Shingon

The doctrines of Shingon were developed in India during the seventh century and were carried from there to China where Kobo Daishi became the Dharma heir of the patriarch of the sect, Hui-kuo, just prior to the latter's death in 805.

Shingon declares that it is possible to attain enlightenment in this body, in this lifetime, by following certain practices of body, speech and mind. Enlightenment, in Shingon, is "seeing the mind as it truly is." The following essay explains the basic tenents of Shingon.

Introduction to Shingon Buddhism

Symposium on Cross-Cultual Cooperation based on Religion and Science

Dec. 8 - 10,1995

Bangkok, Thailand

A speech made by Reverend Ryako Urakami, Haryoin Temple, Koyasan

Edited by Don Weiss

Introduction
Koyasan Town, of Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, is situated on a mountain top 3000 feet above the sea, surrounded by thick forests of cryptomeria, pine, and fir. For a thousand years, pilgrims have been coming to Koyasan to do homage to Kobo Daishi, who discovered it while searching for a quiet place to establish his religious home. In the year 816 he and his disciples began building the religious complex here. The number of temples gradually increased. At one time there were many hundreds of them. Now only 120 remain.

Koyasan consist of eight peaks which represent the eight petals of the lotus flower. It is said that if a man takes a step on this mountain, at that moment his troubles are all cleared away by the breeze that blows over Koya's many peaks.

Kobo Daishi
Who was Kobo Daishi? Kobo Daishi is the posthumous name given by the Emperor Daigo to the man who was known in life as the Rev. Kukai. He was a brilliant scholar, noted for his leaning and upright life. In 804 he went to China to study Buddhism. There he became a pupil of Keikwa (Chinese Hui-kuo), a great teacher of the Secret Teaching who initiated him in all the tenets of Shingon. Upon his return to Japan he propounded the Mikkyo, as Shingon was called, and people of all classes became his followers, including several emperors.

Kobo Daishi was a great teacher of religion, but he was also skilled as artist, sculpter, calligrapher, author, and teacher. He was the foremost leader of the time in educational enterprises and social work. He dug wells, opened roads, established a school for non-aristocratic students, invented the Hiragana syllabary, and tutored three emperors. Moreover, he was friendly with priests of other sects, founded a sect of his own, Shingon, and was beloved by all. No wonder that his light still shines at Koyasan.

Shingon Doctrine
Shingon is the Japanese translation of the Sanskrit word mantra. It means secret word or mystical syllable. The Sanskrit words and syllables taught by the Shingon sect are believed to be embodiments in sound of a power which can achieve spiritual results. They are regarded as supports for the meditation of the monks, and their utterance, when combined with certain acts such as the making of symbolic signs with the fingers, are believed to enable the monk to become one with the Great Unity of the cosmos.

The Shingon school of Mahayana Buddhism asserts that its doctrine has been given out to the world by the Buddha Mahavairochana, the Supreme Buddha, and that he taught it to the Bodhisattva Vajrasattva, who presented it to the world of men through Nagarjuna. Historically the teaching began with this same Nagarjuna (Ryumyo Bosatsu in Japanese).

Keikwa, the seventh of the Eight Patriarchs (Hasso) of Shingon, taught it to the great Buddhist saint and sage Kobo Daishi when he visited China in the years 804 - 806.

The doctrines of Shingon are founded upon two great sutras: the Dainichikyo (Mahavairochana sutra) and the Kongochokyo (Vajrashekara sutra). Both these sutras give out one teaching and that is called Funi-isshin, the doctrine of "Not two," that is, there are not two or more minds in the universe, but only one. This Funi-isshin reflects two ideas, wisdom and compassion, on which all Mahayana views are based The Dainichikyo emphasizes compassion, the Kongbchokyo wisdom. The mind of the Buddha, the mind of all beings, including one's own mind, are all one, and enlightenment consists in knowing and realising this.

In Shingon, the Funi-isshin is explained by the mandala which depicts the manifested, infinite Buddha bodies, voices and thoughts which pervade the whole universe. The mandala contains in it everything in the universe. The Buddha and Bodhisattvas signify the condition of enlightenment and the entire mandala symbolises the preaching and salvation of the Dharmakaya. It is a pictorial representation of Funi-isshin. Dainichi (Mahavairochana) is the personal aspect of Absolute Reality, the Dharmakaya. Shakamuni, the historical Buddha, was a manifestation of the Dharmakaya and, although Shakamuni is dead, the Dharmakaya pervades the universe and is living and always sending out his light upon the universe. If we were enlightened, we could see his light, hear his preaching and think his thoughts. In these pictures, many Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and others are depicted, but it must always be remembered that these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are not separate personalities but are simply the varied aspects of the one Eternal Buddha. In the phenomenal world they may be seen as personal, but in the absolute world they are the Dharmakaya.

