Buddhist Thoughts is the SLC Buddhist Temple newsletter which is mailed to Temple members each month. Here we provide excerpts from archival Buddhist Thoughts.

2002 April

The Birth
by J.K. Hirano

In the worlds above and the worlds below, I alone am the world honored one.

Although Siddartha Gautama, Shakyamuni Buddha, has been verified as a historical personage. It is difficult to verify and authenticate all the stories that have been attributed to him and about him through the centuries. If you have a deep desire and need to merely authenticate the historical personality of the Buddha, to authenticate your own belief system, I feel that something is amiss in your search. Whether or not he was born on this or that day in a particular year or that this word or that phrase was actually spoken by the Buddha is of a very secondary importance for myself.

As Shinran said in Tannisho Chapter 2: "I have no idea whether the nembutsu is truly the seed for my being born in the Pure Land or whether it is the karmic act for which I fall into hell. Should I have been deceived by Master Honen and, saying the nembutsu, were to fall into hell, even then I would have no regrets. The reason is, if I could attain Buddhahood by endeavoring in other practices, but said the nembutsu and so fell into hell, then I would feel regret at having been deceived.  But I am incapable of any other practice, so hell is decidedly my abode whatever I do."

If Amida's Primal Vow is true, Shakyamuni's teaching cannot be false.  If the Buddha's teaching is true, Shan-tao's commentaries cannot be false.  If Shan-tao's commentaries are true, can Honen's words be lies? If Honen's words are true, then surely what I say cannot be empty. Such in the end, is how this foolish person entrusts himself [to the Vow]. Beyond this, whether you take up and accept the nembutsu or whether you abandon it is for each of you to determine. This last line, "whether you take up and accept the nembutsu or whether you abandon it is for each of you to determine" is at the heart of my own belief and faith. I have been blessed with receiving the nembutsu teachings to help me in my life. As I have questioned its relevance and truth within the sphere of my living from day to day, I have yet to find it unsatisfying or without deep truth. Buddhism and Jodo Shinshu Buddhism has fulfilled my spiritual needs, through my fifteen years as a priest and many years before searching for a spiritual home. As I have spoken of countless times, each of you must determine this for yourself.

I do not believe that Jodo Shinshu is the sole answer for all human beings. I just know that, for this time and place in my life, it is the right choice. There will come a time and place when I will have to sit with my daughters Kacie and Taylor and discuss what will be right for them. Just because they are the daughters of the minister of the temple, would be one of the worst reasons for them to declare themselves Buddhists. Although I hope that up until that time, I have fulfilled my job as their father in showing them the benefits of having a spiritual life and that they will make a conscientious choice. There is great truth and beauty in Christianity, Judaism, Islam and the wide variety of religious and spiritual teachings. We are in a time when we have access to huge amounts of information. I hope that my children and each of you will find a fitting path, on your spiritual quest.

It is now Spring, a time of year when it seems that the world around us has come back to life. In the United States, it is the time of Spring clean ups, Easter sales and yard work. For Christians this is the time of year for Lent and Easter. Easter being one, if not the most important religious holiday of the year. For us Jodo Shinshu Buddhists, it is the time of Hanamatsuri (Shakyamuni Buddha's birthday). I have often spoken of how I love to celebrate Christmas. However, Easter is not a holiday I celebrate, at least religiously. As a result, I feel that this is a good time, to explain my personal choice of Buddhism over Christianity. I'm sure religious scholars or those who merely want to argue can find loopholes in my logic concerning these differences. There will be those that argue my use of religious metaphor etc. Nevertheless, I thought this would be a good subject for me to tackle this month.

For those of you not familiar with the religious aspects of Easter, let me quickly explain. This will have nothing to do with the pagan god Easter or Christianity's use of the pagan Spring holiday and making it their own. That is a lecture or article in itself. I will be addressing the common Christian explanation of Easter. Jesus Christ had taught his disciples for a number of months and then having been deemed a threat to the establishment of the time, was condemned to be crucified on the cross. Three days after his death on the cross, Mary his mother went to his tomb and found that the stone in front of the tomb had been rolled away and that his body was not there. Jesus then appeared to her and a few of his followers. Good Friday is the day of Jesus Christ's crucifixion and Easter Sunday is the third day when Mary discovered that he had arisen from the grave. As Huston Smith describes in his "The Religions of Man," "The word that flashed across the Mediterranean world was not Jesus's admonition to 'love your neighbor.' It was the news that Christ had risen, and with it the implication that those who believed in him could, like him and with him, triumph over sin and death to new life. The message was irresistible."

