The Language Barrier Defeated
The Language Barrier Defeated
Amida’s Vow is for all people, without exception. However, it is a very sad reality that so many people do not know of its existence due to language and cultural barriers. On this occasion of the publication of this English edition, a large barrier has been overcome. Upon opening this book, together with those of the English-speaking world, we can come into contact with Master Shinran’s teachings and read an easy-to-understand commentary. Even alone, we can accurately and speedily convey Master Shinran’s teachings to many people in English. This has become an extremely great benefit.
I recently undertook training at the Buddhist Academy where the words “Now, the world is waiting for you,” caught my eye. Just as the words say, I was waiting. The answer to why we live is in Master Shinran’s teachings.
Like me, there are still many people out there waiting to hear the Master’s teachings. With “Unlocking Tannisho” in my hand, I want to send his message to the world.
Kassandra Brown
Conveying Buddhism with Confidence
I felt like it was a dream come true. There were parts in the Japanese version of the book that were difficult for me to understand, but reading the English translation, I felt like it was crystal clear. An example is in part II, chapter 11: “Then are funerals, memorial services, and gravesite visits meaningless? No. To those who have heard Buddhist truth they are occasions for thanksgiving and rejoicing in Amida’s salvation, and to those in ignorance of the truth they are chances to form bonds with Amida, the Buddha of Infinite Life.” Amida Buddha here is expressed as “the Buddha of Infinite Life” only in the English version. When someone dies, we realize how fragile life is and at the same time, we wish we would never die. Reading Unlocking Tannisho, I realized that funerals and memorial services are chances to form bonds with Amida Buddha, as our attention shifts to the Buddha of Infinite Life.
Additionally, until now during the web conference on Unlocking Tannisho, not having the book in English in my hand, it was difficult for me to follow the lecture as my Japanese is still far from proficiency. So it was all the more difficult to convey the content of the lecture to someone else. But now, I listen to Buddhism with Unlocking as a textbook in my hand!!! I want to memorize the true words in it and share the content with others with confidence! The more I read Unlocking, the more I gain strength. I am all grateful to Takamori Sensei for bringing this book to us in English.
Bita Asakura
Source: The Buddhist Village Times #05 | 2011, The Language Barrier Defeated
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