Shinran

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Shinran (親鸞)
Shinran (ICP) (Nara National Museum)
TitleFounder of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism
Personal life
BornMatsuwakamaro
May 21, 1173
Heian-kyō, Yamashiro Province (now Kyoto, Japan)
DiedJanuary 16, 1263(1263-01-16) (aged 89)
Heian-kyō, Yamashiro Province
SpouseEshinni
ChildrenKakushinnhi, Zenran, others
Religious life
ReligionBuddhism
SchoolJōdo Shinshū Buddhism
Senior posting
TeacherHōnen

Shinran (親鸞; Japanese pronunciation: [ɕiꜜn.ɾaɴ],[1] May 21, 1173 – January 16, 1263)[2][3] was a key Japanese Buddhist figure of the Kamakura Period who is regarded as the founder of the Jōdo Shinshū school of Japanese Buddhism. A pupil of Hōnen, the founder of the Japanese Pure Land movement, Shinran articulated a distinctive Pure Land vision that emphasized absolute reliance on the power of Amida Buddha’s other-power.

While Shinran trained as a Tendai monk on Mount Hiei, he lived much of his life as a married Buddhist teacher unlike other Kamakura Buddhist reformers, and he described himself as "neither monk nor layman". Shinran's major work, the Kyōgyōshinshō (Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Realization), is a systematic exposition and defense of Pure Land doctrine. Shinran taught that liberation arises from the entrusting mind (shinjin) awakened through Amida’s compassionate power, not from any merit or power of one’s own. His interpretation profoundly reshaped the course of Japanese Buddhism and continues to influence East Asian religious thought.

Names

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Shinran's birthname was Matsuwakamaro. In accordance with Japanese customs, he has also gone by other names, including Hanen, Shakku and Zenshin, and then finally Shinran, which was derived by combining the names of Seshin (Vasubandhu in Japanese) and Donran (Tanluan's name in Japanese). His posthumous title was Kenshin Daishi.[4]

For a while, Shinran also went by the name Fujii Yoshizane.[5] After he was disrobed, he called himself Gutoku Shinran, in a self-deprecating manner. Gutoku means "Bald Fool", to denote his status as "neither a monk, nor a layperson".[citation needed]

Biography

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Statue of Shinran Shonin in Kyōto

Youth and monastic life

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Shinran was born in Hino (now a part of Fushimi, Kyoto) on May 21, 1173, to Lord Hino Arinori (c. 1144-1181?) and Lady Arinori. Shinran was born to the Hino family, a lesser branch of the Fujiwara clan which had lost its rank after a scandal. The family was known for its scholars and had produced many generations of civil servants.[6]

Shinran's birth name was Matsuwakamaro. Early in Shinran's life his father died and so Shinran was educated by his uncle Hino Munenari. He was also cared for by his other uncle Hino Noritsuna. Some sources also indicate that Shinran's mother died when he was young, but these sources have not been verified.[7][8] Shinran ordained as a monk shortly after. Modern historians contest the identity and date of death of Shinran's parents, with some suggesting he ordained alongside his father due to instability from the Genpei War.[9]

Influenced by the tumultuous events of the time such as epidemics and famines, many noble families turned to religious vocations during this era. Thus, Hino Arinori's children (Shinran's brothers) all eventually entered monasticism. Shinran himself was ordained as a monk in 1181 under the Tendai prelate Jien (1155-1225) when he was nine years old.[7] He received the Buddhist name Han'en.[7] Traditional sources state that Shinran had a wish to enter the monkhood himself, influenced by the death of his parents or by his mother's dying wish.[8]

