Sculpting the Buddha Within
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- $20.99
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- $20.99
Publisher Description
The definitive biography of Shinjo Ito, the founder of one of the main traditions of Buddhism, which has almost 1 million members worldwide.
This is the first major biography of Shinjo Ito, the founder of the Shinnyo-en tradition of Buddhism and one of the twentieth century’s most innovative spiritual teachers. Shinjo was schooled in the millennium-old esoteric Buddhism of Japan, and used that as the basis for developing a unique lay practice grounded in the principles and concepts of the Mahayana version of the Nirvana Sutra.
Sculpting the Buddha Within is an important book that traces Shinjo Ito’s evolution not only as a spiritual master but also as a human being. Living in a time of unprecedented change, Shinjo Ito’s personal life was often marked by hardships and personal grief, experiences that became the foundation for cultivating universal compassion. Committed to making buddhahood tangible for others and a goal worth aspiring to, Shinjo Ito also excelled as a sculptor of devotional images. His wish was to help his practitioners see their own potential for goodness so that they, too, would want to work diligently to shape and give form to their inner buddha. Rather than encouraging his followers to believe in a fixed system of practice or beliefs, Shinjo Ito taught how to live life in accordance with one’s buddha nature—and the gratitude, creativity, and happiness latent within it.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In his English-language debut, Japanese poet Kido presents a (perhaps too) admiring biography of Shinjo Ito, the founder of Shinnyo-en, a lay Buddhist order based on the Shingon sect of Esoteric Buddhism. Kido's main focus is Shinjo's life prior to the establishment of Shinnyo-en. Born in Yamanashi Prefecture in 1906, Shinjo showed religious promise and eclecticism from an early age and even built a reputation for his divination skills. Forgoing a career in aeronautical engineering (which he pursued until he was 30 years old) Shinjo suddenly decided to dedicate his life to finding ways to help people address their suffering. Shinjo sculpted devotional vidyarajas (Buddhist deities) personifying awakening and intended to instruct his students in shinnyo the innate goodness of every human being. He also wished to integrate the traditional practices of Esoteric Buddhism and the doctrines of the Nirvana Sutra into the day-to-day struggles of lay practitioners with simple meditations and practices. Originally published in Japan in 2006 as a series of scholarly essays, this first English translation is a significant reworking intended to serve a general audience. While Kido's adulatory and hagiographical tone will not be to all tastes, this reverential work effectively humanizes and explains Esoteric Buddhist doctrines and practices. Readers interested in nontraditional Buddhism will enjoy this trenchant biography.
