![Shinran Shonin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Shinran_Shonin.jpg)
, also known as Shin Buddhism or True Pure Land Buddhism, is a school of
Pure Land Buddhism
Pure Land Buddhism (; ja, 浄土仏教, translit=Jōdo bukkyō; , also referred to as Amidism in English,) is a broad branch of Mahayana Buddhism focused on achieving rebirth in a Buddha's Buddha-field or Pure Land. It is one of the most wid ...
. It was founded by the former
Tendai
, also known as the Tendai Lotus School (天台法華宗 ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just "''hokke shū''") is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition (with significant esoteric elements) officially established in Japan in 806 by the Japanese m ...
Japanese monk
Shinran
''Popular Buddhism in Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture'' by Esben Andreasen, pp. 13, 14, 15, 17. University of Hawaii Press 1998, was a Japanese Buddhist monk, who was born in Hino (now a part of Fushimi, Kyoto) at the turbulent close of ...
.
Shin Buddhism is the most widely practiced branch of
Buddhism in Japan.
History
Shinran (founder)
Shinran
''Popular Buddhism in Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture'' by Esben Andreasen, pp. 13, 14, 15, 17. University of Hawaii Press 1998, was a Japanese Buddhist monk, who was born in Hino (now a part of Fushimi, Kyoto) at the turbulent close of ...
(1173–1263) lived during the late
Heian to early
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...
(1185–1333), a time of turmoil for
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
when the
emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
was stripped of political power by the ''
shōgun
, officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamak ...
s''. Shinran's family had a high rank at the
Imperial court in
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...
, but given the times, many aristocratic families were sending sons off to be
Buddhist monks
A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist ...
instead of having them participate in the Imperial government. When Shinran was nine (1181), he was sent by his uncle to
Mount Hiei
is a mountain to the northeast of Kyoto, lying on the border between the Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, Japan.
The temple of Enryaku-ji, the first outpost of the Japanese Tendai (Chin. Tiantai) sect of Buddhism, was founded atop Mount Hiei b ...
, where he was ordained as a
śrāmaṇera
A sāmaṇera (Pali); sa, श्रामणेर (), is a novice male monastic in a Buddhist context. A female novice is a ''śrāmaṇerī'' or ''śrāmaṇerikā'' (Sanskrit; Pāli: ''sāmaṇerī'').
Etymology
The ''sāmaṇera'' is a ...
in the
Tendai
, also known as the Tendai Lotus School (天台法華宗 ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just "''hokke shū''") is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition (with significant esoteric elements) officially established in Japan in 806 by the Japanese m ...
sect. Over time, Shinran became disillusioned with how Buddhism was practiced, foreseeing a decline in the potency and practicality of the teachings espoused.
Shinran
''Popular Buddhism in Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture'' by Esben Andreasen, pp. 13, 14, 15, 17. University of Hawaii Press 1998, was a Japanese Buddhist monk, who was born in Hino (now a part of Fushimi, Kyoto) at the turbulent close of ...
left his role as a ''dosō'' ("practice-hall monk") at Mount Hiei and undertook a 100-day retreat at
Rokkaku-dō
The , official name , is a Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan, said to have been established by Prince Shōtoku. The name comes from its main hall's hexagonal shape. This temple is part of the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage.
History
Rokkaku-dō is beli ...
in Kyoto, where he had a dream on the 95th day. In this dream,
Prince Shōtoku
, also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was the son of Emperor Yōmei and his consort, Princess Anahobe no Hashihito, who was also Yōmei's younger half- ...
appeared to him, espousing a pathway to enlightenment through verse. Following the retreat, in 1201, Shinran left Mount Hiei to study under
Hōnen for the next six years. Hōnen (1133–1212) another ex-Tendai monk, left the tradition in 1175 to found his own sect, the
Jōdo-shū
, also known as Jōdo Buddhism, is a branch of Pure Land Buddhism derived from the teachings of the Japanese ex-Tendai monk Hōnen. It was established in 1175 and is the most widely practiced branch of Buddhism in Japan, along with Jōdo Sh ...
or "Pure Land School". From that time on, Shinran considered himself, even after exile, a devout disciple of Hōnen rather than a founder establishing his own, distinct Pure Land school.
During this period, Hōnen taught the new
nembutsu
Nianfo (, Japanese: , , vi, niệm Phật) is a term commonly seen in Pure Land Buddhism. In the context of Pure Land practice, it generally refers to the repetition of the name of Amitābha. It is a translation of Sanskrit '' '' (or, "recoll ...
-only practice to many people in Kyoto society and amassed a substantial following but also came under increasing criticism by the Buddhist establishment there. Among his strongest critics was the monk
Myōe
(February 21, 1173 – February 11, 1232) was a Japanese Buddhist monk active during the Kamakura period who also went by the name ''Kōben'' ( ja, 高弁). He was a contemporary of Jōkei and Hōnen.
