Bringing Joy to Others - by Nichiko Niwano - Rissho Kosei-kai ...
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REFLECTIONS
Bringing Joy to Others
by Nichiko Niwano
Imagine that your stomach is empty else’s happiness and joy, it can make life Nichiko Niwano is president of
and there is a single rice ball. However, more meaningful. Rissho Kosei-kai and an honorary
everyone around you is just as hungry An ancient Indian text says, “From president of Religions for Peace.
as you are. Well, everyone, what would doing good deeds for others, you should He also serves as an advisor to
you do with it? Some will put other peo- expect no repayment, no praise, and no Shinshuren (Federation of New
ple first. Others will share it. And yet reward. Why is this? Because doing so is Religious Organizations of Japan).
others might, from extreme hunger, nothing more than for one’s own plea-
begin snatching it away from each other. sure.” When we give benefits to others, she could truly understand how suffering
Saicho (767–822), the founder of we experience a happiness and joy that people felt. Her sense of oneness with
the Tendai denomination of Japanese cannot possibly be had otherwise, tran- them gave rise to her consideration for
Buddhism, said that the highest form of scending any form of praise or calcula- them and enabled her to quickly grasp
practicing compassion is to “forget the tion of profit and loss. with just the right timing what lay deep
self and benefit others.” As Buddhists, in their hearts. Although it is not easy
we should let others eat the rice ball The Joy of Being to do, we also want to cultivate our own
first, but there is a side to us that can- consideration for others.
not readily let go of our desires.
Considerate of Others Even if we are not capable of the
That may be true, but we innately No matter how much we may be think- same degree of consideration of others
have the potential to experience joy and ing about the other person, however, if as she was, or even if the other person
happiness that go far beyond the fulfill- we ignore his or her feelings and cir- does not accept our thoughtfulness, we
ment of our wishes. The face and appear- cumstances, we may come off as smug. still can get great joy in discovering
ance of a happy person is the switch that In some cases, our efforts to help will that we ourselves have hearts that enjoy
turns on such sensitivity in us. end up being unwanted and irritating. giving to others. Besides, we should
A woman who took presents to a Today Cofounder Myoko Naganuma feel relieved knowing that, by being
Seniors’ Day event at a nearby facility is still called “the compassionate mother” able to put others first, we are also rid-
was told by one senior, “I can’t accept of Rissho Kosei-kai because she was so ding ourselves of greedy desires. For
a gift from someone I don’t know.” The fervent in showing consideration to oth- example, even if the offer to help is
woman replied with a request: “I want ers that when she saw someone in need, not heartfelt or the show of compas-
to share in your good luck of living a she could not stop herself from reach- sion is insincere, when these actions
long life, so would you rub my head?” ing out to that person. Founder Nikkyo are repeated again and again, we will
The senior then rubbed her head until Niwano said of her, “In every situation, feel joy, and our hearts and minds will
her hair was completely disheveled. she would appropriately and promptly be inspired and grow.
When then asked to accept the gift as grasp the feelings of the other person. The feeling of being refreshed and
a thank-you, the senior did so with a When someone seemed to need some- the joy that we receive from making
beaming smile and told the woman, thing, she would generously give it to others happy through donations made
“Thanks.” him or her. . . . She possessed a man- with our bodies, hearts, and minds, giv-
This episode proves that the joy ner of guiding others that was always ing freely of ourselves, as well as dona-
we receive from doing something for adapting to the circumstances while tions of material things, make us feel
others is greater than the joy received meticulously taking care of the details.” like continuing to do more practices of
when someone does something for us. Because Cofounder Naganuma had her- consideration. Then, whenever we are
At the same time, this story shows us self experienced more of the sufferings practicing consideration, we can more
that when our action leads to someone of illness and poverty than most people, fully experience the joy of being alive. ≥
Dharma World January–March 2016 1JAN.–MAR. 2016 VOL. 43
FEATURES: Dual Religious Identity: Can One Practice Two Religions?
1 Bringing Joy to Others
by Nichiko Niwano
Dharma World presents Buddhism
as a practical living religion and
promotes interreligious dialogue
for world peace. It espouses views 3 Multiple Belonging
that emphasize the dignity of life, by Gene Reeves
seeks to rediscover our inner nature 7 Many Religions, One Reality
and bring our lives more in accord
by Joseph S. O’Leary
with it, and investigates causes of
human suffering. It tries to show 11 Buddhist-Christian
how religious principles help solve Double Belongings
problems in daily life and how the by Kunihiko Terasawa
least application of such principles 14 Religions in Japan:
has wholesome effects on the world Many or None?
around us. It seeks to demonstrate
by Gaynor Sekimori
truths that are fundamental to all
religions, truths on which all people 19 Religious Syncretism
can act. in the African Diaspora
by Terry Rey
Publisher: Hirofumi Mizuno 24 On Being a Christian Influenced by Buddhism
Director: Kazumasa Murase
by Jay McDaniel
Senior Editor: Kazumasa Osaka
Editor: Katsuyuki Kikuchi
Editorial Advisors:
Miriam Levering, Gene Reeves,
Yoshiaki Sanada,
28 Buddhism and Social Engagement (3)
Dominick Scarangello, Social Reform and Environmental Protection
Michio T. Shinozaki by Ranjana Mukhopadhyaya
Copy Editors: 32 Islamic State and the Questions It Now Poses
William Feuillan, Gary Hoiby, by Yoshiaki Sanada
DeAnna Satre, Catherine Szolga
Editorial Staff:
35 The Lotus Sutra: Time, Space, and Culture
Ryuichi Kaneko, Satoe Izawa by Adam Lyons
Subscription Staff: Kazuyo Okazaki 40 Twists and Turns on the Path to Peace
Layout and Design: Abinitio Design by Nikkyo Niwano
Cover:
Photo: Shutterstock.com
Photoshop work by Abinitio Design THE THREEFOLD LOTUS SUTRA: A MODERN COMMENTARY
44 The Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law
Chapter 25: The All-Sidedness of the Bodhisattva Regarder
of the Cries of the World (2)
Dharma World is published quarterly by Kosei Publishing Company, 2-7-1 Wada, Suginami-ku, Tokyo 166-8535. E-mail: dharmaworld@kosei-shuppan.co.jp. Copyright ©
2016 by Kosei Publishing Company. All rights reserved. Printed in Japan by Komiyama Printing Company. Change of Address: Please provide both old and new addresses.
