That I Should Dance On The Earth: Shinran’s Revaluation of ‘Karmic Afflictions’ DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Wamae Wachanga Muriuki Graduate Program in Comparative Studies The Ohio State University 2012 Dissertation Committee: Thomas Kasulis, Advisor Shelley Fenno Quinn Daniel Reff Copyright by Wamae Wachanga Muriuki 2012 Abstract Shinran (1173-1263 CE), the founder of True Pure Land Buddhism (Jōdo Shinshū), is widely appreciated for the depth of his psychological insight, especially his exploration of the inner dimensions of faith. Struggling with doubts and turbulent emotions, he came to the realization that in the Pure Land path, "nirvana is attained without severing karmic afflictions." This dissertation examines the soteriological basis for this striking claim by analyzing a passage from section 9 of the Tannishō [A Record Lamenting Divergences]. In that passage, he deviates from long-held Buddhist tradition to argue that the very presence of karmic afflictions, rather than their complete elimination, is assurance of one's salvation. In interpreting this well-known passage, the dissertation brings two new perspectives to Shinran studies: his relation to traditional Tendai Amidist practices and an often overlooked terminological distinction in his writings. First, by examining his deployment and reframing of religious practice in light of his training at Enryakuji on Mt. Hiei, this dissertation uncovers striking continuities between Shinran's radical approach and traditional Japanese Tendai visualization and recitation practices. This discovery runs counter to the common assumption that Shinran’s Pure Land Buddhism represents a sharp break from Tendai. Second, a careful tracking of Shinran's use and definition of two terms for “entrusting faith” (shinjin and i shingyō) reveals that although the two are often considered near synonyms, they actually refer to two distinct realms of experience. Namely, shinjin refers to that of the Shin Buddhist practitioner, that is, to the affective state of which ordinary beings are capable through faith. By contrast, shingyō refers to the enlightened heart-and-mind of Amida Buddha. In other words, his primary distinction between the realms of ignorance and enlightenment is made along affective lines. For Shinran, the experience of entrusting is an affective response that sentient beings make when they are touched by the compassionate activity of Amida Buddha. Further, this affectively "roiled up" experience of entrusting is itself a positive indicator of the (self-) illuminating activity of Amida Buddha in the Pure Land practitioner's life. As the karmic afflictions are the targets of Amida's compassionate activity, and simultaneously, the sign and assurance of that working, we see that for Shinran, one's very awareness of the presence of karmic afflictions is itself the verification of Amida's working. To analyze further that affective dynamic between Amida and the Pure Land practitioner a comparison is made with Maurice Merleau-Ponty's non-dualistic notion of "flesh." In his exploration of the "tissue of things" between the seer and the seen, Merleau-Ponty shows an important way that human beings connect intimately with their perceptual world. Viewed from that perspective, the affects (however troubling), play a crucial role in Shinran's understanding of the Pure Land Path. They are the tissue connecting the Pure Land believer with Amida Buddha, and the ground upon which an affective community of believers are united through their inner awareness of themselves as struggling and flawed individuals. ii Dedication In memory of Cũcũ. iii Acknowledgments This dissertation would not have been possible without the generous support of the Shinshū Ōtani-ha Fellowship for Pure Land Studies, and the Japan Foundation Intensive Language Program for Postgraduate Researchers. I also greatly benefitted from the help and support of Prof. Yasutomi Shin'ya and the students in his graduate seminar at Ōtani University, in particular Sōma Akira, Kamezaki Shinryō, and Timo Tommasini. Also Jessie Starling, Bryan Lowe, Dylan Luers were very helpful during my stay and pointed me towards numerous valuable resources. I owe a debt of gratitude to Michael Conway for taking the time to guide me through the forest of kanbun. Special thanks go to Tom Kasulis, for modeling the scholarly path; I hope one day to "attain the skin." I am also grateful for the help and support of Shelley Fenno Quinn and Daniel Reff; and that of all my fellow seminar students at Ohio State, aka., "the usual suspects" for all the encouragement, laughter, and tea. Lastly, my love and eternal gratitude to my family, who have always been there for me. Shukrani. iv Vita November 1998..............................................Kagumo High School May 2003.......................................................B.A. Philosophy, St. Lawrence University December 2005..............................................M.A. Comparative Studies, Ohio State Univ. 2003 to 2008 .................................................Graduate Teaching Assisstant, Department of Comparative Studies, The Ohio State University Publications "Ordinary" Spirituality: One Japanese Approach to Imperfection" in Acknowledging Powerlessness (Jerry Miller and Nick Plants eds., forthcoming). Reviews Ducor, Jérôme. "Shinran: Un Réformateur Bouddhiste dans le Japon Médiéval." The Eastern Buddhist, vol. 40, 2009: 231-238. ."Terre Pure, Zen et Autorité: La Dispute de l’ère Jôô et la Réfutation du Mémorandum sur des Contradictions de la Foi par Ryônyo du Honganji." The Eastern Buddhist, vol. 40, 2009: 231-238. Fields of Study Major Field: Comparative Studies v Table of Contents Abstract................................................................................................................................i Dedication..........................................................................................................................iii Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................iv Vita......................................................................................................................................v INTRODUCTION..............................................................................................................1 CHAPTER 1: AFFECTIVE FLOWS ..............................................................................12 The Afflictions, or, "Bonnō" 煩悩................................................................................12 Affectivity in the Japanese Context..............................................................................19 Merleau-Ponty's Flesh...................................................................................................23 CHAPTER 2: SEEKING THE PURE LAND..................................................................32 A Brief Overview of Pure Land Buddhism...................................................................32 Shinran (1173-1263 CE)...............................................................................................42 I Do Not Rejoice As I Should.......................................................................................50 Mappō: The Age of 'Final Dharma'...............................................................................57 Karma and the Age of Mappō.......................................................................................64 vi CHAPTER 3. ATTAINING NIRVANA WITHOUT SEVERING BLIND PASSIONS...69 Samādhi of Continual Recitation..................................................................................69 From Samādhi To Nenbutsu..........................................................................................81 Shinran, Nenbutsu, Samādhi.........................................................................................91 Clouds and Mists...........................................................................................................99 CHAPTER 4: TO DANCE ON THE EARTH, TO LEAP IN THE AIR........................112 Shinran, Amida, and Original Enlightenment.............................................................112 “I, Shinran, Have the Same Difficulty...”....................................................................118 Conclusion..................................................................................................................125 BIBLIOGRAPHY...........................................................................................................127 vii INTRODUCTION "Yet in my flesh, I shall see God." (Job 19:26, NIV) This project comes out of my long-standing interest in our capacity to read, understand and feel another's emotional states, non-verbally. How is it that we can "feel" when a stranger, or an intimate is angry or sad, or "read"1 the emotional temperature of a room? While there are a number of possible avenues to take towards understanding these questions, I have been drawn to the role that emotion or affect plays in Japanese religions, and in particular Japanese Buddhism. The particular attention that the Japanese tradition pays to embodiment and its active role in religious life as a source of knowledge, and as the locus and means of realizing enlightenment has brought me to appreciate the profound ways in which emotion and affectivity play themselves out in our everyday