revised on September 23rd 2019
If one reads the
35th Vow of Amida Buddha without carefully understanding its
meaning, he might come to the conclusion that there is a prejudice against
women:
“If, when I attain Buddhahood, women in the immeasurable and
inconceivable Buddha-lands of the ten directions who, having heard my Name,
rejoice in faith, awaken aspiration for Enlightenment and wish to renounce
womanhood, should after death be reborn again as women, may I not attain
perfect Enlightenment.”[1]
“Womanhood”,
like “manhood” is just a limited form for us living in samsara or the world of
delusion and suffering. In reality, our true nature or Buddha nature is not of
women or men, so upon birth in the Pure Land of Amida where we attain
Buddhahood, we naturally “renounce” our womanhood or manhood – that is, we do
not define ourselves by these terms. With birth in the Pure Land we become
Buddhas and go beyond the limitations of being a woman or a man. So, this Vow
does not look down on women, but it shows that women are equally treated by the
salvation of Amida Buddha.
In his
Letters[2]
Rennyo Shonin often especially addresses women. Here are just a few quotes:
“Amida Tathagata alone graciously vowed to save such
persons as you and long ago made the 48 Vows. Among these vows, beyond
promising in the 18th Vow to save all evildoers and women, Amida
then made a further Vow, the 35th, to save women because of the depth
of their evil karma. You should have a deep sense of gratitude for Amida
Tathagata’s benevolence in having undergone such painstaking endeavours.”[3]
“Let all
women living in the present age deeply entrust themselves with singleness of
mind to the Amida Tathagata. Apart from this, they must realize they will never
be saved in regard to the afterlife, whatever teaching they may rely upon.”[4]
“Women who
have renounced the world while remaining in lay life and ordinary women as well,
should realize and have absolutely no doubt whatsoever that there is
deliverance for all those who simply rely deeply (single-heartedly and
steadfastly) on Amida Buddha and entrust themselves to that Buddha to save
them, bringing them to Buddhahood in the afterlife. This is the Primal Vow of Other Power, the
Vow of Amida Tathagata. Once they have realized this, when they then feel
thankfulness and joy at being saved in regard to the afterlife, they should
simply repeat “Namo Amida Butsu, Namo Amida Butsu”.[5]
“Because the bodily existence of women is defined by the five
obstacles[6]
and the three submissions[7],
they are burdened with deep evil karma exceeding that of men. For this reason,
the Buddhas of the ten directions can never, by their own power, bring any
woman to Buddhahood. Yet Amida Tathagata, having made the great Vow (35th
Vow) that He himself will save women, delivers them. Without entrusting herself
to this Buddha, a woman is unable to become a Buddha.
What attitude should a woman have, then, and how should she entrust
herself to Amida Buddha and become a Buddha? By just entrusting herself solely
to Amida Buddha (with no double-mindedness, with steadfast, and with the single
thought that Amida saves her in regard to the afterlife) a woman will readily
become a Buddha. If this mind is free of the slightest doubt, she will unfailingly go to the land of
utmost bliss and become a splendid Buddha.”[8]
“We must realize that,
unbeknownst to others, all women have deep evil karma; whether of noble or
humble birth, they are wretched beings. How, then, should they entrust
themselves to Amida?
The answer is that women who rely
firmly and without any anxiety on Amida Tathagata and accept that Amida saves
them in regard to the most important matter, the afterlife, will unfailingly be
saved. If, leaving the depth of their evil to Amida, they simply rely
singleheartedly on Amida Tathagata to save them in regard to the afterlife,
there is no doubt that Amida, fully
knowing those beings, will save
them. Whether there are ten people or one hundred, they need not have the
slightest doubt whatsoever that all – each and every one – will be born in the
Land of Utmost Bliss. Women who entrust themselves in this way will be born in
the Pure Land. They should entrust themselves ever more deeply to Amida Tathagata,
realizing how shameful it
is that until now they have not
trusted such an easy way.”[9]
“All women – if they are concerned about the afterlife and have a
sense of reverence for the Buddha Dharma – should simply entrust themselves
deeply to Amida Tathagata, cast off the sundry practices, and rely
single-heartedly and firmly on Amida to save them, bringing them to Buddhahood
in the afterlife. They should have no doubt whatsoever that such women will be
born without fail in the land of utmost bliss.”[10]
Especially in the letter “On Women Attaining Buddhahood”,
Rennyo Shonin speaks about the 35th Vow of Amida Buddha, which he
calls “the Vow of Women’s Attainment of Buddhahood”:
“Amida Tathagata himself made the supreme great Vow concerning women
who are abandoned by all other Buddhas[11],
thinking, ‘If I do not save women, which of the other Buddhas will save them?’
Resolving to go beyond all other Buddhas and save women, He
meditated for five kalpas; undergoing practices for numberless kalpas, He made
the all-surpassing great Vow. Thus it is Amida who originated the incomparable
Vow, “Women’s Attainment of Buddhahood”. For this reason, women who deeply rely
on Amida and entrust themselves to Him to save them in regard to the afterlife,
will all be born in the land of utmost bliss.”[12]
All these
passages prove that there is no discrimination against women in the salvation
of Amida Buddha. Especially because other practices or religious systems might
discriminate women, Amida wants to reassure them that in His case, they need
not worry about anything. Although His Primal Vow already made no discrimination
among sentient beings, He wanted to make another Vow to be sure that nobody
will never ever say that women
are not included in His salvation. Thus, we may say that the 35th
Vow supports the 18th Vow by emphasizing that all beings,
including women, are born in the Pure Land and become Buddhas if they fully
entrust themselves to Amida.
*
Here is a video discussion among Amidaji members on the nondiscrimination of women based on the 35th Vow of Amida Buddha,
[1] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.18
[2] Gobunsho or Ofumi.
[3] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.22
[4] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.99
[5] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.108
[6] Some Buddhist traditions state that a woman has five karmic obstacles: she cannot become 1) king of the Brahma heaven, 2) Indra (king of gods in the heaven of the Thirty Three gods), 3) a Mara king, 4) a universal monarch (cakravartin), or 5) a Buddha (although Buddhas can manifest in female form).
[7] In Confucian tradition a woman was expected to submit first to her father, then to her husband, and finally to her son. Even if nowadays or in various countries, such submissions are no longer a rule, a woman might be generally, greatly attached to her family, perhaps more than a man especially when it comes to children, which is a cause for many karmic obstacles.
[8] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.112
[9] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.118-119
[10] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.121
[11] “Abandoned by all other Buddhas” in the sense that other Buddhas do not have a special vow to save women. like Amida has, without recquiring any virtue or spiritual capacity on their part. This, of course, is true for men too, as Amida also does not recquire any virtue or spiritual capacity from them.
[12] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.123