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| Public teaching by Honen |
According to Amidaji calendar, on
January 26th we celebrate Kyo Amidabutsu (Shiro Amano), a disciple of Honen
Shonin. Here are some discussions between him and Honen and
the story of his conversion:
"In the
province of Kawachi near present-day Osaka, there lived a man called Shiro
Amano who was the leader of a gang of thieves. He passed most of his life
murdering people and stealing their goods. But after he had grown old, he came
under Honen's influence and gave himself over to spiritual life, taking the
name of Kyo Amidabutsu. Sometime later he found Honen in the main hall of the
temple and said to him, "I have no relatives in the city, so it’ll be hard
for me to stay here much longer. I have a friend living in the province of
Sagami near Kamakura, and I’m intending to go and ask him to let me stay with
him. As I’m already an old man, it’ll be hard for me to come and see you again.
Of course, I’m only an ignorant person, so even if I were told all the deepest
teachings of the Dharma, it wouldn’t be of much use to me since I wouldn’t
understand them. I’d like just one word from you about what I should do to make
sure of Birth in the Pure Land, and that I’ll try to remember all my
life."
Then Honen spoke
as follows : "First of all, notice that there is nothing so extremely profound in the Nembutsu at all. The
only thing to know is that everyone who
calls upon the sacred Name is certain to be born into the Pure Land. No
matter how educated a scholar may be, he has no right to assert that there are
things in our school which really do not belong to it. Do not by a great effort
of your mind try to make yourself think that there is something so very subtle
in the teaching. As calling upon the sacred Name is such an easy practice,
there are many who do it. But the reason why so few actually attain ojo (birth
in the Pure Land) is that they are ignorant of this old well-known truth of the certainty of Birth to all who believe.”
My commentary: The words, “everyone who calls upon the sacred Name is
certain to be born into the Pure Land “ and “certainty of Birth to all who believe” prove that Master Honen taught the Nembutsu of faith
(Other Power Nembutsu) to Kyo Amidabutsu. This Nembutsu teaching is very
simple, you just say the Name as an expression of faith in Amida Buddha and you
will be born in His Pure Land after death. No sophisticated scholarship is
needed.
Honen
Shonin also said:
“Last month when
you and I were here alone together, I got up in the middle of the night and was
practicing the Nembutsu. Did you hear me?" Kyo Amidabutsu replied, "I
thought I heard something like the sound of your voice during the night."
Then Honen said, "This is the very Nembutsu that definitely brings Ojo
(birth in the Pure Land). The Nembutsu
of a hypocrite or of someone practicing it for show does not lead to the Pure
Land. Someone who wants to make sure of it must not practice it for show
but with a sincere heart. A person does not act for show in the presence of
little children or animals but only in front of his friends and companions or
the members of his household who are always with him. The ordinary person (bonbu)
who lives among his friends is not without this egoistical heart. It doesn’t
matter whether or not they are our intimates or strangers, nor whether or not
they are high or low class - there is no greater enemy to our attainment of Ojo
than our fellow beings. It is because of the presence of others that our vanity
is awakened within our hearts, and so we fail to attain that Birth (Ojo) after
death. And though that is so true, none of us can live absolutely alone. So how
then is it possible to practice the Nembutsu with a sincere mind (shijoshin)
and not with a mind which tries to do things that will please the eyes of
others? Someone who is always living with other people and takes no time for
quiet reflection is forever living a feigned life. Now if there’s no one to see
or hear him and he still quietly rises from his bed in the middle of the night
to practice the Nembutsu a hundred or a thousand times to his heart's content -
this is the kind of Nembutsu which is not practiced for show but is in harmony
with the mind of the Buddha and definitely leads to Birth in the Pure Land. As
long as one practices it with a mind like this, it doesn’t matter whether or not it is done in the night time or in the
morning, at noon or at twilight. We must always do it as if no one were
listening.”
“Basically, what
I mean by a mind that longs for certain Birth into the Pure Land and calls upon
the sacred Name in all sincerity is like the mind of a thief[1]
who wants to steal another's property. Deep down in his heart he means to
steal, but as far as his outward appearance is concerned, he doesn’t show the
slightest indication to others of his purpose by look or gesture. As others
know absolutely nothing about the purpose to steal that is in his mind, we can
say that the purpose is for himself
alone, without any reference whatsoever to outward appearances. Such an undivided
mind as this is necessary in the person who wants to make sure of Birth in the
Pure Land. You must never for a moment allow yourself to forget what you
are about by letting others know that you are calling upon the sacred Name –
not even by the slightest facial expression even though you are in the middle
of a crowd of people. At such a time, should anyone except Amida Buddha know
about your practicing the Nembutsu? If only Amida Buddha knows, why have any
doubts about Birth in the Pure Land?"
To this Kyo
Amidabutsu replied, "I can now really see what the teaching about certain
Birth in the Pure Land means, and I can fully understand it. If I hadn’t heard
these words, I might have missed Birth in the Pure Land at last. But it seems
to me from what you have said that it is wrong to tell the beads of the rosary
or to move one's lips in prayer before others. Isn't that so?"
Then Honen said,
"No, you are mistaken on this point. The most important thing is to
continue the practice of the Nembutsu without ceasing. This is why it is said
you must always continually keep your mind on this one thing. […]
There are the
two kinds of people, the true and the false. With the false, it’s natural for
them to fake a thing that is so small there isn’t the least need for it. But on
the other hand, the true tell no lies even when it might be to their advantage
and don’t think about their own personal gain. They are true to the core and
never fake it even in the slightest degree. This is truly their inborn
disposition. Now if such true-minded
people desire Birth in the Pure Land and devote themselves to the Nembutsu, it
doesn’t matter where they are or in whose presence they practice it. Since they
never fake it at all, their calling upon the sacred Name is genuine and
sincere, and is sure to lead to Birth in the Pure Land. So why should it be
prohibited?