This is where I have a hard time in my belief of Christianity. As a Christian, it would be necessary for me to believe that through Jesus's death and resurrection, that I too will be saved. I cannot and do not believe that a person comes back to life after their physical death. I do not believe that only through belief in Jesus Christ as the son of God, am absolved of my sins in this life and will go to heaven for eternal life as a result. If I were to believe this things and declare myself Christian. I must verify Christ as having lived and died as explained in the bible and historical record. For it is through his life, death and resurrection that I would have to find my spiritual sustenance. It would be necessary for me to believe in the unique godhead of Jesus Christ. Joseph Campbell in his series "Transformation of Myth Through Time" compares the resurrection of Christ to the enlightenment of Buddha. However, he differentiates Buddhism and Christianity, in that Christians must believe in the unique nature of Jesus as the Son of God, for it is through him, as the risen Christ, that we can also reach transcendence. In Christianity we are not Jesus Christ or become Christ, we can only imitate Christ.

Buddhism is not concerned with the unique character of Siddartha Gautama, whether or not Siddartha became enlightened is secondary to pointing a finger to the path that all of us can follow. This path or message, is that we are all potential Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Although Jesus Christ's resurrection can be compared to the Bodhisattva's joyful returning to the fields. Christianity is an exclusive teaching relying on the unique godhead of Jesus as the son of god, rather than inclusive teaching of Buddhism, that we are all potential Buddhas ourselves.

Which brings me to the story of Hanamatsuri, the birth of the Siddartha Gautama. Although for the most part, the historical authenticity of Siddartha's birth have been shown by countless scholars. None of that is necessary to understand and accept the significance of Hanamatsuri. For Hanamatsuri's significance is in the potential of all human beings to transcend the mundane to reach enlightenment. It is a day to recognize each of us as potential Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Since becoming a father, I recognize it as a day for seeing the unlimited potential for my children in this life and my role in guiding them.

The name Siddartha can be translated as Aall wishes fulfilled.@  With the naming of this child, the future Buddha, we can see the process of parenthood.  I will not say all, but for the majority and I hope for all those that read these words, the birth of our children, whether biological or adopted, our receiving of our children, is the fulfillment of our life.  With the birth of your child, I hope you realize the responsibility you now have in life. It is no longer about career or how society views you through your profession and material toys. Your definition of happiness as what makes me feel good, is now secondary to what is best for my child and the responsibility I have accepted as a parent. I have heard people say, "If I'm not happy, how can my children be happy." This is irresponsible self centered psycho babble of the worst type. It is evidence of an immature mind, self centered mind. The responsible and what I feel proper statement should be, "If my children are happy, I am happy." This is a parent. This is the deepest aspiration of a true parent.

Your child's happiness in these terms are not defined by material things, but by mental and spiritual security and happiness. If you cannot think in these terms, maybe you were not ready to be a parent in the first place. Siddartha was blessed to be born to a Mother and Father that recognized and truly wished for a child and he was the fulfillment of all their hopes and dreams. Therefore he was given the name Siddartha.

The story of Siddartha's birth has been told countless times. Over the centuries it has taken on flowery words and descriptions. The essence of Siddartha's life is as follows. Siddartha was born out of great love. His mother dreamed about his birth and his father had great aspirations for this child he was helping to bring into the world. It was said that the Earth shook in six directions when Siddartha was born. Do not all parents feel that the ground of their existence change and shake with the birth of their child? It was said that he was carried down to earth by the gods. And at his birth he took seven steps and lifting one hand to the heavens and one to the earth below he proclaimed, "In the worlds above and the worlds below, I alone am the world honored one." Each of us have cried that same proclamation at birth. Maybe it can only be heard through the love of our parents. It is the existential cry of "I am here." The doctors, nurses, friends and family that may help bring us into this world are no less than gods and angels to our parents waiting in anticipation.

Many predictions were made about his life. Which child's future has not been hoped for by their parents and family. The ascetic Asita predicted that he would either be a world ruler or a great teacher of the world. His Father wanted him to be a world ruler, rather than the world's teacher. How much does a teacher make compared to the ruler of the world? Is this not natural for a father? Siddartha was given all the toys and comforts his parents could provide. As he matured, he wanted to see what the world had to offer. Although his parents wanted to protect him from the suffering in the world, they could not. Is this not true for all parents? Siddartha saw the reality of life, sickness, old age, death, and a path to go beyond these harsh truths. In essence, he tired of his toys and the material things in his life and realized he needed and wanted more. He left his Father's home, to search for his true and real self. He found it under the Bodhi tree. Upon his discovery, he felt great compassion for those who have not yet realized this truth. He taught them and left this path for all of us.

Siddartha's birth and life, are the promise and the goal for each of us today. Hanamatsuri is a day to recognize the potential of ourselves and the children we have brought into this world. It isn't necessary to see facts, dates and times into the birth of the Buddha, for he is each of us and the potential that awaits to be awakened. He will be having our Hanamatsuri service and program/luncheon on April 7, please join us. Let us celebrate the life and the potential of ourselves and our children. Namo Amida Butsu.

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