Photo: Wikipedia/Shigeru-a24
lifestyle

Japanese monks want to create new temple…in space

9 Comments
By Casey Baseel, SoraNews24

In a lot of ways, Kyoto’s Daigoji is a quintessential Japanese temple. Located in the city’s Fushimi ward, it was founded in 874 and features such classical elements as a Benten altar in the middle of a pond and a five-story pagoda, which is one of the oldest structures in the city and designated as a national treasure by the Japanese government.

ST-1.jpg
Photo: Gounji

Daigoji’s status as a UNESCO World Heritage site doesn’t mean it’s stuck in the past, though, and for its newest initiative the 1,100-plus-year-old institution is heading into outer space.

Daigoji will be establishing a new temple with the help of Terra Space, a Kyoto-based satellite research and development company. The space temple will share space with an IoT communications satellite, with about half of its interior space dedicated to carrying Buddhist imagery, a mandala, and other religious items in low orbit, circling the earth once every 90 minutes at an altitude of around 450 kilometers.

▼ A diagram of the planned space temple

ST-3.jpg
Photo: Gounji

The new temple will be called Jotenin Gounji, with joten meaning “pure heaven” and the kanji characters for goun relating to Buddhist concepts about the flow of time and existence of humanity (in and ji both indicate a temple).

On Feb 8, Daigoji will be holding its first “space prayer ceremony,” praying for peace and safety as mankind continues to head out beyond the bounds of the earth. Future iterations will feature images broadcast from the Jotenin Gounji satellite, which is projected to be launched into orbit sometime in 2023.

Source: Gounji via IT Media

Read more stories from SoraNews24.

-- Kyoto treasures hidden by snow: You won’t want to miss this beautiful temple【Photos】

-- Terahaku aims to be the Airbnb of Japanese temples

-- Buddhist temple singles parties: The enlightened way to find a romantic partner

© SoraNews24

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

9 Comments
Login to comment

Good idea but, everybody on earth isn't buddist..

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Sounds good to me.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

If life ever takes off on another planet, let religion bear left behind. The biggest cause of war throughout history.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Japan, purest Buddhist country, unlike other Buddhist country where there are mixed of Chrisitian and Muslim.

I wonder how the Tantra Mantra sounds like in the space.

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

So, not only do we get the, er, benefits of the military in space (space force) but now we get religion, as well.

Great idea. Weapons and religion. I mean, it's worked on Earth, right?

Soon to be available in orbit, at a space station near you...

0 ( +1 / -1 )

The biggest cause of war throughout history.

I'm not sure about that. World War 2, Three Kingdoms War, and the Mongol Invasions are said to be the biggest wars in terms of deaths, and it's hard to find a religious cause. I'd say humanity is the biggest cause of war, so perhaps best to leave us humans behind and let some other species lead the space race. Rabbits maybe.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites