Is the Nembutsu a Get Out of Jail Free Card?
In the Dhammapada, the Buddha teaches that our destination after death is determined by our deeds:
The doer of good rejoices here and hereafter; he rejoices in both the worlds. He rejoices and exults, recollecting his own pure deeds. The evil-doer suffers here and hereafter; he suffers in both the worlds. The thought, āEvil have I done,ā torments him, and he suffers even more when gone to realms of woe.
http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/dp01.htm
While Shinran is sometimes misinterpreted asĀ antinomian, he didnāt see the Nembustu as a get out of jail free card:Ā
It is deplorable that you have told people to abandon themselves to their heartsā desires and to do anything they want. One must seek to cast off the evil of this world and to cease doing wretched deeds; this is what it means to reject the world and to live the Nembutsu.Ā When people who may have said the Nembutsu for many years abuse others in word or deed, there is no indication of rejecting this world.
http://shinranworks.com/letters/lamp-for-the-latter-ages/16-2/
If we are sincere, our words and deeds will reflect a mind that entrusts Amida and rejects the evil of this world.Ā
We are not expected as unenlightened beings to be perfect, but neither do we have the right to abuse others.
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