On June 13 and 14, 1998, over 60 Higashi Honganji members gathered together at the downtown LA Betsuin for a special joint retreat for the leadership of our American temples. The strong turnout from our combined Sanghas - as evidenced by the packed room at the Betsuin - made this an especially rewarding event. Participants came not only from California temples - Betsuin, West Covina, Newport Beach and Berkeley - but also from our Hawaii District and from our affiliate Brooklyn Buddhist Association in New York.
The theme for the retreat was "Let us all become true followers of the Buddha." In his opening remarks, Bishop Imai expanded upon this theme and established a direction for our temple leaders when he said, "It is important for us to deepen our understanding of the Nembutsu teaching and to share it with our Dharma friends." He underscored the importance of this understanding when he said, "A temple board must be based on the teachings of Buddhism...board members should be role models for how to live as Shin Buddhists. Self-reflection through Shin Buddhism is a powerful tool; without self-reflection we will not be able to lead our temples. This is the most fundamental teaching."
The lecturer for the retreat was Rev. Shigeshi Wada, a well-known and popular minister in Japan. Despite being in his eighties, and by his own admission, facing the reality that he might never again be able to visit us, Rev. Wada never faltered during the two-day event. Rev. Wada began by telling us a little about his life, and about how he personally came to discover Buddhism.
Rebellious Youth Meets Akegarasu
"As a ninth grade kid, I encountered many typical youthful anxieties. I had many questions, but what they all really boiled down to was 'Why was I born? What is the meaning of life?' These questions transcend national boundaries and exist for all of humankind throughout history. These questions can sometimes even 'break the back' of a person," he said. "I was the son of a temple priest, but despite that and the many ministers that visited my father's temple, I had no inclination towards asking these questions of the ministers...I had lost all trust in human beings. But it is exactly at those times when we should listen to the teachings," Wada-sensei said. However, he added that it is difficult for us to make this connection.
"We see today in Japan that there is violent behavior by teens. Somehow, I feel as though I can understand the difficulties they are going through. These are the same problems I experienced 60 years ago." Wada-sensei also pointed out that all parents, if they think about it, once had the same problems and concerns as their kids, but were never able to find the answers themselves because career and family intervened. "However," Wada-sensei said, "what is the most important is not for us to say 'do this, do that,' but to accept our kid's pain and anxiety as our own...this is what I feel they truly want."
"But why," Wada-sensei asked, "did I eventually turn my attention to the Shinshu teaching? I was a rebel who used to skip school," he said. "At 15, I felt that adults just didn't understand me. What changed my mind was my meeting a certain 60 year old man who had the exact same problems and concerns that I had."
As it turns out, the 60 year old man that turned Wada-sensei around was none other than the famous Rev. Haya Akegarasu, who was later to become the head of the entire Higashi Honganji. "I actually met him first through one of his books," said Wada-sensei. Reading that book made him want to "rush to meet this great teacher." In 1932, Akegarasu had just come back from a world tour and was at a summer retreat. Rev. Wada confessed that, "I didn't actually understand what he said, but my deep and lasting impression was that here was a person who was truly living the Shinshu teaching...What I received from him were actually questions. These questions I've had to live with for my entire life. His concerns became my concerns."
Okagesama-de
Wada-sensei also told how, in addition to Rev. Akegarasu, there was another person who deeply influenced him. He used to see a particular "obachan" (i.e., "grandma" - Ed.) everyday. She was a poor lady who was living a simple, unpretentious life, working hard everyday. Whenever he asked her "how are you?," she would reply, "Okagesama-de," or "I'm doing OK thanks to the support I receive." This is a common phrase in Japan, but many elderly Japanese misinterpret its meaning to be something like "Thanks to God or Buddha, I am having good fortune," Wada-sensei said. There was something special about the depth with which this particular obachan expressed it. To Rev. Wada, "It struck me that what she was really expressing was her deep gratitude for the surprises that life brings, that every day is fresh, everyday is new."
"Because of our Dobo educational programs, we all know much more about the Dharma, and have many more comforts in our modern homes than this obachan had, yet we don't find life fresh," he said. "We often find ourselves completely bored. Somehow, all our knowledge doesn't translate into our lives." The important question to Rev. Wada is, "How do we learn Shinran Shonin's teaching?" He clarified that "It is different from how we learn at school. Shinshu must be learned on a completely different level." To Rev. Wada, understanding the significance of the obachan's life and the meaning of "okagesama-de" is central to understanding the Shinshu teaching.
The Wish
After lunch, Rev. Wada continued his lecture. "The most important question is, do we have a deep wish to become true followers of the Buddha?" The meaning of this "wish," he explained, is "to become truly myself, or to become who I really am." In contrast, we tend to base our lives on comparisons to past experiences we've already had. We place emphasis on our differences, such as good vs. bad, old vs. young, etc. "Basing our lives on past experiences and differences, we inevitably come to believe we have nothing in common," Wada-sensei explained. However, the fundamental problem in our lives is we actually can't bear this separation. This is our problem." He explained that "the most important wish, the fundamental wish we all have, is to become one with all life. The Japanese term for this is inochi. After a slight pause, Rev. Wada added, "This wish is life."
"We are all sharing the same wish to be one. The response to the wish is what we call dobo, or 'friends of the Dharma.' And we realize that our spouse, our children, and everyone around us is actually a part of this circle of dobo. This is the essence of the Shinshu teaching." Rev. Wada added that, "When Shinran Shonin used the term, 'Jodo Shinshu,' he was not referring to a sect or denomination. He meant that we are all human beings living a part of one great life. We are all dobo, regardless of race or religion. Shinshu is not a teaching that criticizes other religions. It is a teaching that says 'all are dobo; all are yearning to live together in peace.'"
