Many people go to the cemetery or to a church columbarium on Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas Day, Obon, spring and autumn Higan, and so forth to pay respect to their deceased loved ones. Have you ever seriously thought about why you go to visit your loved ones at the cemetery or the columbarium with offerings of flowers and to put your hands together in Gassho? It is my guess that most people make these visits to pray and to express their gratitude to their deceased loved ones. Though this is a good thing to do, visiting the cemetery or columbarium is not just pray or to express gratitude to one’s deceased ancestors.

Fundamentally, Buddhism is a religion that shows more regard to the Truth itself, or the Dharma, than to external forms. In Buddhism, the Truth is more important than what are concrete forms and appearances which are passing and impermanent. Shakyamuni Buddha continually taught and admonished his disciples not to be bound by mere forms and superficial appearances such as religious images and superstitious practices.

Once a year, on the occasion of Shinran Shonin’s memorial service (Hoonko), we respectfully read Kakunyo Shonin’s (the third chief abbot of the Hongwanji) writings called the ‘Goden-Sho (The Biography of Shinran Shonin)’. This biography mentions Shinran Shonin’s grave site. It is located at Otani in Kyoto, Japan. After his death, the site of his grave was entrusted to his younger daughter Kakushin-ni by his followers. Then, a great grandson of Shinran Shonin established the Hongwanji at the grave site in an attempt to take control of Shinran Shonin’s Teachings. These efforts to concretize and institutionalize Shinran Shonin, in my view, was in direct opposition to what Shinran Shonin actually taught.

Also, in another of Kakunyo Shonin’s writings, ‘Gaijya-sho (A collection of erroneous views about Buddhism)’, it is recorded that Shinran Shonin said, "When I die, give my body to the fish in the Kamo River." We can see that Shinran Shonin was not influenced by external formal religious rituals. Therefore, I also think that external appearances and forms are not important, but that the Truth itself is most important.

Visiting the cemetery or columbarium to pay our respect to our ancestors becomes the occasion and opportunity to listen and reflect on the True Dharma that can lead us to live the Nembutsu life. Significantly, in his major work "True Teaching, Practice, and Realization’, Shinran Shonin did not use the word ‘ancestor’ but instead used the term ‘all Buddhas’ . This does not mean that ancestors are not important, for it is because of our ancestors through our parents that we are born in this world. As human beings we are now able to listen to and hear of the True Teachings of what is Amida Buddha so we can share and enjoy the Nembutsu.

Namo-Amidabutsu