Travels to Buddhist Sacred Sites in India and Sri Lanka: What I felt there when I was called to India

Travels to Buddhist Sacred Sites in India and Sri Lanka: What I felt there when I was called to India

In late August 2023, after the Obon season was over, I headed to India.

I am 33 years old and this is my first time in India....

I have studied religions of different countries and regions; in 2019 I embarked on a round-the-world trip on the theme "What is Religion?" and in 2022 on "Shinran and Dostoevsky" in Europe and the Caucasus.

And this 2023-2024, I planned my last trip abroad, to India.

In a way, this trip to India is the end point of my "journey through religions. Having studied various religions and cultures, my final destination must be India, the birthplace of Buddhism.

Yukio Mishima is said to have said before his death. He said, "There is always a natural time for each person to go to India. He also said that some people can go to India and others cannot, and that fateful karma determines when that time comes. (*From "To India" by Tadanori Yokoo)

Yukio Mishima's extraordinary interest in India wasYukio Mishima's "Impressions of India" - What did Mishima see and think during his trip to India in his later years? Strong influence on "The Sea of Fertility!"As I said in my article "I think exactly the same. India is not a place to go, but a place to be called."

I myself, in fact, just 10 years ago now.He was going to India.I was a sophomore in the graduate school of Kyoto Otani University at the time. I was a sophomore in the graduate school of Kyoto Otani University at the time, and was scheduled to visit Buddhist sites in India as part of a university study tour. However, the day before my departure, my grandmother suddenly passed away and I had to cancel the trip.

Looking back, I guess I was truly "not called to India" at that time. For some reason, I found myself nodding deeply through my grandmother's funeral, saying, "Now is not the time to go. Since then, I had the feeling that "I must go to India someday," but the opportunity to do so had not presented itself.

But finally, the time was ripe.

In the spring of 2023, my research on "Shinran and Dostoevsky" came to a close, and I finally moved on to my main focus, Buddhist studies. And, on a personal note, the last year in which I could move freely was about to begin here. And if so, it was now or never. This would be my last trip. This would be my last trip to India.

However, I must come clean here.

I didn't want to go to India, I didn't want to go to India.

Huh?" You may think, "What?" but this is what I really think...even now, after three trips, I still think, "I don't want to go back there again" (laughs).

But I also think, "I am sure I will be called back to India. I am sure I will be called back to India.

I hate India and I love it. Whether you like it or not, there is still something about India.

For me, these three trips to India are truly "I didn't want to go, but I was called" trips.

Is it really interesting to read a travelogue about India, where I was called to even though I didn't want to go? You may be thinking, "How interesting is this travelogue about India? India was interesting after all! There were so many things that I am not sure what I am going to write about. The sights I saw were still shocking. And since I say "I don't want to go there again," I have a feeling that this will be a travelogue with a strange temperature (laugh).

Let us now begin the main part of the travelogue.

Next Article.

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