Now take the
case of a person who is false by nature and does a few things insincerely so as
to look good in the eyes of others. Say that he comes in contact with a pious
monk and has a believing heart awakened in him so that he develops a strong
purpose to attain Birth in the Pure Land. If he makes up his mind to keep on
repeating the sacred Name without ceasing, it doesn’t matter where he is or in
the presence of what people. He will just go on repeating it with an undiverted
mind and with all earnestness. This is a case of downright genuine Nembutsu,
and such a person is sure of Birth into the Pure Land. There’s no need at all
to forbid him to practice the Nembutsu before others if he does it in this
way.” […]
Since a sincere
heart (shijoshin) is so particularly hard to have awakened within person,
that’s why I’ve spoken as I have so as to awaken it in you. This being the
case, how could I not encourage you to keep up the practice of the Nembutsu
even at ordinary times from day to day?”
My commentary:
If
one is a hypocrite and uses Nembutsu to impress others, he cannot be born in
the Pure Land. On the contrary, for a genuine follower who says Nembutsu out of
sincere faith and gratitude outward conditions do not matter, as even when he
says it many times and in public places, he does it like he is alone with Amida
(like being alone at night when no one sees him). Also, if he recites Nembutsu many
times it is not because he is obsessed by numbers, but because he simply enjoys
expressing his faith.
When
Honen said:
“The most
important thing is to continue the practice of the Nembutsu without ceasing.
This is why it is said you must always continually keep your mind on this one
thing”.
he
did not mean that one must constantly say Nembutsu hour by hour, minute by
minute, second by second to achieve birth in the Pure Land. No one can actually
say Nembutsu second by second, and in the Primal Vow Amida himself showed that the
number of recitations is not important, “saying
my Name perhaps even ten times”.
Master
Honen also insisted in many parts of his writings that faith is more important
than the number of recitations. Here is an example,
"If
one deeply believes in this Vow of Amida
Buddha and does not entertain any doubts about birth in the Pure Land through Nembutsu,
ten out of ten and one hundred out of one hundred people will achieve birth in
the Pure Land through just a single
utterance of Nembutsu. Conversely, one who doubts birth in the Pure Land
through Nembutsu will not attain this Birth, even if this individual recites Nembutsu."[2]
Even if one says Nembutsu many times he will
not be born in the Pure Land if that Nembutsu is not said on the basis of
faith, while just one Nembutsu said as an expression of faith is effective in
bringing about Birth. Thus, „without
ceasing” in the words of Honen actually means that faith never disappears
from the heart of the genuine practitioner, and so, even when one does not
actually say the Name, because faith is always present, his mind is always with
Amida – „always continually keep your
mind on this one thing”.
Also, „without ceasing” and „continually keep your mind on this one
thing” means that you will never abandon the Nembutsu of faith during your
life. It does not mean to say it second by second, but that you will never
abandon it.
Master
Honen insisted further that outward appearances are not important when saying
the Nembutsu of faith:
“Kyo Amidabutsu
questioned again, "When you practice the Nembutsu at night, as you were
saying, should you always get up out of bed and do it? And should you always
have your rosary and robes on?" To this Honen replied, "The Nembutsu
may be practiced whether you are walking, standing, sitting or lying. So it can
be left to everyone according to their circumstances to do it either reclining
or sitting or in any way you choose. And as to holding the rosary or putting on
robes, this also should be decided according to circumstances. The main point is not the outward manner at
all but the fixing of the mind on the one thing - firmly determined to gain Ojo
and with all seriousness calling upon the sacred Name. This is the
all-important thing."
The
main point when you say the Name of Amida is to have faith in Him and to sincerely
wish to be born in His Pure Land.
Kyo
Amidabutsu is overjoyed at the teachings he received from Master Honen and lives
the rest of his days in the Nembutsu of faith:
At this Kyo
Amidabutsu jumped for joy, putting his hands together in worship as he went
away. The next day he went to the house of Honen’s disciple Shinku to say
good-bye. He told him that Honen had instructed him yesterday about how he
could be sure of Birth in the Pure Land, and now he had no more doubts about
it. So with great joy in his heart, he departed and turned his face eastwards.
After this, when Shinku met Honen, he asked him if this conversation had
actually happened, and Honen said, "Yes, I heard he was an old robber, and
I instructed him as I thought his case required. He seemed to thoroughly
understand what I told him." So Kyo Amidabutsu went down to Sagami and
lived there the rest of his life. When after a long illness, he was drawing
near the end he told his friend he was sure of Birth in the Pure Land, and it
was all due to his having believed what Honen had taught him. His last words
were, "Go and tell Honen of my Birth in the Pure Land.” Without a single
doubt and with his hands folded in prayer, he repeated the Nembutsu over some
tens of times with a loud voice, and then passed away. So his friend went up to
the capital and gave Honen a detailed account of his last days at which Honen
remarked, "Well, no doubt he did understand. This is fine."
source of the quotations, http://jsri.jp/English/Main.html
[1] Honen gives the example of
a thief because Kyo Amidabutsu (Shiro Amane) was himself a thief before he converted
to Nembutsu.
[2] Honen Shonin, Essentials for Birth in the Pure Land through Nembutsu, 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.361
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