There is a team of Japanese doctors working at the Cleveland Clinic developing artificial hearts who use animals in their experiments. They are, I suppose, Buddhists, though as far as I know none of them has ever attended any of the regular services at the Cleveland Buddhist Temple.

It has been many years now since these doctors first requested Reverend Ogui to hold a memorial service for animals and, so I understand, even now when Reverend Ogui is in Chicago and only comes to Cleveland every couple of months, the tradition has continued.

The memorial service is not held because of animal rights, or to alleviate the suffering of the animals, or even to alleviate the suffering of doctors. It is held in gratitude, out of thankfulness.

Namu Amida Butsu

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Peter D. Junger--Case Western Reserve University Law School--Cleveland, OH
Internet: junger@pdj2-ra.f-remote.cwru.edu junger@samsara.law.cwru.edu