# Japanese Basic Course, Lesson 136

Narration and the written language

Source: https://1732studios.com/courses/ja/134. Data: https://1732studios.com/courses/ja/134.json.

## Buddhist origins and early sects · Narration 1 of 2

### A teaching reaches Japan

*仏教は紀元前五世紀頃 インドのシャカの説いた教えで* presents Buddhism as Shakyamuni's teaching from India around the fifth century B.C.

It says that religious training enables everyone to know the self, cast aside delusion, and live a life of truth.

*仏教が日本に伝来したのは六世紀頃だと言われている* means "Buddhism is said to have reached Japan around the sixth century."

### Temples and sects

*聖徳太子は熱心な信者で大衆仏教を日本にひろめられた* says that Prince Shotoku spread popular Buddhism in Japan.

*またあの有名な四天王寺や法隆寺を建てられたのも聖徳太子である* says that he also built Shitennoji and Horyuji temples.

Buddhism later divided into several sects. Saicho founded and introduced Tendai, and Kobo Daishi founded and introduced Shingon.

### Kanji: 聖 to 言

New kanji in these lines. Read down: the kanji, its reading, then the words it makes.

**1** 仏教は紀元前五世紀頃 インドのシャカの説いた教えで、すべての人は一定の修行によって「自分」を知り、迷いを捨てて真実な生活をする事が出来るというのである。  
ぶっきょうはきげんまえごせいきごろインドのシャカのといたおしえで、すべてのひとはいっていのしゅうぎょうによって「じぶん」をしり、まよいをすててしんじつなせいかつをすることができるというのである。  
Buddhism is a teaching preached by Shakyamuni in India around the fifth century B.C.; it holds that through a certain course of religious training, everyone can know the self, cast aside delusion, and live a life of truth.

**2** 仏教が日本に伝来したのは六世紀頃だと言われている。  
ぶっきょうがにほんにでんらいしたのはろくせいきごろだといわれている。  
Buddhism is said to have reached Japan around the sixth century.

**3** 聖徳太子は熱心な信者で大衆仏教を日本にひろめられた。  
しょうとくたいしはねっしんなしんじゃでだいじょうぶっきょうをにほんにひろめられた。  
Prince Shotoku was a devout believer and spread popular Buddhism in Japan.

**4** 大衆というのは自分と共に大衆が救われる教えであると言われている。  
だいじょうというのはじぶんとともにだいじょうがすくわれるおしえであるといわれている。  
Popular Buddhism is said to be a teaching in which the masses are saved together with oneself.

**5** またあの有名な四天王寺や法隆寺を建てられたのも聖徳太子である。  
またあのゆうめいなしてんのうじやほうりゅうじをたてられたのもしょうとくたいしである。  
It was also Prince Shotoku who built the famous Shitennoji and Horyuji temples.

**6** その後 仏教は 色々の 宗派に わかれて 発達した。  
そのごぶっきょうはいろいろのしゅうはにわかれてはったつした。  
After that, Buddhism divided into various sects and developed.