Six weeks’ advance notice is requested. Requests for permission to reprint all or part of any article in this issue must be made in writing to the editor of Dharma World.FEATURES
Multiple Belonging
by Gene Reeves
Gene Reeves has researched and
I believe we are called today . . . to move beyond our own lectured on the Lotus Sutra worldwide
tribalisms, our racial and ethnic and national and class for more than a quarter century. He
smallness, and let our vision of human wholeness become was a visiting professor at Peking
a basis for a more genuine community, a model of what University and a professor at Renmin
can be. One way [to do this] is by participating in multiple University of China in Beijing until
religious traditions. retiring in 2012, and he serves as
an international advisor to Rissho
Kosei-kai. His recent works include
Personal identity is a tricky thing. I have was Saint Jude’s, a small, working-class, The Lotus Sutra and The Stories of
not always known who I am. Sometimes, Episcopal church. Among other respon- the Lotus Sutra (Wisdom Publications,
perhaps, I tried to find myself. And even sibilities there, I was the janitor. As jan- 2008 and 2010).
now, having entered the ranks of “the itor, I had keys to the small, three-room
elderly,” I’m not sure I know who I am. building built in the shape of a cross.
Multiple Belonging
Many years ago, when I was invited Late one night, under cover of darkness,
to preach at the Unitarian Church in I sneaked into the building with one In Cape Town I was suggesting that
Cape Town, South Africa, I wanted to of my best friends, a Roman Catholic, I am in some ways Jewish, Christian,
encourage the struggling congregation to just to show him what the inside of a Unitarian, and Buddhist. Even today,
broaden their outlook, and for this pur- Protestant church looked like. We had if someone were to ask me whether
pose I chose a passage from the Jewish to sneak in because at that time Roman I am Christian or Unitarian, under
bible, from the book of Isaiah: “Make Catholics were not allowed even to enter most circumstances I would reply in
your tent larger, lengthen your cords and a Protestant church for any reason. the affirmative. That is basically for two
strengthen your stakes” (54:2). The Second Vatican Council, often reasons: First, I find that both Christian
I explained to the congregation called Vatican II, convened by Pope John and Unitarian sensibilities, even biases
that I was raised Christian. At twenty XXIII in 1962, pretty much brought an and prejudices, are deeply imbedded in
I became a Unitarian. At thirty I became end to that attitude, with Catholics not me, in my values, in my ways of think-
a Unitarian Universalist. And at fifty I only allowed to enter non-Catholic facil- ing and being. Moreover, there is much
became a Buddhist. But not once did I ities and holy places but often encour- in Christian and Unitarian teachings
think of those becomings as a conver- aged to engage with members of other and symbolism that I affirm. I am not
sion from one faith to another. And so religious traditions both for improving a fatalist but believe strongly in the
I remain, in my own self-understand- personal understanding and for bene- reality and ever-present possibility
ing, Christian, Unitarian, Universalist, fiting the world. In reference to various of personal transformation. I learned
and Buddhist. The sermon, I claimed discussions before the Second Vatican that, even took it into my being, from
in Cape Town, could be understood as Council actually convened, Pope John Christianity. I also believe firmly in the
Jewish, Christian, Unitarian, Universalist, XXIII is often quoted as saying that it importance of respecting other religious
and Buddhist. was time to open the windows of the traditions. I learned that at a young age
When I was young, even among Church to let in some fresh air. And from Unitarianism. But there are also
Christian sects and denominations, he invited organizations outside the other traditions and occupations that
being religiously more than one thing Catholic Church to send observers to are part of my self-identity, some by
was not allowed. My family’s local church the Council. choice, others by circumstance.
Dharma World January–March 2016 3It is common to divide personal Gene.” Am I, like the colonels, generals, what I am but an ambivalence rooted
identities into two kinds—those that governors, and presidents, to have that in a strong sense that many Buddhists
title forever? To me it does not seem would not regard me as Buddhist.
association with some group or orga- appropriate, but obviously others have
nization, and those that one inherits or other views. For them, being a profes- For many Buddhists, the only way to be
adheres to because of the circumstances sor is part of my identity. a “real” Buddhist is to be a monastic, a
one happens to be in. But while this monk or a nun, and to follow some form
distinction between chosen identities personal identity is not as clear-cut as of a code of behavior for monastics, the
and circumstantial ones can be useful, we sometimes think. Individuals have Vinaya. Accordingly, for some Buddhists
it is not very clear or strictly applicable. many identities, some very important there are practically no Buddhists in
Take, for example, nationality. I was to themselves, others not; some cho- Japan, since even Japanese Buddhist
born and raised as an American. I did sen, others not; some clearly applica- clergy typically marry, eat meat, and
not choose to be an American. But I can ble, others not; some quite permanent, drink alcoholic beverages. With such a
choose to no longer be an American by others not.
resigning my citizenship and becom- be Buddhist, I am clearly not a Buddhist.
ing, for example, a Japanese citizen. But On Being Buddhist
were I to do that, would I also become East Asia
Japanese? Hardly! To my way of thinking, I have several other identities that might
being Japanese is at least as much a mat- be worth discussing, but the one that I
ter of ethnic identity as it is of national- would most like to mention here is that been living in East Asia, primarily in
ity. One can become a citizen of Japan, of being Buddhist. Japan, but also in China, and with occa-
Partly I think because of my history sional extended visits to Taiwan, Korea,
from being “Japanese.” But not every- as a Unitarian Universalist minister and and Singapore. In all of these countries,
one thinks the way I do on this matter. the head of a Unitarian Universalist and in other smaller areas with Chinese
So there are, in fact, people who have
become citizens of Japan, though they asked whether I am now Buddhist. My may disagree with each other on many
are not ethnically Japanese, who think -
of themselves, and would like others response suggests a kind of ambivalence, ues and Confucian sensibilities are still
to think of them, as Japanese, which an ambivalence not in my own sense of very strong. At the same time, in much
in at least one sense they actually are. of East Asia, Buddhist institutions are
But I would not understand myself to also strong and growing stronger, both
be Japanese even if I became a citizen in numbers and in vitality and cultural
of Japan.
