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The Profound World of Buddha Machines. Hao Hao Hao, who continues to collect, explains

2023.8.25

#MUSIC

A circle of friends connected by gut touch! The “FIST BUMP” corner of the radio program “GRAND MARQUEE” features people who live and enjoy Tokyo in a relay format.

On July 24, Hao Hao Hao, collector of Buddha Machines and owner of a store specializing in light and sound, will appear. In this interview, we asked him about what Buddha Machines are in the first place, how he enjoys them, how he collects them while traveling around the world, and what got him hooked on them.

His love for them led him to launch his original Buddha Machine.

Celeina (MC): First of all, let me give you a brief profile. You have traveled around the world and collected mainly shiny and sound-producing objects. Among them, he has focused on collecting “Buddha Machines” that play sutras. In 2021, he will release his original Buddha Machine, “Tenkai,” which contains Buddhist prayers of eight monks from five different sects and music by artists. He also sells a portion of the collection he has amassed through mail-order websites and event stalls.

Takano (MC): That’s amazing. Have you been collecting them ever since you focused your attention on Buddha Machine?

Hao Hao: Yes, I have.

Celeina: Once again, what is a Buddha Machine?

Hao Hao: It is a machine with music related to sutras and Buddhism that is distributed in China and other Asian countries. It is revolutionary in that it is like a boom box, and when you press the switch, you can easily listen to sutras.

Takano: So its purpose is to chant sutras?

Hao Hao: Yes, that’s right. In China, they are usually placed in temples and left running, with chanting playing in place of background music.

Celeina: Even now, right?

Hao Hao: Even now.

Takano: So your love for the Buddha Machine grew so strong that you ended up creating it (laughs).

Hao Hao: I liked it so much that I wanted to make it myself rather than have someone else make it for me (laughs).

Takano: Hao Hao’s original Buddha Machine. (Looking at the Budda machine) It’s amazing!

Celeina: It’s so cute and pop.

Takano: The case is an orange-ish skeleton. It has an illustration of Buddha on it, and it moves when you change the angle.

Celeina: It has a nice retro feel to it.

Hao Hao: Thank you very much.

Takano: How do you move this?

Hao Hao: This is a switch here at ……. (operates Buddha machine)

Takano: It’s like a radio. (Sound plays from the Budda machine.) Ah, it does!

Hao Hao: It glows (laughs).

Takano: It glows. It’s a pretty delicate kind of light.

Hao Hao: It’s gently glowing in seven different colors.

Takano: Oh, the sound has changed. It has some buttons. It’s kind of like a rhythm machine, like a Yaoya (TR-808).

Celeina: I feel like I jumped into a different world the moment I played it.

Takano: You have brought many different types of music today.

Hao Hao: The standard type is a postcard-sized rectangle with a button to select a song, and sometimes we have a heart-shaped one for a change.

Celeina: Cute.

Hao Hao: Then there’s the Buddha part that glows a little when you press a switch.

Celeina: It’s pocket-sized. You can take it with you.

Takano: Where do you buy these?

Hao Hao: In China, or in Buddhist countries. You can also find them in places like Chinatown in Australia.

Takano: Like a general store?

Hao Hao: It’s more like a proper Buddhist store.

Takano: It looks like something you would find in a second-hand clothing store or a general store in Japan.

Hao Hao: It also has a bit of a cultural atmosphere.

Takano: It has a cultural atmosphere, and it’s really wonderful.

Collecting more than200different Budda machines from around the world.

Celeina: Hao Hao, how did you get into Buddha Machines in the first place?

Hao Hao: I first encountered Buddha Machine in 2005, when a group of contemporary artists in Beijing called “FM3” released a gadget with their own music under the name “Buddha Machine. It was a big hit among some music lovers, and I was one of the people who bought it, but then I realized that the Buddha Machine was the original source of the gadget. I was more attracted to the original Buddha Machine, which played Buddhist music, and I still collect them.

Celeina: You started out as a music lover, didn’t you?

Hao Hao: Yes, that’s right.

Takano: Like the attraction of Buddhist songs.

Hao Hao: Yes. I was attracted by the pop appearance, the variety of the songs in the album, and the fact that the songs are also used in China.

Takano: Indeed, there are not many others like this.

Celeina: Did you always have a collector’s personality?

Hao Hao: No, I used to collect cassettes, for example, but I found it hard to find Buddha Machine, so I kept buying duplicates of the same thing (laughs).

Celeina: It was like buying several sets for stock. You are a big fan of them (laughs).

Takano: They are worth collecting.

Celeina: By the way, I’m sorry. Are they expensive? (laughs)

Hao Hao: The most expensive one I saw in Australia cost about 15,000 yen, and the cheapest one started at about 500 yen.

Takano: So it varies a lot.

Celeina: Surprisingly, they are affordable.

