A BUDDHIST CEREMONY.
When the priest of Shinto had bowed before the shrine and the last
offering had been made, the soldiers marched away. But the service
for the dead was not ended. Out of the little sacristy came a priest
in robes of shimmering silk, and placed upon the altar flowers and a
censer. The pine branches were removed, and, behold, the sanctury of
the Sun Goddess became the shrine of Buddha. There was a time within
the memory of men still young when they were worshipped in the same
temple, for the Chinese missionaries who entered Japan in the Sixth
Century accepted the Shinto deities as avatars or incarnations of
Buddha, and the two faiths were so fused that the number of pure
Shintoists and pure Buddhists was very small. By its doctrine and by
its ritual Buddhism appeals to the heart and conscience, and for many
generations it was the popular religion. But with the restoration of
the Emperor the position was changed. If Japan had to adopt a foreign
civilisation, she had, at any rate, a religion that was indigenous, and
suited to the political conditions of the moment. Shinto proclaimed
the divine origin of the Emperor, and its doctrine was implicit
obedience to his decrees. Therefore, Shinto was made the national
religion, and the temples were cleansed of idols and incense and
gorgeous vestments.
The priest gave no heed to the soldiers, who moved away company
after company, and squadron after squadron, until there remained
near the sanctuary only the officers of the staff and the foreign
_attachés_. The Shinto priests stood on the right of the altar,
silent and reverent spectators. Making obeisance to the shrine the
priest recited the prayer invoking the presence of Buddha, while an
assistant, who acted as precentor, muttered the responses. Then the
priest drew near to the altar, and, taking in the fingers of his right
hand some fragments of incense, dropped them into the censer, out of
which arose a tiny cloud of white vapour. Thrice he made this offering,
and, retiring three steps, took from the folds of his green and purple
silk robes a scroll, from which he read:--
“On this the 19th day of June, in the 37th year of the Meiji, I,
Nagao Reirzu, a Priest of Buddha, despatched by the Central Homgwanji
(Temple) and attached to the Second Division of the First Japanese
Army, set up a shrine at the foot of Mount Teisan, outside the walls
of Feng-hoang-cheng, invoking the presence of Buddha and offering
incense and flowers in order that he may comfort the noble spirits of
the loyal and gallant soldiers who fell in the battle of the Yalu.
His Imperial Majesty, our august sovereign, has sought peace by every
art of civilisation and has striven to cultivate the friendship of
civilised nations since the early days of the Meiji era. His efforts
have been especially directed to securing the peace and happiness
of the East by guiding and aiding the countries of China and Korea.
But Russia, insolent and ravenous, taking advantage of the weak and
defying the strong, has trampled justice under foot and has departed
from righteousness. To gratify her greed for territory her troops have
overflowed the plains of Manchuria and Korea. The sins of Russia have
offended Buddha and the gods and have caused our sovereign to issue his
Imperial decree proclaiming war. Thus we come to cross swords with her.
You, precious souls, bore many hardships and privations after leaving
your native land. Difficulties of every kind confronted you. Yet amidst
these trials you did your duty and won the admiration of all who were
witnesses of your noble sacrifice. At last the moment came for the
clash of arms. Shielded behind defences strengthened by nature and art,
the enemy confronted you. Without hesitation you braved the dangers
of shot and shell and charged onward against lines of bayonets until
the enemy’s forts were captured and Chiu-lien-cheng was won--thereby
achieving an unparalleled feat of arms in the eyes of the world. Such
brilliant exploits are to be ascribed chiefly to the virtues and grace
of his Imperial Majesty, but your strength and your self-sacrifice in
the interests of your country did much toward securing the victory.
Alas! you have fallen in battle: shot and shell did not spare you
because of these noble qualities. When my thoughts turn to the field
of that great fight my flesh burns and my senses grow faint. But man
is mortal: the living shall die: those who meet shall part: such is
the law of life. Who can escape the clutches of death: death steals
into every man’s home. But you leave behind you a name that shall be a
glory to your parents. You are good sons and brave men whose dauntless
deeds will inspire with a strong sense of loyalty all who read the
story of your death. Noble men and gallant soldiers! The destiny of a
nation rested upon your shoulders. You knew how to die: you have done
your duty as loyal subjects and dutiful sons and have manifested that
spirit of self-sacrifice and of unflinching bravery which are among
the beautiful traits of the Japanese character. Your deeds shall be an
example to generations to come. Your name shall ring through the groves
of time as long as the waters of the Yalu flow toward eternity. Your
fame will never die: it will be eternal as the snow on the summit of
Fujiyama. This knowledge will console you for the sacrifice you have
made for your native land. In our Buddhist philosophy loyalty, truth,
filial love and fraternity are counted chief among the graces and the
root of all god-like work. By sincerity one may enter the temple of
stoicism and by love one may dwell in the realm of perpetual peace.
These are the workings of the natural law. From the secular point
of view your death was noble: from the philosophic point of view it
was grand. I recite the sublime words of Buddha, burning incense with
sincerity that I may appeal to Buddha and the gods seated amidst the
coloured clouds above and to the gods who are in the depths of the
earth, invoking their protection, and in order that I may offer to your
souls a taste of the Manna of Heaven.”
If you will contrast this sermon, instinct with patriotism and the
destiny of man, with the formal and uninspired words of the Shinto
priest you will understand something of the difference between the
Shinto and Buddhist religions. After the sermon came the reading of
the Sacred Books, and then the offering of incense by the officers
and _attachés_. Each in his turn strode into the sanctury, stood
by the side of the priest, raised his hand to salute the shrine, and
stepping forward dropped a fragment into the censer until its fires
were smothered and the thin cloud of vapour vanished. General Nishi,
as Commander of the Second Division, was the first to make this
offering to the spirits of his dead comrades, and after him came Prince
Kunni, with other members of the Staff, and finally General Sir Ian
Hamilton with his colleagues.