Members of Amidaji - Shaku Hōryū Stephen (USA)

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Hello, my Dharma name is Hōryū (Dharma Dragon) and I received Kieshiki from Rev. Jōshō on 26 June 2021. 

 

Due to my upbringing, I have always been interested in understanding the metaphysics of this world. Starting off as most westerners do, I began with the Abrahamic religions. However, I started to ask questions which are not answerable unless one takes the perspectives of the early Gnostics.

 

That line of questioning eventually took me down the Left Hand Path, which I spent almost two decades seriously pursuing. Eventually through the course of my experiences, I began to question what the purpose of my workings actually were.

During this time, I was also traveling quite a bit for work, which allowed me to gain exposure to many paths and teachers. But as the toll of work began to catch up and my practices began to suffer, it was then that I was forced to face the abyss.

 

As I earnestly began seeking out the answers to why I was facing these setbacks, it seemed as though I was always either a few years too late to meet a teacher, or the ones I found would let a crack in the facade appear. 

 

I began to feel hopeless at the realization that I was trapped, unsure of where to go, and unable to progress. Then in the spring of 2021, I had three different people tell me to stop all my practices, which I did. 

 

That is when I came across the Pure Land sutras and Amida’s vows. The sutras, the explanation of the Dharma ages, and the Pure Land way explained what I had been experiencing and searching for. 

 

As I tried to learn more, I came across many different groups and teachers. Thankfully, I came across the Amida-ji International Temple page early on, since other groups pandered to modern social movements and did not align to the teachings or moral guidelines of Shakyamuni Buddha.

 

I am very grateful for the time Rev. Jōshō took to answer my questions and dispel the erroneous ideas of the modernists. Their teachings do nothing to help people recognize this burning house we live in, nor the door to leave.

 

So while my path to Amida seems like a winding one, I’m grateful to have arrived, and feel confident of my birth in the Pure Land. Namo Amida Bu!