For a reason unbeknownst to me, I have am now getting a subscription to Wired Magazine. I thought maybe it was a gift from a move-into-the-future friend, but he said no; likewise my husband has no idea who might have gifted me with this.
Obviously, the only other answer is that God sent it. When I opened up the first issue and found an article titled “Gadget Shrine,” I took that as confirmation that the Almighty obviously wants me to read – and write – more about all things tech. (WHAT FUN!!!)
Ergo, I’m sharing that the 1,270-year-old Kanda Shrine in Tokyo is the place to be if you want to get your gadgets blessed. According to the first-person article by Brian Ashcraft, the Shinto religion holds that almost every object in the world has a spiritual essence. Therefore, anything can be blessed. (This is no surprise to Catholics, of course, who’ve been getting their cars blessed since Henry Ford first built one; or Episcopalians who have a huge animal blessing in Tucson each year.)
Kanda Shrine overlooks what Ashcraft calls “Tokyo’s mecca for consumer electronics,” and offers prayers for the well being of all the latest tech wonders in the area. The Shinto priests do purification rites on laptops, cell phones “even Web portals,” the article says.
This falls under the “can’t hurt” theory of religion. You don’t know for sure if blessing your iPhone will keep it safe, but it sure can’t hurt. Remember “What the Bleep do we know?” Metaphysics, or religion, same basic idea of turning positive thoughts toward the world and all in it.
GodBlogging will be going dark for about 10 days as I take a much-needed post-layoff break to figure out my life. (Yes, dear readers, one CAN figure out a life in 10 days – just you wait and see!) I’ll be back online around July 13. In the interim, remember the motto: Love one another.
Renee Wrote This 