The Book Club Begins a New Shelf of Books

Our temple book club began about five years ago at the suggestion of a temple member with a background in education.  A book club would allow interested temple and community members the opportunity to study Buddhism through selected readings as well as give people the chance to know each other better in a smaller, more personal setting than the Sunday service can provide.

Needless to add, the member who suggested the book club also got to start it!  The club’s co-chairs select the books for the year ahead, soliciting input from club members and the temple as a whole.  In the summer and year end holidays, the Book Club features a popular “Book Club Goes to the Movies” event, complete with popcorn.

As it began to develop, sometimes it was only the co-chairs at a book club meeting—but at least they’d both read the book selection and had something to discuss.  Sometimes the Book Club was a victim of shuffled scheduling and other demands on our collective time.  It took a few years of uneven attendance and trying different  meeting times before it caught on and began to draw 10-15 individuals per meeting.  Plus visitors to Sunday service found the selection of books to purchase useful for their private study even if they never returned to temple.

Now the Book Club is part of our experience of temple and community.  This year we

hope everyone is looking forward to reading some great books to guide us as we journey together on the Shin Buddhist path. The path is not without obstacles, as we find out in our book selection to kick off the year. The Authentic Life: Zen Wisdom for Living Free from Complacency and Fear, by Ezra Bayda, is written with exceptional clarity and simplicity. Bayda offers practical ways in which we can use our spiritual practice to respond to life’s blows.  He writes, “A crucial step is to see our difficulties as our path.” When spiritual practice begins to become the central orientation of our life, when we increasingly remember to ask ourselves, Can I see this situation as my path? – then we are in the process of living most authentically.” Our most painful experiences are an opportunity to deepen self-discovery and growth, even leading to freedom.

Shoshinge - Shinran's Hymn of True Faith

We chant the Shoshinge for Ho-Onko.  This is one of several chants we use in our services, but quite honestly, it is not the one that is going to win the chant popularity contest.  In general if you say to a temple member that we are going to do the Shoshinge today, they may look at you blankly until you say, “the really long one…”

They will know which one you are talking about.  They may not show it, but there may be a secret sense of dismay.  The Shoshinge—a masterpiece written by our founder Shinran Shonin, which traces the teachings of the Pure Land tradition of Buddhism from the historical Shakyamuni Buddha’s time—takes 15 minutes to chant.  And, for good measure, we usually follow this with the Nembutsu Wasan which is a series of songs written by Shinran as well, and which add another 15 minutes to the chanting.

But it is our most important chant, and it is important to understand for our lives in Nembutsu.  The following teaching appeared in our November, 2015 newsletter, and was written by our Supervising Minister, Reverend Marvin Harada, to give us a better sense of what it is we are chanting during Ho-Onko and other important services in the year, and how we can personalize it to our own lives.

Shinran Shonin’s Shoshinge and the Seven Masters

One of the most fundamental of Shin Buddhist texts is the Shoshinge, which is a song or poem written by Shinran Shonin. The Shoshinge is also chanted, and is chanted every morning at the 6:00 a.m. service at our hongwanji  (mother temple) in Japan. In our Orange County temple, we chant the Shoshinge at our meditation service every Sunday, and after the publication of our new service book, we are trying to do it more often in our family services as well. This month, I would like to explain in general, the contents of the Shoshinge.

First of all, the Shoshinge (Gatha, or Song of True Shinjin), appears in Shinran Shonin’s main work, the Kyogyoshinsho (Teaching, Practice, Shinjin, Realization), which is a lengthy work consisting of six chapters. The Shoshinge appears at the end of the second chapter, the chapter on Practice (Gyo). It is a song or poem that is exactly 120 lines long, with 7 Chinese characters in each line.        

To put it simply, Shinran Shonin expresses his deep spirituality, his deep heart of the Dharma in this beautiful poem. In expressing his deep heart of the Dharma, he praises the wonderful teachers who have brought the truth of the Dharma, the Nembutsu, to him. Those wonderful teachers are called the Seven Masters.

Although their names are long, I think it is important that we know their names and become more familiar with their teachings.