Biography
Myōe was born in what is n ...
and the temples of
Enryaku-ji
is a Tendai monastery located on Mount Hiei in Ōtsu, overlooking Kyoto. It was first founded in 788 during the early Heian period (794–1185) by Saichō (767–822), also known as Dengyō Daishi, who introduced the Tendai sect of Mahayan ...
and
Kōfuku-ji
is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples in the city of Nara, Japan. The temple is the national headquarters of the Hossō school.
History
Kōfuku-ji has its origin as a temple that was established in 669 b ...
. The latter continued to criticize Hōnen and his followers even after they pledged to behave with good conduct and to not slander other Buddhists.
In 1207, Hōnen's critics at Kōfuku-ji persuaded
Emperor Toba II to forbid Hōnen and his teachings after two of Imperial ladies-in-waiting converted to his practices.
Hōnen and his followers, among them Shinran, were forced into exile and four of Hōnen's disciples were executed. Shinran was given a
lay name
A legal name is the name that identifies a person for legal, administrative and other official purposes. A person's legal birth name generally is the name of the person that was given for the purpose of registration of the birth and which then a ...
, ''Yoshizane Fujii'', by the authorities but called himself ''Gutoku'' "Stubble-headed One" instead and moved to
Echigo Province (today
Niigata Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...
).
[Popular Buddhism In Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture by Esben Andreasen / University of Hawaii Press 1998, ]
It was during this exile that Shinran cultivated a deeper understanding of his own beliefs based on Hōnen's Pure Land teachings. In 1210 he married
Eshinni, the daughter of an Echigo aristocrat. Shinran and Eshinni had several children. His eldest son, Zenran, was alleged to have started a heretical sect of Pure Land Buddhism through claims that he received special teachings from his father. Zenran demanded control of local ''monto'' (lay follower groups), but after writing a stern letter of warning, Shinran disowned him in 1256, effectively ending Zenran's legitimacy.
In 1211 the nembutsu ban was lifted and Shinran was pardoned, but by 1212, Hōnen had died in Kyoto. Shinran never saw Hōnen following their exile. In the year of Hōnen's death, Shinran set out for the
Kantō region, where he established a substantial following and began committing his ideas to writing. In 1224 he wrote his most significant book, the ''
Kyogyoshinsho'' ("The True Teaching, Practice, Faith and Attainment of the Pure Land"), which contained excerpts from the Three Pure Land
sutras and the ''
Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra
The ''Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra'' (Sanskrit; , ; Vietnamese: ''Kinh Đại Bát Niết Bàn'') or ''Nirvana Sutra'' is Mahāyāna Buddhist sutra of the Buddha-nature genre. Its precise date of origin is uncertain, but its early form ...
'' along with his own commentaries
and the writings of the Jodo Shinshu Patriarchs Shinran drew inspiration from.
In 1234, at the age of sixty, Shinran left Kantō for Kyoto (Eshinni stayed in Echigo and she may have outlived Shinran by several years), where he dedicated the rest of his years to writing. It was during this time he wrote the Wasan, a collection of verses summarizing his teachings for his followers to recite.
Shinran's daughter,
Kakushinni, came to Kyoto with Shinran, and cared for him in his final years and his mausoleum later became
Hongan-ji
, also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the collective name of the largest school of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism (which further sub-divides into the Nishi and Higashi branches). 'Hongan-ji' may also refer to any one of several actual temple bu ...
, "Temple of the Original Vow". Kakushinni was instrumental in preserving Shinran's teachings after his death, and the letters she received and saved from her mother, Eshinni, provide critical biographical information regarding Shinran's earlier life. These letters are currently preserved in the Nishi Hongan temple in Kyoto. Shinran died at the age of 90 in 1263 (technically age 89 by Western reckoning).
Revival and formalization
![威徳寺本堂](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/%E5%A8%81%E5%BE%B3%E5%AF%BA%E6%9C%AC%E5%A0%82.JPG)
Following Shinran's death, the lay Shin ''monto'' slowly spread through the Kantō and the northeastern seaboard. Shinran's descendants maintained themselves as caretakers of Shinran's gravesite and as Shin teachers, although they continued to be ordained in the Tendai School. Some of Shinran's disciples founded their own schools of Shin Buddhism, such as the Bukko-ji and Kosho-ji, in Kyoto. Early Shin Buddhism did not truly flourish until the time of
Rennyo
Rennyo (, 1415–1499) was the 8th Monshu (head priest) of the Hongan-ji Temple of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism, and descendant of founder Shinran. Jodo Shinshu Buddhists often referred to as the restorer of the sect ( in Japanese). He w ...
(1415–1499), who was 8th in descent from Shinran. Through his charisma and proselytizing, Shin Buddhism was able to amass a greater following and grow in strength. In the 16th-century, during the
Sengoku period
The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615.