Shinran lived as a monk on Enryakuji, Mount Hiei, for the next 20 years of his life (1181-1201). Letters between his wife and daughter indicate that Shinran's status was that of a modest dōsō (堂僧; "hall monk").[10][11] As a monk assigned to the jōgyōdō (walking samadhi hall), Shinran would have specialized in Buddhist liturgy and plainsong centered on Amida Buddha, which included a practice then known as “uninterrupted nembutsu” (fudan-nembutsu) and daily ritual recitation of the Amitābha Sūtra.[12] This experience likely influenced his love for Buddhist hymns.[12] Aside from this, historians also note that Shinran was part of the Tendai lineage of Genshin (the Ryōgon-Yokawa).[8] Thus, according to Jérôme Ducor, it is likely that Shinran practiced Genshin's Pure Land methods as taught in his Ōjōyōshū.[12] Apart from this, little is known of Shinran's life on Mt. Hiei. There are many hagiographical accounts of this period which exalt Shinran's status but little of this has been historically verified.[8]

Disciple of Hōnen

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A scroll depicting part of the life of Shinran

At a certain point in his career, Shinran became dissatisfied with his spiritual life. According to various accounts, Shinran was frustrated with his own spiritual failures and feared being unable to attain enlightenment.[8] As such, in 1201, he decided to go on retreat at Rokkaku-dō temple.[13] There, while engaged in intense practice, he experienced a vision in which Avalokiteśvara appeared to him as Prince Shōtoku, directing Shinran to the Pure Land teacher Hōnen (who was now 69, and at the height of his popularity).[14][13]

In 1201, Shinran met Hōnen at his hermitage of Yoshimizu, near Kyōto and quickly became his disciple, receiving a new name, "Shakkū" (綽空).[15][8] During his first year under Hōnen's guidance, Shinran abandoned the traditional Tendai Pure Land practices (though he remained a Tendai monk for now) and adopted Hōnen's teaching that focused solely on reciting the nembutsu, joining his new growing movement (Jōdoshū).[15] He remarks on this event in his Kyōgyōshinshō, where he simply writes: "But I, Gutoku Shinran, in the year 1201, abandoned the difficult practices and took refuge in the Original Vow."[8]

Shinran's precise status amongst Hōnen's followers is unclear as in the Seven Article Pledge, signed by Hōnen's followers in 1204, Shinran's signature appears near the middle, among less-intimate disciples.[16] According to Ducor, it is possible that during the hald-dozen years he studied with Hōnen, Shinran lodged with some of his fellow disciples in the capital.[15] Also during this time, Shinran worked to copy and collate the works of the Pure Land tradition of Shandao.[17] Furthermore, though the two only knew each other for a few years, Hōnen entrusted Shinran with a copy of his Senchakushū in 1205 and allowed him to copy it, along with a portrait of Hōnen.[17] This privilege was only granted to a few of Hōnen's disciples and had great significance, amounting to a recognizing a disciple as a spiritual heir of the master. Hōnen also gave Shinran a new name at this time, Zenshin.[17]

During this period, Shinran also got married (possibly between 1203 and 1205), giving back his monastic vows of celibacy.[18] The details of this marriage is the subject of much debate and discussion. Both Shinran and his wife are said to have had spiritual dreams foretelling of their future marriage.[19] Shinran's wife was known as Eshinni (惠信尼, 1182-1268?). She was a daughter of a civil servant appointed by the key Hōnen supporter Fujiwara no Kanezane, and a follower of Hōnen. Since her name contains the same character that Shinran's does, it is likely that she received this name on being married to Shinran. According to Ducor, this suggests that the marriage was endorsed by Hōnen.[19] This marriage also changed Shinran's status to that of a shami, an ordained cleric who retained the external appearance of a monastic while not following all the traditional monastic rules.[19]

Life in the provinces

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In 1207, retired emperor Go-Toba issues a ban of Hōnen's nembutsu community. This ban followed an incident where two of Hōnen's followers aided the conversion of two noble court ladies, and were then accused of instigating sexual liaisons with them.[20][21] These two monks were subsequently executed. Hōnen and seven of his disciples, including Shinran, were all defrocked and exiled to different provinces. Shinran was sent to Echigo Province (contemporary Niigata Prefecture) for five years.[21][22] Master and disciple would never meet again. Hōnen would die later in Kyōto in 1212.[2]

