True Teaching Is Difficult to Encounter
Image by Jim Pollard
I began giving Dharma talks in 2011, and although I had no end-product in mind, I maintained a written archive. In the ensuing years, through listening and reflecting, my view of Shinran’s Dharma path diverged from the forms and doctrines of Nishi Hongwanji, which made me hesitant to organize and publish my writings in book form. Yet, it seemed there could be value in having a such a record of my seeking the way. What finally emerged was Let This Be Known: Finding the Shin Buddhist Path (Buddhist Education Center, 2021), in paperback and Kindle editions.
The book begins with a passage in which Shinran summarizes everything he has to teach us:
It is said: Attaining Buddhahood through nembutsu is the true teaching.
Further, it is said: The true teaching is difficult to encounter.
Let this be known.
These impactful words raise questions that I rarely hear being asked: What is attaining Buddhahood? What is nembutsu? What is true teaching? When Shinran speaks about a teaching that leads to human liberation, why does he emphasize the difficulty of encountering it? I hope that the content of the book will encourage you to reflect seriously on these questions. If we follow Shinran’s example, we cannot be satisfied with vague answers or with answers that are fixed or supposedly definitive. Such satisfaction means the death of one’s spiritual aspiration.
The words “Let this be known” appear frequently in Shinran’s writings, indicating that his teaching is concerned with self-knowing. He challenges our customary reliance on self-acting, namely, ethical and devotional practices. Wouldn’t you agree that ethics and devotion are, generally speaking, the foundation of organized religion? Because Shinran, through relentless self-examination, constantly challenges his own and our own reliance on them, I think I can say that his teaching undermines the basis of organized religion. Even so, a Shin Buddhist organization could still become authentic. Taking up ethical and devotional practices might be justified, provided that we think deeply about our motivations, as Shinran did. Do our actions reflect a spirit of true humility? Or do they reflect a spirit that aims for self-enhancement? Questioning our motivations in this way brings us closer to shinshū—the Buddhism that Shinran calls “true-and-real.” Here we begin to see why “the true teaching is difficult to encounter.” It aims to overturn our religiously-inspired ego. It aims to expose the instinct that turns spiritual seeking into a way of self-enhancement.
None of us has the same personal history as Shinran. Yet, if we aspire to follow the path, we will go through stages that are analogous to what he experienced—the stages of Buddhism that he calls “provisional” or “temporary.” We set out having confidence in our ability to act in an ethical manner, and we find satisfaction in appearing to be devout. These are necessary stages, by which we may come to question what we are doing. This kind of doubt is a hallmark of the path, both in shinshū and in Zen. With the arising of doubt concerning our approach, we are in a position to receive the teachings at the level of a foolish, ordinary person. We cease to feel confident in our ability to act in an ethical manner. We are made aware of the ego-centered desire to appear devout. We become able to admit, as Shinran did, “Under certain conditions, I might do anything.”
