Issues in Propagation of Shin Buddhism in the West
by Alfred Bloom, Emeritus Professor, University of Hawaii
The issue of
propagation has become a major concern among Shin Buddhist people, because
there has been considerable attrition and loss of membership in recent
years. The membership stands at about 17,000 presently in Buddhist Churches
of America and is down from about 22,000 or more when I first encountered it
in 1986. In its heyday before the war, there were something like 100,000
members. Many of those members have passed away and represent the normal
attrition of an aging group. However, the deceased members have not been
replaced by new members to show growth of the teaching.
On the other hand,
Buddhist movements introduced by itinerant teachers, such as the Tibetan,
Zen, and Theravada teachers, show striking growth in Western societies.
These teachers not only stress Buddhist practice -- mainly forms of
meditation -- but they also advocate peace, environmental awareness, and
stress human relations. They speak to issues that are of great interest to
modern people.
The Dalai Lama is
particularly famous as an advocate of peace. He has an attractive
personality that presents simultaneously as warm, engaging, and practical.
In our hurried society where business, commerce, and technology demand
center stage, people may be drawn to compassionate and relatively
non-doctrinal practices.
Thich Nhat Hanh, the
Vietnamese activist monk, is not as well known but strongly advocates peace
and a spiritual process called "Mindfulness," which is a style of
meditation. Theravada meditation, a calming style of meditation called "Vipassana,"
has also become popular.
It is known
for its ability to calm the
mind and reduce stress.
It should be noted that
itinerant teachers are more independent. There is no central organization
whose policies they must follow. Those whom they attract are willing to
follow the teacher and do what he or she says. They find ways to appeal to
the general society, inspiring followers with their own
interest and enthusiasm.
Branches of Japanese
traditional religion from the homeland are more obligated to maintain the
policies of the central organization. In the case of Shin Buddhism,
ordination can only take place in Japan, while other groups can ordain in
the new country. Though there is said to be independence of the various
jurisdictions, there are many ties that strengthen filial bonds rather than
encourage fraternal relations. Among these are the dependence on clergy from
Japan and monetary support for important projects such as the Center for
World Jodo Shinshu Buddhism and the Pacific Buddhist Academy.
Many forms of Buddhism
have taken root in the West: South Asian, Theravada, Chinese , Korean,
Japanese, and East Asian. They all appeal to Western people promising peace
of mind or benefits of various kinds. According to sociologist Robert
Wuthnow, Buddhism has affected a very substantial number of people
throughout American society. An article in the Buddhist magazine Tricycle
summarizes his findings:
"… Even for the specialist in the
field of American Buddhism, the numbers Wuthnow and Cadge came up with will
prove surprising. Based on their survey conducted in 2002-2003, they found
that one out of every seven Americans has had at least a fair level of
contact with Buddhism, and that one out of eight Americans reported that
Buddhism had influenced their religious life. Those are staggeringly high
numbers. To put it in perspective, there are about four million Americans
who actively identify as Buddhists. But if we ask how many Americans include
Buddhist elements -- a little or a lot -- n their personal spiritual lives, the
number appears to be about 12.5% of the population: that's 26,125,000
adults. The number who say the Buddhist influence has been significant is
almost the same: at 12%, that's 25,080,000. Clearly Buddhism is exerting
an influence far beyond the relatively small number of people who claim
Buddhism as their primary religious identity." -- Tricycle Blog,
Tricycle, The Buddhist Review. Friday, September 24, 2004.
"Measuring
Buddhist Influence in America."
Consequently, in view
of this extensive impact of Buddhism on contemporary society, we must
examine the reasons for the decline of interest that the Japan-based sects
have experienced. Originally, they accompanied the contract laborers who
came to Hawaii, the US mainland and Canada in the 19th century. Why are they
not benefiting from the current rise in Buddhist popularity?
I would initially like
to point out that when Buddhism spread from India to China, it was first
"Buddhism in China" but after some time, it became "Chinese Buddhism." That
is, it adapted to the native life of the host country and became a Chinese
religion. When Buddhism was introduced to Korea and then Japan and also to
Tibet, it followed the same process, becoming a religion of the native
people.
However, when Buddhism
came to America, it came to the Japanese community already here. It was a
religion for the Japanese people in America and it has essentially remained
that way with limited effort to transform to a native religion for American
people. It adapted for the sake of the succeeding generations who only spoke
English and lacked a Japanese education. The Japanese second and third
generations lost touch with Japanese language and culture and they desired
something more Western, to fit their lives. Adaptations were made in having
pews, pulpits, hymn books, English services on Sundays, Dharma schools, like
Sunday schools, etc.