The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...
the political power of Honganji led to several conflicts between it and the warlord
Oda Nobunaga, culminating in a ten-year conflict over the location of the
Ishiyama Hongan-ji
The was the primary fortress of the Ikkō-ikki, leagues of warrior priests and commoners who opposed samurai rule during the Sengoku period. It was established in 1496, at the mouth of the Yodo River, on the coast of the Seto Inland Sea. At the t ...
, which Nobunaga coveted because of its strategic value. So strong did the sect become that in 1602, through mandate of Shogun
Tokugawa Ieyasu
was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...
, the main temple Hongan-ji in
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...
was broken off into two sects to curb its power. These two sects, the Nishi (Western) Honganji and the Higashi (Eastern) Honganji, exist separately to this day.
During the time of Shinran, followers would gather in informal meeting houses called ''dojo'', and had an informal liturgical structure. However, as time went on, this lack of cohesion and structure caused Jōdo Shinshū to gradually lose its identity as a distinct sect, as people began mixing other Buddhist practices with Shin ritual. One common example was the
Mantra of Light
The Mantra of Light, also called the ''Mantra of the Unfailing Rope Snare'', is an important mantra of the Shingon and Kegon sects of Buddhism, but is not emphasized in other Vajrayana sects of Buddhism. It is taken from the ''Amoghapāśa-kalpar ...
popularized by
Myōe
(February 21, 1173 – February 11, 1232) was a Japanese Buddhist monk active during the Kamakura period who also went by the name ''Kōben'' ( ja, 高弁). He was a contemporary of Jōkei and Hōnen.
Biography
Myōe was born in what is n ...
and
Shingon Buddhism
Shingon monks at Mount Koya
is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra.
K ...
. Other Pure Land Buddhist practices, such as the nembutsu odori or "dancing nembutsu" as practiced by the followers of
Ippen
was a Japanese Buddhist itinerant preacher (''hijiri'') who founded the branch of Pure Land Buddhism.
Life
Ippen was born at Hōgon-ji, a temple in Iyo Province (modern Ehime Prefecture) on the island of Shikoku. He was originally named . He ...
and the Ji School, may have also been adopted by early Shin Buddhists. Rennyo ended these practices by formalizing much of the Jōdo Shinshū ritual and liturgy, and revived the thinning community at the Honganji temple while asserting newfound political power. Rennyo also proselytized widely among other Pure Land sects and consolidated most of the smaller Shin sects. Today, there are still ten distinct sects of Jōdo Shinshū, Nishi Hongan-ji and Higashi Hongan-ji being the two largest.
Rennyo is generally credited by Shin Buddhists for reversing the stagnation of the early Jōdo Shinshū community, and is considered the "Second Founder" of Jōdo Shinshū. His portrait picture, along with Shinran's, are present on the ''onaijin'' (altar area) of most Jōdo Shinshū temples. However, Rennyo has also been criticized by some Shin scholars for his engagement in medieval politics and his alleged divergences from Shinran's original thought. After Rennyo, Shin Buddhism was still persecuted in some regions. Secret Shin groups called ''
kakure nenbutsu'' would meet in mountain caves to perform chanting and traditional rituals.
Following the unification of Japan during the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...
, Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism adapted, along with the other Japanese Buddhist schools, into providing memorial and funeral services for its registered members under the
Danka system
The , also known as is a system of voluntary and long-term affiliation between Buddhist temples and households in use in Japan since the Heian period. In it, households (the ''danka'') financially support a Buddhist temple which, in exchange, pr ...
, which was legally required by the
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...
in order to prevent the spread of
Christianity in Japan
Christianity in Japan is among the nation's minority religions in terms of individuals who state an explicit affiliation or faith. Between less than 1 percent and 1.5% of the population claims Christian belief or affiliation. Although formally ...
. The ''danka seido'' system continues to exist today, although not as strictly as in the premodern period, causing Japanese Buddhism to also be labeled as "Funeral Buddhism" since it became the primary function of Buddhist temples. The Honganji also created an impressive academic tradition, which led to the founding of
Ryukoku University
is a private university in Kyoto, Japan.
It was founded as a school for Buddhist priests of the Nishi Hongan-ji denomination in 1639, and became a secularized university in 1876. The university's professors and students founded the literary ...
in Kyoto and formalized many of the Jōdo Shinshū traditions which are still followed today.
Following the
Meiji Restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
and the subsequent persecution of Buddhism (''
haibutsu kishaku
(literally "abolish Buddhism and destroy Shākyamuni") is a term that indicates a current of thought continuous in Japan's history which advocates the expulsion of Buddhism from Japan. Under the shogunate, obtaining the permission to open or c ...
