CHIBA, Japan - The faint smell of incense hung in the air as more than 200 inmates sat silently in a prison gymnasium, hands clasped in prayer while a Buddhist priest chanted for prisoners, crime victims and the dead.
The July 31 service at Chiba Prison, east of Tokyo, was held for "Urabone," a Buddhist observance honoring ancestors and the deceased. For some of the long-term inmates attending it, religion offers a way to confront their crimes and find support in daily life.
Chiba Prison, in Chiba city's Wakaba Ward, houses inmates serving sentences of 10 years or more. More than 70 percent are imprisoned for crimes in which someone was killed.
As about 20 prison officers watched over the service, inmates dressed in blue-green uniforms bowed and offered incense when a burner was passed around. Some followed the sutra text in front of them, while others fixed their eyes on the priest as they prayed.
Japanese law requires penal institutions to make efforts to provide inmates with opportunities to take part in religious activities. Chiba Prison holds five such events a year, including Christmas observances.
One inmate in his 60s, who has been imprisoned for 23 years, attends the Urabone ceremony every year to pray for his victim and his parents.
He also asks the prison chaplain to chant sutras on the monthly anniversaries of their deaths. Exposure to religious teachings, he said, has strengthened his determination to examine himself and repent for his crime.
Although he sometimes finds himself swayed by the views of other inmates or troubled by relationships inside the prison, he has not given up hope of eventual release.
"I want to visit my victim's grave," he said. "If possible, I want to meet the bereaved family and apologize."
Wako Okamoto, 63, a Buddhist priest who has served as the prison chaplain for more than 25 years, said most inmates were ordinary people.
"There were probably times when they were good fathers, too," he said with a smile.
Okamoto sees his role as helping inmates consider different ways of looking at life and find a sense of purpose.
But prisons are also facing a newer challenge as the number of foreign nationals rises and the range of religions they must accommodate becomes more diverse.
About 30 percent of unconvicted detainees held at Chiba Prison are foreign nationals, requiring officials to respond to the needs of followers of Islam and other faiths.
The prison generally permits prayer during free time and the possession of religious items such as compasses used to determine the direction of prayer and rosaries. Requests to wash hands and feet for ritual purification are also allowed.
Tsuyoshi Uemura, 46, a senior correctional officer, said one difficulty is determining whether a requested practice is genuinely required for religious reasons.
Staff research religious teachings and consult other correctional facilities to see how similar cases have been handled.
Requests may be denied if, for example, the sound of prayer is considered likely to disrupt prison discipline or order.
But Uemura said accommodating religious practices could also benefit prison operations.
"If allowing it helps bring peace of mind to those in custody, it also helps staff carry out their duties more smoothly," he said.
The prison's approach, he said, is to protect freedom of religion "to the greatest extent possible" while maintaining discipline and order.