**7** 最澄（762-822）という 僧侶が 天台宗、弘法大師（774-835）が 真言宗を ひらいて、それを 伝えた。  
さいちょう（ななひゃくろくじゅうに-はっぴゃくにじゅうに）というそうりょがてんだいしゅう、こうぼうだいし（ななひゃくななじゅうよん-はっぴゃくさんじゅうご）がしんごんしゅうをひらいて、それをつたえた。  
A priest named Saicho (762–822) founded and introduced the Tendai sect, and Kobo Daishi (774–835) founded and introduced the Shingon sect.

```
Buddhism

Buddhism originated in the teachings of Shakya Muni, an Indian ascetic of the sixth and fifth centuries before the Christian era. The Buddha preached a way of life based on self-mastery through all-embracing love, service to others, pursuit of knowledge, and contemplation.

1 The Scriptures--sutras—of Buddhism were composed by the Buddha’s followers in the centuries after his death. Sects developed and his originally simple teachings were elaborated into complex edifices of theology and institutionalized religious practice. By the second century A.D., two main divisions had occurred, Hinayana (SHOOJOO) Buddhism, which retained the founder’s emphasis on salvation through personal effort, and Mahayana (DAIJOO) Buddhism, which held out the promise of salvation through the intercession of spiritual beings and the deified Buddha.

1 Hinayana flourished in Ceylon and parts of Southeast Asia. Carried north and eastward by missionaries and traders, Mahayana became the dominant form in Central Asia, China, Korea, and Tibet and underwent further

1 development and change in these new environments.

1 Mahayana Buddhism reached Japan in the mid-sixth century, not as a unified body of doctrine but as a variety of beliefs, rituals, and sectarian claims. The Japanese made modifications of their own, evolving indigenous forms differing from Buddhism in the rest of Asia.

1 A central core of doctrine, however, is held in common by the different schools and sects of Buddhism in Japan. These beliefs hold that the teachings of Shakya Muni as the founder of Buddhism are the source of truth; that the salvation is the attainment of Buddhahood or perfect enlightenment and liberation from the endless cycle of death and rebirth; and that selfless love, moral living, and meditation are the way to salvation. They accept the spiritual supremacy of the Buddha, of the law as revealed by him, and of the organized church. However, many variations occur in the interpretation of these beliefs, especially in the conception of the Buddha and in the approach to salvation.

1 Introduction of Buddhism into Japan is usually dated from 552 A. D., when the Korean king sent an image of the Buddha and some sutras to the imperial court with the recommendation that the Japanese adopt Buddhism as the most excellent of all doctrines. By the middle of the seventh century, Buddhism had been adopted as the state religion, and an imperial edict required all aristocratic households to have Buddhist altars. The initial impact of Buddhism on Japan was as an element in the political rivalry of the elite and as a conveyor of Chinese culture rather than as a religious faith.

Toward the end of the ninth century, two priests, Saichoo and Kuukai (Kooboo-daishi) were sent to China to study. Upon their return, they established respectively the Tendai and Shingon sects. The two sects differed importantly in doctrine, but they shared a predilection for magic and ritual, and they did not restrict the possibility of salvation to the educated but held out hope to the ordinary man. Both sects directly or indirectly influenced most subsequent developments in Japanese Buddhism.

1 The emergence of a military elite that came with the rise of feudalism in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries ended patrician domination in religion and government and opened the way for popular and evangelical forms of Buddhism to develop. The most popular was Amidaism. It promised salvation simply through faith in Amida Buddha, who established the western paradise or pure land for the blessed. Faith was expressed by repetition of the sacred formula, Namu Amida Butsu. First preached by Saichoo in the ninth century, Amidaism was developed by the Tendai priest Hoonen, who founded the Joodo Sect in 1175. The Shin Sect, an offshoot of Joodo, was established fifty years later by Shinran, a disciple of Hoonen.

1 The Nichiren Sect, named after its founder, is another evangelical movement of this period. Nichiren attacked all other sects as heretical and proclaimed the Lotus sutra to be the sole source of truth. Nationalistic in outlook, he identified his religious convictions with the welfare of the nation, denouncing the Shogunate in Kamakura not only for patronizing Zen Buddhism but for bringing about a division of political power in the country.

1 Zen Buddhism, which was taken up by the Samurai of the feudal period, began to flourish after the founding of the Rinzai sect in the early thirteenth century by the Tendai priest Eisai, who studied the doctrine in China. Zen’s rejection of both emotionalism and intellectual speculation, in favor of reliance for enlightenment on intuition cultivated by rigorous self-discipline, appealed to the Samurai. Zen monks became advisers to the Shogunate, and Zen monasteries flourished through most of the feudal period as great centers of Chinese classical learning and of domestic and foreign trade.

During the two and a half centuries of peace under the Tokugawa Shogunate, Buddhism was officially recognized as the dominant religion.

1 The most powerful school has continued to be that of Amida ever since the simple message first popularized Buddhism in the twelfth century. Salvation is attained not by individual effort (jiriki) but by the effort of others (Tariki)—in this case, by Amida Buddha. The Joodo Shin Sect now claims the largest single group of

1 adherents of Amidaism, and its temples (Honganji) are active not only at home but in the United States. Of the other Amidaist sects, Joodo also claims many adherents. The Nichiren sect of Buddhism, though only fifth in the number of temples, claims more adherents than any other sect at present. It still exhibits something of the fanatic ardor bequeathed to it in the thirteenth century by its founder. Its long association with nationalism drew many supporters in the 1930's, and even more since the end of World War II. For example, the Sooka-gakkai, an offshoot of Nichiren, launched a campaign in 1960 to gain political power and win public support, employing semimilitary tactics.

Zen’s continued strength is connected with its long association with the Samurai and later official groups and with its profound influence on the traditional arts. Rather than theological investigation or dependence on a savior (as in Amidaism), Zen’s emphasis on self-discipline, meditation, and austerity as the way to enlightenment has had special appeal for the educated and the military reared on the warrior code (bushidoo). Its procedures helped to foster the discipline and courage of the Japanese soldier.

1 Three Zen schools now flourish—the Sootoo and the Rinzai, which are prominent, and the Oobaku, which is less so.
```

```
But Sudan

2 Buddhist Altar: In the innermost room of the house there is a sacred place called the family Buddhist altar. Here the spirits of the family ancestors are enshrined. In the center of the altar a small image of the Buddha is placed. There are, on both sides of it, ancestral tablets on which the Buddhist names of the deceased are written. Usually it is the duty of the housewife to take care of the altar.
```

| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| 仏教 | Buddhism |
| は | leaves |
| 紀元 | an era; epoch |
| 前 | before, front |
| 五 | five |
| 頃 | approximate point of time (See Gram. Notes) |
| インド | India |
| の | See Grammar Notes |
| シャカ | Shakya MunijBuddha |
| 教え | teaching |
| で、 | --is and -- (See Grammar Notes) |
| 人 | people |
| 修行 | discipline; training |
| に | on (See Gram. Notes) |
| 「自分」 | self |
| を | particle denoting direct object (See Pattern Drill) |
| な | I wish, I hope, huh |
| が | but (See Gram. Notes) |
| 出来る | to be manufactured; to be produced (v.i.) |
| と | and (See Gram. Notes) |
| ある。 | certain, some |
| し | city |
| 六 | six |
| だ | to be (informal equivalent of DESU. See Grammar Notes) |
| いる。 | to need (See Gram. Notes) |
| 信者 | adherent; believer |
| 大衆 | mass of people |
| れる | to be able to --
(See Grammar Notes) |
| また | thigh |
| 四 | four |
| 寺 | Buddhist temple |
| や | and---among others (See Gram. Notes) |
| も | as much as, as many as (See Grammar Notes |
| 後 | after; afterwards |
| 宗派 | sect; denomination |
| 僧侶 | priest; monk |

## Buddhist founders, followers and altars · Narration 2 of 2

### Founders and forms of belief

*法然上人（1133-1212）は 浄土宗の 開祖である* means "Honen Shonin was the founder of the Jodo sect."

Honen's disciple Shinran founded the Shin sect. Nichiren founded the Nichiren sect.

*坐禅によって 静思し、みずから 悟りを ひらく 信仰である 禅宗は 栄西（1141-1215）によって 伝えられた* describes Zen as meditation and self-attained enlightenment. Eisai introduced it.

### The family Buddhist altar

*大抵の 仏教信者の 家には 仏だんが そなえてある* means "Most Buddhist homes have a Buddhist altar."

*仏だん* is the "family Buddhist altar" in the innermost room. It enshrines the spirits of family ancestors.

A small image of the Buddha is placed in the center. Ancestral tablets on both sides bear the Buddhist names of the deceased.

### Kanji: 静, 内

New kanji in these lines. Read down: the kanji, its reading, then the words it makes.

**8** 法然上人（1133-1212）は 浄土宗の 開祖である。  
ほうねんしょうにん（せんひゃくさんじゅうさん-せんにひゃくじゅうに）はじょうどしゅうのかいそである。  
Honen Shonin (1133–1212) was the founder of the Jodo sect.

**9** 法然上人の 弟子であった 親鸞聖人（1173-1263）は 真宗を ひらかれた。  
ほうねんしょうにんのでしであったしんらんしょうにん（せんひゃくななじゅうさん-せんにひゃくろくじゅうさん）はしんしゅうをひらかれた。  
Shinran Shonin (1173–1263), who had been a disciple of Honen Shonin, founded the Shin sect.