While in exile, Shinran was able to bring his wife Eshinni and he also received a ration of rice and salt that lasted one year. Furthermore, his uncle had previously been appointed as vice-prefect of Echigo, and Eshinni's father had also been prefect in that province and her family owned land there. Thus, the couple had connections in Echigo that provided reprieve during the exile.[23] While in Echigo, the couple also had six children, three boys and three girls.[23]

Five years after being exiled in Echigo, in 1211, Shinran and all the exiles were granted amnesty and Hōnen returned to Kyōto. However, Shinran chose not to return to Kyoto at that time, staying two more years in Echigo.[24] Afterwards, Shinran left for the province of Hitachi, a small area in Kantō just north of modern Tōkyō. Shinran was likely following Hōnen's wishes, who had asked his disciples not to all meet up after his death, fearing succession disputes. He also may have wished to be closer to the new booming capital at Kamakura.[25] During his move, Shinran began an extensive recitation of the three Pure Land sutras, seeking to recite them over a thousand times.[25] However, after a few days of this practice, he began to question the value of this effort. He would later write that during this time he thought the following:

If I am convinced that the true tribute to the benevolence of the Buddha is to have faith myself and to teach others to have faith, what do I lack beside his name (myōgō 名號) so that I must absolutely read the sūtras? Having thought in this way, I stopped reading them.[25]

This was a significant turn in Shinran's religious life, and from now on he would focus exclusively on faith in the nembutsu as well as on spreading the Pure Land teachings, and let go of other more complex and difficult Buddhist practices.[26] It was also after this event that he adopted the name Shinran as well as Gutoku (愚禿; "Bald Fool"), coming to understand himself as neither monk nor layman.[26]

For twenty years, Shinran remained in the Kantō region preaching the Pure Land teachings. He mostly lived in the village of Inada (Hitachi, now in Ibaraki prefecture) during this time. While Shinran attracted many followers from all social ranks, he did not establish a temple or an official sect of Buddhism. Instead, Shinran's followers studied with him and then returned to their communities, creating informal groups of Pure Land followers. These groups met in dōjōs, usually small buildings, often in private residences turned into chapels. They met on the 25th of each month, recited the nembutsu and listened to sermons or sutras. They used vertical scrolls with the nembutsu as their main object of worship. Often the calligraphy on these scrolls would be from Shinran himself.[26] Shinran kept in touch with his followers through letters, many of which survive.[26] Around eighty major disciples are known from the sources. Some of the most important communities include those of Shimbutsu (1209-1258), of his son-in-law Kenchi (1226-1310) in Takada, the congregation founded by Shōshin (1187- 1275) in Yokosone, and Shinkai's in Kashima.[26]

Retirement in Kyōto

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In the 1230s (possibly 1234), Shinran left the Kantō area and returned to Kyōto, with his wife and children. There, he met with his fellows, such as Seikaku, author of Notes on Faith Alone and celebrated the 23rd anniversary of Hōnen's death by holding a memorial where Shandao's Hymns in Praise of Birth in the Pure Land were recited.[27] Now in his sixties, Shinran considered his preaching in Kantō had been successful, and felt he could retire to his hometown and see his other family members again.[27] Shinran's wife later retired to her family lands in Echigo with four of the children, while Shinran remained in Kyōto with his eldest son Zenran (善鸞 1217?–1286?) and his daughter Kakushinni.[27] He lived a frugal life in Kyōto, staying at different places, including Zempōin, a Tendai temple headed by his brother Jin'u. Shinran continued writing, and also raised and educated his grandson Nyoshin (1235-1300), son of Zenran.[28]

Manuscripts of Notes on Guidance Toward Birth in the West, a compilation of Hōnen texts by Shinran.

