On 8 December we commemorate the Enlightenment (bodhi) of Shakyamuni Buddha. Of the three main events in Shakyamuni’s life that we remember each year, this is the most important. On 8 April we think of his birth at Kanbutsu-e and in February we celebrate his passing into nirvana. If, however, Shakyamuni had not attained Enlightenment there would be little point in these other two commemorations. His birth would have been unremarkable and he would not have passed into final ‘nirvana without residue’.
Although he was kept as a prince in a very comfortable lifestyle and supplied with every conceivable need and the love of a wife and child, Shakyamuni was moved by the suffering he saw in the world and resolved to find an enduring way out of this dilemma – not only for himself – but for all people and beings, for all time. He undertook a life of asceticism, which did not bring the desired result, so he abandoned this kind of extreme religious practice and sat in deep contemplation seeking to discover the saving truth. In the early morning hours of 8 December Shakyamuni (known by his personal name until this time as Siddhartha) became the Buddha, the Awakened One.
From this time until his passing into final nirvana Shakyamuni revealed all that he had come to understand at this time of his Enlightenment. He continued to deepen and widen his teaching and eventually delivered The Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life, The Sutra on the Visualisation of the Buddha of Infinite Life and The Sutra on Amida Buddha. These three sutras form the foundation of the Pure Land Tradition to which we as Jodo Shinshu followers are heir. Of these three sutras, the first, known as the Larger Sutra for short, is the most important. Shinran described it in this way: -
‘To reveal the true teaching: It is the Larger Sutra of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life. The central purport of this sutra is that Amida, by establishing the incomparable Vows, has opened wide the Dharma storehouse, and full of compassion for small, foolish beings, selects and bestows the treasure of virtues. Shakyamuni appeared in this world and expounded the teachings of the way to enlightenment, seeking to save the multitudes of living beings by blessing them with this benefit that is true and real. Thus, to teach the Tathagata’s Primal Vow is the true intent of this sutra; the Name of the Buddha is its essence.’
As we remember the inestimable gift to the world that we have received in the teaching which Shakyamuni imparted to us because of his Enlightenment it is well to keep in mind that enlightenment is our goal, too. It is not just something that Shakyamuni gained and which he kept to himself. Unless we too reach the awakening of a Buddha his efforts will not have borne the fruit that he himself intended. Although he taught many ways to this single goal, suited to the great variety of people and suffering beings that there are in the world, the teaching of the Tathagata’s Primal Vow, the Name of the Buddha – Namo Amida Butsu – is the way for all people without exception.
We who are enmeshed in the desires and responsibilities of life in this world can be confident of the Nembutsu Way that Shakyamuni has chosen for us. It was not just for him that Shakyamuni sought enlightenment but for us as well and he does not point to himself as our guide but the essence of his teaching. As Shinran Shonin discovered this is all encompassed in the Larger Sutra. To hear and know the fruits of Shakyamuni’s Enlightenment, the Larger Sutra is our guide. By following it we shall fulfil Shakyamuni’s quest to end the suffering of birth-and-death in the world.
(written by Rev. George Gatenby)
Sun Dec 09, 2007 9:51 pm