As the focus was within
the Japanese community, there was no concerted effort to adapt Buddhism,
i.e., Shin Buddhism, to the needs of the American people as a whole.
Consequently, Shin
Buddhism has lost a century when it could have integrated itself into the
host society, despite the discrimination and other problems of the
community. Today, the gap is even more obvious as newer, more active groups
show the way to integration of Buddhism in American life. Though Shin
Buddhism has been in the West for a century, until recently it has been
barely known in the general society or the academic realm. Even in those
states where Shin Buddhists are more numerous, the religion is neither well
known, nor, except for a few temples, being effectively shared with
spiritual seekers.
Japan-based Buddhism
must transform from a Japanese religion to an American religion. This
process is beginning to some extent in the Buddhist Churches of America with
the Lay Assistant Program, which will eventually supply native ministers and
replace dependence on Japanese ministers from Japan to fill the continuing
shortage of accredited ministers. Among 60 some ministers, there has been an
increase of Japanese-American ministers, now reaching about 21, while
Euro-American ministers have increased to about seven.
The increase in
American-born ministers has been slow. Recently, the first Euro-American
president of the national organization, Buddhist Churches of America, was
elected and installed. The new Bishop Koshin Ogui is forward looking and
creative. The establishment of the Center for World Jodo Shinshu should show
some fruit as time goes on. The Institute of Buddhist Studies is associated
with a Christian theological complex and is involved with Buddhist-Christian
dialogue activity.
In Hawaii, we have
begun the Pacific Buddhist Academy which will integrate Buddhism into
education. The Buddhist Study Center on the University of Hawaii campus
assists students in learning about Buddhism and the Buddhist Study Center
Press has published numerous books in English to assist understanding Shin
Buddhism. The American Buddhist Study Center at the New York Buddhist Temple
generates programs to offer Buddhism in that cosmopolitan community. There
are more temples offering study classes and some urban temples have reached
out more significantly to the larger community. Buddhist ministers are more
likely than in previous years to be engaged in community efforts for peace
and justice.
While there are
scattered efforts to integrate Shin Buddhism into Western culture, we need
an overall strategy for reaching into all areas of Western society. I am
just one observer, but I have several suggestions that may be worthy of
consideration and implementation.
First of all, we need a
minister of propagation. We have a minister of Buddhist education, but that
is a major task in itself. A minister of propagation with a background in
the teaching and in sociology can develop a philosophy of propagation and
pinpoint areas where new Shin communities can be initiated. The minister
could work with a group of advisors to develop strategies and programs for
sharing Shin Buddhism.
We might first begin
with university communities which are generally more open and where students
are seeking alternative spiritual teachings to guide and enhance their
lives. Academic programs may provide opportunities to reach students as Shin
ministers or Buddhist teachers generally are invited on campus to lecture
and discuss Buddhism.
Second, efforts for
propagation should not be located in traditional temples. Temples have been
very important as the mainstay of the teaching and they have nurtured
various generations. However, the membership of the temple forms its own
community and is not yet equally welcoming of new members. The leaders do
not easily share power in deciding temple activities. Some temples are not
very interested in having members from outside the Japanese-American
community. This situation can -- and most likely will -- change with time,
generations and general circumstances. This potential paradigm shift can
have a dramatic and positive effect on teaching and outreach, as well as on
the general membership of the Shin Buddhist community on a global scale.
Efforts in propagation
should not appear as simply attempts to increase a temple's membership.
Rather, the new community forms its fellowship as new members share their
experiences in becoming Buddhist.
We
should go into new areas where no temples are present and, beginning from a
house base or local school, develop a fresh program.
Third, there must be
greater use of lay members to share the teaching with other lay people. A
minister cannot reach a wide number of people by himself or herself. Lay
people can be sensitive to the needs of friends and people in their
community whom they can refer to the minister for counseling or explaining
the teaching. Also, lay people are less suspicious of the motives of other
lay people who approach them than they frequently are of ministers. Many
religious groups train lay people to share their teachings and give
effective witness to the meaning of the teaching for themselves.
Fourth, the many forms
of media should be used to present the teachings to the wider community.