Shinran was a prolific writer, working well into his eighties. In 1234 Shinran authored his magnum opus, the Kyōgyōshinshō, which is an anthology of Buddhist texts punctuated with Shinran's own commentary which supports and defends the Pure Land teaching.[29] The work defends Hōnen's teaching from key critics, such as Myōe and critiques the idealistic interpretations of Pure Land Buddhism that had been influenced by figures like Shunjō. The work also contains the Poem of True Faith’s Nembutsu (Shōshin- nembutsu-ge), which is an original composition by Shinran that summarizes the Pure Land teaching.[30]

While the Kyōgyōshinshō was written in literary Chinese, Shinran also worked to provide literature to his followers in vernacular Japanese. To this end, he copied works from fellow disciples of Hōnen, such as Seikaku's Notes on Faith Alone and the works of Ryūkan. Shinran also composed five hundred and fifty Japanese didactic poems (wasan).[31] Shinran also composed other short treatises in Chinese, and other Japanese explanations of key passages.[31] Shinran also produced a compilation of the works of Honen and documents related to him, the Compass for the Pure Land in the West (Saihō shinanshō 西方指南抄).[31] Apart from this literary output, Shinran also spent much time giving oral teachings. Some of this is preserved in the now famous Tannishō.[31]

After some time in Kyōto, Shinran had sent his son Zenran to supervise the communities in the Kantō region. However, he soon discovered that his son was abusing his status and distorting the teaching, telling people that he had received secret teachings from Shinran.[14] Shinran wrote stern letters to Zenran (frequently addressed by his Buddhist name Jishin-bō (慈信房)) instructing him to change his ways, but when Zenran refused, Shinran disowned him, writing:[32]

Hence, from now on there shall no longer exist parental relations with you; I cease to consider you my son. I declare this resolutely to the three treasures and the gods. It is a sorrowful thing. It rends my heart to hear that you have devoted yourself to misleading all the people of the nembutsu in Hitachi, saying that [what they have been taught] is not my true teaching. Rumors have reached as far as Kamakura that I have instructed you to denounce the people in Hitachi who say the nembutsu. It is deeply deplorable.

Death and posthumous events

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Illustration from the Godenshō (御伝鈔). a hagiography of Shinran by Kakunyo
Main hall of Bukkō-ji (Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto)

Shinran died in Zempōin temple on 1263 at the age of 90 surrounded by some family and followers.[2][33] Though he died facing West, no special preparation was taken during Shinran's death. This was against Japanese custom at the time, which took great care to prepare the dying person to attain birth in the Pure Land through numerous ritual means. This is because Shinran rejected such rites as useless, believing that birth in the Pure Land was ensured by faith alone.[34] As such, Shinran made no requests for funerary rites, and merely requested that his body be tossed into the river to feed the fish. Nevertheless, he was cremated by his followers and his ashes were placed in Ōtani, not far from Hōnen's own tomb.[35]

In 1272, the remains were moved further west into lands inherited by Kakushinni. This is now the site of Sōtaiin temple. A chapel with a statue of Shinran was constructed on the site of the new tomb. Shinran's followers gathered at the site every year to commemorate his death, a week long ritual known as Hōonkō.[35]

Kakushinni bequeathed the land to a community of local followers. She and her son Kakue were instrumental in maintaining the family's mausoleum, and passing on Shinran's teachings in the Kyōto region. Their descendants became the hereditary caretakers of the mausoleum. In the 14th century, the mausoleum developed into a temple known as the Hongan-ji (Temple of the Original Vow), with Kakushinni's descendants becoming the hereditary Monshu, or abbots of this temple.[35] Kakunyo (1270-1351), Kakue's grandson, wrote the first biography of Shinran, and also copied several texts which contain Shinran's oral teachings which he received from Shinran's grandson Nyoshin.[35]

Timeline

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  • 1173: Shinran is born
  • 1175: Hōnen founds the Jōdo-shū sect
  • 1181: Shinran becomes a monk
  • 1201: Shinran becomes a disciple of Hōnen and leaves Mt. Hiei
  • 1207: The nembutsu ban and Shinran's exile
  • 1211: Shinran is pardoned
  • 1212: Hōnen passes away in Kyoto and Shinran goes to Kantō
  • 1224(?): Shinran authors Kyogyoshinsho
  • 1234(?): Shinran goes back to Kyoto
  • 1256: Shinran disowns his son Zenran
  • 1263: Shinran dies in Kyoto

Teaching

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Japanese Pure Land Writings

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Shinran considered himself a lifelong disciple of Hōnen, in spite of their separation. According to a letter composed by his wife, Eshinni:[36]

People would say all types of things about where the master [Hōnen] might go. They would even say that he was headed for an evil rebirth (akudō). Whenever people spoke such things, [Shinran] would reply, "I am one who believes that I would even go [with him], since from realm to realm and from rebirth to rebirth I am lost already."

