Still going
Posted: June 19, 2008 | Author: Doug | Filed under: Buddhism, Jodo Shu, Religion, Tendai | 10 Comments »I wrote last week about reciting the nembutsu (Amida Buddha’s name) and how it’s done in Jodo Shu Buddhism a special style of Buddhist rosary. Since that time, I’ve managed to recite the Buddha’s name 1080 times, plus or minus a few, each night for a week.* As silly as this sounds, that’s actually extraordinary given that I can’t make myself stick with any practice beyond a few days. My Shingon practice I talked about recently lasted 2-3 days, while meditation rarely lasts beyond one or two days. Anything else I’ve tried lasts even less.
I think a big part of this was Master Yin-Shun’s advice to stick with a practice all the way to the end, regardless of what it actually is. I spent too much time in general second-guessing my efforts. So lately, I stop worrying about that, and just takes Honen’s advice to recite the nembutsu regularly and recite a lot.
As to my motivation or expectations for doing this, I am not yet sure. Honen talked about the Three Minds and Four Modes of Practice that would result from doing this long-term, so I am curious to see how I might change. But from a practical perspective, I also do seriously want to be reborn in the Pure Land. I am also fascinated with Tendai’s approach to nembutsu recitation where they focus less on the actual rebirth into the Pure Land, and more on the gradual development of the person who does it.
I think it will all work itself out, so for now I am trying to focus on just doing the practice, and letting the path unfold on its own. The 1,080 recitations is hard enough to provide a sincere challenge, but still do-able with my lifestyle as a new father and corporate drone. 
Namuamidabu
* – Actually one night I was super-tired and only recited a bit. However, the next night, per Honen’s advice, I just made up for it (i.e. 2160 times, not 1080). The point, I want to stress, is not the actual amount, but rather that I am disciplining myself enough to stay with it for the long-haul.
Hello, this blog is about my life as a father, Buddhist and Japanophile. Any useful information I can pass along will hopefully make the 
Have you decided not to pursue the Shingon path?
At what point in your life did you consider yourself a buddhist? Was it after joining a temple or was there some sort of innitiation?
Have you decided not to pursue the Shingon path?
For now, yes. It wasn’t going anywhere fast.
At what point in your life did you consider yourself a buddhist? Was it after joining a temple or was there some sort of innitiation?
Quite a while ago, particularly after I went to Japan in 2005. I was “into” Buddhism since I was a teenager (now in my 30′s), but after that trip to Japan, I really was more serious about it. The problem since then has been settling down on a path, which is still ongoing since 2005. I think bit by bit, things are falling into place, but it’s not obvious day by day. It’s something that I’ve been working through for a few years.
In any case, to become a Buddhist, you simply have to take refuge in the Three Treasures (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha). Either you can do that officially at a temple, at the home shrine, or just a mental decision. Once you’ve done that, the rest is just details (which school I follow, what practice suits me, etc).
Hope that helps.
It’s pretty hard to do anything Shingon (or Tendai) without going either to Hawaii or Japan. There are Shingon temples in Seattle, Sacramento, and Los Angeles but that is it for the continental United States. There is a Tendai mission in upstate New York, a hermitage in Northern California, and a small temple in Los Angeles that is no longer officially affiliated. That’s it for Tendai.
For Shin Buddhists, there is a BCA branch in many places where there is a large ethnic Japanese population in America. That makes it a bit more approachable.
Hi Al,
Actually I’ll be living in Ireland very shortly (less than 4 weeks from now), and my last check showed that beyond Zen or Tibetan Buddhism, there weren’t a lot of Buddhist temples in Dublin. I am not too concerned though as I am kind of working on becoming more confident in independent practice, as less concerned with dogma these days.
Also, you might have missed an earlier post, but I do not follow Jodo Shinshu anymore. I am kind of following an independent temporarily until I settle down in something else. The nembutsu practice above is something new.
“I am not too concerned though as I am kind of working on becoming more confident in independent practice, as less concerned with dogma these days.”
If alone on a desert island, I would still follow Zen. What would you follow? It’s a rhetorical question, but it sounds like you’ve already asked and answered that one. Good for you!
If you seek out support of the Tibetan and Zen Buddhists in Ireland, you may naturally be drawn to some of their practices. But the opposite may also prove to be true- Tibetan and Zen Buddhists may recite the nembutsu with you. Wouldn’t that be cool?
I’ve been reading this blog for quite a while. I don’t know you personally, Gerald, but I get the definite feeling that the Jodo Shu path would really work out for you if you pursued it. It is more structured than Shin, more individual than Shingon, more family-oriented than Zen. It gives you things to do, yet doesn’t induce guilt if you fail to do them sometimes (or most times). You can still use Shin resources, yet aren’t tied to institutional or traditional demands, and the very lack of Jodo Shu organization in the West means a level of freedom and freshness that you might not experience elsewhere. And it’s the sort of thing that works perfectly well on your own in Ireland or in a tight-knit community in Japan. It’s similar to your family’s practice but just different enough that you could do your own thing and not be “going against the group.” And while it was Honen who created Japanese single-practice Buddhism, the way Jodo Shu embraces “auxiliary” practices (in a certain framework) and recommends numeric chanting connects it more readily to other forms of Buddhism, especially Chinese Pure Land and Tendai. Whenever you’ve blogged about Jodo Shu resources, such as the website or books on Honen, there’s a noticeable “pep” to your writing, like it’s hitting chords that really resonate somewhere inside you.
Wow, that was a killer analysis Transient. Thank you. That was seriously the thought process I was trying to figure out.
Whenever you’ve blogged about Jodo Shu resources, such as the website or books on Honen, there’s a noticeable “pep” to your writing, like it’s hitting chords that really resonate somewhere inside you.
Come to think of it, I’ve noticed this too. I wasn’t aware that it reflected in my writing (poor as it is). Thanks!
Thank you. Though you’ve been with us for a while, let me say welcome to the L8B!
I also like Transient’s comment. It was very helpful.
I had missed that you were affiliated with anyone anymore. I wish you the best of luck in Eire.
Al: Thanks much.
Congrats on the Firefox 3.0 release by the way.