Saturday 18th February 2023, 11:30am, we celebrated Susana Kumagai's Mitra Ceremony, Tokyo.

Becoming a Mitra in Triratna is making a commitment to the Buddhist Path.

Commitment, because in life, what we get out of it depends on what we put in. Particularly in the spiritual life.

You will probably have noticed this in your meditation practice, to take just one example. If we sit down to meditate without fully committing ourselves to the practice, we are likely to drift and daydream. But when we sit down to meditate with decisiveness and confidence, we set up the conditions that allow something positive to unfold.

What is true of meditation is true of life in general. To get the full benefit of the teachings of the Dharma especially, we need to practise them wholeheartedly, and wholeheartedness can only come from decisiveness and confidence.

So making a definite commitment of the sort required to become a Mitra - for example - is an important stepping stone in our spiritual progress which can propel our practice to a new level. And the fact that we do this publicly makes it more real, and therefore more powerful.

These are just a few points made in relation to the first Mitra ceremony in Tokyo this February.

Susana Kumagai has been involved - primarily online - due to Covid-19 city lockdowns. Her connections particularly with Nagasuri, Shraddharocani and Aryapala have supported her practice. With their encouragement, Susana started teaching meditation locally. Now being a Mitra, she feels more confidence in this task and radiates even more inspiration for the burgeoning group forming about her.

Sadhu Susana! Thoroughly rejoiced-in from her good friends from Australisia, we performed the ceremony in her family's living room on a beautiful sunny winter's morning, Tokyo.

Photos from the day can be found here.