**10** 坐禅によって 静思し、みずから 悟りを ひらく 信仰である 禅宗は 栄西（1141-1215）によって 伝えられた。  
ざぜんによってせいしし、みずからさとりをひらくしんこうであるぜんしゅうはえいさい（せんひゃくよんじゅういち-せんにひゃくじゅうご）によってつたえられた。  
The Zen sect, a faith in which one meditates through seated Zen and attains enlightenment on one’s own, was introduced by Eisai (1141–1215).

**11** 十三世紀の 中頃 日蓮上人（1222-1282）によって 日蓮宗が ひらかれた。  
じゅうさんせいきのなかごろにちれんしょうにん（せんにひゃくにじゅうに-せんにひゃくはちじゅうに）によってにちれんしゅうがひらかれた。  
Around the middle of the thirteenth century, the Nichiren sect was founded by Nichiren Shonin (1222–1282).

**12** 今日、日本では 仏教信者の 数が 七千万ぐらいに  
こんにち、にほんではぶっきょうしんじゃのかずがななせんまんぐらいに  
Today, there are about seventy million Buddhists in Japan.

**13** 及んでいるが、その 内訳は 日蓮系の 二千六百万を 筆頭に、浄土宗系（真宗を ふくむ）の 一千七百万、真言宗系の 千二百万、禅宗の 一千万、天台宗の 四百二十八万という事になる。  
およんでいるが、そのうちわけはにちれんけいのにせんろっぴゃくまんをひっとうに、じょうどしゅうけい（しんしゅうをふくむ）のいっせんななひゃくまん、しんごんしゅうけいのせんにひゃくまん、ぜんしゅうのいっせんまん、てんだいしゅうのよんひゃくにじゅうはちまんということになる。  
Of these, the Nichiren schools lead with twenty-six million, followed by the Jodo schools (including the Shin sect) with seventeen million, the Shingon schools with twelve million, the Zen sect with ten million, and the Tendai sect with 4.28 million.

**14** 大抵の 仏教信者の 家には 仏だんが そなえてある。  
たいていのぶっきょうしんじゃのいえにはぶつだんがそなえてある。  
Most Buddhist homes have a Buddhist altar.

| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| 開祖 | founder; originator |
| で | --is and -- (See Grammar Notes) |
| 弟子 | disciple; pupil |
| 坐禅 | religious meditation |
| し、 | city |
| みずから | oneself; personally |
| ひらく | open |
| 信仰 | faith; belief |
| 十 | ten |
| 三 | three |
| 今日、 | today |
| 数 | number |
| 七千 | 7,000 |
| ぐらい | about |
| いる | to need (See Gram. Notes) |
| 内訳 | breakdown; itemization |
| 二千 | 2,000 |
| 六百 | 600 |
| ふくむ） | contain? include |
| 七百 | 700 |
| 千 | 1,000 |
| 二百 | 200 |
| 四百 | 400 |
| 二十 | 20 |
| 八 | eight |
| 家 | house, home |
| 仏 | Buddha |

## Teachings, arrival and early Buddhism · Questions 1 of 3

### Origins, arrival, and sects

*仏教は だれの 説いた 教えですか* means "Whose teachings are Buddhism?" The answer identifies Shakyamuni.

Other answers describe his teaching, date Buddhism's arrival in Japan, and name Prince Shotoku's actions.

*仏教には どんな 宗派が ありますか* means "What sects are there in Buddhism?" The answer names the sects in the narration.

