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:'''To:''' Itō Shōshin | :'''To:''' Itō Shōshin 伊藤証信<br> | ||
:'''Date:''' Written November 2, Meiji 38 [1905]<br> | :'''Date:''' Written November 2, Meiji 38 [1905]<br> | ||
:'''From:''' Rinsenji, Ōhiradai, Hakone | :'''From:''' Rinsenji, Ōhiradai, Hakone 箱根大平台林泉寺<br> | ||
I have just read your letter, and I am truly overcome with emotion. | I have just read your letter, and I am truly overcome with emotion. | ||
Revision as of 21:40, 28 September 2026
Postcard sent by Uchiyama Gudō to Itō Shōshin (伊藤証信), 2 November 1905.
- To: Itō Shōshin 伊藤証信
- Date: Written November 2, Meiji 38 [1905]
- From: Rinsenji, Ōhiradai, Hakone 箱根大平台林泉寺
I have just read your letter, and I am truly overcome with emotion.
I believe that the doctrine of the present-day sect is a false Dharma,[1] and that the head temple is a den of demons.[2] Yet the people of the place where, through fortunate circumstances, I now serve as resident priest have been followers of the Sōtō sect for three hundred years. Pitifully, however, not only do they know nothing of the character of our patriarch, Zen Master Dōgen—they do not even know his name.
If I were to abandon them, it would be impossible for thousands upon thousands of kalpas to plant the Buddha-seed[3] in this place. Therefore, until the authorities of the sect remove me from my position as resident priest, I am resolved to fight with all my strength, taking the truth of selflessness[4] as my sword.
My temple may not display the signboard of “Selfless Love,” but in substance it certainly is Selfless Love. So please do not hesitate to visit, whether for self-cultivation or for propagation of the teaching.
Notes
- ↑ Gihō 偽法: literally, a false or spurious Dharma or teaching.
- ↑ Makutsu 魔窟: literally, a “demon cave” or “demon's lair.” Uchiyama is referring polemically to the institutional leadership of the Sōtō school.
- ↑ Busshu 仏種, the “Buddha-seed”: the potential or basis for awakening. Uchiyama's use of the expression is significant here because he presents remaining at Rinsenji not as accommodation with the Sōtō establishment, but as a Buddhist vocation directed toward his own parishioners.
- ↑ Muga no shinri 無我の真理. Muga 無我 (“no-self” or “selflessness”) here also evokes Itō Shōshin's Selfless Love (Muga no Ai 無我の愛) movement.
