The magnitude 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami which both hit the North-East coast of Japan on 11th March 2011 have caused destruction nothing short of catastrophic. Hundreds of thousands of people have been drastically affected; it will take some time yet to even establish all the lives which have been lost, but of immediate concern are all those left homeless, and in situations where food and clean water are extremely scarce. The needs of so many for shelter and support is just vast, and will continue to be for some considerable time.

The Japanese people are extremely hardy, resourceful, and independent, and will doubtless show exemplary courage, optimism, and determination in rebuilding their country and their lives, but their blameless immediate need cannot help but call for a supportive response from the rest of the world – lives that have been so arbitrarily shattered result in souls in great need of the compassionate awareness of others. Kendo Nagasaki asks all to heed that call: beyond the requirement of the human condition for the individual to grow is the higher soul aspiration of encouraging the growth of the whole of human consciousness, and by giving aid, suffering in many forms is addressed, and the greater good is served on many levels.

Kendo recommends giving financial aid in the most direct way possible, but also exercising caution in how this is done; Japan’s need is so great that every available Yen must reach the country, so donations should preferably be made directly via the many reputable online systems available – there are excellent internet donation sites at PayPal and Yahoo, and Amazon have a link directly to the British Red Cross. The Japanese Red Cross recommends giving directly to the national Red Cross in your own country, and the British Red Cross, for example, has a link which takes donations directly for the Japan Quake and Tsunami Survivors fund.

Of particular value to those outside Japan concerned about friends and family, Google provides a Person Finder, which they freely offer for website embedding:

Finally, Kendo would ask all to meditate upon the needs of the Japanese people at this time; when one has given all the financial support that one can, it remains possible to send great healing forces to those in need, simply by visualising them as strong, supported, and succeeding with bringing order back to their lives. The process of meditation has many benefits in and of itself, but to selflessly send pure healing energies to those in need creates a higher level of enlightenment and global karmic advancement for all – in addition to helping others on the powerful inner planes, the gifts of positive contemplation that you give will reward you many times over.