Attending the 15th European Jodo Shinshu Conference

I am now ready for the very important trip to the 15^th European Jodo Shinshu Conference in Bad Reichenhall, Germany. I will be back home at the beginning of September, so until then, I might not be able to write something here.

I packed my things and the books I always carry with me, among them, “The Collected Works of Shinran”,”The Three Pure Land Sutras” translated by Inagaki Sensei, Zuiken’s Shinshu Dharmapada, Eiken Kobai Sensei’s books, my audio recordings after some traditional texts, etc. I never go anywhere without some Dharma books and a note book to write my impressions.

The Romanian delegation to this Conference is composed of 4 people: me and three other members of Tariki Dojo Craiova, who will receive kikyoshiki on the occasion of this Conference.

They are the second wave of Romanian Jodo Shinshu Buddhists who receive this rite and Buddhist names from Go-Monshu-sama Koshin Ohtani, the Patriarch of our tradition, since I founded Tariki Dojo, in 2004.

There are still some other members here in Romania who might receive it at the next Conference. But for the moment I decided to wait and see how they will continue in their Dharma study and practice.

I am just waiting to meet some old nembutsu friends and others I have never met face to face but inspired me through correspondence, like Jason from Norway and the very important, Eiken Kobai Sensei.

I deeply regret that Paul Roberts can’t attend this Conference, but I hope that he will become an every time presence at future Conferences.

I hope these kind of Conferences become more and more places of hearing the true Dharma and receiving shinjin, and less a gathering of sophisticated scholars who talk only for themselves while the beginners are sleeping and snoring :))

Sometimes it is indeed funny to find myself sleeping, but other times I feel great pain and thoughts of retreating in the mountains or closing myself in my dojo, without talking with anybody, often come to my mind when I hear some well spread wrong understandings that I can’t imagine it exists in people’s minds.

I go to this Conference with a dual mind, so to speak: joyful to meet my true nembutsu friends and teachers and fearful of what I and new comers might hear there. While I myself know that I am truly settled in shinjin, I am especially worried about the new comers. Lets hope the papers and presentations, as well as the discussions, will be faithful to Shinran Shonin’s teaching.

Eiken Kobai Sensei will attend the 15th ESC

I am very happy to announce you that Eiken Kobai Sensei, one of the most important Jodo Shinshu teachers of our times, will attend the next 15th European Shinshu Conference in Germany.
He will give a lecture with the title: "Establishing Shinjin :The premise of peace and tranquility"

I invited him to attend and he sent me a positive answer a few days ago. I believe his presence will benefit a lot the participants who wish to receive the authentic transmission of Jodo Shinshu teaching and practice.

Kobai Sensei is well known for his traditional approach in teaching the Dharma and his faithfulness to our Founder, Shinran Shonin.
He is one of the few Jodo Shinshu teachers of our days who doesn't mix the true teaching of Shinran with his personal ideas and opinions. For me, he is a rare and precious teacher, this is why I recommend you to meet him and receive direct instructions from him.



ps: this is the website representing the teaching activities of Eiken Kobai Sensei
www.trueshinbuddhism.com
________________________________________
DHARMA LION PUBLICATIONS printed two of his books:
UNDERSTANDING JODO SHINSHU and

THE TRUE AND REAL WORLD OF SALVATION - An Introduction to the life and teaching of Venerable Master Shinran

Passing of Joryu Chiba Sensei

This is a sad news – the Chairperson of IABC (International Association of Buddhist Culture), Rev. Dr. Joryu Chiba, passed away by acute heart failure on the 12th April, 2008 at age 86.

I sent this message of condoleances to be read at his funeral service which will take place at his temple, Anraku-ji in Tokushima:

"We, European Jodo Shinshu followers owe a lot to every IABC member and to Chiba Sensei, who supported us for so many years. In Romania we have a dojo only because of IABC support. There is almost nothing I did here which was not supported by IABC. I received kikyoshiki (lay confirmation) and became a priest in Japan only because IABC supported me with a grant, Romanian kikyoshiki candidates will attend the 15th European Shinshu Conference only because they receive help from IABC, Romanian translations were printed only with IABC help, etc. IABC is a part of almost every Jodo Shinshu activity in Europe. We should always revere this devoted group of Jodo Shinshu brothers and never forget their leader, Joryu Sensei.
His passing is a lost for the international sangha, but his devoted colleagues will continue his work. Each generation passes the torch to the next, and in the end, all meet in the Pure Land. Those who go first, will protect those who still remain here for a shorter or longer period of time. Joryu Sensei will continue to guide IABC from the Pure Land.
Namo Amida Butsu,

Josho Adrian Cirlea - representative for Jodo Shinshu Romania"

Annual General Meeting of European Buddhist Union - statement on Burma

I returned from Cadzand (Holland) where I attended the Annual General Meeting of European Buddhist Union. I had a lot of useful discussions and good time there with representatives of various Buddhist denominations in Europe. Among the many things we talked there is also a statement we release on the topic of Burma. You can read it here:

28th September 2007
The European Buddhist Union Annual General Meeting
Cadzand, Netherlands

We, the representatives of The European Buddhist Union at our Annual General Meeting being held in the Netherlands, extend our support and solidarity with the recent peaceful movement for democracy in Myanmar/Burma. The people of Myanmar/Burma deserve the support of the international community and we therefore call upon you and all concerned agencies to take special responsibility to see that the situation receives immediate attention to avoid further harm, bloodshed and conflict. Day by day we closely follow the news. We are shocked and appalled that the military powers in control in Myanmar/Burma, whilst claiming to act in the interests of the citizens, support the killing and torturing of innocent and peaceful citizens thus trampling the values enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We implore the military regime to stop this killing and torturing and to accede to the wishes of the people of Myanmar/Burma. Also to respond to the outrage felt throughout the world by establishing the conditions for the flowering of justice, peace and liberty. In particular we strongly support the peaceful expression of loving-kindness and compassion for Myanmar/Burmese society by the Buddhist monks and nuns and their call for freedom and democracy. We take this opportunity to appeal to like-minded people all over the world to support such non-violent movements. We wish to convey our sincere appreciation and admiration to the large number of Buddhist monks, nuns and fellow Buddhist practitioners taking part. We are appealing to the members of the military regime who believe in Buddhism to act in accordance with the Buddha’s teachings of compassion and non-violence. We pray for the success of this peace movement and the early release of Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

ps: here you can read about the situation in Burma:
http://www.buddhist channel.tv/ index.php? myanmar

pictures from Burma
http://www.buddhist channel.tv/ myanmar270907/

photo1: morning recitation in the temple of Naropa Institute
photo2: participants at the meeting - photo group in Brugge