I am also a professional philosopher especially Taoism in China and Taiwan
and think of myself, to some degree, and Shinto in Japan, are doing well in
as a philosopher. Being a philosopher various ways, though their institutional
is part of my identity. And it seems to embodiments may not be quite as strong
me, it is part of my identity whether I as the Buddhist temples and associations.
choose it or not. It’s true, of course, that And sometimes these old traditions are
I originally made a choice to study phi- embodied in “new” religions, where they
losophy and, in that sense, to become a
philosopher. But since then, it has been strong connection between the tradi-
part of my identity, part of my being— tional religious tradition and the new
whether I like it or not. In one sense it religion is not explicit, and may even be
is a chosen identity; in another it is not. denied, but is there nonetheless. In addi-
Until fairly recently, all of my adult tion, in many places in East Asia, “for-
life I have been a university profes- eign” religions, especially Christianity
and Islam, are growing and increasing
I chose. But now, in retirement, some their public prominence.
still address me as “Professor,” some as
“Professor Reeves,” others as “Professor not all the same, not even with respect
4 D January–March 2016to religious institutions. For example, China there is a strong
Christianity is very strong in Korea and sense among them of
growing rapidly in China, despite gov- belonging exclusively
ernment opposition, or perhaps because to Islam.
of it, while in Japan Christians remain
make here, without put-
one thing I think all of these countries ting it too strongly, is
and cultures have in common is wide- that in East Asia, more
spread tolerance of multiple religious than in the West, there
customs and traditions. is, and has long been,
Not only is mutual tolerance wide- a kind of openness to
spread in East Asia, so is multiple belong- participating in and
belonging to more than
to be precise about this, but it seems as one religious tradition.
though the majority of people in Japan I have thought that this
who support a Buddhist temple or belong would be less so among
to relatively new Buddhist organizations religious professionals,
such as Rissho Kosei-kai also occasion- but I will never forget
ally visit and pay their respects at Shinto being guided around a
shrines. In fact, in most of the new lay Taoist temple in Taiwan
Buddhist organizations, both Buddhist by a Buddhist nun, who insisted strongly participation in multiple religious tra-
bodhisattvas and Shinto kami are recog- that even in their most bizarre portrayals ditions has been going on for centuries.
nized and incorporated into religious life the traditional Taoist or popular Chinese
in various ways. In Rissho Kosei-kai, for gods should be suitably respected and -
- honored. For her, I suppose respect for gious identity. A Japanese Buddhist who
porates a Shinto shrine. In China, too— and even veneration of Taoist and pop- goes to a Shinto shrine at New Year’s
though in most parts of the country Taoist ular deities is not felt to be multiple does not necessarily think of himself or
traditions are not as well institutional- belonging. It’s just being Chinese. But herself as Shinto, just as a young Shinto
ized as Shinto shrines are in Japan— clearly something like multiple belong- couple, closely related to a Shinto shrine,
where Taoist temples exist, there does ing is involved. who have a Christian-style wedding
In East Asia generally, it seems to me, service do not thereby think of them-
tension between Buddhism and Taoism selves as Christian.
or between being Buddhist and Taoist at not always been true, certainly not every- Mutual tolerance and even partici-
where. One does not have to look far to pation in practices and rituals of other
case in Singapore where a large Taoist religious traditions do not constitute
temple is owned by a nearby Buddhist intolerance toward other religious tra- multiple belonging and do not mean the
temple and run by its Buddhist monks. people involved have a religious iden-
such intolerance involves, on one side tity that is consciously rooted in more
respect and multiple belonging is the or the other, an Abrahamic tradition, than one tradition. But such tolerance
Abrahamic religions of Christianity Muslim or Christian. Today in western and participation do get one close to
and Islam, where, for the most part, Myanmar, for example, which is gen- multiple belonging and open a way, so
being a Christian or being a Muslim erally a Buddhist country, it is not safe
pretty much precludes being Shinto, to be Muslim. In parts of Bangladesh, to come to see oneself as belonging to
a Muslim country, it is not safe to be more than one tradition.
that there are not exceptions, where, Christian or Buddhist. Generally, when If we think of multiple belonging
for example, some Japanese Christians such intolerance and hatred of other reli- as only a matter of chosen, conscious,
are free to participate in Buddhist ritu- gious traditions exist, multiple belong- identity, then perhaps it is no more com-
als and may even regard themselves as ing is impossible or at least extremely mon in East Asia than it is in America
being Buddhist in some ways. I’m less or Europe. But if we can allow that there
familiar with Muslims in East Asia, but But even with important excep- is such a thing as circumstantial multi-
it seems to me that in both Japan and tions, though not often recognized, ple belonging, a multiple belonging that
Dharma World January–March 2016 5Jewish state for several decades, and It is not enough, this prophet said,
now Cyrus, the Persian king, was win- for Israel alone to be restored. “Behold
ning battles everywhere and was about my servant [Israel], whom I support;
to take Babylon itself. To many Jews, my chosen in whom my soul delights;
there seemed to be no ground for hope. I have put my spirit upon you; you will
Some even began to doubt the existence bring forth justice to the whole world.
of their god, Yahweh. You will not fail or be discouraged until
But this prophet, Isaiah, spoke with a you have established justice over all the
vision, a vision that transcended the pres- earth” (42:1, 4; emphasis mine). “I have
ent moment and difficulties. Basically he given you as a covenant to all people,
told the exiled Jews two things. First, he a light to all nations, to open the eyes
assured them that their lives were very of the blind and to bring from prisons
important, that they had a purpose in those who sit in darkness” (42:7). “It is
the world and therefore the strength too small a thing that you should be my
to move forward. “Comfort, comfort servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob
my people, says your God. Speak ten- and to restore . . . Israel. I will give you
derly to Jerusalem, and cry to her, that as a light to the nations, that my salva-
her warfare is ended, that her iniquity tion shall reach the ends of the earth”
is pardoned” (40:1–2). (49:6). “For my house shall be called a
is not so much a matter of consciously “Haven’t you known? Haven’t you house of prayer for all peoples” (56:7).
chosen personal identity as it is a mat- heard?” he said. “Your God is everlast- In other words, no more business
ter of participating in more than one ing, the creator of the world. He never as usual. You have a new task as a peo-
religious tradition and drawing signifi- gets tired or weary, and he strengthens ple—to bring justice to all the earth, that
cant spiritual sustenance from them, those who are tired and weak” (40:28– the blind may see and the oppressed be
perhaps multiple religious belonging 29). “The grass withers, the flower fades; liberated and a covenant made with all
is actually quite common in East Asia. but the word of our God will stand for- peoples.
ever” (40:8). “Even young people become How was this to be accomplished?
