Musical Instruments and Buddhist Ritual
Instruments such as percussion, strings, and flutes
have always been a part of the Buddhist tradition. Of the many musical
instruments that have played a role in the Buddhist tradition percussion
instruments is the most notable. Traditional Buddhist temples, for
example, all have a large Temple bell or gong. Even within the shrine or
altar area one is certain to find a relatively large gong near where the
officiant sits. Temples may also have a smaller, flatter, brass gong
called a sawari in their altar areas. Some temples may even have a drum
(taiko in Japanese) ornately decorated on a stand. At major gatherings,
it is not unlikely to hear gongs and cymbals used to introduce the
Sutra. The use of musical instruments, such as the taiko, is, therefore,
common to the Buddhist tradition.
The early beginnings of Buddhist
Taiko
Because musical instruments have had such an important
role in the Buddhist tradition, especially as it relates to the ritual,
an ambitious ten day retreat was held at the San Luis Obispo Temple in
the early 1970s. The American Buddhist Taiko groups that sprang out
throughout the United States owe its beginning as an offshoot of this
program.
Although American Buddhist Taiko has become very
popular, the retreat was originally criticized because it did not
necessarily limit itself to Jodo Shinshu. Despite this initial
criticism, however, the program was able to attract over fifty people of
all ages. The retreat was held over a period of ten days in August.
The basic retreat program consisted of the following
events. The day was started with a sitting and walking meditation that
began at 6:00 a.m. This meditation session began with twenty minutes of
sitting. After the first twenty minutes everyone rose from their seats
and walked around the Dojo while chanting the sutras. Each word of the
sutras was chanted deliberately and everyone walked slowly in unison
until they returned to their original seats. When everyone returned to
their seats, this was continued by the second meditation sitting.
Because Jodo Shinshu does not include meditative
sitting as part of its practice or ritual, outside expertise was
necessary to conduct this part of the retreat. This expertise was
provided by a Rinzai Zen Roshi. Because of the presence of a Zen Roshi,
the meditation sitting sessions included training in the proper sitting
posture as well as having the Master strike you on the shoulders
whenever you became tired or began to slouch.
Following the meditation session, everyone
participated in helping to clean the temple. As in the monastery, it was
the individual's responsibility to decide what and where to clean; no
direction was given to the participants. Other responsibilities of the
retreat participants included the preparation of meals assigned to the
different work groups, the cleaning and straightening out of one’s
sleep area, and attendance to all services and workshops. After
breakfast, a gong was sounded to mark the beginning of the morning
session. The morning sessions began with the chanting of sutras.
Although sutras are chanted at all Buddhist Churches of America (BCA)
temples, the sutras chanted during the retreat included many that are
not familiar to most members of the BCA. These services were held every
morning, late afternoon, and evening. After concluding the service, a
two hour lecture was given by the ministers in attendance. Following the
lecture discussions were held.
Other activities during the day included recreational
activities such as flower arrangement, tea ceremony, archery, aikido,
tai chi, and taiko. The taiko portion of the program consisted of two
home made drums and under the direction of John Mori, now of the musical
group "Hiroshima," George Abe, and a few others the retreat
participants were able to get a feel for taiko.
