- Lamp for the Latter Ages 2
what is jiriki really? this is something which has been bugging me for quite some time now. usually when jiriki, or self-power is referred to it's through the lens of practice. entrusting to Amida means the whole-sale abandoning of practice and instead placing firm faith in and reliance upon all the merit generated by Dharmakara towards the establishment of a Pure Land for all sentient beings. nothing doing, it's all been done.
the problem i have with this approach is i can't help but feel it places emphasis on the wrong point. we should ask ourselves why Shinran Shonin encouraged an abandoning of practice - ultimately, what it boils down to is not the external form of practice itself per se, but the intent behind such an act. entrusting isn't really about abandoning practice, it's about abandoning reliance on the ego-ridden self to bring about enlightenment. whether your practice is zazen, ngondro or riding a unicycle backwards through Times Square singing yankee doodle dandy really shouldn't matter, what should is the letting go of a goal-orientated fixation.
the thing is, i see people getting into all kinds of knots and tangles, beating themselves up because of the way jiriki is approached. someone who wants to add recitation of the Heart Sutra to their daily otsutome shouldn't feel that it doing so they're somehow a failing nembutsu-sha. personally, at the beginning of my path i had a close affiliation to and affection for Arya Tara and i still enjoy reciting the 21 Praises now and then. the temple i attend offers meditation classes. are we somehow failing because we're doing something other than chanting the nembutsu and reciting the traditional liturgy? of course not!
i'm wary of saying that all the various traditions are essentially the same as Jodo Shinshu, certainly there are valid differences to be acknowledged and appreciated but here's the thing, i'll say it quietly - actually, i don't think there is such a thing as jiriki as far as genuine Dharma practice goes. because the act we all do, each and every school, going for refuge - isn't that the ultimate abandonment of reliance on our own efforts, a renunciation of ours and the worlds petty hang-ups, desires and attachments and instead an entrusting to something greater?
focussing on practice to encapsulate the teaching of tariki over jiriki just doesn't make sense to me. for sure, ego is a tricky thing and will arise time and time again even as we tell ourselves we are resting in the midst of effortless action. but regardless of whether we have anything concrete we can label as practice or not, the calculating mind will not let up. and looking back to the quote we came in on, doesn't it appear that intention rather than practice in itself is what's emphasised (effort to attain birth)?
initially i thought this feeling contrary to orthodox opinion, but in searching for references to clarify the 'orthodox' now i'm not so sure...perhaps a further clarification addressing the matter directly can be taken from the seven forms of deep entrusting provided in fascicle two of Gotuku's Notes, Shinran clarifies the fifth - To entrust oneself to the Buddha's words alone and rely decidedly on the practice [of the nembutsu] - with three kinds of guidance -
Practicers "abandon what the Buddha brings them to abandon."rather than worry about whether practice somehow disqualifies us from the Pure Land, wouldn't it make more sense to reflect deeply on this?
Practicers "practice what the Buddha brings them to practice."
Practicers "leave what the Buddha brings them to leave.
namu amida butsu