'') of the late 1800s due to a revived
nationalism
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...
and modernization, Jōdo Shinshū managed to survive intact due to the devotion of its ''monto''. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the Honganji, as with the other Japanese Buddhist schools, was compelled to support the policies of the military government and the cult of
State Shinto
was Imperial Japan's ideological use of the Japanese folk religion and traditions of Shinto. The state exercised control of shrine finances and training regimes for priests to strongly encourage Shinto practices that emphasized the Emperor as ...
. It subsequently apologized for its wartime actions.
[Zen at War (2nd ed.) by Brian Daizen Victoria / Rowman and Littlefield 2006, ]
In contemporary times, Jōdo Shinshū is one of the most widely followed forms of
Buddhism in Japan, although like other schools, it faces challenges from many popular
Japanese new religions
Japanese new religions are new religious movements established in Japan. In Japanese, they are called or . Japanese scholars classify all religious organizations founded since the middle of the 19th century as "new religions"; thus, the term refe ...
, or ''shinshūkyō'', which emerged following
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
as well as from the growing
secularization
In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...
and
materialism of Japanese society.
All ten schools of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism commemorated the 750th memorial of their founder, Shinran, in 2011 in Kyoto.
Doctrine
Shinran's thought was strongly influenced by the doctrine of ''
Mappō
The Three Ages of Buddhism, also known as the Three Ages of the Dharma (), are three divisions of time following Shakyamuni Buddha's death and passing into Nirvana in East Asian Buddhism.
Three Ages
The Three Ages of Buddhism are three divis ...
,'' a largely Mahayana
eschatology
Eschatology (; ) concerns expectations of the end of the present age, human history, or of the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions (both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic), which teach that nega ...
which claims humanity's ability to listen to and practice the Buddhist teachings deteriorates over time and loses effectiveness in bringing individual practitioners closer to Buddhahood. This belief was particularly widespread in early medieval
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
and in Japan at the end of the Heian. Shinran, like his mentor Hōnen, saw the age he was living in as being a degenerate one where beings cannot hope to be able to extricate themselves from the cycle of birth and death through their own power, or ''
jiriki
is the Japanese Buddhist term for self power, the ability to achieve liberation or enlightenment (in other words, to reach nirvana) through one's own efforts. Jiriki and tariki (他力 meaning "other power", "outside help") are two terms in Ja ...
'' (自力). For both Hōnen and Shinran, all conscious efforts towards achieving enlightenment and realizing the Bodhisattva ideal were contrived and rooted in selfish ignorance; for humans of this age are so deeply rooted in karmic evil as to be incapable of developing the truly altruistic compassion that is requisite to becoming a Bodhisattva.
Due to his awareness of human limitations, Shinran advocated reliance on ''tariki'', or ''other power'' (他力)—the power of
Amitābha (Japanese ''Amida'') made manifest in his
Primal Vow—in order to attain liberation. Shin Buddhism can therefore be understood as a "practiceless practice", for there are no specific acts to be performed such as there are in the "Path of Sages". In Shinran's own words, Shin Buddhism is considered the "Easy Path" because one is not compelled to perform many difficult, and often esoteric, practices in order to attain higher and higher mental states.
Nembutsu
As in other Pure Land Buddhist schools, Amitābha is a central focus of the Buddhist practice, and Jōdo Shinshū expresses this devotion through a chanting practice called nembutsu, or "Mindfulness of the Buddha
mida Mida may refer to:
* Mida, Lorestan, a village in Iran
* Mida (website), Israeli online magazine
*Lucia Mida, a golfer
* MIDA
* MIDA, (Brand), Motorcycle Helmet and Accessories Brand, British Design.
*''Mida'', a genus of Santalaceae
The Santala ...
. The nembutsu is simply reciting the phrase ''Namu Amida Butsu'' ("I take refuge in Amitābha Buddha"). Jōdo Shinshū is not the first school of Buddhism to practice the nembutsu but it is interpreted in a new way according to Shinran. The nembutsu becomes understood as an act that expresses gratitude to Amitābha; furthermore, it is evoked in the practitioner through the power of Amida's unobstructed compassion. Therefore, in Shin Buddhism, the nembutsu is not considered a practice, nor does it generate karmic merit. It is simply an affirmation of one's gratitude. Indeed, given that the nembutsu is the Name, when one utters the Name, that is Amitābha calling to the devotee. This is the essence of the Name-that-calls.
Note that this is in contrast to the related Jōdo-shū, which promoted a combination of repetition of the nembutsu and devotion to Amitābha as a means to birth in his
pure land of
Sukhavati
Sukhavati (IAST: ''Sukhāvatī''; "Blissful") is a pure land of Amitābha in Mahayana Buddhism. It is also called the Land of Bliss or Western Pure Land, and is the most well-known of Buddhist pure lands, due to the popularity of Pure Land Budd ...
. It also contrasts with other Buddhist schools in China and Japan, where nembutsu recitation was part of a more elaborate ritual.
The Pure Land
In another departure from more traditional Pure Land schools, Shinran advocated that birth in the Pure Land was settled in the midst of life. At the moment one entrusts oneself to Amitābha, one becomes "established in the stage of the truly settled". This is equivalent to the stage of non-retrogression along the
bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
path.
Many Pure Land Buddhist schools in the time of Shinran felt that birth in the Pure Land was a literal rebirth that occurred only upon death, and only after certain preliminary rituals. Elaborate rituals were used to guarantee rebirth in the Pure Land, including a common practice wherein the fingers were tied by strings to a painting or image of Amida Buddha. From the perspective of Jōdo Shinshū such rituals actually betray a lack of trust in Amida Buddha, relying on ''jiriki'' ("self-power"), rather than the ''tariki'' or "other-power" of Amida Buddha. Such rituals also favor those who could afford the time and energy to practice them or possess the necessary ritual objects—another obstacle for lower-class individuals. For Shinran Shonin, who closely followed the thought of the Chinese monk
Tan-luan
Tánluán (, 476–542) was a Chinese Buddhist monk. He is credited by Hōnen as the founder of Pure Land Buddhism in China. He is also considered the Third Patriarch of Jōdo Shinshū, a popular school of Buddhism in Japan.
Tanluan was ori ...
, the Pure Land is synonymous with
nirvana
( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
.
Shinjin
The goal of the Shin path, or at least the practicer's present life, is the attainment of shinjin in the Other Power of Amida. Shinjin is sometimes translated as "faith", but this does not capture the nuances of the term and it is more often simply left untranslated. The receipt of shinjin comes about through the renunciation of self-effort in attaining enlightenment through ''tariki''. ''Shinjin'' arises from ''jinen'' (自然 naturalness, spontaneous working of the Vow) and cannot be achieved solely through conscious effort. One is letting go of conscious effort in a sense, and simply trusting Amida Buddha, and the nembutsu.
For Jōdo Shinshū practitioners, shinjin develops over time through "deep hearing" () of Amitābha's call of the nembutsu. According to Shinran, "to hear" means "that sentient beings, having heard how the Buddha's Vow arose—its origin and fulfillment—are altogether free of doubt." ''Jinen'' also describes the way of naturalness whereby Amitābha's infinite light illumines and transforms the deeply rooted karmic evil of countless rebirths into good karma. It is of note that such evil karma is not destroyed but rather transformed: Shin stays within the Mahayana tradition's understanding of
śūnyatā
''Śūnyatā'' ( sa, शून्यता, śūnyatā; pi, suññatā; ), translated most often as ''emptiness'', ''vacuity'', and sometimes ''voidness'', is an Indian philosophical concept. Within Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and other ...
and understands that samsara and
nirvana
( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
are not separate. Once the practitioner's mind is united with Amitābha and
Buddha-nature gifted to the practitioner through shinjin, the practitioner attains the state of non-retrogression, whereupon after his death it is claimed he will achieve instantaneous and effortless enlightenment. He will then return to the world as a
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
, that he may work towards the salvation of all beings.
Tannishō
The ''
Tannishō
The , also known as the ''Lamentations of Divergences'', is a late 13th century short Buddhist text generally thought to have been written by Yuien, a disciple of Shinran. In the ''Tannishō'', Yuien is concerned about the rising doctrinal diverge ...
'' is a 13th-century book of recorded sayings attributed to Shinran, transcribed with commentary by
Yuien-bo, a disciple of Shinran. The word ''Tannishō'' is a phrase which means "A record
f the words of Shinranset down in lamentation over departures from his
hinran'steaching". While it is a short text, it is one of the most popular because practitioners see Shinran in a more informal setting.
For centuries, the text was almost unknown to the majority of Shin Buddhists. In the 15th century,
Rennyo
Rennyo (, 1415–1499) was the 8th Monshu (head priest) of the Hongan-ji Temple of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism, and descendant of founder Shinran. Jodo Shinshu Buddhists often referred to as the restorer of the sect ( in Japanese). He w ...
, Shinran's descendant, wrote of it, "This writing is an important one in our tradition. It should not be indiscriminately shown to anyone who lacks the past karmic good". Rennyo Shonin's personal copy of the ''Tannishō'' is the earliest extant copy.
Kiyozawa Manshi
was a Japanese Shin Buddhist reformer and priest of samurai background who studied at Tokyo University in Western philosophy under the American philosopher Ernest Fenollosa.Popular Buddhism In Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture by Esben ...
(1863–1903) revitalized interest in the Tannishō, which indirectly helped to bring about the
Ohigashi schism The Ohigashi schism (お東騒動) was a religious schism in the Ōtani-ha (also known as Higashi Honganji) subsect of the Jōdo Shinshū school of Buddhism that occurred in 1969 after a reformist group created internal divisions.
History
The Dob ...
of 1962.
