Recently, a reader wrote to me:
"We do many things at our temple, we meditate, do various
practices, so we never become bored. Why don't you do the same to
attract new members?"
In His Primal Vow Amida Buddha mentioned that we should do
three things only and exclusively, "entrust yourself to me, say my
Name, and wish to be born in my land". All these three are
expressed in the Nembutsu of faith.
Its a pity you are bored with the Primal Vow, and that you and
your temple sangha are not focused on what Amida asks you to do. If
in the Primal Vow meditation was mentioned, then I would teach and
practice meditation. But as only faith, nembutsu and wish to be
born in the Pure Land are to be found there, I obey and limit
myself to them. Please do the same if you wish to be born in the
true fulfilled land of the Pure
Land[1]. Our school is
the school of the Primal Vow, so if you consider yourself a
member, then be a follower of the Primal Vow.
Master Shantao said:
"Abandon the teachings that Amida Buddha abandoned, observe
the practice that Amida Buddha observed, and leave the practices
that Amida Buddha left. This is said to be 'in accordance with the
teaching of Amida Buddha' and 'in compliance with the intent of
Amida Buddha'. Such a person is referred to as the 'true disciple
of Amida
Buddha'".[2]
(Master Shan-tao quoted by Honen Shonin in An Outline of
the Doctrine for Birth in the Pure Land)
The passage is very clear - we must abandon everything which
is not mentioned in the Primal Vow, where only faith, saying of the
Name in faith and wish for birth in the Pure Land are taught. If
you do this, if you say Amida's Name in faith and wish to be born
in His Pure Land, you are in accord with Amida Buddha's Primal Vow
and you are a true disciple of Amida Buddha. Any practice or
teaching which are not mentioned in the Primal Vow, like various
meditation methods, mantras or anything else, should not be
followed because they do not lead to birth in the true fulfilled
land of the Pure
Land[3].
As for attracting new members, Master Rennyo said:
"The prosperity of this school does not lie in showing off
with large gatherings. If
even a single person gains shinjin (faith), this is a true
sign of prosperity. For this reason, it is
said (in the Hoonkoshiki), 'The teaching of exclusive
performance of the right practice
thrives owing to the power of the devotion of Shinran's
followers'."
So, my interest is not in numbers, but in helping people to be
in accord with the Primal Vow. The right practice is the Name of
Amida Buddha[4] and should
be said exclusively while relying on Amida's Power to save. Only by
saying Amida's Name in faith we bring spiritual prosperity to this
school. Various so called Jodo Shinshu temples arround the world
which added alien practices or meditations to Nembutsu although
they are rich in members, they actually bring our school to
spiritual poverty. They should repent and return to the Name which
is complete in itself and already contains all practices:
"The ultimate teachings of the One Vehicle all point to the
Land of Bliss as the last refuge. The Name of Amida’s Buddhahood is
most distinguished as the embodiment of the perfect
virtues of myriad
practices."[5]
Shinran quotes Master Ch’ing-wen in Kyogyoshinsho, II
"All of the merits of the teachings, the meditative
practices on the phenomenal aspect of reality and the noumenal
principle, the unmatched power acquired through meditation and
wisdom, the wisdom of inner realization, and the merit of external
activities, as well as all of the virtues and undefiled
Enlightenment of Tathagata Amida, Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara,
Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta, Bodhisattva Samanthabhadra,
Bodhisattva Manjusri, Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, Nagarjuna, and the
Bodhisattvas and Sravakas of the Pure Land are encompassed in
the three characters of the Name of Amida. This being so, would
there be any Dharma not included in the teaching for birth in the
Pure
Land?"[6]
Honen Shonin, Commentary on the Three Sutras of Pure Land
Buddhism
- fragment from a letter to a friend -
[1] Please reffer to my
article, The Two Aspects of the Pure Land.
[2] The Promise of
Amida Buddha - Honen's Path to Bliss; English translation of
the Genko edition of the works of Honen Shonin - Collected
Teachings of Kurodani Shonin: The Japanese Anthology (Wago
Toroku), translated by Joji Atone and Yoko Hayashi, Wisdom
Publications, Boston, 2011, p.106
[3] Those born in the
Fulfilled Pure Land (please reffer to my article, The Two
Aspects of the Pure Land) are followers of the true faith
(shinjin) of the 18th Vow (Primal Vow) and they immediately attain
Nirvana or Buddhahood, while those who are born in the Transformed
Pure Land are followers of the 19th and 20th Vows. The later are
people with mixed faith, and so they need to stay for a while in
that place until they overcome their doubts. Followers of the 19th
Vow, for example, do not follow exclusively the saying of the Name
in faith, but mix it with various other practices, while followers
of the 20th Vow although they say the Name exclusively, they make
it their own practice and their own merit, that is, they think that
the saying of the Name works because of them, on how often they say
it, or on the state of mind they are in when saying it. Thus, they
fail to realize that the Name works only because of Amida, and is
completely the Power of Amida, containing no trace of self-power.
For a detailed explanation of this, please reffer to my article,
The Name of Amida Buddha is the Great Practice.
[4] Please reffer to my
article, The Name of Amida Buddha is the Great
Practice.
[5] Kyogyoshinsho –
On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment, translated by
Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research,
Kyoto, 2003, p. 51
[6] The Promise of
Amida Buddha - Honen's Path to Bliss; English translation of
the Genko edition of the works of Honen Shonin - Collected
Teachings of Kurodani Shonin: The Japanese Anthology (Wago
Toroku), translated by Joji Atone and Yoko Hayashi, Wisdom
Publications, Boston, 2011, p.83
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