Sunshine through frosted temple windows cast a soft light on Alice Omura's gatha book, "Praises of the Buddha." As Omura sang the gatha (hymn), "Becoming Free," her expression was a vision of serenity.

The Kailua resident, 79, stood flanked by her two grandchildren and her daughter during a recent Buddhist service at the Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin along the Pali Highway in Nu'uanu, one of 36 temples statewide of Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii.

"That makes me happy," Omura said of her family's presence at the service. "We always wanted to have everyone join us here and I'm glad that they feel that it's a part of them too."

Omura and her family are among thousands of Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii members preparing for festivities to observe two significant milestones: the 750th anniversary of the passing of the group's Japanese founder, Shinran Shonin, and the 120th anniversary of the foundation of the mission in Hawai'i.

The memorial commemoration and anniversary celebration culminates with events from Sept. 2 through 12, highlighted by a visit from the spiritual head of the Jodo Shin Buddhist denomination, His Eminence Monshu Koshin Ohtani and his wife Lady Noriko Ohtani. Monshu Ohtani is a direct descendant of the founder.

The observance has two parts, said the Rev. Thomas R. Okano, bishop of Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii: Members reflect on the past and express gratitude toward their predecessors, while also looking forward to the future.

With a membership of some 7,500 families statewide, Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii is the largest Buddhist group in the state. Okano said membership counts have held steady in recent years. Still, leaders endeavor to remain relevant, continue an active role in the community and appeal to the younger generation.

Among Okano's immediate goals is to expand facilities of its high school, Pacific Buddhist Academy, the first Shin Buddhist high school in the United States and outside Japan. Long-term plans will allow Honpa Hongwanji to widen its reach from 68 students to an ultimate tally of 240.

"The youth are the future of any organization," Okano said. "We have to have our youngsters exposed to the teaching of Buddhism and able to face the world based on the teachings of the Buddha."

HONGWANJI HISTORY

Following a recent Sunday service, Rose Nakamura's gentle stare drifted past rows of pews before her as she recalled what the Hongwanji has meant to her over the years.

"A lot of thought goes back to World War II, when I was growing up in Hilo ... and my uncle, who lived right next door to us, was interned," Nakamura, 81, began after a long pause. "That meant bringing both families with 11 girls together and being part of the Buddhist temple was important for us, for spiritual comfort."

A seventh-grader in intermediate school at the time, the St. Louis Heights resident remembers how all temples were closed down because of the "Japanese connection," she said. But that didn't stop families from worshipping.

"We always had a small Buddhist altar at home, so you didn't have to go to church because you had an altar," she said. "We were raised to always put our hands together and to pay respect to the Buddha."

Nakamura also recalled the tsunami that hit Hilo on May 23, 1960, killing 61 people. Among the casualties was Nakamura's aunt, who lived next door to her parents.

"I had to go to the morgue ... to identify her," Nakamura said, her voice quivering. "It took me a year to get over going into the morgue and that whole picture. So going to church was very, very important for me."

For more than a century, the Hongwanji and Shin Buddhist faith have been essential to generations of followers — in times of sorrow or celebration, hardships or prosperity, and during everyday life.

The beginning of the Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii is marked by the arrival of the Rev. Soryu Kagahi. Kagahi, the first Hongwanji minister, came to Hawai'i in March 1889 to minister to the religious needs of Japanese immigrants and to share the teachings of Shakamuni Buddha and Shinran Shonin.

"Since then, the ministers and their spouses, and the devoted members and supporters made countless unselfish contributions and efforts to unify all followers of Hongwanji, and to promote the perpetuation and better understanding of our teachings here in Hawai'i," said the Rev. Koho Takata, general chair of the double commemoration.

Shinran Shonin, who lived in Japan from 1173 to 1262, developed and spread teachings for human liberation that is the basis for Jodo Shin Buddhism. The teachings call for people's awakening to Amida Buddha's wisdom, compassion and expressions of joy in the assurance of Buddhahood.

FOCUS ON COMMUNITY

Kiana Tom, 12, grinned shyly as her mother talked about the tween's volunteer efforts as a mere preschooler.

Kiana and her mother, Charlyne Tom, 50, of Waipi'o, both Hongwanji members, spent several years as volunteers for Project Dana, a coalition of churches and temples that offer social support to frail, home-bound elders, family caregivers, and disabled people.

"What one can give from the heart, that's the most important thing, no matter what faith you are," said longtime member Nakamura, who helped found Project Dana in 1989.

Kiana, now an eighth-grader at Hongwanji Mission School — about the same age Nakamura was during World War II — played games with seniors at daycares and playfully nudged them to participate in exercises as a youth volunteer.

"We would spend our Wednesdays with our 'grandmas' and 'grandpas,' she used to call them," said Charlyne Tom, who is Alice Omura's daughter.

Project Dana serves about 1,000 clients statewide. It is sponsored by Moiliili Hongwanji Mission, which is part of Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii.

"A central Buddhist value is compassion for all living beings, and it is therefore typical for temples to serve the larger community, as well as its own members," said George J. Tanabe Jr., professor emeritus in the University of Hawai'i's department of religion. "Project Dana ... is a good example."

Generally, however, there are few programs that are directed outwardly to the whole community, said Alfred Bloom, emeritus professor of religion at UH.

"The Hongwanji tends primarily to serve its own members, as is true of other Buddhist denominations," he said.

Younger members who are more socially involved are showing more interest in participating in peace and other social service activities in the public sphere, Bloom noted.

"Gradually, the social engagement of the Hongwanji is growing, and will continue to grow as our youth take up the heritage of their predecessors and their positions in society," Bloom said.

FUTURE OF THE FAITH

Dressed in a white polo shirt and jeans, Andrew Tom, 15, towered over Omura, his grandmother, and stood out as one of the youngest of more than 100 worshippers at a recent service.

As a sophomore at Pacific Buddhist Academy, the Hongwanji's high school, Andrew and his classmates will participate in several commemoration events. School officials are exploring creative, nontraditional ways for students to give praises to the Buddha, such as inserting taiko drumming with chants.

"We are a high school and we need to be ready, willing and bold enough to develop ways of praising the Buddha and expressing our gratitude that appeals, excites and draws in teens," said Pieper Toyama, the academy's head of school. "If we did it the old way, without any changes, for us it's ignoring what teenagers are all about."

Catering to the next generation is a high priority for Hongwanji leaders.

Mission goals for the coming years include expanding Pacific Buddhist Academy. Established in 2003, the high school serves nearly 70 students — who need not be Buddhist or members of Honpa Hongwanji — in classrooms that were former dormitories at Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin.

"We are at capacity in buildings that were not designed for education," Toyama said.

New school facilities will be built behind the main temple. They are slated for completion in 2012.

The bigger high school will serve 120 Buddhist and non-Buddhist students; the long-term goal is to double that number.

"In 120 years from now or 10 years from now, if we have our graduates finding their way in the world with that kind of (Buddhist) consciousness, then we will have achieved our reason for starting this school and continuing this school," Toyama said.

It's important for the younger generation to carry on the Buddhist teachings and traditions, Andrew Tom said: "It's been an important part of our lives and we shouldn't let it die."