Takano: But you collected these from all over the world, didn’t you? That’s amazing.

Celeina: Mr. Hao Hao, you are actually selling them now, aren’t you?

Hao Hao: Yes, I do. We had a lot of stock that was dubbed over, so we are releasing some of it and selling it on our mail order site and at events.

Celeina: I see. I am looking at your website, and you have a lot of Buddha machines lined up.

Takano: You can buy them online. How many pieces do you have in your collection now?

Hao Hao: About 200 kinds.

Takano: If you include the ones that are duplicated, you mean more?

Hao Hao: Yes, that’s right.

Celeina: Only the ones you sell are dubbed, but you have a large collection for your own use as well, right?

Hao Hao: Yes, I do. I would definitely buy the same one if it was a different color, or if it looked the same but had a different version of the song inside, which tickles my collector’s soul.

Takano: Are there songs that can only be heard here?

Hao Hao: Yes, there are.

Takano: Nowadays, you can listen to songs on Spotify and various other streaming services, but you dare to do so, don’t you?

Hao Hao: I also feel a great sense of romance in that. It’s like you have to turn on a switch to listen to a song that can only be heard on this machine.

Celeina: I love the process of spending time just for that song.

Takano: I see. Now that we are getting a little deep, I’d like to interrupt with a song. I asked Mr. Hao Hao to choose a song that he would like everyone to listen to together on the radio at this time. What song would it be?

Hao Hao: Yes. Tsubasa Hashimoto, the guitarist of cero, is working on a solo project, and he himself likes Buddha Machine and asked me to put his song on Buddha Machine. I was asked by him to put his songs on the Buddha Machine, and I made a gourd-shaped Buddha Machine in cooperation with him.

Takano: (Looking at the Buddamachine) I see a gourd. It’s a cute palm-sized one.

Hao Hao: This is one of the 19 songs in the album, all of which are newly written songs.

Takano: Let’s listen to it then.

I dare you to go to Chinatown in a non-Chinese country.

Celeina: Once again, what is the appeal of Buddha Machine as you feel it, Hao Hao?

Hao Hao: Originally, I was attracted by the pop appearance, the quality of the music, and the coolness of the Buddhist chanting, but I also wondered what this Buddhist chanting meant, even though I didn’t understand Chinese. I was also made aware of the depth of Buddhism by researching the meaning of the Buddhist chanting, even though I did not know Chinese. Also, as Mr. Takano mentioned earlier, I feel the romance in the fact that there are songs and Buddhist prayers of monks that can only be heard on this Buddha Machine.

Takano: I’m getting more and more interested in it as I listen to you. There are so many variations, and it’s fun.

Celeina: Mr. Hao Hao, you collect while traveling, right?

Hao Hao: Yes, that’s right.

Celeina: You have been to 40 countries so far, do you remember the first country you visited?

Hao Hao: I first met him in Jakarta, Indonesia, and from there I went to many countries. I try to go to Asian countries because there are usually Buddhists living there, so there is a high probability that there is a Buddha machine there, but then I gradually get tired of it.

Takano: It becomes routine.

Hao Hao: That’s right. That’s why I try to go to Chinatowns overseas.

Takano: It’s kind of nice to go to a Chinatown in a non-Chinese country.

Celeina: That ‘s professional. Are there any countries you enjoyed visiting recently?

Hao Hao: Recently, I went to Georgia, a country located between Asia and Europe, where flea markets are very popular. You can buy some really cool ornaments there for about 500 yen, but as I call myself “Hao Hao Hao of Light and Sound,” I collect shiny things. I collect shiny things, and recently I’ve been into looking for good things among such trash.

Takano: I would love to see your collection room. I want to go visit.

Hao Hao: Please come.

Celeina: Now, FIST BUMP is a circle of friends connected by goofy things, so we are asking you to introduce us to your friends.

Hao Hao: This is Tinkerbell Hatsuno.

Celeina: What is your relationship?

Hao Hao: He is an artist, and I was a fan of his music in the first place, but we also worked together at a stall. Tinkerbell-san is in a band called “Various Crosses,” and when I sold items with shiny crosses, he bought some of them.

Takano: The cross connection?

Hao Hao: It’s a cross connection.

Celeina: In a word, what kind of person are you?

Hao Hao: He is an amazing person who keeps doing things that are like jokes, but with a very high quality.

Takano: Thank you very much. Tomorrow we will welcome Tinkerbell Hatsuno.

Celeina: “FIST BUMP” today was Hao Hao Hao, collector of Buddha Machines and owner of a store specializing in light and sound. Thank you very much.

Hao Hao: Thank you very much.

GRAND MARQUEE

J-WAVE (81.3FM) Mon-Thu 16:00 – 18:50
Navigator: Shinya Takano, Celeina Ann

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