Hōnen's disciples were said to have been largely divided by questions arising from the need for a single invocation (nenbutsu) of Amitabha's name versus many-callings, and thereby emphasis on faith versus practice. Shinran, like Hōnen's disciple Kōsai, leaned more toward faith over practice, however he did not advocate the single-recitation teaching.[37]

While Shinran's teachings and beliefs were generally consistent with the Pure Land Buddhist movement at the time, he also had idiosyncrasies as well.

Primacy of faith

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In any case Shinran, like others in Hōnen's community, felt that in the age of Dharma Decline, it was no longer possible to achieve enlightenment through traditional monastic practices, and thus one could only rely on the vows of Amitābha Buddha, particular the 18th or "Primal Vow" and seek rebirth in the Pure Land. In a passage from his magnum opus, the Kyōgyōshinshō, he writes of himself:[36]

Therefore, reverencing the expositions of the treatise masters and relying on the exhortations of the religious teachers, I, the Bald-Headed Fool Shinran, abandoned forever the provisional path of manifold practices and good work, and separated myself once and for all from birth in the forest of the twin śāla trees. I turned to the true path, the basis of virtue and good, and gave rise to the aspiration for birth [in the Pure Land] that is difficult to comprehend. But now I have utterly abandoned the expediency of the true path, and have converted to the ocean-like vow singled out [by Amitabha Buddha]. I have separated myself straightaway from the aspiration for birth that is difficult to comprehend, and I long to attain birth that is difficult to fathom....

In this passage, Shinran explains that he not only gave up traditional monastic practices to focus on rebirth in the Pure Land, but that in time he eventually gave up on practices related to rebirth in the Pure Land, instead relying solely on faith in the vow of Amitabha Buddha.

In the Kyōgyōshinshō, third fascicle, Shinran explores the nature of shinjitsu no shinjin (真実の信心, "true faith"), by describing it as something bestowed by Amitabha Buddha, not arising from the believer.[36] Through this endowment, faith is awakened in a person, and the recitation of the Buddha's name or nembutsu becomes an expression of praise or gratitude. However, this cannot occur until the believer fully entrusts themselves to Amitabha Buddha, even for a moment. Once this state of faith is bestowed, one is assured of rebirth in the Pure Land, and ultimately enlightenment. Shinran cautions though:[36]

True faith necessarily entails Amida's name, but Amida's name does not necessarily entail faith, [which is derived] from the power of [Amida's] vow.

Further, once a follower has awakened to this deep faith, one should live life as an expression of gratitude, follow moral conduct and fulfill one's social obligations.[37] As one's faith in Amida deepens, Shinran articulated ten spiritual benefits that develop: Protected by unseen divine beings (myoshu goji), Possessed of the supreme virtue (shitoku gusoku), Having evil turned into good (tenaku jyozen), Protected by all Buddhas (shobutsu gonen), Praised by all Buddhas (shobutsu shyosan), Protected by the Buddha's spiritual light (shinko jogo), Having much joy in mind (shinta kangi), Acknowledging His benevolence and repaying it (chion hotoku), Always practicing the Great Compassion (jyogyo daihi), Entering the Rightly-Established Group (shojyoju ni iru).[38]

Amitabha Buddha and the Pure Land

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The last three fascicles of the Kyōgyōshinshō delve into the nature of Amitabha Buddha and the Pure Land. The Pure Land is treated as a temporary refuge whereby one can attain enlightenment, and then return to this world to lead and teach others as a bodhisattva. Elsewhere, Shinran is quoted in the Tannishō (歎異抄; "Lamentation of Divergences") as saying:[39][40]

浄土の慈悲といふは、念仏して、いそぎ仏になりて、大慈大悲心をもて、おもふがごとく衆生を利益するをいふべきなり。

Jōdo no jihi to iu wa, nenbutsu shite, isogi hotoke ni narite, daiji-daihi-shin wo mote, omou ga gotoku shujō wo riyaku suru wo iu beki nari.

