Shinnyo-En

Shinnyo -En (Japanese真如 苑literally: "Garden of suchness " ) is a new religious community, which was founded in 1936 in Japan ( official recognition in 1953 ) and is among the communities with the highest rates of growth in membership in recent decades.

Shinnyo -En is formally expected to esoteric Buddhism, but refers in matters of doctrine in various Buddhist traditions.

History

The founder ( Kyōshu - sama ) Shinjō Itō (伊藤 真 乘, Itō Shinjō; born March 28, 1906 as Fumiaki Ito, † July 19, 1989 ) came from a religious family. His father was a follower of Zen Buddhism and the Wahrsagungs tradition Kōyōryū (甲 阳 流). His mother was a Tenrikyo believers. At an early age Shinjō Itō is said to have made ​​contact with the spiritual world, as he himself tells us in his later writings.

Itō 1932 married his second cousin Tomoji (伊藤 友 司, Itō Tomoji, also Shōjushin'in; born Uchida, born May 9, 1912 † August 6, 1967 ). Also Tomoji had a religious, family background: when she was four years old, her father died, after which she was raised by her grandmother, who ( Tomojis aunt) exorcised with her daughter as a medium of Kitsune obsessed people.

Together, they developed Shinjō and Tomoji Itō a strong interest in the teachings of the Shingon shū and giving in particular by means of the deity Fudo Myo - ō initiate in their esoteric rites. After various visions in January and February 1936 Itō announced his job and devoted himself with his wife entirely to the religious life. First, both founded a religious association called Risshōkaku (立 照 阁), the (成 田 山 新 胜 寺) was associated in Narita for legal reasons with the Narita -san Shinsho -ji; Itō also began exercises in the strongly connected with Shugendō Shingon temple Daigo -ji in Kyoto. The death of Shinjō and Tomoji Ito's then two-year old son Chibun on 9 June of the same year is considered as a turning point in the municipality of Shinnyo- En, which Shinjō Itō should understand his son's death as a sign of the beginning of a new era. On June 8, 1938, the groundbreaking ceremony for the new headquarters of the movement, Shincho -ji was. Because of the legal restrictions imposed by the law on religious communities, this temple had officially affiliate of Daigo -ji line of Shingon shū. Despite the later gained legal independence Shinnyo -En remained thereafter until the present day formal in this line. July 1938 received Shinjō Itō and his wife permission to build a temple for the company that they Fudoson Kyōkai Association Tachikawa (立 川 不 动 尊 教会) in Tachikawa, who later became the main temple of Shinnyo -En. 1941 closed Shinjō Itō his Shingon studies with receiving the highest consecrations from.

On November 4, 1946 for the first time received a Shinnyo -En- follower of Tomoji Itō permission to act as a medium. A little later the children of Ito's been trained to media.

Due to the relaxation of religion legislation through the adoption of the religious communities, the community finally in the association, founded in 1948 Makoto KYODAN (まこと 教団) was transferred. 1950 marked a crisis for the Sangha ( community), as a Shinnyo -En- trailer after a supposed punishment during one of the ascetic practice sessions a legal complaint against Shinjō Itō submitted, which was subsequently sentenced to a short prison sentence. Media reports from this period characterized Makoto KYODAN addition to various other contemporary new religious movements (such as Sekai Kyūseikyō and Reiyūkai ) as the new liberal laws abusing dar. In May 1953, Makoto KYODAN under the provisions of the law on religious society by the name Shinnyo -En officially recognized by the Japanese government.

In 1966, Itō Shinjō from Daigo -ji the title of Daisōjō (大 僧 正), Tomoji the one - Gon Daisōjō (権 大 僧 正). In the same year a delegation of Theravada Buddhists from Thailand made ​​their respects at the church; the Theravada influence from this time remained to exist today ( there is a Shinnyo -En- Chanting practice in the triple refuge in Pali ). Shortly after a trip to Europe by Shinjō and Tomoji Itō, where they visited the Pope and other religious dignitaries, died Tomoji.

1973, the first Shinnyo -En Temple outside of Japan was established in Hawaii. Now operates Shinnyo -En several dozen temples, of which outside of Japan et al in the United States ( Honolulu, Burlingame, Yorba Linda, Burien, White Plains, Elk Grove Village ), Brazil (São Paulo ), Republic of China ( Taipei ) Hong Kong (Wan Chai), Thailand (Bangkok ), Singapore, Australia ( Lane Cove ), France ( Paris), Italy (Milan), Germany (Munich, Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt am Main ), Belgium ( Antwerp) and England (Long Ditton ). Overall, it was 1975 by 238 985 members from. As early as 1993, this number will have more than tripled to 711 979; for the same year was Shinnyo -En 30 temples in Japan and another 12 overseas on. In 1996 they went from over a thousand members in the United States.

( Born April 25, 1942 Shinso ) and Shizuko (also Shinrei; born October 5, 1943) 1983 Dharmalinie was officially the two daughters of Shinjō and Tomoji Ito, Masako Ito transferred. Masako received from Daigo -ji the title Daisōjō and Shizuko the title Gon - Daisōjō. After her father's death in 1989, Masako was his first successor ( Keishu - sama ) and head (苑 主, enshu ) Shinnyo -En.

Teaching

The Shinnyo -En- teaching based on the Mahaparinirvana - Sūtra, had dealt with the Shinjō Itō intensively since the late 1950s. According Shinnyo -En are the central doctrines of this text

Another central doctrine is vicarious suffering (抜 苦 代 受, bakku - Daiju ), which in Shinnyo -En mainly by the two children ( Ryōdōji - sama ), that is, the deceased sons Chibun (see above, posthumously Kyōdōin ) and Yuichi († July 1952 at the age of 15 years, posthumously Shindōin ) is marked, the save in the imagination of Shinnyo -En by this vicarious suffering in the spirit world as bodhisattvas living things of this world from their karmic entanglements.

In conjunction with the Bakku - Daiju is that this downstream Shoju (摂 受; skt parigraha. ), The embrace and acceptance by Tomoji that be appropriated since her death all living things and to help them on the path to enlightenment.

Practice

A distinct feature in the practice of Shinnyo -En are sesshin (not to be confused with the sesshin in Zen Buddhism ), in which the ghost words (霊 言, round dance ) media (霊 能者, reinōsha ) with the world of spirits (真如 霊 界, Shinnyo Reikai ) to be interacted with. This ( almost exclusively Japanese ) media take over the management of Shinnyo- ene groups (経, suji ), which consist of at least one hundred families of believers in the rule.

The aim of the sesshin is the understanding and the repeal of karmically related ailment that can manifest itself in all sorts of forms of personal problems. The least once a month meeting within groups whose size is up to 50-60 are guided in the sesshin of up to 12 Reinōsha that absorb through various esoteric rituals contact with the spirit world.

The core of the efforts in the everyday form three holy exercises (三つ の あゆみ, Mittsu -no- ayumi ):

The actual practice of these exercises is to help a within Shinnyo -En begun to move forward to the rank of Reinōsha ( a process that takes about 16 years on average ), although this rise is presented as fundamentally determined by the spirit world. However, the decision on the award of the title Reinōsha incumbent actually a permanent panel of Shinnyo- En, the Sōshōeza (相承 会 座). After that, the new media through a 12 to 18 month long training course, which only media to attend.