The Samurai Museum for Motivation and Meditation is under development in one of the most sought-after locations in Japan and expected to be launched for the 2020 Olympics. The Collection will boast rare Samurai artifacts and spiritual objects to help today's demographics find inspirational and motivational techniques to deal with all of life's battles.

 

Main Practices: Prayer and Chanting in Sanskrit, Sutra Study, Meditation, Dharanis, Martial Arts and the Bodhisattva Initiative which supports projects to empower victims of child abuse, homelessness, mental & physical disabilities and caste oppression.

 

Main Activities: Research and Publishing, Art Exhibits, Feature Films, Charitable works and Speaking Engagements to make Buddhism relatable to the mainstream.

 

Museum Collection: The Samurai Museum will house one of the world's largest collections of Samurai art and artifacts and has curated the largest Asian Art Exhibit ever held in Canada - inaugurated by the Hon. Minister of Immigration and attended by the Consul Generals of India and Japan as well as the Lt. Governor and Head of the Royal Ontario Museum. The Samurai Museum has also been visited by the new Lt. Governor and Head of the Royal Ontario Museum as well as the Premier of Ontario and curated an Exhibit on the spirirtuality of Mahatma Gandhi and Rosa Parks at the Parliament of World's Religions. Here are a few highlights of the collection that has been compared to the Metropolitan Museum and British Museum by the Indian Express.

 

1] From India: Ancient stupas over 2300 years old with the supremely sacred relics of the historic Buddha and one of the world's oldest footprints of the Shakyamuni. Our collection also houses some of the earliest Buddhist statuary from Gandhara - 2nd century BCE to 2nd century CE that influenced all Buddhist art since. Several pieces depict the life stories of Buddha as seen in the Bimaran and Kanishka caskets of the British Museum. The collection also includes the original Sanskrit manuscripts of important Buddhist sutras including the Lotus Sutra and Amitabha Sutra while the highly important Avalokiteshvara from Zenji's own temples is housed at the Indian Museum. There are also works of famous Indians who venerated the Buddha including Gandhi, Vivekananda and the Tagore family with rare antiquities of India's National Emblem.

 

2] From Japan: The world's oldest extant publication which happens to be of the Amitabha Sutra with provenance dating back to Prince Shotoku's family and one of the world's longest Amitabha Sutras from the 17th century as well as a rare Taima Mandala of Amitabha's Paradise. There is also one of the oldest Lotus Sutras dated to the 12th century Kamakura similar to the Kyoto Museum - an important work that was used for the protection of Japan. There are also rare gold-leaf statues of Kannon and Nio from 12th century Kamakura Japan - similar to the Maitreya housed at the Royal Ontario Museum and a Gold-leaf statue of Amitabha from the school of Japan's all-time greatest sculptor Unkei.  The musem also keeps original manuscripts and artworks by Japan's most influential monks from Shinran and Nichiren to Hakuin Zenji, Takuan Soho & Ikkyo Sojun. Furthermore, the collection includes rare Samurai memorabilia including original works by Miyamoto Musashi and Toyotomi Hideyoshi as well as  Hokusai and Sesshu who inspired Europe's greatest artists.

 

3] From China: One of the world's largest wall-paintings of Amitabha's Paradise and one of the world's longest illustated artworks of the Lotus Sutra - the most widely chanted scripture worldwide reflecting on the Almighty God Kannon/ Kuan Yin who is worshiped by the majority of Japanese and Chinese communities worldwide. There is also one of the world's longest scrolls depicting the great Buddhist monks of China and one of the longest antique thangkas from Tibet in pure gold as well as original scrolls from the actual Shaolin Temple where Bodhidharma founded the Shaolin order of monks.

 

4] Other works: The Collection includes an original calligraphy by Dharmapala Anagarika of Sri Lanka and one of the oldest artworks of Buddha as Jaganatha - the Lord of the Universe. The Collection also boasts what is perhaps the world's largest collection of artworks depicting Bodhidharma - the founder of Shaolin Kung Fu and Patron of the Samurai. All works are used for research and exhibitions in order to bring back a sense of cultural and scriptural authenticity to Buddhism and the spirirtuality of the Samurai while correcting the  myths and misrepresentations by many Western authors.