Fascinating worldview of a Shinto priest

Motek

Sun, Aug 24 2008, 6:58 pm

by Rabbi David Zeller

One summer, driving on my way to the annual conference of the Association of Humanistic Psychology, in New Orleans , I stopped in Arizona , to visit Nakasono Sensei, a Japanese Shinto priest, who was also a master of acupuncture. From a nearby rest stop, I called Nakasono, hoping that he would be available for a spontaneous visit. “Hello, this is David, I’m a friend of your client, Dora. I’m passing through, and am wondering if I might stop over for a short visit.”To my relief and delight, he warmly replied, “Welcome, David. Come right over.”

After introducing ourselves, he looked at me with his clear brown eyes and asked, “David, are you Jewish?”

I was not orthodox at the time, but mentioned that I had lived in Israel for two years before living in India , as an ascetic monk, called a Sadhu, for a year. Namurati said that in the oral tradition of his Shinto religion, there was an interesting story about the Jews.

“David, do you know what is meant by oral tradition?” he asked. I assured him I knew what oral tradition meant. And this is what he told me:

According to the Shinto oral tradition, there had been a meeting of great spiritual teachers several thousand years ago, to report on the progress of their mission: Had they succeeded in leading various peoples around the world to a spiritual awakening and evolution? Many reported of their success – from the wisdom of the Vedas in India , to the Tao, and the I Ching in China , to the Aztec civilization in South America , etc. Everyone felt quite good and was feeling their assignment was completed. But one person raised a troubling question.

“Wasn’t our mission to lead people through a material awakening and a spiritual awakening and evolution and then to bring the two together? If it was just a spiritual process, what need is there for coming into this material world? But our task was to bring the two – material and spiritual – together.”

“You're right,” said the group’s leader. “We were supposed to lead people first through a material awakening and then a spiritual one, and then unite them. But who amongst you will take this on?”

No one wanted that responsibility. These were all enlightened people, they knew that material development could only be reached by going through possessiveness, competition, aggression, violence and war – no one wanted to do that.

“No volunteers?” asked the leader. “Then I'll have to choose someone.”

“So,” said Nakasono Sensei, pausing briefly and looking straight at me, “the ‘chosen people’ - were the Jews.” Then he went on with his story:

“From then on, all spiritual traditions were split between the exoteric and esoteric, between the mundane and the secret, between religious dogma and spiritual experience. Because, Sensei explained, if people knew only about the spiritual reality, they would not be motivated to develop the material world and to synthesize these two realms.

The tablets of the Ten Commandments became the universal, and particularly the Jewish symbol of this process: Spirit inscribed in Stone, spirit in matter.

... Sensei continued, "Jews did a wonderful job developing the material. Wonderful job! But they forgot about the spiritual. If you don't bring the spiritual and material together, the whole world will blow up! I don't care, I'm ready to go," he laughed. "My job is just to remind Jews what their job is."

I was quite stunned by this story and its message. But I'd been around the world, studying many of the world traditions, so I said, "That's very well and good, but Jews aren't the only people worried about the future and its dire consequences. The Hopis have a similar message, saying if people don't get their Spirit and Matter together, 'purification da' is coming and everything will burn."

The priest replied in his Japanese-modified English, "Hopi people wonderful people. Hopi religion wonderful religion. But Hopi not responsible for whole world. Jews responsible for whole world."

I said, "The Buddhists speak about the end of days and the coming of ... and of our need to achieve higher states of compassion and being."

"Buddhist people wonderful people. Buddhist religion wonderful religion. Buddhist not responsible for whole world. Jews responsible for whole world.

I went through Christian, Hindu, and Sufi teachings and several others. To each, Sensei answered, "Wonderful people, wonderful religion. But not responsible for whole world. Jews responsbile for whole world.

I didn't hear him saying that Judaism was better than other faiths. Rather,I understood that each people and tradition had been chosen to do a particular task for all of humanity. Just as each organ in our body must fulfill its "destiny" and function for the overall health of the whole body, so each religious tradition has its function in the body of humankind.

I came away from the conversation with a new understanding of the Commandments, and a new appreciation for Judaism. It was really quite unique from many other religions, especially by insisting that we live in the material world and in the spiritual world. No monasteries. No retreating from the world. Rather a day- to- day life filled with practices that can unite each material act with spiritual intention.

The word mitzvah, usually translated as commandment, can also be translated to mean “to join together.” We are “en-joined” to live in such a way as to constantly join together heaven and earth, spirit and matter. Acting in such a sacred manner joins us to G-d; G-d is One with us and G-d flows through us in everything we do.

No retreat? I must correct myself. Judaism gives us a spiritual retreat once a week in the Sabbath. Six days a week, we work to bring an aspect of the spiritual into the everyday material. One day a week, we strive to bring the material into the spiritual. In between our spiritual activities of prayers, rituals and ceremonies we have the material through wondeful meals (though all cooking is completed before the Sabbath begins) – spiced with inspirational learning and song.

If the Ten Commandments are Spirit in Matter, then our Sabbath is Matter in Spirit. Together, they keep our lives balanced.