We've reached that stage in the corona virus crisis where the lockdown is gradually being eased. Travel is once more, bit by bit, being liberalized. Barriers are being taken up so that people can cross and meet their loved ones.
I've just been reading a report about towns which straddleboarders like Basel, which stands where Germany, Switzerland and France meet. So, part of the town is in each of three countries. People are accustomed to moving from one country to another just as part of their daily routine. When the barriers came down and we weren't allowed to move out of our country, parents couldn't see their children sometimes, lovers couldn't meet. It was a big restriction. Being seperated from the ones you love is one of the eight afflictions that the Buddha lists when he talks about dukkha in the Four Noble Truths. Now the barriers are going up and people can once again reach one another.
This made me think of a time years ago when I was in Japan; and I went to visit Taima-dera Temple. I was greeted at the temple by a young priest who knew me as he had been at one of my lectures at Bukkyo University. We were very pleased to see each other and he offered to show me around the temple. This was a privilege and advantage because he would be able to take me to places in the temple that were not always accessible to people who came simply as tourists. So, he showed me around and it was very nice; and he said: “Would you like to see the statue of Honen?“
Well, Honen Shonen, one of my great heroes, Honen Shonen was the great popularizer of Pureland Buddhism in Japan. It was as a result of Honen's work that the whole Kamakura reformation of Buddhism took place. Not just the establishment of the Pureland School but also the emergence of Rinzai Zen, Soto Zen, Nichiren, and so on. So, Honen had a big impact on the history of Buddhism in Japan. He was a kind of watershed. Anyway, a great hero for me.
And so: “Yes, of course, I would love to see the statue of Honen!“ And we went across the quadrangle to one corner of the temple and he took me into a small area, and he said: “Please sit here,“ and I sat down in this room. We were alone and he walked across and he removed a screen; and there was the statue of Honen. It was carved in wood, the wood had become very dark with age. So, a life size statue. Tradition is, that it was carved from life by a skilled woodcarver who was a devotoee of Honen and of the Pureland, but he carved it secretly and he made many observations of Honen and then he would go and do the carving; and eventually he produced this statue, a life size statue. When it was made, it was presented to Honen as a gift and according to the Japanese tradition, Honen was invited to paint in the eyes. They say, when you paint in the eyes of a statue, the statue becomes alive. I sat there – there was the statue, sitting on the floor like me, life size – I burst into tears. It was like the barrier had been lifted up. We had been allowed to meet. Not just across a national boarder but across the centuries. Something of Honen entered into me that day. I shall never forget it.
Thank you very much
Namo Amida Bu
Dharmavidya
David
Replies
How wonderful! And, just like something of Amida Buddha entered into me during the Boddhi Retreat...Namo Amida Bu.
This is so impressive, the ultimate transfer from master to disciple through the ages.
Thank you to share! So precious!!! Namo Amida Bu