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Jōdo Wasan 45–50

13th of December 2023

These wasan continue the praising of the Pure Land, and finally summarises the preceding wasan by telling us to rejoice in shinjin.

45

The jewel-ponds, formed of seven precious materials, are limpid
And brimming with waters of eight excellent qualities;
The undefiled adornments of the land surpass conceptual understanding,
So take refuge in Amida, the treasury of virtues.

undefiled: free of blind passions.

Limpid is a word I didn't know, it means "completely clear and transparent" or unclouded. They are unclouded because the Pure Land as conceptualised for us so that we can understand it here is a reification of unhindered wisdom and therefore we understand it relative to our mind of hindrances.

46

The afflictions of the three evil courses are forever eliminated,
And only spontaneous, delightful sounds are heard.
For this reason the Buddha’s land is called “Happiness”;
So take refuge in Amida, the ultimately honored one.

The three evil courses means the three lower realms in Buddhist cosmology, where it is thought that we accrue great karmic afflictions. We already see this behaviour for animals, in that they generally don't have any problem with committing karmic evil. It is even worse for beings in lower realms, since beings who feel more threatened are more likely to lash out. Again, we understand all these aspects of life from our own point of view as humans

47

Those of immeasurable wisdom throughout the ten quarters – past, present, and future –
All, without exception, having grounded themselves in oneness,
Equally attain the enlightenment of perfection in the two aspects of wisdom;
Their salvation of beings according to conditions is beyond conception.

two aspects of wisdom: both the wisdom of this Saha world and the wisdom of the Buddha’s enlightenment.

This identifies all kinds of enlightenment with the enlightenment of the Buddha, which is what is realised through birth in the Pure Land. It means that all forms of ultimately transcendent wisdom are not fundamentally separate from the Buddhist path, and therefore is a reflection on other spiritual paths, as well as on the nature of all Buddhist paths.

48

When we take refuge in the Pure Land of Amida,
We take refuge in all the Buddhas.
To praise the one Buddha, Amida, with the mind that is single
Is to praise all the unhindered ones.

unhindered ones: those whose body is Amida’s dharma-body.

This passage identifies the Pure Land of Amida with all Buddhas. This is a reason why the nembutsu is said to contain all other Buddhist practises. As the previous wasan says, when we attain enlightenment, we don't attain a different enlightenment to any other Buddha. Therefore, we don't betray any Buddha or bodhisattva by practising the Pure Land way, and accordingly this is not a slander of any other Dharma teaching. By becoming a Buddha we attain the fulfilment of all Buddhist practises, even those we did not explicitly train in. All unhindered ones means all Buddhas, and they are all identified with Amida's dharma-body, which is also called Dharmakaya, suchness, Tathagata, true reality, etc. This doesn't mean that Amida is a specific being who has ownership of this dharma-body, it simply means again that the true nature of all beings is the same, and thus upon liberation they all attain the same enlightenment.

49

When, in even a single thought-moment of sincere mind,
You have attained shinjin and joy, gladdened by what you have heard,
Bow down in homage at the feet
Of the Buddha of Inconceivable Light!

joy: to rejoice in shinjin beforehand.
gladdened by what you have heard: to rejoice after having attained shinjin.

There are two interesting points here. First of all, the wasan itself, as translated, implies that one should bow down in homage after one has attained shinjin. This is because bowing down in homage is acting with the mind of entrusting, one of the aspects of the threefold mind that is itself shinjin, which is in turn the true cause of enlightenment. Secondly, the notes imply an interesting relationship of before and after shinjin, stating that joy is actually rejoicing in shinjin before receiving shinjin, while being gladdened by having heard, remembering that hearing the Name is equated to shinjin by Shinran Shonin, is considered after having attained it. One interpretation of this, perhaps counter to our usual understanding and heterodox, is that the joy of shinjin is acquired prior to shinjin, which then enables hearing the Name, which is itself shinjin, which results in gladdening of the heart in having heard the name.

50

I praise Amida’s wisdom and virtue
So that beings with mature conditions throughout the ten quarters may hear.
Let those who have already realized shinjin
Constantly respond in gratitude to the Buddha’s benevolence.

Amida’s wisdom and virtue: great love and compassion and virtue.

This wasan finishes this series of wasan based on praising Amida Buddha. It calls on those who have received shinjin to rejoice in gratitude at having done so, and for those who have mature conditions to hear and thus realise it.

Forty-eight Hymns
by Gutoku Shinran

Joe Bentley