Is the base from which Heaven and Earth sprang.ĭraw upon it as you will, it never runs dry. But it is in this valley that life and creativity flourish. And like the Pure Land, Taoism is found in the valley and lowlands, a haven for those who do not fit into conventional society for whatever reason. Like monastic Buddhism, the Confucian ideal may be symbolized by the soaring mountain peaks, manifesting the highest achievements of the literati. We find a similar contrast in Chinese civilization. In contrast, the praxis of Pure Land Buddhism takes place by descending into the valley, the shadow of the mountains. The ideal of monastic Buddhism is transcendence of mundane existence, as if one were ascending to the mountaintop. In memory of Taitetsu Unno, one of the world’s preeminent scholars of Shin Buddhism, who passed away in December 2014 at the age of 85.
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