信頼できる人かどうかはココに表れる【仏教の教え】

When Shinran Shonin preached that "there is no distinction between monks and laypeople, they are all the same," it came as a bolt from the blue to the Buddhist community at the time. Until then, Buddhism held that only monks, who had practiced Buddhism and were able to cast off worldly desires, could go to paradise and attain enlightenment, while laypeople were not considered to be equipped for Buddhist practice, and the two were clearly distinguished from each other. Tendai and Shingon monks severely slandered and persecuted Shinran, calling him an outrageous person who was destroying the accepted wisdom of the Buddhist community, and this eventually led to his exile to Echigo. It wasn't just the Buddhist community that was in an uproar over Shinran's carnivorous eating and marriage. Shinran's teachings, in which he so boldly stated that there is no difference between monks and laypeople, were also shocking to laypeople. To them, the sight of a monk dressed in religious robes and behaving as if free from worldly desires was an indication of a monk who had undergone rigorous training in the mountains and accumulated virtue. This misunderstanding by lay people was convenient for monks, as it meant that they could line their pockets with requests for sutra chanting and prayers from the monks, and they worked hard to behave and act in a way that befits a virtuous monk. In such an era, Saint Shinran made no distinction between "monks" and "lay people," and declared that they were all ordinary people full of worldly desires (people who are a mass of worldly desires, thirsty with greed, burning with anger, and coiled with jealousy), and that this was why they were sad beings unable to escape suffering and trouble, and that it was precisely for such people that salvation could be found in Amida Buddha, who can save them. Even today, when we talk about CEOs of large companies or judges, we see them as people of much greater decency and good character than the average person, so when they get involved in a scandal or incident, people around them are shocked and say, "It can't be that person..." People are shocked, saying, "I can't believe a judge would take voyeurism," but if you consider that the type of person who would originally take voyeurism simply got qualified to become a judge through some coincidence, it makes no sense. People are stunned when they hear, "The head of a large company is blackmailing?" but if you consider that the type of person who would blackmail just happened to be the head of a company, it makes no sense. When you go to a liquor store, you see labels on 1.8L bottles of sake such as special grade sake or first grade sake, and when you see that the price varies by a whole digit depending on the label, you realize how wide the price of sake is, and if it's in a paulownia wood box or wrapped in washi paper, you imagine it must taste delicious. But what if all of it was just water inside? What if the label merely makes it look luxurious, precious, and delicious, but the contents are just ordinary tap water? In reality, it's the same thing. Humans are all masses of earthly desires, thirsting with greed, burning with anger, and coiled with jealousy. Saint Shinran described these beings as "sentient beings with profound sins and fervent desires." We're fooled by the labels affixed to them, such as "Minister" or "Chief," but for Saint Shinran, who knew full well that the true nature of humans, consumed by greed and anger, remains the same, and there was no distinction between "monk" and "layman." ----------------------------------------------------------------- Click here for the 20-part free email course. ----------------------------------------------------------------- https://peraichi.com/landing_pages/vi... ↑ This free email course reveals the answer to the "meaning of life" taught in Buddhism. Subscribers will receive a bonus booklet, "Five Common Misconceptions That 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 public lectures nationwide. Started an email newsletter in 2010, writing for one of the largest Buddhist newsletters with 12,000 subscribers. Since 2014, he has also been providing video lectures for...