Message from the Bishop: “Awakening to Compassion in Turbulent Times”

Bishop Toshiyuki Umitani
February 2, 2026

Dear Dharma Friends,

Today, I write to you with a heavy heart. Mourning the tragic events in Minnesota caused by state-sanctioned violence and fear, I grieve the lives lost and the pain families and communities are experiencing, and I send thoughts of loving kindness and healing to all who are suffering injustice and abuse from unchecked power.

When Japanese and Japanese-American families were targeted because of race, national origin, and religion, stripped of their dignity, imprisoned without due process guaranteed by our Constitution, many chose to be silent. Will we remain silent in the face of injustice today?

Our world feels more divided than ever, and many of us wonder: Where is compassion today? Relentless images of violence, exclusion, and suffering leave us drained and hopeless. Walls—both seen and unseen—divide us from one another. We tend to include only those who agree with us, benefit us, or fit within familiar boundaries, and ignore, dismiss, and abuse or even harm others as if their lives do not matter. I am left wondering whose dignity truly matters.

During challenging times, Shinran Shonin’s teachings offer us a meaningful and grounding perspective on compassion. True compassion does not start with our own strength, goodness, or moral effort, but arises when we open ourselves to a compassion far greater than our own—the limitless compassion of Amida Buddha, the dynamic power of Awakening.

Realizing we are recipients of Great Compassion, our perspective shifts. Before experiencing this compassion, we may feel like we’re walking alone on a dark, uncertain path. But upon awakening to Amida Buddha’s compassion, we see that we are walking together with others, guided by a light that never abandons us.

Compassion is not something we are commanded to practice or compelled to produce—it naturally arises from gratitude. Saying Namo Amida Butsu is our way of showing appreciation—thank you for accepting me just as I am. Through true gratitude, we are gently guided to live with care, humility, and openness toward others. True gratitude forms the foundation for a more peaceful, humane, and just world.

When we look at our society today, we may feel discouraged by the lack of compassion we see around us. Yet Shinran Shonin’s teaching invites us to transcend despair by awakening to the compassion that already sustains us. From that awakening, we are moved to see others’ suffering as our own and to stand in solidarity with those in need.

Compassion is not a heroic act, but a way of being—rooted in gratitude, shaped by humility, and expressed through small, everyday encounters. Kind eyes, gentle words, a listening ear, a willingness to remain present with another’s pain are the natural expressions of gratitude in a life embraced by Great Compassion.

Especially in uncertain and turbulent times, may we continue to immerse ourselves in the compassion that flows within and through us. And may that compassion quietly, steadily, and sincerely manifest in our words, actions, and relationships.

Compassion is our beacon of hope as we navigate this dark and chaotic time. May we always find comfort and courage in Amida Buddha’s unwavering embrace.

Namo Amida Butsu,

Bishop Toshiyuki Umitani
Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii

Photo: Screen capture of Hawaii Betsuin’s Hoonko service Zoom recording on Jan. 18, 2026