**15** 宗教（二）——仏教  
しゅうきょう（に）——ぶっきょう  
Religion (II)—Buddhism.

**16** 仏教は だれの 説いた 教えですか。  
ぶっきょうはだれのといたおしえですか。  
Whose teachings are Buddhism?

**17** それは どんな 教えですか。  
それはどんなおしえですか。  
What kind of teaching is it?

**18** 仏教が 日本に 伝来したのは いつ頃ですか。  
ぶっきょうがにほんにでんらいしたのはいつごろですか。  
About when did Buddhism reach Japan?

**19** 聖徳太子は どんな 事を されましたか。  
しょうとくたいしはどんなことをされましたか。  
What did Prince Shotoku do?

**20** 大乗というのは どんな 事ですか。  
だいじょうというのはどんなことですか。  
What does Mahayana mean?

**21** 法隆寺を 建てられたのは だれですか。  
ほうりゅうじをたてられたのはだれですか。  
Who built Horyuji Temple?

**22** 仏教には どんな 宗派が ありますか。  
ぶっきょうにはどんなしゅうはがありますか。  
What sects are there in Buddhism?

| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| 宗教 | religion |
| （二）—— | two |
| だれ | who? |
| です | to be (See Gram. Notes) |
| か。 | either--or-- (See Gram. Notes) |
| どんな | what kind of; what sort of |
| ます | trout |

## Founders and forms of Buddhism · Questions 2 of 3

### Founders and Zen belief

*次の 宗派は だれが ひらかれたのですか* means "Who founded each named sect?" Each answer pairs a sect with its founder.

The sects are Tendai, Shingon, Jodo, Shin, Zen, and Nichiren.

*禅宗は どんな 信仰ですか* means "What kind of faith is Zen Buddhism?" The answer describes meditation and self-attained enlightenment.

**23** 次の 宗派は だれが ひらかれたのですか。  
つぎのしゅうははだれがひらかれたのですか。  
Who founded each of the following sects?

**24** 天台宗  
てんだいしゅう  
The Tendai sect.

**25** 真言宗  
しんごんしゅう  
The Shingon sect.

**26** 浄土宗  
じょうどしゅう  
The Jodo sect.

**27** 真宗  
しんしゅう  
The Shin sect.

**28** 禅宗  
ぜんしゅう  
The Zen sect.

**29** 日蓮宗  
にちれんしゅう  
The Nichiren sect.

**30** 禅宗は どんな 信仰ですか。  
ぜんしゅうはどんなしんこうですか。  
What kind of faith is Zen Buddhism?

## Buddhist populations and home altars · Questions 3 of 3

### Believers and the home altar

*次の 宗派の 信者の 数は どのくらい ありますか* means "About how many believers are there in each named sect?"

Answers give the figures for the Nichiren, Jodo, Shingon, Zen, and Tendai groups.

*仏教信者の 家には 何が そなえてありますか* means "What is found in a Buddhist home?" The answer names the family Buddhist altar.

**31** 今日、日本では 仏教信者の 数が どのくらい ありますか。  
こんにち、にほんではぶっきょうしんじゃのかずがどのくらいありますか。  
About how many Buddhists are there in Japan today?

**32** 次の 宗派の 信者の 数は どのくらい ありますか。  
つぎのしゅうはのしんじゃのかずはどのくらいありますか。  
About how many believers are there in each of the following sects?

**33** 日蓮系  
にちれんけい  
The Nichiren schools.

**34** 浄土宗系  
じょうどしゅうけい  
The Jodo schools.

**35** 真言宗系  
しんごんしゅうけい  
The Shingon schools.

**36** 禅宗  
ぜんしゅう  
The Zen sect.

**37** 天台系  
てんだいけい  
The Tendai schools.

**38** 仏教信者の 家には 何が そなえてありますか。  
ぶっきょうしんじゃのいえにはなにがそなえてありますか。  
What is found in a Buddhist home?

| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| どの | which (pre-substantive) (See Notes) |
| くらい | dark |

## Teaching, discipline and delusion words · Word list 1 of 3

### Teaching, discipline, and arrival

The field covers Buddhist teaching, religious discipline, delusion, truth, and the arrival of Buddhism in Japan.

*教え* means "teaching," and *修行* means "discipline" or "training."

*伝来する* means "be introduced" or "be imported."