In Japanese culture
Earlier schools of Buddhism that came to Japan, including Tendai and
Shingon Buddhism
Shingon monks at Mount Koya
is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra.
K ...
, gained acceptance because of
honji suijaku
The term in Japanese religious terminology refers to a theory widely accepted until the Meiji period according to which Indian Buddhist deities choose to appear in Japan as native ''kami'' to more easily convert and save the Japanese.Breen and Te ...
practices. For example, a
kami
are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...
could be seen as a manifestation of a bodhisattva. It is common even to this day to have Shinto shrines within the grounds of Buddhist temples.
By contrast, Shinran had distanced Jōdo Shinshū from Shinto because he believed that many Shinto practices contradicted the notion of reliance on Amitābha. However, Shinran taught that his followers should still continue to worship and express gratitude to kami, other buddhas, and bodhisattvas despite the fact that Amitābha should be the primary buddha that Pure Land believers focus on. Furthermore, under the influence of Rennyo and other priests, Jōdo Shinshū later fully accepted honji suijaku beliefs and the concept of kami as manifestations of Amida Buddha and other buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Jōdo Shinshū traditionally had an uneasy relationship with other Buddhist schools because it discouraged the majority of traditional Buddhist practices except for the nembutsu. Relations were particularly hostile between the Jōdo Shinshū and
Nichiren Buddhism
Nichiren Buddhism ( ja, 日蓮仏教), also known as Hokkeshū ( ja, 法華宗, meaning ''Lotus Sect'') is a branch of Mahayana Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222–1282) and is one o ...
. On the other hand, newer Buddhist schools in Japan, such as
Zen
Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...
, tended to have a more positive relationship and occasionally shared practices, although this is still controversial. In popular lore, Rennyo, the 8th Head Priest of the Hongan-ji sect, was good friends with the famous Zen master
Ikkyū
was an eccentric, iconoclastic Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and poet. He had a great impact on the infusion of Japanese art and literature with Zen attitudes and ideals,Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan, entry "Ikkyū" by James H. Sanford as well ...
.
Jōdo Shinshū drew much of its support from lower social classes in Japan who could not devote the time or education to other esoteric Buddhist practices or
merit-making
Merit ( sa, puṇya, italic=yes, pi, puñña, italic=yes) is a concept considered fundamental to Buddhist ethics. It is a beneficial and protective force which accumulates as a result of good deeds, acts, or thoughts. Merit-making is important ...
activities.
Outside Japan
During the 19th century, Japanese immigrants began arriving in Hawaii, the United States, Canada, Mexico and South America (especially in
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
). Many immigrants to North America came from regions in which Jōdo Shinshū was predominant, and maintained their religious identity in their new country. The
Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii
The Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii ( ja, 本派本願寺ハワイ別院, ''Honpa Honganji Hawai Betsuin'') is a district of the Nishi (West) Hongwanji branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, a school of Mahayana Pure Land Buddhism.
History
Jodo S ...
, the
Buddhist Churches of America The Buddhist Churches of America (abbreviated as BCA in English, ' or ''Beikoku Bukkyōdan'' in Japanese) is the United States branch of the Nishi Honganji subsect of Jōdo Shinshū ("True Pure Land School") Buddhism.
The BCA headquarters is at 1 ...
and the
Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temples of Canada
The Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temples of Canada are a group of temples and fellowships that are affiliated with the Nishi Hongan-ji of Kyoto, Japan, the mother temple of the Jodo Shinshu (True Pure Land) sect of Buddhism.
Groups follow the interpreta ...
(formerly Buddhist Churches of Canada) are several of the oldest Buddhist organizations outside of Asia. Jōdo Shinshū continues to remain relatively unknown outside the ethnic community because of the history of
Japanese American
are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 census, they have declined in number to constitute the sixth largest Asi ...
and
Japanese-Canadian internment
From 1942 to 1949, Canada forcibly relocated and incarcerated over 22,000 Japanese Canadians—comprising over 90% of the total Japanese Canadian population—from British Columbia in the name of " national security". The majority were Canadi ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, which caused many Shin temples to focus on rebuilding the Japanese-American Shin sangha rather than encourage outreach to non-Japanese. Today, many Shinshū temples outside Japan continue to have predominantly ethnic Japanese members, although interest in Buddhism and intermarriage contribute to a more diverse community. There are also active Jōdo Shinshū sanghas in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
.
During Taiwan's
Japanese colonial era (1895–1945), Jōdo Shinshū built a
temple complex in downtown Taipei.
Shin patriarchs
![Jodo shinshu buddhism seven masters scroll](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Jodo_shinshu_buddhism_seven_masters_scroll.jpg)
The "Seven Patriarchs of Jōdo Shinshū" are seven Buddhist monks venerated in the development of Pure Land Buddhism as summarized in the Jōdo Shinshū hymn ''
Shoshinge The or ''The Hymn of True Faith'' was written by the founder of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism, Shinran. It consists of an outline of the Pure Land teaching according to Shinran's personal interpretation. The structure is as follows:
* Homage to Amida
* ...