The compassion in the Path of Pure Land is to quickly attain Buddhahood, saying the nembutsu, and with the true heart of compassion and love save all beings completely as we desire.

On the nature of Amitabha Buddha, Shinran stated that in their true form, both the Buddha and the Pure Land are beyond comprehension, but due to people's ignorance and attachments they can only perceive Amitabha in terms of his physical form described in the sutras, as well as the layout of the Pure Land.[36] If one attains true faith, then upon rebirth in the Pure Land, one can perceive their true form. However, if one's faith is incomplete, or they continue to rely on their own efforts, then they will be reborn in the outer regions of the Pure Land, and will still perceive Amitabha Buddha through physical forms until eventually attaining true faith and proceeding further.

Shinran's definition of Amitabha Buddha as the absolute, equating the Pure Land with Nirvana itself, therefore differed somewhat from traditional interpretations of the Pure Land in Buddhist scripture.[36]

Age of Dharma Decline

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Shinran's interpretation of the final age of the Dharma, was consistent with other Buddhist thinkers of the time. In particular, he drew inspiration from a Chinese Buddhist master named Daochuo who centuries earlier taught that in the latter age of the Dharma the Pure Land teachings were the most suitable for the capacities of the people of the time.[36]

Shinran felt that this decline was inevitable, that Japan was already 600 years into Age of Dharma Decline, and that people were no longer capable of maintaining Buddhist practice, let alone enlightenment. Thus, only the vow of Amitābha Buddha to save all beings could be relied upon.

Other religious practices

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Shinran acknowledged the religious practices of Japan outside the Buddhist tradition, including Shinto kami, spirits, divination, astrology, etc., he believed that they were irrelevant in comparison to the power of Amitabha Buddha.[36] He developed a Japanese Buddhist heresiology that constructed other forms of religious practice as equivalent to demon-worship; his followers would later use this equivocation both to enforce proper interpretations of Shinran's thought and to criticize "heretical" sects of Buddhism such as the Tachikawa-ryū.[41] To this day, omamori, ofuda and other charms are not found in Jōdo Shinshū temples.

Cultural legacy

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Statue of Shinran Shōnin, Riverside Drive, New York. A survivor of the bombing at Hiroshima, the statue was brought to New York in 1955.

A statue of Shinran Shonin stands in Upper West Side Manhattan, in New York City on Riverside Drive between 105th and 106th Streets, in front of the New York Buddhist Church. The statue depicts Shinran in a peasant hat and sandals, holding a wooden staff, as he peers down at the sidewalk.

Although this kind of statue is very common and often found at Jōdo Shinshū temples, this particular statue is notable because it survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, standing a little more than a mile from ground zero. It was brought to New York in 1955. The plaque calls the statue "a testimonial to the atomic bomb devastation and a symbol of lasting hope for world peace."[42]

Shinran's life was the subject of the 1987 film Shinran: Path to Purity, directed by Rentarō Mikuni (in his directorial debut, based on his own novel)[43] and starring Junkyu Moriyama as Shinran. The film won the Jury Prize at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival.[44]

On March 14, 2008, what are assumed to be some of the ash remains of Shinran were found in a small wooden statue at the Jōrakuji temple in Shimogyō-ku, Kyōto. The temple was created by Zonkaku (1290–1373), the son of Kakunyo (1270–1351), one of Shinran's great grandchildren. Records indicate that Zonkaku inherited the remains of Shinran from Kakunyo. The 24.2 cm wooden statue is identified as being from the middle of the Edo period. The remains were wrapped in paper.[45]