Fundamentalist preachers who are anti-modern in many ways nevertheless
employ all forms of media to propagate their views. One fundamentalist
Christian teacher was quoted in a recent newspaper article as saying,
"Truthfully, I am always looking for new ways to use media and technology to
further God' s kingdom…" It is interesting that the more liberal and
traditional groups shy away from the use of technology in sharing their
teaching. I have seen this in America since my childhood when my mother
listened to Christian Gospel radio programs, then TV. At the present time,
most of the TV preachers are the most conservative type and there seems to
be no liberal representative in the media.
Fifth, there is power
in the pen. Writing and distributing materials is a basic function. We
should be producing more books and small tracts, which can be given away.
Gradually, the teaching can permeate the society through free literature. We
must encourage our people to write their experiences. We must produce more
easily understood works in English, including scholarly works. Local
bookstores have, at the most, one or two books on Shin, while there are many
many titles of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism.
People must have access
to the "Good News" of Amida's Saving Vows. They must, in some form 'hear,'
in order to intone: NamuAmidaButsu. As we all know, shinjin
arises from 'deep hearing' of The Sacred Name.
Sixth, we should open
the doors to people with religious aspiration and understanding of Buddhism
to facilitate the path to ministry and the effort of propagation. Ordination
can be done in this country to promote a positive integration of Shin
Buddhism into society. We must ask the question, why does a prospective
minister have to go to a foreign country to be ordained in order to work in
one's own country? In recent experience, the Soto sect ordained a woman
trained in Hawaii in her home temple of which she is now the resident
minister. The Jodo-shu has permitted the ordination of a minister in Hawaii
who is now studying to become more capable in Jodo-shu tradition. To put it simply, we must make it easier for people who feel 'called' to
serve.
Seventh, we do not
promote sectarianism in our teaching. However, it is necessary to indicate
why Shin is a meaningful alternative for one's spiritual life. This calls
for clear exposition of the teaching and relating the teaching to current
concerns of the people -- peace, justice, suffering, meaning for living,
environmental issues, etc. The traditional terms must be translated, not
merely linguistically, but philosophically into understandable and relevant
religious concepts and principles for the Western mind.
Eighth, we must develop
broad Shin scholarship in the Western context. There are very few committed
Shin Buddhist scholars in the West. The Center for World Shin Buddhism is a
beginning in the BCA which will benefit all areas of this nation and the
West. IBS as the seminary has a great responsibility to nurture scholars and
ministers. The Pacific Buddhist Academy in Hawaii is a step in the right
direction.
I mentioned that we are
not sectarian in our teaching. To propagate a faith requires firm conviction
of the truth of that teaching for one's own life. Firm faith is needed. Yet,
we should not view ourselves in competition with other faiths. Western
religious freedom means that all kinds of teachings are available just as we
say there are 84,000 teachings in Buddhism. This idea extends also to the
many religions practiced by humanity.
Rather, propagation
takes the viewpoint that we "share" the teaching and that we offer an honest
appreciation and assessment of other spiritual paths. We can highlight the
particular perspective of Shin Buddhism on religion and faith as well,
without maligning other traditions or using them as straw men. If we present
Shin Buddhism adequately, people will understand its alternative and decide
for themselves to explore it.
Shin Buddhism is not a
religion that threatens people with eternal damnation or
batchi.
Rather, it stresses the compassion of the Buddha and the fellowship of
dobo-dogyo, truly equal
associates that make up its community. It offers the basis of a society of
mutual fellowship and sharing. It can be a vibrant community of peace and
justice as well as a model for society.
I believe that a
focused, well-planned program of sharing the teaching with the wider
community will be a significant step in the integration of Shin Buddhism in
American and Western society.
I would like to take up
some points of emphasis in Shin teaching, which I believe could adapt it to
Western religious character without weakening the insights of Shin teaching.
One concerns the human
condition. In Shin it is recognized that everyone is a passion-ridden and
spiritually deluded foolish being. We must make this meaningful in Western
culture. It is not simply that some people are evil and some are good.
Rather, it is the commonly accepted perspective on life that Shin critiques. In
the United States, particularly, competition is highly valued. As a cultural
focus, competition is a delusory perspective and gives rise to the quest for
superiority, aggression on others, the belief that some people are winners
and other losers. It gives rise to the delusion that I am a self-made
person. Our individualism is unrestrained.
In contrast, the
perspective of the Primal Vow that Amida is not enlightened unless all
others are enlightened expresses the principle of interdependence and
mutuality; the recognition that we depend on others to achieve what we do
and they depend on us.
Against the background
of the racial discrimination and bigotry of our society, the idea that all
beings possess Buddha nature is very important to highlight the oneness of
all beings. This oneness also extends to environmental issues because the
Buddhist perspective includes all living beings and the realm of nature.