Second Isaiah weak and get weary . . . but those who Toward the end of the prophecy, the
trust God shall renew their strength, they prophet says, “Make your tent larger,
Scholarly views of the Old Testament shall mount up with wings like eagles; lengthen your cords and strengthen
book of Isaiah have changed rather dra- they shall run and not be weary; they your stakes” (54:2).
matically in recent decades. But I think shall walk and not faint” (40:30–31). Make your tent larger. Like those Jews
we need not trouble ourselves with that And then the prophet promised the peo- in their Babylonian captivity, I believe we
here. Regardless of what actually hap- ple that despite all that had happened, are called today, each one of us is called,
pened in history, we have a story, a story despite their sins and captivity, they would to make our tents larger, to move beyond
that can contribute to our understand- return to Israel and rebuild the Temple our own tribalisms, our racial and ethnic
ing of religious tolerance and multiple and the walls of Jerusalem. So the first and national and class smallness, and let
belonging. part of what the prophet said was a word our vision of human wholeness become
Around the middle of the sixth cen- of comfort, promise, and encouragement. a basis for a more genuine community,
tury BCE, with the Jews in captivity in But the second thing this prophet a model of what can be.
Babylon, a prophet arose in their midst. said was that this was not to be simply One way—to be sure, not the only
We now know him as Second or Deutero another restoration project. “Behold, the way—to make our tents larger is by par-
Isaiah, because his story is found in the former things have come to pass, and ticipating in multiple religious traditions.
second section, or second half, of the new things I now declare” (42:9). “Sing By doing so, we can perhaps glimpse,
book of Isaiah. to the Lord a new song” (42:10). “For or even come to know deeply, perspec-
This was an extremely difficult time I create new heavens and a new earth” tives not our own. We can learn to see
for the seminomadic Jews. Pinched (65:17). Something new was about to the world through the eyes of a Muslim,
between Egypt and Babylon, they had happen, and this new thing was to be and thereby even be a Muslim, with-
been thrown out of their homeland and a kind of universalism. No more nar- out casting off the identity with which
made captives of the Babylonians. There rowness, no more petty nationalism, we entered our too small, but growing,
had been nothing like a functioning no more small-time tribalism. tent. ≥
6 Dharma World January–March 2016FEATURES
Many Religions, One Reality
by Joseph S. O’Leary
Joseph S. O’Leary is an Irish Catholic
Here [when nonsectarian dialogue occurs] “religious identity” theologian resident in Japan since
takes on a new meaning, pre-Buddhist and pre-Christian, and 1983. He taught in the Department of
our belonging to either or both of the constituted traditions English Literature at Sophia University
should be opened up to a deeper belonging that we share in Tokyo, and currently holds the
with all human beings. Roche Chair for Interreligious
Research at Nanzan University in
Aichi Prefecture. He is the author
“How can one believe or practice two “thusness,” or tathatā. Christianity, too, of Religious Pluralism and Christian
teaches an outlook on reality as such, Truth (Edinburgh University Press,
their doctrines are contradictory? . . . best expressed in the Synoptic Gospels 1996) and Conventional and Ultimate
Studying and practicing a second reli- (Mark, Matthew, Luke): “Consider the Truth (University of Notre Dame
Press, 2015).
also be a path to salvation or spiritual ent ways. To adopt both religions is to Difference: How Some Thought-Motifs
liberation?” (Dharma World editors) practice seeing reality as such from dif- from Derrida Can Nourish the Catholic-
I suggest that the conundrums intro- ferent perspectives, attaining a more all- Buddhist Encounter, Robert Magliola
duced above could be defused if one around perception of reality as a whole. urges us to “face up to doctrinal differ-
placed the accent on the fact that both On the practical level, both religions ences” and sees the resultant tensions
Buddhism and Christianity are con- urge a contemplative mindfulness that as giving a new vitality to interreligious
cerned with reality as such and with is attuned to the splendor of reality, or encounter (Angelico Press, 2014; see
the goodness of being, and a compas- my review in The Japan Mission Journal
the case of Buddhism, with its account sionate responsiveness that engages with 69 [2015]:185–89). But it seems to me
of the marks of existence (imperma- that doctrinal differences can look after
nence, painfulness, nonself, and empti- “Reality itself ” is of course a rather themselves and that doctrine itself is
ness), of dependent origination, and of not immune to processes of change,
development, and reinterpretation that
is dead and what is living in religious can undercut efforts to state stark dif-
traditions. But if we accept that real- ferences. Reality is the judge of doc-
ity is the judge of religion, not religion trine, not doctrine the judge of reality.
the judge of reality, just as “the Sabbath Applying this to Christian piety, one
was made for humanity, not human- could say that someone who recited
ity for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27), then the rosary every day, a meditation on
each religion is faced with the task of
determining what reality itself is and of mately attuning to reality itself under
aspiring to be adequate to it. Buddhism
and Christianity can collaborate on this Buddhism in one’s practice is to multi-
task, which takes place at a more basic ply the colors, so that one might med-
level than that of doctrinal formulations. itate on reality itself under the rubric
In his book Facing Up to Real Doctrinal of the Buddha’s enlightenment along
Dharma World January–March 2016 7with meditating on it under that of in the key of stale speculation about
Christ’s resurrection. such topics as kenosis or the Trinity,
Christians and Buddhists are mov- drawing on philosophies such as pro-
ing together in the same direction, using cess thought that have only further
their respective complex traditional equip-
ment—which can sometimes look like Buddhism and Western philosophy is
“shabby equipment always deteriorating” currently far more vibrant, at least intel-
(T. S. Eliot, “East Coker”)—as a skill- lectually, than the Buddhist-Christian
ful means in their shared creative task dialogue because it focuses not on eso-
of thinking anew about matters of ulti- teric theological claims but on the ques-
tion of the nature of reality, a question
be a theme for interesting discussion, that haunts every human being in one
but they should not become a blockage way or another. To restart the interreli-
to spiritual wisdom or engaged compas- gious dialogue, Christians need to fore-
sion. Rather, the debate should itself be ground an understanding of faith that
guided by the overarching question of sees it as the embrace of reality itself.
