What Lies Beneath the 'Agony and Cries'—What Does Amida Buddha Wish for Me, Who Is Unaware of My Own 'Suffering'?
The 'suffering' of extreme heat
Abi-kyokan (Agony and Cries) [Buddhist term]
[Buddhist]
1. The state of crying out in agony, unable to bear the suffering of the Avici Hell.
2. By extension, a term describing an extreme, tragic situation. 'Turning into a scene of agony and cries.'
Abi [Avici] [Buddhist term]
[Buddhist]
(Sanskrit: Avīci, translated as 'uninterrupted') The eighth of the eight great hells. Those who have committed the great evils of the five grave offenses and slandering the Dharma are born here, where they suffer without interruption from the sword-leaf trees, mountains of knives, and boiling cauldrons; it is the most painful of all hells. Avici Hell. Uninterrupted Hell. The Hell of Agony and Cries. The Great City of Avici.
Abi-jigoku (Avici Hell)
Abi is a phonetic translation of the Sanskrit 'avīci,' which is translated as 'uninterrupted.' It refers to the Uninterrupted Hell.
(Kōjien, 7th Edition)
This time, we will reflect on 'suffering' and 'salvation'.
Everywhere in the world, people are suffering from extreme heat and scorching temperatures. In Europe, temperatures have exceeded 40°C for days on end, and since many households lack air conditioning, social life is being affected. In Japan, health damage due to 'heatstroke' is becoming serious. It is said that elderly people, in particular, often endure even when they feel unwell, or fail to notice the changes in their condition at all, so that by the time they feel the 'suffering,' they are often already in a dangerous state. People only begin to wish for 'salvation' when they can no longer bear their suffering.
What is 'Avici Hell'?
Hell is described as 'a world of ultimate suffering that sentient beings head toward as a result of their own evil karma' (Jodo Shinshu Jiten [Honganji Publishing]). The 'Avici Hell' is where the voices of those crying out in that suffering continue without cease. The voices echoing in that hell may be a desperate plea to be 'saved.' However, that wish is never granted, and the 'suffering' continues. The Avici Hell is an 'Uninterrupted Hell' where the voices of suffering echo without pause.
Why does suffering continue 'without interruption'?
Terms of Jodo Shinshu
Hachinetsu-jigoku (Eight Hot Hells)
The eight types of hells where one suffers from intense heat. Also called the Eight Great Hells. They consist of the eight types: Reviving, Black Rope, Crushing, Crying, Great Crying, Scorching, Great Scorching, and Uninterrupted. 1. Reviving Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell have their bodies cut, but they revive and suffer again. 2. Black Rope Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell have their bodies wrapped in black iron ropes and are cut with saws. 3. Crushing Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell are caught between mountains and crushed, or ground in iron mortars, suffering many pains simultaneously. 4. Crying Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell are driven by various sufferings and cry out. 5. Great Crying Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell cry out even more intensely than in the Crying Hell. 6. Scorching Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell are engulfed in raging fire and suffer from the heat. 7. Great Scorching Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell are engulfed in even more intense raging fire than in the Scorching Hell and suffer from high heat. 8. Uninterrupted Hell: It is said that sinners in this hell have the most suffering and receive pain without interruption.
(Jodo Shinshu Jiten [Honganji Publishing])
Why does suffering continue without interruption in the Uninterrupted Hell?
Shinran Shonin states in the 'Jodo Wasan':
Because we are trapped in the delusion of sentient beings,
And doubt the unobstructed wisdom of the Buddha,
We sink into the Avici Hell,
Drowning in the myriad sufferings for countless eons.
He teaches us that our doubting the working of Amida Buddha is the seed that leads us to hell. The 'Avici Hell' in this Wasan refers to the 'Uninterrupted Hell.' Regarding sentient beings sinking into this hell for a long time, the left-hand commentary says, 'Seeing the sentient beings of the Uninterrupted Hell, one thinks, "How enjoyable this is." Those who slander the Dharma fall into this hell and dwell there for eighty thousand eons. They receive great suffering and agony.' Doubting the Dharma likely means relying on our own blind passions rather than relying on the vow of Amida Buddha.
'I think it's impossible'
It is said that when Amida Buddha was the Bodhisattva Dharmakara, even for a single moment, he never thought of himself, but continued to worry about sentient beings without interruption. It is Amida Buddha's joy to continue to make wishes for me.
When I hear this, I think that such a thing is impossible. If you continue to think of others without caring about yourself at all, that thought eventually becomes 'suffering.' In the end, it is easier to live according to one's own thoughts, and it is a joy to have things go as one wishes. And because I think that is natural, I don't even have the thought of trying to escape from it. That is what it means to slander the Dharma. Shinran Shonin teaches us that the cause for hell continuing without interruption lies on my side.
What Shinran Shonin continues to wish for
Amida Buddha wishes to save me, as I continue to pile up suffering and sorrow without even realizing that I am continuing to create hell, and to bestow upon me wisdom equal to that of a Buddha.
And so, Shinran Shonin continues to wish that I, who am sunk in the suffering and sorrow of hell and do not even think to escape from it, will walk the Buddhist path—reciting the Nembutsu, awakening to my own true nature, and taking the Buddha's vow as my foundation.