Faith in Amida Buddha is not the creation of our mind

"Since Amida makes you trust Him

And responds to your trust,

Your trusting heart does not arise

From within yourself."[1]

The reason why in a Nembutsu follower’s heart coexist both faith in the Primal Vow and his blind passions and illusions is that this faith doesn’t belong to him.   

This is another important aspect of the Jodo Shinshu teaching. It is said that in a poisonous Eranda forest grow only Eranda trees and not the famous Chandana trees with their fine fragrance. It is a miracle if a Chandana tree grows in an Eranda forest. Similarly, it is a miracle if faith in Amida Buddha flourishes in the people’s hearts. How can it be possible that from human passions the faith in Buddha be born? The answer is that this phenomenon is practically impossible and that faith in Amida is not the product of our minds, but what Amida plants in us. That is why shinjin or the entrusting heart is called “rootless faith” for it has no roots in the human mind but in Amida’s Power and Compassion. The same thing happens with saying the Name which expresses faith. Everything comes from Amida and manifests like an echo in our minds and on our lips, just like a child who faithfully answers his mother’s calling.

Birth in the borderland of the Pure Land

I already explained in detail the Primal Vow (18^th) and showed that faith in Amida’s Power is the cause of birth in the Pure Land. However, the situation is that not all practitioners are able to give up entirely the attachment to their personal power in reaching birth in the Pure Land. They simply cannot rely exclusively on Amida but think there is still something they need to add to His Power so that they will deserve to be born in the Pure Land. Thus, they remain attached to the idea of merit accumulation even if they also put some trust in Amida. This kind of faith mixed with reliance on their own so called “merit” and personal power is not in accord with the Primal Vow, but still Amida does not abandon such people. Especially for those who are not capable to rely exclusively on Him, but still wish to be born in His Pure Land, Amida created the 19^th and 20^th Vows[1]. 

The true disciple of Amida and all Buddhas

As I already explained, Shinran Shonin taught that the true reason for all Buddhas appearance in the world is to help sentient beings entrust to Amida and be born after death in His Pure Land, where they can easily attain Nirvana. Thus, the logical conclusion he draw from here, is that the person who has faith in Amida is the true disciple of the Buddhas because he is in accord with their inermost intent. He said:

"The true disciple of the Buddha means this: 'true' contrasts with false and provisional. 'Disciple' means a disciple of Shakyamuni and other Buddhas, namely, the practitioner who has attained adamantine faith (shinjin). Because one certainly realizes great Nirvana with this faith and practice, one is called a true disciple of the Buddha"[1].

Information on priest ordination in Jodo Shinshu (Nishi Hongwanji branch) and my opinion on this matter

Last update - September 2020. 

This is an old article. However, I will keep it here as I wrote it in May 2018 for those who are looking for such information and for the sake of historical record. Amidaji is now an independent branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism with its own system of priest ordination. Click here if you are interested to know more about it. 

Many people ask me about priest ordination in Jodo Shinshu, so I thought to post this article to help them get some information, and also to express some of my own views on this matter.

As far as I know, in Jodo Shinshu school (Nishi Hongwanji branch) a tokudo (priest ordination) candidate must have two recommendation letters from other Jodo Shinshu priests with a higher rank, but sometimes, even one recommendation is enough from one’s local priest to make one join a tokudo session for foreigners, as the other recommendation will be easier to get if one has earned the trust of a priest with a good connection in the system. These tokudo sessions for foreigners are usually organized from time to time (not at fixed intervals) by Hongwanji International Center, which deals with all matters related with ordination for non-japanese candidates. Their website is this, http://international.hongwanji.or.jp You can also access the official page of  Hongwanji here, http://www.hongwanji.or.jp/english

The candidate must spend 15 days in some kind of retreat at a facility near the main temple (Nishi Hongwanji), in Kyoto. There he (or she) is examined and attends various courses on doctrine and ritual, after which he receives a tonsure and the actual ordination from the Go Monshu sama - the Patriarch and leader of Nishi Hongwanji branch.

The Three Refuges in Jodo Shinshu Buddhism

download in pdf from 1) my google drive, 2) my page on Academia.edu

The Three Refuges[1] are:

I TAKE REFUGE IN THE BUDDHA

Buddham saranam gacchami[2] (Namo kye Bu[3])

I TAKE REFUGE IN THE DHARMA

Dhammam saranam gacchami (Namo kye Ho)

I TAKE REFUGE IN THE SANGHA

Sangham saranam gacchami (Namo kye So)

     1) The meaning of taking refuge in the Buddha 

       This means to take refuge in Amida Buddha who is the central Buddha in Jodo Shinshu. Only through Him can we attain Buddhahood in the Pure Land as He is the only Buddha among all Buddhas who made the Vow of saving everybody, no matter their spiritual capacities.  

By taking refuge in Amida, we automatically honor and take refuge in Shakyamuni Buddha as the Teacher who showed us the path of Amida Dharma (His main reason for coming into this world) and in all Buddhas in the ten directions, as all encourage us, teach us and guide us to entrust to Amida Buddha.

The Ten Benefits of faith in Amida during this life: 10. The benefit of entering the stage of the truly settled (non-retrogression)

click to return to 

The Ten Benefits in this 
Life of a Person who 
has Faith in Amida Buddha

By receiving faith (shinjin) and saying the Name of Amida we enter, in this life, in the stage of the truly settled for birth in the Pure Land, where we’ll actually go after death, and where we’ll immediately attain Buddhahood (Nirvana). This is also called the stage of non-retrogression, the stage of definite assurance, the group of the rightly established stage, the stage equal to perfect Enlightenment, the stage equal with Maitreya, etc.

Here are some passages related with this stage:

„If one is mindful of that Buddha’s infinite power and

merit,

One will instantly enter the stage of definite

assurance. So I am always mindful of Amida”[1]

"When we, ordinary people filled with evil passions, the multitudes defiled by karmic evil and subject to birth and death, attain the faith and practice transferred by Amida for our going forth, we will immediately join the Mahayana group of the rightly established stage. Because we dwell in the rightly established stage, we unfailingly reach Nirvana".[2]

The Ten Benefits of faith in Amida during this life: 8.The benefit of being aware of Amida’s benevolence and of responding in gratitude to His virtues; 9.The benefit of constantly practicing great compassion

click to return to 

The Ten Benefits in this Life of a Person 
who has Faith in Amida Buddha

As I explained at the chapter related with the Primal Vow, faith gives us two kinds of awareness:

1) that we are people of deep karmic limitations, incapable to attain Buddhahood through our own power; and

2) that only Amida Buddha can save us through His Vow Power (Other Power), without asking anything from us.

The repeated births and deaths of samsaric existence are not a matter of mythology but a real danger for the unenlightend beings and the most important problem to be solved while we are still enjoying the rare karmic circumstance of being born a human being and meeting Amida Dharma. If the follower deeply realizes that samsara is not the place where he should build himself a destiny, but a never-ending cycle of momentary or false hapiness and disatisfaction, and that he cannot escape from it through his own powers, he may reach the point when  he accepts Amida Buddha’s helping hand that is extended to him.

In the next passages we see  how Shinran expressed his awareness of Amida’s benevolence after he received faith: