Zen mind, puppy mind
Dog ‘prays’ regularly at Japanese temple; next up: meditation ... sort of
 Itsuo Inouye / AP Conan the Chihuahua “prays” with his owner, chief priest Joei Yoshikuni, at the Shuri-Kannondo temple in Okinawa islands, southwestern Japan, on Monday. |
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NAHA, Japan - At a Zen Buddhist temple in southern Japan, even the dog prays.
Mimicking his master, priest Joei Yoshikuni, a 1 1/2-year-old black-and-white Chihuahua named Conan joins in the daily prayers at Naha's Shuri Kannondo temple, sitting up on his hind legs and putting his front paws together before the altar.
It took him only a few days to learn the motions, and now he is the talk of the town.
"Word has spread, and we are getting a lot more tourists," Yoshikuni said Monday.
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"I think he saw me doing it all the time and got the idea to do it, too," Yoshikuni said.
The priest is now trying to teach him how to meditate.
Well, sort of.
"Basically, I am just trying to get him to sit still while I meditate," he explained. "It's not like we can make him cross his legs."
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