how these ancient traditions serve the Buddhism begins by dismantling
human quest for truth and salvation today. the Brahmanist idea of a securely sub-
stantial God, whereas Christianity is
know what reality is, so why do we need
religion to tell us?” And most people and even reinforces it by Platonic struc-
- tures of transcendence wherein God is
ity that they know best and that famil- located as supreme eternal being. Here hardened into a black-and-white oppo-
iarity has made comfortable to them. we seem confronted with an irresolu- sition. All religions have faith in the
Religion stands or falls by its claim that ble contradiction that makes “double sense of generosity of vision and exis-
true reality is elusive. Buddhism and belonging” impossible. But even within tential trust that goes beyond the war-
Christianity are two traditions of proven Platonizing Christianity the notion of rant of narrow empiricism and implies
God has many traits of Buddhist emp- a relation to gracious ultimacy. Positive
reality, and the breakthroughs to the real claims about the election of Israel and
in both traditions remain a criterion of - the saving role of Jesus Christ are put
religious authenticity today. Study of stantial attributes—everything about in perspective when interpreted as
Buddhism does give “fresh insights” notes within the opening up to reality
into Christianity by helping us see it itself that is the essential action of faith.
as a religion of awakening to reality. It incomprehensible, or ungraspable. Going Subscription to creedal articles of faith
focuses the attention of Christians on beyond this metaphysics, we encoun- is secondary to this. Faith is something
what is most essential in their faith and ter the dynamic Johannine and Pauline like the adhimukti (aspiration) of which
conception of God as an event of Spirit, the Lotus Sutra speaks, an opening up
identity,” such that this no longer means light, love. Here again is a reality that to a divine life and light and grace per-
obsessing over church claims or life- - vading the whole of reality.
styles but, rather, means a return to the Credibility is strained by the startling
basics of the outlook on reality taught doctrine of the divinity of Christ can particularity of the Christian claim that
and lived by Jesus Christ. be translated back into these phenome- the salvation of the entire world, includ-
Some have argued that Christian nological terms so that it, too, becomes ing all of humanity stretching back to its
truth today can be more luminously an opening up to reality itself. ancient evolutionary origins, has been
To be sure, the Buddhist sense of decided by an event that happened on
Buddhist analytical methods and onto- reality and the Christian sense of reality
logical insights than in the old frame- scandal of the claim is lessened when
works formed in dialogue with Greek that they “live by faith” (Rom. 1:17) or we remind ourselves that the event of
ontology. But the dialogue between “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7) grace encountered here reveals the ulti-
the two religions seems to have stalled, in a sense that has no Buddhist equiv- -
largely because it has been conducted alent. But this nuance should not be ular event has a universal meaning and
8 D January–March 2016ceases to be that event unless experi- Vatican II urged Christians to read Some argue that one can give total
- “the signs of the times,” that is, to tune in adhesion to only one religion, usually
ner who is “ransomed, healed, restored, to here-and-now realities and to reart- the religion of one’s childhood, so that
forgiven” by the power of Christ’s death iculate the gospel in response to them. when people speak of double belong-
and resurrection encounters not a past Buddhism, in its exercise of discern- ing, all they mean is that they have a
event but ultimate reality as active here ment and compassionate action, reads supplementary sympathy with or inter-
and now. the very same signs. For instance, both est in the second religion. A Japanese
religions are cultivating awareness of the person, accustomed to thinking of reli-
have a role in orienting Christians toward ecological crisis and emphasizing “care gions as a pluralistic menu, a smor-
reality if they are skillfully deployed. gasbord, might engage in Buddhist
But they are less central than the ori- on their understanding of their respec- and Christian activities on appropriate
entation given by the gospel message tive traditions, leading to a new empha- occasions without any sense of conflict-
itself: the primacy of love, the superi- sis on the earth-friendly dimensions ing loyalties. Is this double belonging?
ority of the life-giving Spirit to the let- to be found in tradition and a critique Or is it a refusal to think of religion as
ter that kills (2 Cor 3:6), the abundance of rhetoric or philosophical outlooks requiring a total belonging? Would it
- that denigrated or undercut the value be comparable to committing bigamy
tion by faith in Christ, the assured tri- of earthly realities. Buddhist-Christian or to shallow promiscuity? Such ques-
umph of the eschatological Kingdom. collaboration on ecological projects tions go beyond the merely psycholog-
thus brings the two religions together ical or sociological level and raise the
to make full sense of them they should not only on the plane of praxis but also deeper question of what a religion is.
all be interpreted as coterminous with in critical querying of their doctrinal Perhaps Buddhism does not demand
the unconditional surrender of faith
pursue their self-critiques or self-rein- demanded by the message of salvation
the transcendence of limiting concep- terpretations separately, for the entire through Jesus Christ, so that Christians
tual regimes to an experience of freedom method and process of rethinking an can embrace the essence of Buddhist
that demands ongoing contemplative ancient tradition in light of contem- wisdom without diluting their faith,
perception and that cannot be reduced porary problems and insights is com- just as they embraced the essence of
mon to all religions that undertake it. Greek philosophy in earlier times. A
Modern Buddhist thinking from D. T. Buddhist, conversely, could embrace
by a delusive ego anxious to shore up its Suzuki to Critical Buddhism is clearly the Christian message while preserv-
identity and fearful of letting go. As to ing the essence of Buddhist wisdom.
the Kingdom of God, it cannot be any- - It is rather regrettable that Buddhist
thing less than reality itself: the world in enced by a Buddhist sensibility to the scholars such as Paul Williams and
which we breathe here and now must be conventional fabric of religious dis-
course as skillful means. conversion to Catholicism in terms
Dharma World January–March 2016 9of renouncing Buddhism and polemi- essential or vital aspect of this message religions but should rather aim at cre-
cizing against Buddhist errors. rather than on theoretical or doctrinal ating something, a new configuration,
In any case, worrying about the pos- dimensions. Salvation is of course an through the conversation itself. Extended
sibilities and problems of dual identity unconditional gift that lies beyond the to those who have no religion or who
is ultimately a rather sterile occupation. machinery of religion (Rom. 5:1–17); it reject religion, dialogue can reach down
It is a quarrel about recipes that gets “is coming into the world” (John 11:27), to a level of faith that subsists when one
in the way of actually eating. Here we reaching us right where we are, and is not peels away all the religions, a primor-
might apply the Zen wisdom of non- something we reach up to; but insofar dial embrace of the goodness of real-
thinking and nonduality to free our- as that “machinery” can impede or aid ity, which is not achieved by academic,
selves from the tyranny of cut-and-dried perception of this gift, then Buddhism theoretical discussion but in a nonver-
dichotomous categories. What both may play a key role in improving the balized encounter.
