No Working Is True Working

“Other Power is the entrusting of yourself to the Eighteenth among Amida Tathagata’s Vows, the Primal Vow of birth through the nembutsu, which Amida selected and adopted from among all other practices. Since this is the Vow of Tathagata, Hōnen said: ‘In Other Power, no working is true working.’”

— “Lamp for the Latter Ages,” “Collected Works of Shinran (CWS),” P. 525

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Many people probably know me as the minister who plays music. 

I started playing music when I was 6 by playing piano, but I was not good at it. Later, I entered my elementary school’s marching band to play the trumpet. 

Kanazawa City, where I grew up, had a strong marching band program for the schools, and we marched around the city every year during the festival. We also competed in annual competitions, so practicing with friends toward a common goal of winning the competition remains a good memory in my heart.

When I was in middle school, a friend who played guitar asked me to try the bass, and that’s when I started playing bass guitar. He also introduced me to heavy metal and hard rock, and I still listen to and play them!

There are musicians who have signature voices or sounds — like Ozzy Osbourne, Axl Rose, Geddy Lee, Billy Sheehan, and so on. I can recognize their voices or bass tone instantly because it’s so unique. In the world of music, it’s important to have a distinctive sound or phrase that helps listeners immediately know who the musician is. Whatever Ozzy sings, it becomes Ozzy’s song — and that’s something truly great for a musician.

But in the world of Jodo Shinshu, it’s not the same. Our personal interpretation of the teaching — how “I” understand it or make sense of it — is irrelevant in Jodo Shinshu. We often try to fit everything into the box of “my understanding.” But that box is just a reflection of our self-centered way of thinking. We label things: “This makes sense, so it must be true,” or “This doesn’t make sense, so I don’t think it’s true.”

However, what truly matters in our tradition is not our thinking, but the working of Amida Buddha to save us. This is what makes Jodo Shinshu unique. If I use the music metaphor again, I could say that we are the listeners — the fans — of the music of Amida Buddha, who plays a unique and compassionate melody. We are the recipients of this wondrous song of Other Power.

A few years ago, I became a big fan of a Higashi Jodo Shinshu scholar from the Edo period (17th–19th century) named Kōjuin Tokuryū. 

In the “Record of Sayings of Kōjuin,” there is a passage like this:

“Whether it says ‘Rely on me,’ or ‘Take refuge in me,’ or ‘Recite my Name, recite my Name,’ all are expressions of the Buddha’s calling to us: ‘I will save you, I will save you.’ Even if the heavens turn into earth and the earth into heavens, this will not be mistaken. You must not doubt, you must not doubt — until you can hear these words as the voice of Amida Buddha, you must diligently listen with all your effort.”

— translation by Rimban Rev. Yuki Sugahara

The Name of Amida Buddha, Namo Amida Butsu, says “rely on me,” “take refuge in me.” The Eighteenth Vow teaches us to “recite my Name perhaps even 10 times.” But ultimately, this is the Buddha’s voice calling out to us: “I will save you.”

Nothing from our side is required to attain birth in the Pure Land, the realm of enlightenment, and become a Buddha. When we diligently listen to the calling of Amida Buddha, we eventually come to “hear” (receive and accept) this calling in Namo Amida Butsu. Then we begin to appreciate the working of Amida Buddha, who grasps us and never abandons us, even though we continue to live with the burden of afflictions.

May is the birth month of our founder, Shinran Shōnin (1173–1263), and we observe Gōtanye — a gathering in gratitude for his birth.

The words I shared at the beginning are from one of Shinran Shōnin’s letters. They point to how we attain birth in the Pure Land and become Buddhas through Namo Amida Butsu alone — through the Buddha’s working, not our own. This teaching attracted many people, and today Jodo Shinshu (combining both Nishi and Higashi branches) is the largest Buddhist tradition in Japan. It is said that about one in 10 Japanese people are Jodo Shinshu Buddhists.

Now, I am happy to see that this teaching is spreading beyond Japan and continues to touch the hearts of people around the world.

Let us continue to listen to Amida Buddha’s compassionate calling: “I will save you.”

Namo Amida Butsu.