"It is the wish to become true followers of the Buddha - the deepest wish - that is most important. This wish is not reserved only for Shin Buddhists, it is for all...That wish has to be a lifelong search for the way to become a true follower."
Life and Death are One
"In one of Rennyo's letters, he mentions how 50% of the people in Japan are dying of the plague. Yet, Rennyo stated that this is not the cause of their death. What Rennyo - and Buddhism - remind us of is that the real cause of our death is our being born human. In addition, all of our status and wealth is useless when we are dying," said Wada-sensei. "However," Rev. Wada asked, "does this imply that therefore we should simply enjoy the pleasures of life? Is death therefore the opposite of life; is death bad, life good? Is our task then to simply try to put off death as long as possible, to 'sanitize' death?"
"These responses all happen," Wada-sensei said, "because we want to distance ourselves from death. But the true perspective is that from the very the moment we are born, we are actually in the process of dying. Yet our society makes us forget the reality of death. And, are we any happier with our advanced, hi-tech society? No, if anything, we are less happy. The reality of impermanence is we are born, and we will die." Though this might seem negative, Wada-sensei explained that the Buddhist awakening is the way to transcend this 'cycle' of life and death. "Buddhism is a teaching of awakening to our own egotism," he said. "The drudgery of daily life disappears when we see life and death as one. This is the same as birth in the Pureland. Thus, the answer to the question, 'Why am I born?' becomes, 'I was born to recite the Nembutsu.'"
The Teaching of Awakening
On Sunday morning, Rev. Wada focused again on the term inochi. He explained that the "i" in the term means "breath, or breathing; "chi" means energy or life-force. Inochi thus is "the energy from within that allows living things to live," he said. He pointed out however, that this "is not my life-force or energy; it belongs to all living things. I am the grateful recipient of this life-force."
"Unfortunately, today we have a 'scientific' view of life, which results in the human manipulation of life - nuclear weaponry, human cloning, etc. - things that in my opinion should not be done," he said. "Hongan is the pure wish, or inochi. We are embraced in that wish. Once again, it is not 'my wish,' but the wish of all life. It is not just Jodo Shinshu, but transcends all traditions. Hongan is a wish, an energy, that is present in all life."
"We are here today because of that wish," Rev. Wada continued, "not so much because we made a conscious decision to come. The religious mind transcends all barriers. The wish, as Shinran Shonin said, is fulfilled in the Pure Land. That wish has guided me here today." Rev. Wada also clarified that listening to the Dharma doesn't really have any material benefits like getting a better job or more money. "There isn't any concrete benefit," he said. Instead, "the wish" exists within us and guides all living things. "When we awaken to this, it leads to an enthusiasm for living. Although we put all life into the same category, what distinguishes humans from other animals and from plants is the ability to awaken to this wish. Buddhism is the teaching of awakening. Namu Amida Butsu is the expression of awakening to this life-force."
Follow the Great Path
"We think we know who we are but we have no real understanding," he said. We think, "If I could only be healthier or wealthier, then I'd be happy. We are always looking with false hopes to the future. In the modern era, everyone is looking for only their own happiness; human beings have created conveniences that supposedly make life better...But many of these developments have created conflict. Essentially, we have all forgotten 'the wish.'" Rev Wada firmly believes we should not walk the "small path" of self interest, but the "great path" of awakening to the wish.
But Rev. Wada clarified that he does not mean to criticize the advances of science. However, "How can we talk about maintaining the dignity of life as our own environment is being destroyed?," he asked. "We are all hoping for that world - that Pure Land - to live in, where we can all live together. However, it is not a place to go to, but an energy, expressed in the form of the infinite light and life. It is right here and now. It is the calling, or the energy that resides within. As Shinran Shonin said, to live this path and discover the Pure Land, 'just recite Namu Amida Butsu'...The central teaching of Buddhism itself has always been awakening to this true wish."
Unfolding the Pureland
"What does religion mean to us?" asked Rev. Wada. "It is not to get rid of the problems of our lives. For example, to recite nembutsu only when good things happen, is what Shinran Shonin called 'gedo' or false Buddhism. We must instead realize the Hongan or fundamental wish. The fundamental wish however, cannot actually be answered. Religion is not something that gives us answers to life, but instead deepens or clarifies the questions of life," he said. "It is in this way that life is made more meaningful."
"Buddhism is a religion that provides no answers but deepens our questions. Receiving an answer is like 'the end,' and if we received answers, we would find life boring. What we really need is to deepen our questions."
"Shinran Shonin said that it's the questions that give us energy. To live with questions, to live with doubt is the proof that we are truly living. We have doubt about ourselves, who we really are. But the most difficult thing is to be liberated from the bounds of our own ego...and we don't have the strength to do this alone." Again, Rev. Wada, quoted Shinran: "Rely only on the Nembutsu...Namu Amida Butsu gives us the opportunity to transform our lives."
Rev. Wada explained more about Namu Amida Butsu. He said that "'Amida Butsu' or Amida Buddha is infinite light and life; the light symbolizes wisdom and the life symbolizes compassion. 'Namu' is our understanding of the ignorance and blind passions within us, which we call our 'bombu' nature...This is the way Shinran Shonin looked at himself. He himself stated that we can never really get rid of our shortcomings and human failures. However, we can awaken to the truth of our bombu. When we do this, it is then that the Pureland unfolds. And, to awaken together with others to the truth of bombu, is the creation of a true Sangha."
In closing, Wada-sensei simply said, "To be a true follower of Buddhism is to live with Namu Amida Butsu...Please continue to listen to the teachings."