''. Shinran quoted the writings and commentaries of the Patriarchs in his major work, the ''
Kyogyoshinsho'', to bolster his teachings.
The Seven Patriarchs, in chronological order, and their contributions are:
In Jodo Shinshu temples, the seven masters are usually collectively enshrined on the far left.
Branch lineages
*
Jōdo Shinshū Hongwanji School (
Nishi Hongwan-ji)
*
Jōdo Shinshū Higashi Honganji School (
Higashi Hongan-ji
, or, ″the Eastern Monastery of the Original Vow″, is one of two dominant sub-sects of Shin Buddhism in Japan and abroad, the other being Nishi Honganji (or, 'The Western Temple of the Original Vow'). It is also the name of the head temple ...
)
**
Shinshū Ōtani School
*
Shinshū Chōsei School (
Chōsei-ji)
*
Shinshū Takada School (
Senju-ji Senju-ji (専修寺), also known as Takadayama (高田山), refers to a pair of temples which are the chief Buddhist temples of the Takada branch of Jōdo Shinshū, a Japanese Buddhist sect. The current head temple, Honan Senju-ji, founded in the ...
)
**
Shinshū Kita Honganji School (
Kitahongan-ji)
*
Shinshū Bukkōji School (
Bukkō-ji
, also known as the "Temple of the Buddha's Light", was originally named ''Kosho-ji'', a Jōdo Shinshū temple in the Yamashina ward of Kyoto, which later moved to the heart of Kyoto. The temple was founded and officially opened by a disciple ...
)
*
Shinshū Kōshō School (
Kōshō-ji)
*
Shinshū Kibe School (
Kinshoku-ji)
*
Shinshū Izumoji School (
Izumo-ji)
*
Shinshū Jōkōji School (
Jōshō-ji was a former Buddhist monastery in northeastern Kyoto, Japan, endowed by Emperor Sutoku in fulfillment of a sacred vow. It is known as one of the ,Adophson, Mikael S. (2000) ''The Gates of Power: Monks, Courtiers, and Warriors in Premodern Japan ...
)
*
Shinshū Jōshōji School (
Jōshō-ji was a former Buddhist monastery in northeastern Kyoto, Japan, endowed by Emperor Sutoku in fulfillment of a sacred vow. It is known as one of the ,Adophson, Mikael S. (2000) ''The Gates of Power: Monks, Courtiers, and Warriors in Premodern Japan ...
)
*
Shinshū Sanmonto School (
Senjō-ji)
*
Montoshūichimi School (
Kitami-ji)
*
Kayakabe Teaching (Kayakabe-kyō) - An esoteric branch of Jōdo Shinshū
Major holidays
The following holidays are typically observed in Jōdo Shinshū temples:
Major modern Shin figures
*
Nanjo Bunyu
Nanjō Bun'yū (南条文雄) (1 July 1849 – 9 November 1927) was a Buddhist priest and one of the most important modern Japanese scholars of Buddhism. Nanjō was born to the abbot of Seiunji Temple (誓運寺), part of the Shinshu Ōtani-ha ...
(1848–1927)
*
Saichi Asahara (1850-1932)
*
Kasahara Kenju (1852–1883)
*
Kiyozawa Manshi
was a Japanese Shin Buddhist reformer and priest of samurai background who studied at Tokyo University in Western philosophy under the American philosopher Ernest Fenollosa.Popular Buddhism In Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture by Esben ...
(1863–1903)
*
Jokan Chikazumi (1870–1941)
*
Eikichi Ikeyama (1873–1938)
*
Soga Ryojin Soga may refer to:
People
* Soga clan, a Japanese clan of the Yamato period
* Soga clan (Sagami Province), a Japanese clan
* Soga people, of the Busoga kingdom in present-day Uganda
* Machiko Soga, Japanese voice actress
* Soga Tokimune, Japanes ...
(1875–1971)
*
Otani Kozui (1876–1948)
*
Akegarasu Haya
was a Shin Buddhist priest in Ōtani-ha. For a decade he was a student of the Shin reformer Kiyozawa Manshi. Akegarasu was also a former head of administration of the Higashi Hongan-ji who was a major inspiration to the formation of the Doboka ...
(1877–1954)
*
Kaneko Daiei
was a Japanese Shin Buddhist philosopher and priest during the first half of the 20th century, belonging to the Ōtani-ha branch of Shin Buddhism. He was born to the priest of Saiken-ji, a Shin Buddhist temple in Jōetsu, Niigata Prefecture. ...
