March 10 and March 11

As you may know, we have some members from Japan.  One of them once told me a very shocking event that she experienced Bombing of Tokyo, called ", Tōkyōdaikūshū" in March 10, 1945 when she was a child.  

At the time of War, US Army Air Forces conducted series of firebombing raids on Japan, but the Bombing of Tokyo on March 10 was the biggest.  It killed nearly 100,000 people and over a million residents lost their homes in a day.   I think everybody knows about Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but I'm afraid they don't know this carpet bombing.   I didn't realize such a big damage until she told me.

She said she was one of them who lost homes all of a sudden after the bombing.  She could have complaints to the US.  She could have a feeling of hate.  But she just smiled and wondered how her family was able to survive with no home, no belongings and no money.   

This morning, a Japanese saying came up to my mind. 

It's "Tsumi wo Nikunde, Hito wo Nikumazu" which literally means , "Do hate the sin, but do not hate people."   

Interestingly, there are similar sayings in English such as "Condemn the offense, but pity the offender" or "Hate not the person but the vice" which seemed to derive from the Bible.   And as you may know, Mahatma Gandhi left even more compassionate saying, "Hate the sin, love the sinner."

Japan and US were once hostile countries.  However these sayings above must have played an important role for both Japanese and American to build a good relationship. 

I do believe these saying will be more and more important for all of us in order to achieve a peace in the world.

Last but not least, I want to pray for all the victims of the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami which happened exactly four years ago.

Namu Amida Butsu