Byodo-In Temple
maluhia = Peace
After being here for 6 weeks or so, we finally had a truly overcast day. A tropical storm was blowing a couple hundred miles south of us, and even in very dry, breezy Hawaii Kai, it was cloudy. Troy and I decided to take advantage of the ambiance and check out one of the many cultural attractions on our list, the Byodo-In Temple. This non-practicing Japanese Buddhist temple sits peacefully in a valley within the Ko’olau Mountains. It rains often in this lush, tropical part of the island. The mist you can see in the background is common for the interior mountains.
The first thing to do when entering this lovely, sacred space is to ring the giant bell or “bon-sho” and allow the resonance to clear your mind.
It’s over six feet tall and weighs over seven tons but as you can see, my super strength has no problem with it.
The interior of the temple has only one public space, which is almost entirely taken up by this beautifully serene Buddha statue.
The most enjoyable part of the experience for us, though, was strolling the grounds and enjoying the flora and fauna. We bought food from the gift shop and spent a long time feeding the koi.
As we left Byodo-In, we played Tibetan bells and chants on the drive through the mystical terrain of Highway 3 and decided that we’ll set the mood for our visitors this way as well when the temple is on their tour 🙂
We wrapped up the evening with all-you-can-eat sushi at Kan’s in Waikiki. (Sushi was good, not great, but the value is superb!) All in all, a wonderful Japanese-inspired day!