(1881–1976)
*
Zuiken Saizo Inagaki (1885–1981)
*
Takeko Kujo (1887–1928)
*
William Montgomery McGovern
William Montgomery McGovern (September 28, 1897 – December 12, 1964) was an American adventurer, political scientist, Northwestern University professor, anthropologist and journalist. He was a possible inspiration for the character of Indiana Jon ...
(1897–1964)
*
Rijin Yasuda (1900–1982)
*
Gyomay Kubose
Gyomay Kubose (June 21, 1905–March 29, 2000), born Masao Kubose was a Japanese-American Buddhist teacher. In 1944, after leaving the Heart Mountain internment camp, he founded the Chicago Buddhist Church, later renamed the Buddhist Temple ...
(1905–2000)
*
Shuichi Maida (1906–1967)
*
Harold Stewart
Harold Frederick Stewart (14 December 19167 August 1995) was an Australian poet and oriental scholar. He is chiefly remembered alongside fellow poet James McAuley as a co-creator of the Ern Malley literary hoax.
Stewart's work has been asso ...
(1916–1995)
*
Alfred Bloom
Alfred H. Bloom is an American psychologist and linguist. He was the executive vice chancellor of Duke Kunshan University from 2020 to 2021. Before that, he was the vice chancellor of New York University Abu Dhabi from 2008 to 2019 and the presid ...
(1926–2017)
*
Zuio Hisao Inagaki (1929–present)
*
Shojun Bando (1932–2004)
*
Taitetsu Unno (1935–2014)
*
Eiken Kobai (1941–present)
*
Dennis Hirota
Dr. Dennis Hirota is a professor in the Department of Shin Buddhism at Ryukoku University in Kyoto, Japan. He was born in Berkeley, California in 1946 and received his B.A. from University of California, Berkeley. In 2008, he was a visiting profe ...
(1946–present)
See also
*
Ohigashi schism The Ohigashi schism (お東騒動) was a religious schism in the Ōtani-ha (also known as Higashi Honganji) subsect of the Jōdo Shinshū school of Buddhism that occurred in 1969 after a reformist group created internal divisions.
History
The Dob ...
*
Hongan-ji
, also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the collective name of the largest school of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism (which further sub-divides into the Nishi and Higashi branches). 'Hongan-ji' may also refer to any one of several actual temple bu ...
*
Kenryo Kanamatsu
References
Literature
* Bandō, Shojun; Stewart, Harold; Rogers, Ann T. and Minor L.; trans. (1996)
Tannishō: Passages Deploring Deviations of Faith and Rennyo Shōnin Ofumi: The Letters of Rennyo Berkeley: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research.
* Bloom, Alfred (1989)
Introduction to Jodo Shinshu Pacific World Journal, New Series Number 5, 33-39
* Dessi, Ugo (2010)
Social Behavior and Religious Consciousness among Shin Buddhist Practitioners Japanese Journal of Religious Siudies, 37 (2), 335-366
*
Dobbins, James C. (1989). ''Jodo Shinshu: Shin Buddhism in Medieval Japan.'' Bloomington, Illinois: Indiana University Press.
OCLC 470742039* Inagaki Hisao, trans., Stewart, Harold (2003)
The Three Pure Land Sutras 2nd ed., Berkeley, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research.
* Lee, Kenneth Doo (2007). ''The Prince and the Monk: Shotoku Worship in Shinran's Buddhism''. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. .
* Matsunaga, Daigan, Matsunaga, Alicia (1996), Foundation of Japanese Buddhism, Vol. 2: The Mass Movement (Kamakura and Muromachi Periods), Los Angeles; Tokyo: Buddhist Books International, 1996.
* Takamori/Ito/Akehashi (2006). ''"You Were Born For A Reason: The Real Purpose of Life,''" Ichimannendo Publishing Inc;
* S. Yamabe and L. Adams Beck (trans.)
Buddhist Psalms of Shinran Shonin John Murray, London 1921
e-book* Galen Amstutz, Review of Fumiaki, Iwata, ''Kindai Bukkyō to seinen: Chikazumi Jōkan to sono jidai'' and Ōmi Toshihiro, ''Kindai Bukkyō no naka no Shinshū: Chikazumi Jōkan to kyūdōshatachi'', in H-Japan
H-Net ReviewsJuly, 2017.
External links
with Links
A basic portal with links.
Homepage for Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha Hongwanji International Center- English
Buddhist Churches of AmericaIncludes basic information, shopping for Shin Buddhist ritual implements, and links to various Shin churches in America.
Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temples of CanadaNational website, includes links and addresses of Shin temples throughout Canada.
Institute of Buddhist Studies:Seminary and Graduate School
* Jodo Shinshu Honganji-ha
The collected works of Shinran, including the Kyōgōshinshō.
nembutsu.info:Journal of Shin Buddhism
The Way of Jodo Shinshu:Reflections on the Hymns of Shinran Shonin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jodo Shinshu
Schools of Buddhism founded in Japan
Pure Land Buddhism