**39** シャカ  
シャカ  
Shakya MunijBuddha

**40** 説く  
とく  
preach; teach

**41** 教え  
おしえ  
teaching

**42** すべての  
すべての  
all

**43** 一定の  
いっていの  
fixed; definite; certain

**44** 修行  
しゅうぎょう  
discipline; training

**45** 迷（い）  
まよ（い）  
illusion; ignorance; delusion

**46** 真実な  
しんじつな  
true; real

**47** 伝来する  
でんらいする  
be introduced; be imported

**48** 熱心な  
ねっしんな  
enthusiastic; ardent

| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| 説く | preach; teach |
| すべての | all |
| 一定の | fixed; definite; certain |
| 迷（い） | illusion; ignorance; delusion |
| 真実な | true; real |
| 伝来する | be introduced; be imported |
| 熱心な | enthusiastic; ardent |

## Buddhist believers, sects and monks · Word list 2 of 3

### Believers, sects, and practice

The field covers Buddhist believers, Mahayana ideas, sects, monks, founders, disciples, and meditation.

*信者* means "adherent" or "believer," and *宗派* means "sect" or "denomination."

*坐禅* means "religious meditation."

**49** 信者  
しんじゃ  
adherent; believer

**50** 大乗仏教  
だいじょうぶっきょう  
Greater Vehicle Buddhism or Mahayana Buddhism

**51** ひろめる  
ひろめる  
spread; propagate

**52** 大衆  
たいしゅう  
mass of people

**53** 救う  
すくう  
rescue; redeem

**54** 宗派  
しゅうは  
sect; denomination

**55** 僧侶  
そうりょ  
priest; monk

**56** 開祖  
かいそ  
founder; originator

**57** 弟子  
でし  
disciple; pupil

**58** 坐禅  
ざぜん  
religious meditation

| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| 大乗仏教 | Greater Vehicle Buddhism or Mahayana Buddhism |
| ひろめる | spread; propagate |
| 救う | rescue; redeem |

## Enlightenment and family altars · Word list 3 of 3

### Enlightenment, figures, and altars

The field covers Zen practice, sect populations, numerical breakdowns, and the family Buddhist altar.

*悟りをひらく* means "attain enlightenment," and *内訳* means "breakdown" or "itemization."

*仏だん* means "family Buddhist shrine" or "Buddhist altar."

**59** 静思する  
せいしする  
meditate; contemplate

**60** みずから  
みずから  
oneself; personally

**61** 悟りをひらく  
さとりをひらく  
attain enlightenment

**62** －－系  
－－けい  
-- followers, origin

**63** －－に及ぶ  
－－におよぶ  
be amounted to; reach into

**64** 内訳  
うちわけ  
breakdown; itemization

**65** －－を筆頭に  
－－をひっとうに  
with — at the head

**66** 仏だん  
ぶつだん  
family Buddhist shrine Buddhist altar

**67** そなえる  
そなえる  
furnish; equip

```
Guide for Free Conversation and Exercise

1 Topics:

a Talk about the following topics in Japanese with your classmates,

(1) The introduction of Buddhism in Japan.

(2) The different sects of Buddhism and the priests who propagated them.

(3) Buddhism in the United States.

2 Exercise:

a Interpretation Exercise.

1 Whose teaching is Buddhism?

1 仏教は シャカの 説いた 教えです。

2 When was it that Buddhism was introduced to Japan?

2 仏教が 日本に 伝来したのは、六世紀頃だと 言われています。

3 About how many adherents of Buddhism are there in Japan today?

3 今日、日本では 仏教信者の 数が 六千七百万ぐらいに 及んでいます。

4 What is so-called Greater Vehicle Buddhism?

4 大乗仏教は 自分と共に 大衆が 救われる 教えです。

5 Do all the adherents of Buddhism have their own Buddhist shrine?

5 はい、大抵の 仏教信者の 家には 仏だんが そなえてあります。
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Homework

1 Study the Narration thoroughly and memorize the vocabulary.

2 Read the Guide for Free Conversation and do the exercises given.

3 Learn to read and write the new Kanji.

4 Read the Cultural Notes.
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| word | gloss |
|---|---|
| 静思する | meditate; contemplate |
| 悟りをひらく | attain enlightenment |
| －－系 | -- followers, origin |
| －－に及ぶ | be amounted to; reach into |
| －－を筆頭に | with — at the head |
| 仏だん | family Buddhist shrine Buddhist altar |
| そなえる | furnish; equip |