Buddhism for Today’s World
by
Rev. Isabelle Shinjo Bernard
In such a time as we are currently living through, when disparate views challenge many of our cultural values, beliefs, and traditions, I am driven to ask myself how Buddhism addresses some of the issues we face in our lives as what we assumed was a stable foundation gets rocked. I find as I get older that change comes with a jolt. It is not easy and often, not pleasant. When I turn on the news in the morning, I am often tempted to quote Dorothy Parker, an author notable for her witty, acidic observances…in this case, when the radio news jolts me awake, to loudly complain “What fresh hell is this?”
Hhmmn, hhmmn, hhmmn…samsara, samsara, samsara, I mumble.
After coffee and a few grumbles, I wrestle with that most obvious of truths; that wishing for stability is like clutching at air…it was never stable or permanent. When we consider the life of Buddha, and his followers, we find more evidence of that. A basic tenet of Buddhism is that life is transient, that all things are in a constant state of change from one moment to the next...this is samsara, which refers to the cyclic, true nature of life between birth and death. Suffering is caused by our emotional attachments to the imagined constancy of a person, place, time, or object. What fresh hell is this, has a perspective on change that, for me, is quite realistic from my human perspective. All life is transient, all things in a constant state of change. Everything that exists ages and eventually dies. Aaargh!
The teaching of karma gives insights into how we should consider our ethical and moral responsibility as Buddhists. Shakyamuni redefined the meaning of the word, which was already in usage in the Vedic (pre-Hindu) community. He pointed out that before an action is taken, there is thought, motivation and desire; this directs the action and may influence the result. But rather than point to consequences only as good or evil, Shakyamuni urges us to consider how our actions affect others; how they spread out in an ever-widening ripple effect, much of which we never even see or are aware of. So there is obvious need for developing awareness of our mental processes as they are the engine that drives behavior.
So…that takes us back to samsara. Among the Buddha’s many teachings are discourses which deal with the politics of his day. Indian kings sought out the Buddha to help them solve political conflicts. Not wanting to take sides, Shakyamuni spoke about how suffering caused by conflicts might be ameliorated. In the Meditation Sutra, Shakyamuni flies to Rajagrha, to console Queen Vaidehi who has been imprisoned by her son Ajātaśatru. Shakyamuni tells her that how she can be reborn in the Pure Land of Amitabha; by calling the name of this Buddha, one may be reborn in his paradise. Shakyamuni offered hope to Vaidehi, reaching through her despair, offering a practice by which she/all despairing beings could be saved, no matter their karmic circumstances, level of understanding or spiritual ability.
Sakyamuni always approached questions of human suffering with great respect; he realized that understanding the truth of a teaching was dependent on the listeners capacity. A person immersed in great suffering needs an easy method to alleviate the pain that consumes them, that affirms they are embraced within the arms of compassion and wisdom, that affirms that there is a path out of suffering.
Within Jodo Shinshu we also find this compassionate understanding of change and that which effects change. For Shinran, this was pivotal in his awakening. Meeting Honen, and encountering O-Nembutsu, transformed his understanding and his life. Shinran writes in Shōshinge:
Master Genku [Honen], well-versed in the Buddha’s teaching,
Turned compassionately to foolish people, both good and evil,
Establishing In this remote land the teaching and realization that are the true essence of the Pure Land way,
He transmits the selected Primal Vow to us of the defiled world.
Nembutsu IS Amida Buddha sharing the Primal Vow with us. We repeat o-nembutsu, Namo Amida Butsu, to take refuge in Amida Buddha. Significantly, we are enabled to take refuge because we have encountered the Vow. And through the Vow we also encounter Sakyamuni Buddha and all those who have helped to preserve and propagate the Nembutsu teaching, including Shinran. Furthermore, this teaching was only able to reach Shinran because of the Seven Masters from India, China, and Japan who transmitted the Dharma. This is Karma manifesting in our lives. This is also how interconnectedness works.
Our lives are, individually and collectively, built on inter-connectedness, that which transcends time and space. Countless others who have gone before us make our lives possible. This is true for Buddhas also. Amida connects with us, through time and space, in the Nembutsu. It is through saying the Name, Namu Amida Butsu that we become awakened to Infinite Life and Light, the Compassion and Wisdom of Reality-as-it-truly-is.
A haiku poem written by the monk Ryokan reads, “Return to Amida/return to Amida/so even dewdrops fall.” Our lives, though fragile as dewdrops on a summer morning, have infinite connection to all others. And so, we entrust ourselves gratefully to Amida Buddha. Please place your hands together in Gassho, and let’s say Nembutsu together.
Namu Amida Butsu
Rev. Isabelle Shinjo Bernard
June 19, 2021
|