I would like to list the names of the Seven Masters in both the language of their country, but also by their names pronounced in Japanese as Shinran referred to them. When you become more familiar in chanting the Shoshinge, you will recognize the names of these masters appearing in the text, as Shinran praises them and their teachings.

The Seven Masters are:

India:              Nagarjuna (Ryuju Bosatsu)

            Vasubandhu (Tenjin Bosatsu)

China:            Tan Luan (Donran Daishi)

Tao Cho (Doshaku Zenji)

Shan Tao (Zendo Daishi)

Japan:            Genshin Kasho

Genku (Better known as Honen Shonin)

In the Shoshinge, Shinran Shonin praises Shakyamuni Buddha, Amida Buddha, and the Seven Masters, for bringing the truth of Namu Amida Butsu to his heart and mind. For Shinran Shonin, his heart and mind were in total darkness, total delusion, until a light began to penetrate the depths of his being. This light that he encountered was the light of wisdom, the light of Amida. The Seven Masters, to Shinran Shonin, were like the conduit, the pipeline, through which the profound Dharma flowed from Shakyamuni Buddha all the way to him.

When Shinran Shonin praises the Seven Masters, he is not trying to validate his own position in the Buddhist tradition. He is not saying, “See the great teachers that are in my lineage!” Instead, he is expressing his gratitude for their teachings, that liberated his heart and mind. These Seven Masters were the great teachers that he revered and looked up to. They were the great teachers that inspired him in his own path of the Nembutsu.

If you were a musician, there would be great composers or musicians that inspire you to become a great musician. If you were an athlete, there would be great athletes whom you try to emulate, whom you look up to and try to model your game after. No matter what field you are in, there are teachers and mentors that guide you in that path, whether it is medicine, politics, or philosophy. In that sense, the Seven Masters for Shinran Shonin were the great spiritual mentors in his life, whose writings brought the essence of Namu Amida Butsu to him.

In a sense, we each have to find our own Seven Masters in our journey on the path. Perhaps for us, Shinran Shonin is one of our Seven Masters. Maybe Rennyo Shonin is another master. Maybe our Seven Masters might include the writings of the Dalai Lama, or D.T. Suzuki, or Thich Nhat Hanh.

The final line of the Shoshinge, “Yui ka shin shi ko so setsu,” means “Just rely on the teachings of these masters.” Shinran was a seeker and a student. He read and studied. He listened and learned. He opened his heart to the teachings. In doing so, wonderful teachers and teachings emerged in his life. His life became like a sponge and he absorbed into his life the teachings and writings of the Seven Masters, the Three Pure Land Sutras, and many other sutras that he read and quoted in his Kyogyoshinsho, like the Nirvana Sutra.

What we learn from Shinran Shonin’s Shoshinge is not just the teachings from the Seven Masters. What we learn is his attitude, his posture in seeking, listening, and receiving the teachings. When we chant the Shoshinge, we can reflect on the countless teachers and followers who have all had a hand in the transmission of Buddhism from the ancient past to me, here and now. Shinran Shonin too, becomes one of those teachers in the timeless flow of the Dharma.

Ho-Onko: Our Temple Rememberance

It is natural for us to want to spend time remembering those who have gone before us.  The funeral for our loved one was too close to the time of death to be much of anything other than soaked with sadness at their passing.  The “celebration of life” that has become popular in the US attempts to honor the person’s entire life, but frequently does so at the expense of recognizing the passage and inevitability of death.

Our Shin Buddhist memorial services offer us a framework on which to meditate and reflect on our cherished memories of the deceased as well as to bring those reflections home to the Buddha’s central teaching on impermanency of life in all forms—including our own changing existence.  As we remember all that the deceased did for us and others in their lifetime, we experience gratitude for them and for all those who have made our lives possible.

The memorial services give us the opportunity to listen to the dharma and to express our gratitude to Amida Buddha.  Amida Buddha is our personal symbol the historical person of Shakyamuni—the Buddha—and also the universal Buddhahood that is with and within all of us. 