Buddhists and Christians must do is functioning of the Christian machin- Here “religious identity” takes on
reach out to the riches of the other tradi- ery, clarifying how it can be a skillful a new meaning, pre-Buddhist and
tion, which may often serve to comple- means. A Christian can thus embrace pre-Christian, and our belonging to
ment or correct perceived deficiencies Buddhism wholeheartedly, albeit as a either or both of the constituted tradi-
in their own and may at least provide complement to Christian faith. tions should be opened up to a deeper
a stereophonic religious awareness that Or perhaps there is a faith that lies belonging that we share with all human
is healed of sectarian identity fixation. deeper than any constituted religious beings. Our belonging to “reality itself ”
Such an awareness is spiritually liber- faith, a faith that consists in openness sets the basic context of all dialogue,
ating, and so must be conducive to or to reality as such. Would this prede- in which one talks to the other not as
aligned with salvation, the ultimate lib- nominational faith be a saving faith? Christian to Buddhist, or vice versa, but
eration. The question “Can dual religious For Paul the faith of Abraham is sav- as one person to another sharing basic
identity be a path to salvation or spirit- ing faith, even though it comes before human questions. Could we imagine
ual liberation?” asks if adding Buddhism Moses, Judaism, or Christianity. Today someone born into the unchartered
to Christianity increases rather than we should perhaps aim to get back down condition of this basic predenomina-
diminishes the salvific power or prom- to this primordial level, and the shock tional faith who would discover at one
ise of one’s Christian faith (or if add- of encounter between Christianity and and the same time the Buddhist and the
ing Christianity to Buddhism increases Buddhism may be the catalyst for this. Christian traditions, cultivating them
the promise of Buddhist spiritual lib- If interreligious dialogue is only both and growing in them? This would
eration). I would suggest that for many between the religions, it remains rather be an exemplary achievement of dou-
Christians, Buddhist meditation has exclusive, especially at a time when so ble belonging, but it would be grounded
the effect of bringing the gospel mes- many no longer subscribe to any for- on the prior belonging to the gracious
sage of salvation into clearer perspec- mal religion. Dialogue should not be a reality accessed in a more basic open-
tive by training the mind to focus on the matter of negotiation between specific ness of faith. ≥
10 Dharma World January–March 2016FEATURES
Buddhist-Christian
Double Belongings
by Kunihiko Terasawa
Kunihiko Terasawa received his PhD
Double belongings might be necessary for us to deepen our in Religious Studies from Temple
understanding of reality, including the self and the world, University, Philadelphia. Dr. Terasawa
through our ultimate and various religious experiences. is an Assistant Professor of Religion
in the Department of Religion and
Religious pluralism has had a large belongings may differ. Why do we seek Philosophy at Wartburg College, Iowa.
impact on the spirituality of double religion? We know certainly that with- He has been working for interreligious
or multiple religious affiliations (dou- out human beings, there is no religion. dialogue for peace, especially
ble belongings). Many people claim We ask why and how human beings Buddhist-Christian dialogue, as well
that they are Buddhist-Christians, came to exist and where they will go. as doing critical research on religion,
Sufi-Christians (Sufism is a mystical More concretely, we inquire what “I” nationalism, war, and transnational
dimension of Islam), or Buddhist- is. Why, how, and where do I exist? All dialogue of religion in the United
Confucianists. In the United States, religions ask about the meaning of the States and East Asia.
for example, Buddhist meditation self, then about relationships between
has been practiced at some mainline ourselves and others, such as family,
Christian churches. Also, Paul F. Knitter, friends, society, our nation, and the it as a seeing-God experience: “Blessed
a Jesuit and a retired theology profes- world. Furthermore, we question our are the pure in heart, for they will see
sor at Union Theological Seminary in relationship not only with other peo- God” (Matt. 5:8 [New Revised Standard
New York, has recently written about ple but with nature, the environment, Version]).
these double belongings in his Without the universe, and eventually the ulti- Both experiences have something
Buddha I Could Not Be a Christian mate (God, or dhamma). One seeks in common that goes beyond words or
(Oneworld Publications, 2009). the ultimate experience in which the languages. Gautama Siddhartha, there-
I believe that the spirituality of dou- self, the world, the universe, and God fore, remained profoundly silent for
ble belongings or multi-belongings will or dhamma are profoundly intercon- a time after attaining enlightenment.
increase. Moreover, double belongings nected. One calls this ultimate reli- Jesus often went to quiet places to pray
might be necessary for us to deepen gious experience. alone. Even though religions have several
our understanding of reality, includ- Kitarō Nishida (1870–1945), a aspects, such as doctrines, scriptures,
ing the self and the world, through our Japanese philosopher of the Kyoto school, and liturgy, which are often expressed
ultimate and various religious experi- described the ultimate experience as through languages, those aspects would
ences. Here, I would like to focus on a “spiritual fact” or “spiritual event” not have existed without the founders’
double belongings in Buddhism and (“Bashoteki ronri to shūkyōteki sekai- ultimate experiences.