Despite the unique abilities of human beings and their progress, they have
no right to dominate and destroy the life of other beings, on which they
also depend for their own life and well-being.
The bodhisattva
principle and particularly the concept of the bodhisattva's return to this
world is a very useful idea when we see it as the basis for the meaning of
life. When we have attained shinjin, we recognize our obligations to
humanity as a bodhisattva returned to this world to work for the salvation
and benefit of all beings. We do not ask, "what is the meaning of my life?"
Rather, we ask how we can be meaningful to others. As shinjin is
rooted in the true mind of Amida Buddha and his aspiration to save and
embrace all beings, so that mind works in us to give us a universal,
non-discriminating view of life.
Shinran's teaching of
shinjin is especially important. Shinjin is not simply a matter
of belief in a number of ideas and doctrines intellectually. It is rather a
discovery, deep within our hearts and minds, that we have encountered an
essential truth for living. When the teaching is proclaimed in its depth, it
awakens spiritual aspiration and hope within. I have encountered many people
on the Internet whose discovery of Shin Buddhism and its acceptance as we
are, to be a transforming and enlivening teaching. The realism of Shin
Buddhism offers a powerful and relevant understanding of human nature and is
very meaningful and attractive to contemporary people when they hear it.
Further, shinjin
is a process. It is a means of spiritual growth and development. As Shinran
passed through the three Vows in his process, so each person encountering
the teaching and learning of the Vows undergoes his or her own process of growth.
It is an educational process of deepening understanding of the teaching. It
is the formation of strong conviction and commitment, so that, like Shinran,
we can accept ridicule and rejection. Diamond-like faith is formed from the
coal of common delusion.
Some teachers
characterize shinjin in a way to distinguish it completely from
Western views of faith. However, I believe it is impractical for
communication and propagation to differentiate shinjin which we may
translate as "true entrusting" or "endowed trust" so totally from what is an
essential human capacity. In speaking with foreign people we must
find some degree of commonality in order to progress in communication.
Our problem is to
discover connections between our universal human experience, which arise in
varying spiritual contexts, and to build bridges, even though we must be
mindful that there are distinctive and important differences signified by
the concept of
shinjin in Shin Buddhism. If we
make the gap too wide between our Shin understanding of trust and universal
human experience and understanding, how will we guide people from the
universal experience of trust to the specific understanding in Shin Buddhism
in interpreting their experience?
Shin Buddhism is an
individual, personal matter; not a matter of family, tradition or community.
All of Shinran's followers chose to follow him. This is important in
the West where the individual is valued. No one will say they are religious
because they follow their parents. It is personal responsibility for one's
own destiny. The individual who will become mindful of his or her own debt
to Amida's Vow is not the competitive, aggressive person who is found
seeking self-power in this world of constant and bewildering change.
Another feature of Shin
that needs to be shared and made clear is the idea of genso or the
return of the bodhisattva to this world to work for the salvation of all
beings. This is quite distinctive from Western views where the believer who
passes on goes to heaven and has eternal joy without concern for those left
behind. Unbelievers are consigned to eternal damnation in many groups,
though more liberal groups would be closer to the Buddhist view that
ultimately all will be saved. Whatever the mythology of hell in the Buddhist
tradition, it is the result of karmic action, and is never eternal.
Shinran's
teaching also critiques religion itself. There is no virtue in being
religious in order to be just a good citizen. Being religious for Shinran is
a "poisoned good." It leads to external display, moralistic
self-righteousness, and formalism.
Shinran obviously was
interested in social justice. He criticized the government for Honen's
unjust persecution and exile together with his disciples, including Shinran.
He quoted Shotoku Taishi who said when the rich go to court it is like
throwing a stone into water, but when the poor go to court it is like
throwing water into a stone. Shinran identified with the lowest levels of
society to bring them the highest truth of Amida's compassion.
In this essay, my focus
has largely been primarily on conditions and opportunities for
propagation of the faith in the West. The situation in Japan will be quite
different, yet the modern meaning and potential impact of Shin Buddhism is
also applicable there, as well. I would hope that some points made here
might also be useful in Japan.
The spirit and ideal of
Shin Buddhism offers a world of equality, a life of meaning and a goal of
peace. When its spirit is released into the world, the Vow will become a
force to advance the life of all people. This is our mission; this is the
meaning of propagation. Thank you! NamuAmidaButsu.