Although our monthly newsletter reminds us of the memorial years for our past temple members, nowhere are the lessons of memorializing the deceased more important or celebrated for us than during January’s Ho-Onko service.  The founder of our tradition and our primary teacher, Shinran Shonin died on January 16, 1262.  The translation for Ho-onko is “return of gratitude” (ho-on) and “clarify the meaning of” (ko).  Although we keep track of our personal memorials for temple members, Shinran Shonin’s annual memorial service stands in for all of us, still-living or long-departed—and has done so for over 750 years.

Our teacher, Shinran, lived in a time of great disunity and violence, a time mirrored in our experiences today.  He sought a way to attain peace that would be available to everyone, not only those who could leave their family for a monastic life of strict practices and study.  And, although it sometimes doesn’t look this way to new members who listen to our chants in Japanese and hear words like naijin, o-shoku and even ho-onko, Shinran’s way was not just for Japanese and their descendants.   He tried for 20 years to find peace through his monatic practice, but eventually returned to the world, married, had children—and uncovered the way of life—the Nembutsu way—that all of us live today.

           

There are thousands of books and articles in English and in Japanese that attempt to describe this life of Nembutsu.  It can be made very complicated and not feel like a way of life available to everybody at all.  Or it can be understood very simply: oneness.  We are “one” in the Nembutsu, one with Shinran Shonin and with our beloved dead because our ego self melts and our hearts and minds become one with all life, past, present and future.  We say Namu Amida Butsu—I take refuge in Amida Buddha—and that is our ticket into a world of oneness that exists without time or the edges of egos and distinctions of persons.

It is a beautiful way of life.  But, truthfully, we forget how beautiful it is.  We are not surrounded here with the annual customs Reverend Bishop Umezu remembers so vividly growing up in a small town in Japan, full of observant Shin Buddhists.  We need Ho-Onko once a year to come together as a sangha to retrace Shinran’s footsteps into the world of Nembutsu and to resolve to dedicate ourselves anew in the service of each other.

Our Ho-onko service follows the general pattern of our Sunday services, but like those services in the Bishop’s childhood, we bring in a special speaker (s/he only gives one Dharma talk, however!) who will enlighten us further on Shinran’s teachings.  Our hymn (gatha) will be one written by Shinran himself, and we will chant the Shoshinge, which is the mighty compilation of the great masters’ teachings that stand as the foundations that Shinran followed and taught to us.

Shinran walked before us.  We follow his footsteps and those who came before him and remember all those footsteps today.

Ho-Onko - A Rememberence

Ho-Onko is upon us, and is the most important celebration of our year as Shin Buddhists.  At Ho-Onko, we celebrate the memorial of the founder of our sect of Buddhism, Shinran Shonin.  While we have many teachers of the dharma, Shinran is certainly one of our most important and revered teachers, and we are pleased to honor the memory of his passing each year.

Because of the importance of Ho-Onko, there are several postings this month about the day and about our founder.  This remembrance was written by the Bishop of the Buddhist Churches of America, Reverend Kodo Umezu, and originally appeared in the January 2014 issue of “Wheel of Dharma”, the official publication of the Buddhist Churches of America.  It gives us a sense of how important this day is to Shin Buddhists, particularly in the small villages where Shin Buddhism is still the main expression of Buddhist practice.

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During the month of January, many temples and churches observe a very special service called Ho-Onko. It is a service to honor the founder of the Jodo Shinshu School of Buddhism, Shinran Shonin (1173-1263). Ho-onko is the main service in our tradition and is the origin of our religious organization. The term Ho-onko means “a service or a gathering to express appreciation” and is used by many other Buddhist orders in Japan. Therefore, the Ho-onko that we observe is formally called “Shinran Shonin Goshoki Ho-Onko” to specify that the service is a gathering to express our appreciation for Shinran Shonin on his memorial day.

