遺骨・骨壺を自宅に保管するとどんなことが起きるのか

"When Shinran closes his eyes, he should be thrown into the Kamo River and given to the fish." These are words from Saint Shinran in his later years. The Kamo River is a famous river that flows through Kyoto, and it must have been very familiar to Saint Shinran, who spent his final years there. "Please throw my body into that river and let the fish eat it." It is common knowledge that funerals and remains should be valued, and that the grave where they are placed should also be magnificent. This is true not only in Japan, but overseas as well. The other day, I saw a TV news report about the family of an American soldier killed in the Korean War bringing home the remains of that soldier. It seems that remains are also valued in Europe and the United States. In Japan, there are frequent reports of bereaved families traveling to southern islands that were battlefields during the Pacific War to retrieve the remains of their grandparents or parents. As such, we all believe that bones must be treated with care, and that this is why we have temples and graves. Therefore, many people are probably surprised to hear Shinran Shonin say, "Please throw my body into the river." If the bones were thrown into the river, they would naturally be scattered, and there would be no need for a grave to house them. Therefore, when Shinran says, "When Shinran closes his eyes, they should be thrown into the Kamo River and given to the fish," what Shinran is really saying is, "I don't care what happens to my bones, I don't need a grave, and I don't need a funeral." Today, Jodo Shinshu, founded by Saint Shinran, is the largest Buddhist sect in Japan, with over 20,000 temples nationwide. However, the main occupation of many Jodo Shinshu priests is funerals, memorial services, and grave-keeping. Shinran clearly stated, by name, that there was no need for funerals, or for remains or graves. So why is it that Jodo Shinshu temples, which are tasked with carrying on Shinran's teachings, are busy with funerals, memorial services, and grave-keeping? ... Gravestones are also expensive, averaging 1.76 million yen, and there's also the cost of the land. For many families, where both spouses work and borrow scholarships to barely manage to send their children to college, this burden is no small feat. One housewife in her 50s expressed her dissatisfaction with Buddhist priests: "My mother used to give 5,000 yen as an offering to the priest who came to our Buddhist altar every month for 20-30 minutes to recite sutras, so starting this year I've taken over and given it to him. But now I'm starting to wonder if it's really worth it, seeing as how the priest just takes the offering without even a proper greeting or conversation and leaves..." Ordinary people who work part-time jobs while juggling housework and child-rearing know all too well how difficult it is to earn 5,000 yen, so it's easy to understand why they're increasingly finding the attitude of Buddhist priests irritating. Seeing and hearing these kinds of realities makes it clear that the public is beginning to lose patience with funeral Buddhism, which is steeped in human compassion and the desire to cherish the remains. Unless we ponder the true meaning of Saint Shinran's words, "Put my body in the Kamo River and feed it to the fish," we will be left with only the Buddhism of the corpse. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Click here for the official "Understanding Buddhism" LINE. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ・Video and column updates ・Mini-sections that explain Buddhist terminology in simple terms ・LINE friend-only events, etc. ▼Click here for the official "Understanding Buddhism" LINE. https://lin.ee/GbzwYBX ----------------------------------------------------------------- Click here for the 20-part free email course. ----------------------------------------------------------------- https://peraichi.com/landing_pages/vi... ↑The free email course reveals the answer to the "meaning of life" taught in Buddhism. Register and receive a bonus booklet, "Five Common Misconceptions That Will Keep You from Being Happy!" ----------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe to my YouTube channel here -----------------------------------------------------------------    / @bybuddhism   ----------------------------------------------------------------- A community where you can ask Ryuta Kikutani questions "Reiwa Gobo" ----------------------------------------------------------------- https://reiwagobou.com/ ----------------------------------------------------------------- About me ----------------------------------------------------------------- Dropped out of Waseda University in 1988 to pursue a career as a Buddhist lecturer. Received a Buddhist lecturer certification from the Jodo Shinshu Shinrankai sect and began giving pub...