In March 2011, manga artist Takehiko Inoue created large ink paintings on twelve folding screens, displayed at the East Hongan Temple in Kyoto. The illustrations on the panels include Shinran and Hōnen leading a group of Heian era commoners on one set of screens and Shinran seated with a bird on the other set.[46] Author Hiroyuki Itsuki wrote a novel based on Shinran's life which was serialized with illustrations by Akira Yamaguchi and won the 64th Mainichi Publishing Culture Award Special Prize in 2010.[47]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Kindaichi, Haruhiko; Akinaga, Kazue, eds. (10 March 2025). 新明解日本語アクセント辞典 (in Japanese) (2nd ed.). Sanseidō.
  2. ^ a b c Popular Buddhism in Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture by Esben Andreasen, pp. 13, 14, 15, 17. University of Hawaiʻi Press 1998, ISBN 0-8248-2028-2.
  3. ^ The Life and Works of Shinran Shonin.
  4. ^ "Shinran | Japanese Buddhist philosopher | Britannica".
  5. ^ Young Man Shinran: A Reappraisal of Shinran's Life. Takamichi Takshataka, Wilfrid Laurier Press, p. 2.
  6. ^ Ducor, Jérôme: Shinran and Pure Land Buddhism, p. 25. Jodo Shinshu International Office, 2021 (ISBN 0999711822).
  7. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 26.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Boom, Alfred. “The Life of Shinran Shonin: The Journey to Self-Acceptance.” Numen, vol. 15, no. 1, 1968, pp. 1–62. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/3269618. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
  9. ^ Bloom, Alfred (2006). The Essential Shinran: A Buddhist Path of True Entrusting. World Wisdom. ISBN 978-1933316215.
  10. ^ Bloom, Alfred (1968). "The Life of Shinran Shonin: The Journey to Self-Acceptance" (PDF). Numen. 15 (1): 6. doi:10.1163/156852768x00011. Archived from the original on 2011-06-11.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  11. ^ Ducor, 2021, p. 27.
  12. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 28.
  13. ^ a b Ducor, 2021, pp. 29-30.
  14. ^ a b "Shinran Shonin". www2.hongwanji.or.jp. Archived from the original on 2008-03-18. Retrieved 2025-06-12.
  15. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 30.
  16. ^ Dobbins, James C. (1989). Jōdo Shinshū: Shin Buddhism in Medieval Japan. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-33186-2.
  17. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 31.
  18. ^ Ducor, 2021, p. 32.
  19. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 33.
  20. ^ Bowring, Richard. Religious Traditions of Japan: 500-1600. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005. p. 247.
  21. ^ a b Ducor, 2021, pp. 33-34.
  22. ^ Buswell, Robert Jr; Lopez, Donald S. Jr., eds. (2013). Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Shinran). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. p. 807. ISBN 9780691157863.
  23. ^ a b Ducor, 2021, p. 34, 37.
  24. ^ Ducor, 2021, pp. 34-35.
  25. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 35.
  26. ^ a b c d e Ducor, 2021, p. 36.
  27. ^ a b c Ducor, 2021, p. 37.
  28. ^ Ducor, 2021, p. 38.
  29. ^ Ducor, 2021, p. 38.
  30. ^ Ducor, 2021, pp. 38-39.
  31. ^ a b c d Ducor, 2021, p. 39.
  32. ^ "Uncollected Letters, Collected Works of Shinran". Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  33. ^ Ducor, 2021, p. 40.
  34. ^ Ducor, 2021, pp. 40-41.
  35. ^ a b c d Ducor, 2021, p. 41.
  36. ^ a b c d e f g h Dobbins, James C. (1989). "Chapter 2: Shinran and His Teachings". Jodo Shinshu: Shin Buddhism in Medieval Japan. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0253331862.
  37. ^ a b Watts, Jonathan; Tomatsu, Yoshiharu (2005). Traversing the Pure Land Path: A Lifetime of Encounters with Hōnen Shonin. Jodo Shu Press. pp. 136–137. ISBN 488363342X.
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Further reading

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