Dear Members,

It seems that one of the prevailing feelings common in the modern day is a sense of alienation, or disjointedness, in relation to the world around us. Symbols and concepts that previously united us have been questioned to the point that it seems that one would have to be silly to believe in anything anymore.

To those of us who have taken the time to look into our motives; the things that cause us to do, or say something, at any given time, the amount of time and energy that we spend fending off our feelings of fear and discomfort, is actually quite staggering. If we can honestly admit that our almost ravenous rush to put others down, or somehow judge them as less worthy than us, is in fact just a childish way to distance ourselves from a gnawing sense of our own insignificance, we are far more able to love and cherish those who see beyond all of our idiosyncrasies and love us anyway.

Shinran Shonin discovered, through the symbol of Amida Buddha, that the true reality rather than being rather aloof and impersonal, is actually quite warm, personal and amazingly, intimately concerned with waking us up to its existence. The relief at feeling this all-encompassing wisdom and compassion working in his life allowed him a little bit of a break from having to maintain his ego at all costs. Instead he was allowed to throw his energy into developing a more clear, honest vision of the state of his existence.

The conclusion that he comes to is one that we would consider to be rather unflattering; " I am a foolish being full of self-centredness and blind passions." This conclusion only comes about because he feels secure enough in Amida Buddha's compassion for him that he feels no need to glorify himself, or paint a more rosy picture than what is plainly and simply true.

We all know people who have come to some degree of self-acceptance. Although they may have not so good days also, we almost never see them posturing, putting down others, or doing anything to maintain the "safe" distance that most of feel the need to create to protect and buffer our egos. We love to be around these people because in learning to accept themselves for what they are, they have also become able to accept us for what we are. Because they are honest about themselves, we feel that we also can let down our guards and be honest with them. They enervate us by giving us acceptance and love without our having to earn it.

They are free. Free to laugh at themselves. Free to feel sad when others are hurting. Free to feel an incredible warmth and closeness towards the people who accept them for the flawed beings that they are.

This is how I picture Shinran Shonin; as one of those people who is very hard on himself, but who is generally accepting of others. The ability to see ones own flaws necessarily allows one to go easy on the other flawed beings around them.

In the end, what does Shinran Shonin have to teach us? It is quite simply this; we are loved beyond our ability to comprehend. In other words, there is no need to live in a fearful, ego-based world; any demons that we see are merely creations of our own minds that we use to prop-up our own self-importance.

In January we will be celebrating our Ho-onko Service. It is a time when we acknowledge our indebtedness to all of the people who have had anything to do with bringing the teachings to us. This being the case, we celebrate it around the date of Shinran Shonin's death. The idea being that if he had not given rise to this particular teaching we might not have encountered the teaching at all.

As in any trip to the temple though it also becomes a time to take a break from our usual "ego-games" and simply be amongst a whole group of others who believe that the world is indeed a warm, comforting and beautiful place, even though individually we may not always be in the proper condition to perceive it. Come on out and lose yourself in the chanting and singing, in the sounds and smells of temple life, and in the comradery of a bunch of humans trying to manifest their highest natures. Put down that load for a little while; it may just feel

fantastic.

In Gassho,

M. Hayashi