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why the devil are there so many japanese buddhisms?
asf ar as i know japanese buddhism has possibly the largest number of sects... there are probably quite a different number throughout asia that i don't know about but i've only seen a big number in japan... pure land, nchiren, shingon, and zen (though zen is chán)
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I'm certain it varies greatly but a friend of mine. who is japanes, told me that a Buddhist monk came to bless the house every years.
That Monk was terryfied of their little dog.
for years, every time he came to the house, they had to lock the dog in one of the room.
Or perhaps he was just a monk who never made any progress?
I'm confused as to what you are suggesting. Are you saying that only those who have made progress are not afraid of dogs?
but the concept of fear, being a conditionned reaction, a part of your ego, isn't very advance and the monk should have got rid of his fear fairly soon if he would have made progress...
Nios
these Mahayana schools have their counterparts in China, Japan and Korea
on top of that the Chinese have develops some of their unique Mahayana schools themselve, likewise in Tibet and himalaya region
However after the conquest of the Mongol empire in the Mainland in far east ( and Mongul in India & central Asia ), the Chinese lost most of their school except pureland and Chan, while on island of Japan not harmed by the Mongol invasion retained most of the original school and also evolved to develop some of their own unique schools
And any serious Buddhist monks should have grasp enlightenment enough after 6 years if he practices seriously.
Enough to be able to be by himself and teach.
I believe there is a common misconception but it is that it take forever to walk the path.
after WWII, the Japanese people first time enjoy religion freedom for the common people, and it was a great awakening to the people. General MacArthur functioned as the Buddhist god Shakra Devanam Indra to liberate Buddha Dharma there.
As Buddhism spread from country to country, it adapted... it evolved, like all things, to survive. If necessary, it accepted cultural modification, including rites & rituals & beliefs. The survival of the Buddha's teachings was taken up by the bhikkhus and bhikkhunis, and as such each "tradition" took on a "self" of its own.
Even today these traditions hold firm, and change is difficult; just as within our own minds. Where schisms occur, it is more likely that a new form of Buddhism, based on an existing form but with some modification, is likely to emerge.
That we will ever know what the Buddha actually taught is uncertain, but we can each through our own study and practice find the answers. It is a good idea, and one worth repeating, to study the teachings of more than one tradition.
~
You must be fine with, if you decide to live and work in a city, your very life can end in two hours. Being hit by a car or mugged by a crack head. or having a weird unexpected stoke.
Doesn't mean that you are not going to do anything to prevent this, just means that even if you did everything reasonable not to take extra risks, it may happen unless you choose to live in a cave surrounded by electric fences...
How else can you deal with this? Freaking out, fear, stress, anxiety about these things will not help much..
Our own life is impermanent.