Part of NASBA’s mission is to walk the Shin path within the realities of our daily lives, generation, and western culture. We seek to be faithful to the teachings of Shinran Shonin and the basic purport of Mahayana Buddhism. As we honor the tradition of our spiritual ancestors, our contemporary walk is also informed by reason, science, 21st century knowledge, American love for liberty, and our personal experience. Given the above distinct realities, the following outlines the 14 essential religious principles that unify our association.
1) Amida Buddha is the inconceivable true and real life of all beings. As we say, Amida is more real than we are. That being said, the “real” Amida transcends the mythical story that is presented in the scriptures. The scriptural image of Amida is merely a skillful means that points us to inconceivable, all present, and transcending living reality.
2) Amida Buddha is not a substantial entity like a supra-mundane person, God or spirit. Amida is simply the personification of the dharmakaya and is ultimately our essential nature that is boundless and ineffable.
3) For us, Shin Buddhism is not otherworldly but stresses the very here and now. The Pure Land does not reside in a heaven billions of light years from Earth nor is it only an exclusive realm for the afterlife but is within each of us at the same time enveloping its light around us.
4) Shin Buddhism is a path of total psychosomatic-religious transformation through the practice of deep (intuitive) hearing coupled with the mindful awareness of Amida’s unconditional grace and the voicing of the Nembutsu. Deep hearing, mindfulness, Nembutsu, and the subsequent shinjin (awakening) are one natural process that inevitably unfolds our true religious fulfillment.
5) In walking the Shin path, one does not rely on the Nembutsu as a magical incantation nor follows nor worships any other entity such as a person, guru, Buddhas, bodhisattvas, saints, Saviors, Prophets or deities.
6) Following the teaching of the Buddha found in the Paranirvana Sutra and highlighted by our founder, Shinran Shonin, we do not take refuge in any Creator God. Members of NASBA only take refuge in the Three Jewels, the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.
7) We celebrate the calm and lucid mind. While our inclusion of Buddhist contemplative practice acknowledges the value we place on inner silence through meditation, the heart of Shin practice lies in deep hearing which is about integrating heartfelt spirituality with daily living by developing a praxis of mindfulness on Amida’s unconditional grace, honest self-reflection, and the cultivation of compassion for all sentient beings, including ourselves.
8) Other Power is a non-dual dynamic reality, and expresses the awakening to dependent co-arising (paratantra) as a living process. It does not indicate that which is “other” or separate from us. The Japanese term tariki is commonly translated as “Other Power;” but this English term tends to confuse people; for us, it means, “the inconceivable power other than the egoic self.” Other Power is not akin to Higher Power but is simply that which is non-ego.
9) Although seemingly dualistic at the surface, shinjin, the awakening of the entrusting heart, is ultimately a non-dualistic personal experience. This intimate awakening to the oneness of reality-as-it-is consists of the existential recognition of our inherent limited and foolish nature within the all-embracing flow of boundless compassion and wisdom.
10) NASBA does not entertain any elaborate performance of rituals for the deceased for their successful “birth” in the Pure Land. We believe such practices are not consistent with the original spirit of Shin and are deceptive practices of self power and superstition. Amida, the unhindered life and compassion, grasps both the living and the deceased regardless of our prayers, incantations or priestly interventions.
11) At its core, Shin Buddhism does not require a category of monastics or a priestly class in order to be effectively practiced or transmitted from generation to generation. Following the original spirit of Shin, we are not lead by a class of ordained priests or monastics but instead rely on a myriad of trained or untrained Kalyana-mitras (spiritual friends) to guide us along the path.
12) We do not subscribe to any “foreign” or “alien” ritual or practice for the sake of maintaining any “ethnic” tradition but embrace skillful practices that take into account the mind-set and cultural realities of our members. The essential viewpoint is that we recognize the importance of tradition but we encourage the creation of culturally attentive traditions that promote real spiritual meaning, growth, and awakening.
13) We strive to adapt the Shin teachings and practices for our generation and culture. Therefore, our gatherings, ceremonies, chants, and practices are conducted in the native language of the congregation. The general language rule does not apply to Sanskrit mantras and to some traditional chants if used occasionally or purposely.
14) We believe that true religious transmission only comes from the grace of the Primal Vow and is not conferred to us by any form of genetic connection through a priestly or monastic lineage or ancestor. We do not accept any form of the religious primogeniture system, the practice of hereditary succession of the religious teachers from the oldest male heir. Only by merit or grace alone can such positions be granted.