Namo Amida Butsu
As many of you know, Jodo Shinshu is the name of our Buddhist tradition. Recently, both members and non-members have asked me a familiar question: “What exactly are the teachings of Jodo Shinshu?” This often leads to follow-up questions such as, “How is Jodo Shinshu different from other Buddhist traditions like Zen, Shingon, or Jodo, even though they are all Buddhism?”
I hear these questions often, during morning coffee hour, casual conversations in the office, or while chatting with temple friends. Some people are not especially interested, but others are very sincere and keep asking, “Why?” These conversations are always lively, and I sense that many people genuinely want to understand what makes Jodo Shinshu unique among the Buddhist traditions around them. For us as Jodo Shinshu followers, this is an important and meaningful question.
One area where this difference becomes clear is in our relationship to superstition. Superstitions have long been part of human life, and believing in them can often lead to anxiety or fear. In many cultures, superstitions function as warnings, teaching that bad behavior will bring punishment from gods or Buddhas. You may have heard sayings like, “If you do bad things, you will be punished.”
Let me share a story to illustrate this way of thinking. In one village, a Jizo statue was enshrined at the entrance. The villagers believed deeply that Jizo protected them from disasters, so they made offerings every day and prayed for blessings. The offerings were never taken away, yet the villagers continued to give thanks faithfully. One very hot day, the offerings suddenly disappeared. This caused great alarm. The villagers could not imagine that anyone among them would steal offerings meant for Jizo. That evening, they discovered a traveler on the temple grounds, pale and suffering from severe stomach pain and diarrhea. He explained that he had not eaten for days and, out of desperation, ate the offerings he found at the village entrance. The villagers immediately concluded, “You were punished by Jizo-sama for stealing the offerings.” This belief, that wrongdoing brings divine punishment was passed down as a moral lesson to future generations.
But was this truly punishment from the gods or Buddhas? I believe the traveler simply suffered from food poisoning, having eaten food left in the hot sun too long. This is a natural cause-and-effect relationship. In Jodo Shinshu, we do not interpret such events as divine punishment. We understand causes and conditions as they are, without adding fear or superstition.
This way of thinking also appears around death and memorial services. In Jodo Shinshu, we perform pillow sutras, funerals, cremation services, and memorial observances such as the seventh-day and forty-ninthday services. However, these rituals are not performed to guarantee rebirth in the Pure Land, nor to prevent punishment. Yet some people believe that if these rituals are not done, misfortune will follow. If punishment truly worked this way, we would all be punished every day.
Do such beliefs not bring unnecessary anxiety and fear into our lives? Of course, when we face suffering or uncertainty, it is natural to want something to rely on. But what matters is what we rely on. Jodo Shinshu teaches us to step away from fear-based beliefs and to live this precious life fully, without being burdened by superstition. For this reason, in Jodo Shinshu we do not use amulets or ofuda, and we do not engage in fortunetelling or rituals meant to frighten people into obedience. Instead, we listen deeply to the Dharma. To listen to the Dharma is to realize that the wisdom and compassion of Amida Buddha have already reached us, just as we are.
When we recite Namo Amida Butsu, we are not calling out in fear or asking for protection. We are listening to Amida Buddha’s calling voice. In that moment, we awaken to the realization that we are embraced by infinite wisdom and compassion, walking the path without doubt, anxiety, or fear