Christianity. kan” [The logic of place and the religious Double belongings are typically
Before discussing double belong- worldview], in Nishida Kitarō tetsugaku considered a synthesis of liturgy, scrip-
ings in Buddhism and Christianity, ronshū [Kitarō Nishida collected philo- tures, and doctrines, which are parts
one needs to discuss what religion sophical papers], ed. Shizuteru Ueda of the object of faith. This type of syn-
is: its purpose and relationship with [Iwanami Shoten, Publishers, 1989], vol. thesis may occur often in the case of
human experience, the so-called reli- 3, 299). Gautama Siddhartha experi- double belongings. For example, Japan
gious experiences. Depending on how enced it as an enlightenment experience has been historically accustomed to
you define religion, our understanding at the age of thirty-five after his rigor- synthesizing different religious tradi-
of Buddhism, Christianity, and double ous spiritual journey. Jesus experienced tions, such as Shinto and Buddhism
Dharma World January–March 2016 11(shinbutsu-shūgō). It has also been com- describes, it is necessary to attain enlight- a not an A, therefore it is an A.” They
mon in China for an individual to be enment as the Buddha did or experience are neither one nor two but a relation-
affiliated with Confucianism, Daoism, God as Jesus did, along with seeking ship. Relationship precedes substance.
and Buddhism, according to the stages other Buddhist and Christian religious Thus the world’s sufferings are one’s
of life. In the East, religious double experiences, to enlarge one’s holistic own sufferings, so that helping oth-
belongings or multi-belongings have experience of the ultimate. ers is unconditional and unself-con-
not been a large problem. People in Even the words of the Buddha and scious. Just as my finger hurts after I
the East intuitively understand that God from those founders came out of cut it while cooking, the pain is sensed
experience of religious practices has a profound experience of the ultimate. by my whole body, which works uncon-
a much more significant depth than Founders’ experiences, such as those of ditionally and unconsciously to heal
theories and doctrines cutting across Jesus and Gautama Buddha, help enlarge the finger.
different religious traditions. one’s interconnection with the self, the Furthermore, God in the New
On the other hand, Abrahamic reli- world, and the universe to find a much Testament tells us in Philippians 2:5–
gions such as Judaism, Christianity, and deeper ground of the self. This is done 7, “Let the same mind be in you that was
Islam have historically emphasized exclu- not only cognitively (dialogue of the in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in
sive faith in one God, creed, and doc- head) but also aesthetically (dialogue the form of God, did not regard equality
trine. However, those religions cannot of the heart) and practically (dialogue with God as something to be exploited,
ignore religious pluralism under the of the hands), as described by Leonard but emptied himself, taking the form
pressure of globalization and multicul- Swidler in his Dialogue for Interreligious of a slave, being born in human like-
turalism, which the West has ironically Understanding ([Palgrave Macmillan, ness.” It is the so-called kenosis, self-emp-
promoted through industrialization and 2014], 17). tying God. In other words, God must
a free global market. A very common theme is that of negate himself to be a creator (Nishida,
Skepticism about double belongings the similarity of the love of God in “Bashoteki ronri to shūkyōteki sekaikan,”
has often been aroused by people who the New Testament and the Buddhist’s 328–30). To be God, God must negate
believe in an ultimate Transcendental compassion (karuna) through sun- himself. This is close to prajna, “A is a not
Other as an object of faith outside them- yata (emptiness). Jesus emphasizes an A, therefore it is an A” (Masao Abe,
selves, requiring exclusive faith. They God’s unconditional love of human- “Emptiness,” in Zen and Comparative
believe that affiliation with another ity and nature: “For he makes his sun Studies, ed. Steven Heine [University
faith community would compromise rise on the evil and on the good, and of Hawaii Press, 1997], 42–47). Thus,
their faith in a Transcendental Other. sends rain on the righteous and on the God is not God, therefore it is God. It
On the other hand, if one seeks the unrighteous” (Matt. 5:45), describ- is God who constantly empties God in
sacred or the ultimate immanently ing the primary unconditional con- God’s self in order to relate with crea-
within oneself beyond objectification tact with people and nature. On the tures for creation and re-creation at
of faith, double belonging may not mat- other hand, Buddhism emphasizes that every moment.
ter much. People who do this need buddha-nature penetrates all people This view of God is quite different
several religious experiences in the and other sentient beings, especially from traditional Christian theology,
process of their inner journey in order bodhisattvas, who give up the search in which God is seen as Transcendent
to find their true selves in the image for their own enlightenment in order Other, uninfluenced by his creations or
of God within them without objectify- to help others attain enlightenment human emotions. In the Hebrew Bible,
ing God or the Buddha or a creed. The first, out of unlimited compassion for however, there are many occasions on
names of God, the Buddha, a creed, all sentient beings. which God manifests his compassion,
and scriptures are analogous to fin- Why is that possible for Buddhists? regrets, and even anger over people’s
gers pointing toward the moon with- It is because of their experiences in responses to his callings or covenant.
out being the moon themselves. One interdependent co-arising (co-origina- Before passing judgment on humanity
can learn this from Zen Buddhism’s Ten tion) and sunyata (emptiness). Nothing and flooding the earth, God regretted
Pictures for Finding the Bull; objecti- has a separate identity but exists in having created humanity. His response
fication of faith makes the bull—sym- emptiness and interdependent co-aris- to Abraham when passing judgment
bolizing the Buddha, enlightenment, ing. In other words, there is no self and on Sodom was that if there were ten
or God—disappear. no “other.” There is no separate iden- righteous people there, he would not
If one focuses on the kind of ulti- tity as an independent substance. Thus destroy the city (Gen. 18:32). During
mate or pure experiences that Nishida the wisdom of sunyata as prajna “A is the Exodus, God changed his mind
12 Dharma World January–March 2016about who would enter the Promised empty mind or void but is the relation- races and nations prevailed over uni-
Land, and most of the first generation of ship of absolute affirmation and fullness versally religious human solidarity and
Israelites who left Egypt and were faith- of love and compassion. These dialec- compassion.
less died in the wilderness, and only the tical processes of ultimate experiences That is why it is critical for world
second generation entered the Promised are included in both Buddhism and religions, such as Buddhism and
Land. However, under the influence of Christianity. One can call these dialec- Christianity, to work together (dialogue
Greek philosophy, Christian theology tical processes of experience Immanent of the hands), despite doctrinal dis-
shifted its concept of God as a relational Transcendental (Nishida, “Bashoteki agreements, in order to resist ultrana-
God to the Unmoved Mover, the totally ronri to shūkyōteki sekaikan,” 396). If one tionalistic ethos at the grassroots level.