While growing up in Japan, during my grammar school years, my temple in Fukuoka observed Ho-Onko for an entire week, from January 2 to January 9. Though the observance lasted seven days, it required more than two weeks of preparation. About a week before the service we had to clean the hondo, polish the brass items and ornaments in the naijin, and decorate the altar. We relied on a group of five or six members called Hana-ko (Flower Arrangement Association), who were in charge of arranging special flowers for the altar. About one week before the service they went to the nearby mountain and brought back piles of pine and bamboo branches. They secluded themselves in a special room behind the hondo where they spent many days creating two pairs of huge, magnificent arrangements. Around the same time, a group of musicians called Gakunin (musicians) started rehearsing the gagaku music to be played during the services. The people of Hana-ko and Gakunin were dedicated members who were local farmers but had special talents and skills. A few days before Ho-Onko, we pounded mochi rice and made hundreds of tiny mochi rice cakes. 

These small mochi cakes were stuck on bamboo skewers, tied around wooden cylinders, painted, and placed around the shrines as offerings to Amida Buddha and Shinran Shonin.
Our Ho-Onko was one of the biggest events in my village. It required every villager to come out and help put on the services. In the morning of the first day, heating devices with burning charcoals inside (hibachi) were placed in the hondo as we waited for people to come. The series of Ho-Onko services began with an early morning service at 5 a.m., then another one at 10 a.m. The afternoon service began at 1:30 p.m. and the last one was at 7:30 p.m. Some members stayed at my temple for seven days to attend each and every service. Otoki lunch was served every day. The menu was all vegetarian dishes. I remember sometimes sake was served. Many Buddhist Women’s Association members who were in charge of cooking came early in the morning and started the fire in the kitchen. Their dedication was remarkable. They prepared and served hundreds of meals every day for seven days.

We invited a guest speaker for Ho-Onko called the Hongwanji Fukyo-shi (certified speaker). He stayed with us for the entire seven-day period and delivered about 30 messages. It was like a weeklong seminar and religious festival, but I was too young to sit through all of the dharma messages.

Sometimes it snowed. It was the coldest time of the year, yet people came with smiles on their faces. I remember laughter and friendly conversations inside and outside of the hondo. Outside was cold, but there was a warm atmosphere around the temple compound. The nembutsu came out of people’s mouths spontaneously. The sound of Shoshinge chanting, the beautiful, ancient melody of Shoya Raisange, the flickering flames of big red candles, the gagaku music, the sound of the bell, the smell of incense, the delicious otoki meals, and the nembutsu utterance are all fond memories now.

My role (besides helping to make mochi) was to attend the services. My older brother and I had to wear specially made robes and sit next to our father and chant. On the last day, sitting on the guest speaker’s stage in front of everyone, I had to read a letter written by Rennyo Shonin. I remember not looking forward to it, but it made our elder members very happy, as I recall.

When I was growing up I had no idea who Shinran Shonin was, but I was always part of Shinran Shonin’s sangha. I knew his name through reading a comic book but had no idea what he had taught or done. It was much later in my life when he became a special person to me. Now I love him so much and I want to know more and more about him; or I should say, I respect him and appreciate all that he did. Reflecting on my childhood, I am especially grateful to my parents and temple members who gave me the chance to stay close to him.

Before and during Shinran Shonin’s time, Buddhism existed just for the elite classes. The Dharma was for the Imperial family and some monks and priests. Shinran Shonin, after realizing the true essence of Shakyamuni Buddha’s teaching through Honen Shonin, brought the teaching to all the people. He shared the message of the Great Vessel (Mahayana) that carries everyone to the realm of ultimate Oneness with only one condition; that is, to hear and appreciate the reason that no conditions are required of us. Age, class, gender; whether ordained or not, single or married, and even the state of our minds are of no concern. This is what Shakyamuni Buddha said, and what Shinran Shonin taught. They had shown us not to rely on our foolish and unreliable minds.

The true Dharma made Shinran Shonin realize that we do not need to pray to a supernatural being for anything. The Dharma taught him that everything happens due to countless causes and conditions. He knew the law of causation. He taught people to live their lives according to the law of causation. His teaching freed people from superstitious beliefs so they could focus on their livelihoods as ordinary people.

The Pure Land teaching really awakened and humbled Shinran Shonin. He deeply appreciated the kindness of Shakyamuni Buddha, successive masters and teachers who had taught and passed the teaching down to him.

As I live my life, I appreciate his teaching more and more. I am just one being in this universe but I feel so fortunate to be able to hear his message.

–Bishop Kodo Umezu