part 2
In our last episode, we talked about some basic, fundamental particles used in the Japanese language. Today, we’ll cover some other, essential particles: “ni” に, “de” で, “yo” よ, and “ne” ね. The first two are often required for parts of speech, but the second two are often used to provide “flavor” or “nuance” toContinue reading “Basic Japanese Particles, Part 2”
Concentration, or Lack Thereof
This is me, most of the time. I am the sort of person who is bad with names. I recently met some new neighbors, and they told me their names, and I made a point of remembering those names, but 5 minutes later, I had already forgotten one of them. In the early Buddhist sutras,Continue reading “Concentration, or Lack Thereof”
Basic Japanese Particles, Part 1
Japanese, as a language, isn’t really all that hard to learn, especially if you know the Golden Rules, but compared to English, it’s quite different. This means that you have to unlearn English ways of expressing things, and start from the ground-up. A good place to start is to learn the common particles used in Japanese. I’veContinue reading “Basic Japanese Particles, Part 1”
My JLPT N1 Test Results for 2023
I finally got my results back from the JPLT N1 exam I took in December 2023, and the results were not surprising. I failed, as expected. However, the results were not what I expected: Category Results Vocab / grammar 28 / 60 (pass) Reading 7 / 60 (not pass) Listening 26 / 60 (pass) TotalContinue reading “My JLPT N1 Test Results for 2023”
Failing the JLPT
So, I took the JLPT N1 exam last weekend, and unless I got lucky, I am fairly certain I failed the test. Wait, you might be thinking, didn’t I give up on the test this year? Well, yes and no. I did become discouraged and stopped studying for a few months. But after spending theContinue reading “Failing the JLPT”
Buddhist Sanskrit Basics
Hello Dear Readers, This is another reference post. I noticed that one of my most popular posts is the entry on a Buddhist chant called the Mantra of Light, and there’s multiple ways to read and recite it depending on what language you choose. Anyhow, it made me realize that there’s a big knowledge gapContinue reading “Buddhist Sanskrit Basics”
Kyoto and Nara Dialects
While visiting Kyoto and Nara recently, I started to pick up on some differences in Japanese language that took me a bit off-guard. I am not fluent in Japanese, but I consider myself functional (i.e. “good enough”), and since my wife is from the Kanto region around Tokyo, I’ve gotten used to Tokyo-style Japanese. IContinue reading “Kyoto and Nara Dialects”
Little by Little
Hello from Japan! The family and I staying with family again, and boy I forgot how hot and humid the summers are. It’s currently the monsoon season (梅雨, tsuyu) so it rains a lot, and even indoors it’s hot and sticky without A/C. This is also the season of the Rains Retreat in Buddhist JapanContinue reading “Little by Little”
Gleanings in Buddha-Fields 