At Ganshuji temple in the coastal city of Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, resident monk Souou Iwayama has made a practice of change.
During the pandemic, he introduced an online zazen (seated meditation) service as companies shifted to remote work and transformed the temple cemetery into one centered on 箩耻尘辞办耻蝉艒, a form of burial in which cremated remains are interred beneath trees, shrubs or flowers rather than a stone monument requiring expensive upkeep.
When Iwayama took over management of the temple several years ago, it relied on just four danka (parishioner households) for support. Today, more than 550 families use Ganshuji鈥檚 burial plots 鈥� helping to rebuild its finances and broaden its parish base amid wider demographic decline.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.