According to Shingon, sentient beings as well as all objects in the universe are composed of six elements. They are earth, water, fire, wind, space, and mind or consciousness. In this mind or consciousness all share, even animals and plants. In the exoteric teachings, we are regarded as the substance of all objects, but from the esoteric point of view the six elements are the origin of all things. The phenomental world is an embodiment of Mahavairochana's inner state. Mahavairochana manifests himself in every possible form and performs all kinds of activities. Shingon does not uphold the doctrine of Emptiness (Sunyata), but according to its view the Dharmakaya is an absolute person, abiding beyond time, perfect in wisdom and love, and one with this universe through the intercourse of the six elements.

In Mahayana, Nirvana is understood to mean the eternal Absolute Reality and not a state of complete or partial extinction of consciousness as is conceived by the Theravada. The Dharmakaya is eternal and abides forever in full consciousness, and as everything is One with him, everything is also eternal and conscious. The body of the Tathagata fills the world, his discourse is heard in all times and his light shines upon all quarters and all beings.

In Shingon, the Three Secrets are taught. These are the perfection of the Body, Speech,and Mind. To make ourselves consciously one with the Dharmakaya, our body, speech, and mind must be consciously identical with his. We attain to this through right religious practices. This brings out our wisdom and we realize our unity with the Dharmakaya. This is called Siddhi (accomplishment). Shingon says that by the practice of the Three Secrets we can acquire the powers and appropriate the virtues of the Buddha: well-being, happiness, compassion, wisdom, love. Wisdom and Compassion are the two foundation posts of Mahayana Buddhism.

Shingon has certain methods of its own to assist spiritual develoment for enlightenment, gestures and recitations which help concentration, and also special methods of meditation by which one can come to realise within oneself the spiritual virtues of Mahavairochana.

There are five vows which every follower of Shingon takes:

• I vow to save all beings;

• I vow to bring together wisdom and love

• I vow to learn all the Dharmas

• I vow to serve all the Buddhas

• I vow to attain the highest enlightenment

The ideal of Shingon is Sokushinjobutsu, to attain Buddhahood in this very body. We have Buddhahood latent within us, we must uncover it and find our true selves, revealing our oneness with the Dharmakaya. This is liberation. This is enlightenment. What is enlightenment? It is to know our mind as it really is.

This is a very brief summary and much has been omitted. The chief point is that there is one Absolute Reality and everything -- Buddha, Bodhisattvas, men, angels, animals, plants, and all other substances -- have latent Buddhahood Through the practice of the Three Secrets, enlightenment can be attained. Everyone and everything is One with this Absolute Reality, the Dharmakaya, and when this One-ness is realised, Truth is known and suffering ceases. This is the message of Shingon.

Message of Shingon
It is far, far, very far.
Buddhist texts and non-Buddhist texts amount to a thousand or ten thousand volumes.
They are profound, very profound indeed.
There are hundreds of ways to explain various ways.
If they are not written or if they are not recited, how can the fundamentals of the doctrine be handed down?
Otherwise, nobody knows the doctrine and I do not know it either.

Whatever doctrine one may think over, even a saint can not know it.
Shen nung had pity on patients and made medicinal herbs by licking grasses.
Chou kung tan was compassionate of those who did not know the direction and taught them by using a cart that pointed to the south.
Those who are mad in the triple world (worlds of desire, of matter and of spirit) do not know that they are mad.
The blind men who are born of womb, egg, moisture and of one's own accord do not know that they are blind.
We are born, born, born, born and yet we do not know the beginning of the birth.
We die, die, die, die and yet we do not know the end of the death.

"Hizohoyaku" - "A precious key to open the secret repository"
by Kobo Daishi

All rivers run into the sea and all human life comes to an end. Kobo Daishi accepted the fact that all men must die, but declared that, exerting ourselves to the utmost, we can obtain eternal life. He said, Being born and dying are the greatest events in a man's life. Before we know it, life is over and death is upon us. Keeping this fact uppermost in our minds, We should all live in full awareness and without self-indulgence.