The Origin of the Jodo Shinshu Teaching — Part 3

Who, then, guided T’an-luan to the teaching of Amida Buddha? In the “Shoshinge,” there is a line that goes, “Tenjin bosatsu ron chuge.” There is also another similar line, which goes “Tenjin bosatsu zo ron setsu.”

Which line do you think comes first? If you confuse them, you will end up repeating them and the chanting of “Shoshinge” will not end. The answer is “Tenjin bosatsu zo ron setsu” followed by “Tenjin bosatsu ron chuge.” 

The first line, “Tenjin bosatsu zo ron setsu,” signifies that “Bodhisattva Vasubandhu composed a treatise (on Amida Buddha and the Buddha’s Pure Land).” (CWS I, p. 71, the original translation slightly edited) The second line, “Tenjin bosatsu ron chuge” explains that “T’an-luan created a commentary on the treatise of Bodhisattva Vasubandhu.” (CWS I, p. 72, the original translation slightly edited) 

Therefore, it implies that T’an-luan was introduced to Amida Buddha’s teaching through Vasubandhu’s writings. 

Vasubandhu lived in the northern area of India, which is located at the end of the 5,000-mile-long Silk Road connecting China and India. The exact years of Vasbandhu’s birth and death are not known, but they are believed to be around 400 and 480. On the other hand, those of T’an-luan are known to be 476 and 542. 

Comparing the dates of the two figures, they are only a few decades apart. These two masters can be considered as contemporaries, but lived far apart from each other. 

There are two surprising factors connecting them. One is how within such a short period of time, an assembly of nameless Buddhist priests had travelled the life-threatening distance of 10,000 miles roundtrip between China and India in search of Buddhist scriptures. It is said that Vasubandhu’s works were among the writings that were brought to China. 

The other factor was the comprehension of both Indian and Chinese languages. With Vasubandhu being from India, he spoke ancient Indian while T’an-luan, being from China, spoke classic Chinese. To overcome the language barrier, there must have been priests who were fluent in both languages, enabling T’an-luan to appreciate Vasubandhu’s writings. 

Today, we have the internet and it has become an era of convenience. However, such things did not exist in those days. Meanwhile, Vasubandhu’s writings were translated and conveyed to T’a n-luan. Upon reading them, T’an-luan wrote a commentary, all within less than half a century. 

This miraculous accomplishment was realized in ancient China approximately 1,500 years ago. 

I will not go into detail here, but Vasubandhu also made a great historic achievement. He established the foundation of the world’s oldest university, which is Nalanda University. Its ruins have remained in India and its scale is mind-blowing. 

Going back approximately 400 years, from the time of Vasubandhu in the southern area of India was a person who truly appreciated the Nembutsu. The line in “Shoshinge” reads “Ryuju daiji shutto se.” It is Nagarjuna. This line means that “The mahasattva Nagarjuna would appear in this world.” (CWS I, p. 71). 

The exact dates of birth and death of Nagarjuna are also not known, but are believed to be sometime in the second and third centuries (circa 150-250), which was about 1,800 years ago. 

Can you imagine what life was like back then? As a side note, people living in the Japanese archipelago during that time were illicitly hunting, using bronzeware, and may have been living in caves. It was when they began building home-like structures and rice paddy farms. 

On the other hand, southern India was, at the time, well advanced. Gold coins from the western Roman Empire were discovered in the southern Indian stratum from Nagarjuna’s time, proving that southern India was trading with the western Roman Empire. In southern India, there already existed a highly civilized society and that is how Nagarjuna’s writings were able to be passed down to us today without being lost. 

But who then communicated the teaching of Amida Buddha to Nagarjuna? Maybe it would be clear if I said this person was born on April 8. It was Śakyamuni Buddha. 

Hearing the Three Pure Land Sutras during services, what exactly are the three sutras? They are the Larger Sutra, Contemplation Sutra and Amida Sutra. The complete title of each sutra begins with “Bussetsu,” which is comprised of two kanji characters; “butsu” or Buddha and “setsu,” which means “preach.” 

The sutras were sermons by Sakyamuni Buddha, and through these sutras, we hear the teaching of Amida Buddha. We have quickly covered the origin of the Jodo Shinshu teaching that began 2,500 years ago. 

In terms of spatial distance, the teaching of Amida Buddha has travelled from India, China, Japan and on to the United States of America, covering a distance of over 15,000 miles. We cannot help but to feel the importance and significance of the historical and geographical depth of the transmission of the teaching.