Two Trips in Search of the Buddha: A Trip Through the Inland Sea and a Walk Around the Island of Shikoku

Come with me as I travel through Japan in search of the Buddha and the Buddhist ethic. Ever since my first visit to Japan in 1962 I have been fascinated by Japanese culture. To date I have made twenty trips to Japan. I began exploring museums and temples where I visited some of the most beautiful and spectacular art work of the Japanese religions. Looking at some of the Buddhist art work in temples and museums I developed a gripping need to learn more about what I was viewing. I had an eagerness in reading about Buddhism and consumed many books on the subject. I decided to pursue Buddhist terachings by traveling through Japan and partaking in the culture. The first trip, in 1981, was a journey back and forth across the Inland Sea during which I encountered many people who explained the Buddhist religion to me. Ten years later in 1991, I made a pilgrimage by walking halfway around the Island of Shikoku stopping at 42 of the 88 temples built by the monk Kukai. It was here I met many pilgrims and temple monks who continued my Buddhist education. These two trips were important preliminary components of my life of a practicing Buddhist. - Albert Shansky