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Rev. William Masuda

Universal truths reflected in the Buddha-dharma abound in many stories in diverse religious and cultural traditions throughout the world. They express our common struggles and sufferings as human beings and the many ways of overcoming them. The stories often illuminate ways which allow us to understand and resolve our personal and collective sufferings. The process of understanding and resolution, while time-consuming at times, becomes clear in their import as we read (and reread), listen, and reflect on these stories as they "speak" to our heart and mind. Stories can also become like spiritual links unraveling the ultimate nature of our inner being through personal experience.

Here is one of my favorite stories/anecdotes which illustrate a dharma truth and teaching for me.

Once at the turn of the century, a Japanese sailing vessel became lost. On top of that, it ran out of water. Men were dying of thirst. Just then they spotted a British ship. The Japanese immediately signaled that they were in need of water.

The British signaled back, "Lower your bucket!" Puzzled, the Japanese signaled again, and again, (but) received the same answer. Finally, they simply did as they were told and discovered that they were drifting in fresh water.

The Japanese vessel had unknowingly sailed up the mouth of the great Amazon River, which at that time measured one-hundred miles wide. (Tetsuo Unno, Jodo Shinshu Buddhism)

Sometimes in our search to quench our "thirst" (desires) for life, we may look too far outside of our life. We may not pay attention to the very place we are and miss an opportunity for self-discovery and self-understanding. Quenching our life-thirst in terms of dharma is always in the here and now. "Lowering the bucket" metaphorically points to lowering our ego-self and drawing from the fresh water of true and real life. The signals are alerting us to pay attention to the very place we are in this here and now; to save us from our suffering.

Rennyo Shonin, in one of his letters, said, "If you look far ahead and pay no attention to the ground beneath your eyes, you will stumble. If you look too far ahead and forget to look within your self, you may bring tragedy upon yourself."

On another occasion, a listener to his dharma talk said, "When I listen to you speak on the dharma, my heart is filled with joy and gratitude. But, once I leave here, my mind becomes like a bamboo basket full of holes and I am unable retain the teachings. Rennyo Shonin replied, "Don’t fret. Simply place the basket full of holes and immerse it totally into the water! Place your ego self with all its imperfections and let the dharma fill and illuminate your total life!"

Stories thus have the power to transform our lives spiritually and take us beyond our normal "paralysis of analysis". Their living force, as in the meaning of Shinran Shonin’s comment, "(The Nembutsu) is inexpressible, ineffable, and beyond our intellectual comprehension", can unravel the mystery of our spiritual life immediately and directly. They can even speak loudly, at times, and awaken our inner being.

A teacher often taught his students by stories and parables. His students listened intently with pleasure, but, at times, were frustrated because they yearned for something deeper. The teacher was unmoved by their frustrations. Even as they sometimes objected, he would say, "My friends, you have to understand that the shortest distance between a human being and truth is a story." On another occasion, he said to them, "Do not despise the story. A lost gold coin is found by means of a penny candle; the deepest truth is found by means of a simple story." (William Dych, S. J., Anthony de Mello)

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