Transcendent Other. sticks to objective logic, one could see Ultranationalism is a nostalgic, romantic
Therefore, it would be beneficial for either the transcendental or the imma- reinvention of the origins of a people’s
Christians to engage in interreligious nent, but if one sees a dynamic religious nation and race when a nation and a race
dialogue with Buddhists to rediscover experience itself, one can understand feel threatened and lose confidence. It
various aspects of God that have been immanent transcendence. is an emotional ethos. That was why in
missed in the conventional or tradi- In terms of dialogue of the hands, Germany during the Weimar Republic
tional paradigm throughout history. dealing with practical issues, this double (1919–33) and in Japan during the Taishō
That is also the case for Buddhists when belonging is important. Religious wis- period (1912–26) liberal intellectuals
engaging in interreligious dialogue with dom often manifests itself not only in the were helpless to stop grassroots, ultrana-
Christianity. Buddhists could rediscover discussion of doctrines or philosophy tionalistic, and romantic populism. Thus,
much rich heritage that has often been but also in responding to the practical, unless there is some appeal to a higher
missed by fixed doctrines and teachings critical issues of reality, such as climate emotional level, transcending a narrow
throughout history. change, violence, war, human traffick- ultranationalist ethos, patriotic popu-
Of course, Buddhism does not talk ing, the environment, racial discrimina- lism will prevail.
about God in either a theistic or an athe- tion, education, and so on. Christianity He n c e , t h e w o r l d r e l i g i o n s
istic way, whereas Christianity always especially has quite excellent examples of Christianity and Buddhism must work
talks about what is God or God’s will. resisting the social injustices of ultrana- together, since they teach universally
In terms of experiencing God, how- tionalism, racial discrimination, and transnational love and compassion,
ever, there is a common feature of the the like. and at the same time they are rooted
ultimate experience. In other words, The Confessing Church in Germany at the local level, pastoring people at
for Buddhists, in order to experience led by Martin Niemöller, Karl Barth, the grass roots. This is the emotional
dhamma, or enlightenment, one has to and Dietrich Bonhoeffer denounced battle between religious transnation-
experience sunyata (emptiness), abso- the Nazi policy of asserting Aryan alism and ultranationalism at the grass
lute negation or absolute nothingness. racial superiority and anti-Semitism roots (Kunihiko Terasawa, “Modern
Christianity also encourages one to and the New National Church’s cul- Japanese Buddhism in the Context of
experience kenosis, total emptiness tural interfusion with German-ness by Interreligious Dialogue, Nationalism,
beyond the self. Paul says in his let- insisting on transcendental God’s sov- and World War II” [doctoral disserta-
ter to Galatians, “I have been cruci- ereignty. In Japan, although mainline tion, Temple University, 2012], 250–51).
fied with Christ; and it is no longer I Buddhist institutions followed national Buddhism and Christianity can work
who live, but it is Christ who lives in war policy in the 1930s and 1940s, a together as a dialogue of the hands for
me” (Gal. 2:19–20). Jesus says, “For few Buddhists, such as Girō Seno’o and resistance not only to ultranationalism
those who want to save their life will Shōgen Takenaka, and Christians, such and totalitarianism but also to climate
lose it, and those who lose their life as Tadao Yanaihara, denounced the gov- change and environmental pollution
for my sake will find it” (Matt. 16:25). ernment-ordered invasions. However, owing to the greed of capitalism and
Jesus also says, “Blessed are the pure none succeeded in preventing war. One consumerism, as well as to terrorism
in heart, for they will see God” (Matt. reason for that was the lack of grassroots and family and school violence. For
5:8). Jesus does not say that people interreligious dialogue and coopera- these reasons, people who have double
should believe in God or have faith tion between Christianity and Judaism belongings to Buddhism and Christianity
in God but see God, an experience of in Germany, and among Buddhism, can definitely help enhance not only dia-
the ultimate. Christianity, and the New Religions logue of the hands but also dialogue of
This concept of absolute negation or in Japan. Eventually, ultranationalis- the head and heart between Buddhism
emptiness does not end with a merely tic state propaganda demonizing other and Christianity. ≥
Dharma World January–March 2016 13FEATURES
Religions in Japan: Many or None?
by Gaynor Sekimori
about religious affiliation of the Japanese
The dual religiosity of the Japanese is often illustrated by conducted between 2000 and 2005, where
the existence in the family home of both a Buddhist altar only about 11 percent admitted to a
(butsudan), where the family’s memorial tablets are placed, personal belief, while some 23 percent
and a Shinto shrine (kamidana). claimed affiliation as a family member.
The rest did not admit to any affiliation
Overall, Japanese people seem per- majority of Japanese subscribe to two or belief at all.
plexed when asked the question “What religions simultaneously, Buddhism and Some of this “confusion” arises out
is your religion?” Surveys by the Agency Shinto. But do these figures represent of the word shūkyō that was coined in
of Cultural Affairs have for decades the actual religious beliefs of individu- the mid-nineteenth century to translate
reported something close to twice the als or the numbers reported by religious religion. This “religion” was very much
population of Japan belonging to a organizations? It is not uncommon for a Western concept, newly brought to
religious group. In 2009, for example, a person to be a “parishioner” of a local Japan in the wake of the great changes
when the official population of Japan shrine while simultaneously belonging that occurred after 1868. It was based
was around 126 million, more than 106 to the Buddhist temple that contains the largely on a Protestant Christian idea
million were recorded as adherents of family grave. We may have to redefine of what religion was, focusing on per-
Shinto, around 90 million as adherents what religion means to the Japanese: as a sonal belief, a specific faith, a founder,
of Buddhism, and 2 million as adherents member of a family, a person may have an organization, and a set ritual. It was
of Christianity, with 9 million listed as two affiliations that nevertheless have hard to classify the actuality of the sacred
“other.” This seems to indicate that the no significance at all when it comes to realm as experienced in Japan through
his or her personal belief this definition and its rigid categories,
(or lack of it). which classed anything beyond them as
This may explain superstition or folk religion, with the
the findings of a Gallup implication they were somehow not
poll of 2012 concern- “true” religion. As a result Buddhism and
ing religiosity and athe- Shinto gained a stricter, separate iden-
ism, which revealed that tity than had ever been the case before.
only 16 percent of the This emphasis on belief should
twelve hundred Japanese not, however, be overemphasized as a
respondents thought of defining point between Japanese reli-
themselves as religious, gions and monotheistic religions. As
while a very telling 23 Jonathan Freedland wrote recently in
percent, the highest the Guardian, “Over the years, conversa-
percentage by far of all tions with Jews, Catholics and Muslims
the countries polled, have taught me that when it comes to
answered they did not religion, belief is often optional. For
know if they were reli- many, it’s about belonging and com-
gious or not. These fig- munity, a matter of ethnic or familial
ures closely reflect the solidarity rather than theological creed.
results of social surveys For increasing numbers of Anglicans, it
14 Dharma World January–March 2016You can also read
