The Inescapable Inferno
"O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God
through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God,
but with the flesh the law of sin.( Romans 7:24-25)"
I read a novel "The Inescapable Inferno where I am destined to go to live \\the
story of Haya Akegarasu",which was written by Taka Isowa. In the story a man tries
look into the life of a priest of Jodoshinshu sect ,Haya Akegarasu (1877-1954). He
was‚leader of a Buddhism modernization movement, trying to make the Jodoshinshu sect
( Otani sub-sect) return to the mind of the founder Shinran. and later in his life
Akegarasu was promoted to Secretary General of the sect. At the same time, however,
he was criticized as a heretic, a robbery of religious world, a sexual maniac.
He realized himself to be such a person that was destined to go to live in the
inescapable inferno. He also realized that he couldn't be saved by any other way
than NENBUTSU (Reciting Amitabha's name) which had been advocated by Shinran and some
other priests. Thus the words"The Inescapable Inferno"indicate his own awareness
of himself, and originally Shinran's words in"Tannisho"(Shinran's Memoir) written
by his disciple, Yuien:
"No matter how much I may try to avoid, I am destined to go to live in The Inferno.
However hard I may practice asceticism, it is in vain. I have done the worse the
harder I intend to do good. Therefore, I have no other choice but to be saved by
believing in Amitabha who offers to save us freely."
Shinran established Buddhism of "faith only" together with his teacher Honen against
conventional Buddhism, as Martin Luther, the reformer, established Protestant.
Luther's idea "faith only" was actually the idea of Paul, the Apostle. In fact Paul
said almost the same thing as Shinran said:
"O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?"
Paul asserts that he will never be justified by observing the law of God, neither
saved in the method of being righteous in presence of God, like the religion of the
Jew. Paul was more enthusiastic to observe the law of God than anyone else. He was
serious and tried to live virtuously before God. He became aware that he was not able
to be righteous for all his efforts. Consequently, he had to say that he was "the
foremost of sinners" (‡TTimothy 1:15). It is a "wretched man"shut up in "a body
of death," he said.
These words "a body of death" have a double meaning. Needless to say, one is
that everyone must die a "biological death." It is a problem, too. Everybody
dislikes to die. It is fearful. But the other is a more fearful thing. In
comparison with the 2nd, the 1st death is really not fearful. Because there is the
2nd death, the 1st death is fearful, too.
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who
overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.( Revelation 2:11 )" '
This 2nd death is the one that Paul mentioned as "the wages of sin."
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)"
What is the 2nd death that we must fear? It is to die without his sin being
forgiven. Except for wild animals, plants and little infants, none of us can escape
the 2nd death . We die with our sin on our shoulder, and we must accept judgments at
the same time as we die or soon after our death. The last judgment is the one that
the whole human society should receive. It is proper to think that each person
should receive a judgment soon after he or she dies.
"And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,
(Hebrews 9:27)"
As is well-known, in Buddhism (in common belief) it is said that people are drawn
before Yama (the Judge of Hades), and judged for their conducts they have done in
their lives. And many of them are driven to the hell. The words that Shinran spat
out with a deep sigh looking back at his life were that "The Inferno is the very
place where I am destined to go to live."
The words of Paul,"this body doomed to death( Romans 7:24)" have the same meaning
as those of Shinran who thought himself to be"destined to go to live in the Inferno."
Dear readers,please reflect upon yourselves.
Is there anyone who can say, "I am never related with the Inferno?" Probably you
may think that "Judgment after death" is a superstition.
But we cannot ignore the fact that the ideas like "Judgment after death" exist
throughout the world. It is probably related with "panoramic life recollection",
one of Near Death Experience (NDE) that is an experience common to mankind.
According to this idea that, people are said to recall the whole life within a
moment when they are about to die. According to many testimonies, people are said to
see their whole life as if they were seeing a panoramic photograph.
According to the Gallup poll in 1982, 32% of the people who had NDE experienced
this "panoramic life recollection."
Let's see " panoramic life recollection" introduced in the book "Near Death
Experience Vol.1" written by Takashi Tachibana.
An American woman Barbara Harris fell into a critical condition after the operation
of her spine, because of the sharp decrease of her blood pressure. She had been an
atheist till then. Once she experienced secession out of the body, one of NDE, then
she saw "panoramic life recollection,"
The interviewer is Takashi Tachibana:
"One week after that, the 2nd experience occurred to me. I got out of my body
again, and entered into darkness. Looking down, I found myself lying in bed. But
this time I was in a foam"
"What's a foam?"
"It looked like a big soap bubble. (Omission) I noticed that thousands of foams were
floating here and there. There were various "Barbara"s in foams. My whole life was
in the innumerable bubbles."
"Did you yourself in bubbles look like still pictures or animating pictures?"
"They were moving. And when ‚hentered a bubble, I could experience myself of the
time again. I felt the presence of God beside me in front of the numerous foams.
(Omission) I experienced my life with the help of God. And then‚hrealized the
meaning of each scene of my life, and I could consent to all of them. (Omission) So
I became able to forgive everyone and myself, too. (Omission) After I saw myself in
those bubbles and re-experienced my 32-year life again, I was completely changed.
(Omission) I realized why I was born. I was filled with joy to live."
This is what I heard directly; a certain woman happened to be on a drying platform
on the roof at the time of the earthquake in Hachinohe. When the house collapsed,
she fell to the ground with a drying platform and recalled her whole life in a second.
She said that she became not afraid to die after this experience. There are many
examples of "panoramic life recollection."like this. If that is true, we are obliged
to see our own conducts when we are dying.
The Barbara's case is positive and desirable, but I have to say that there are
many negative cases. Although we want to forget all disagreeable things, there is
something hateful we cannot forget by any means. We try to put them out of our
memory. Soon after or before our death, however, we are compelled to see the
conducts we have done or our sins that we have committed during our lives. The
Mirror "Johari"of Yama, the Judge of Hades' agency is the very reflection of this
fact, I think.
It is written this way in the Bible:
"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may
receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or
bad. (2 Corinthians 5:10)"
It is a serious matter that all our conducts are brought to light when we die.
No man can bear it, I'm afraid. All of us will be disqualified. Since Paul was an
honest person, he confessed that he himself was such a defective person. He mentioned
that he was caught in"the body of death." Needless to say, this death is "the 2nd
death." I would like to say repeatedly that what we should fear is "the 2nd death"
i.e. Judgment after death. And by the words"the body of death" you mean you are
judged and driven to the Inferno. Even if it were not for the world after death,we
have to recall our whole life when we are about to die. I'm afraid that we are not
able to pass away in peace if we realize that we have a lot of things left unforgiven.
This might as well be the hell after all. Even for a materialist who doesn't believe
in that world, it might be regrettable to leave this world with a heavy, unforgiven
burden. Yes, for him there's not a world after death, so he has no chance to make up
for it. Since it is certain that there is "panoramic life recollection"according to
the recent studies of NDE, whether there is a world after death or not, it is also
certain that there is "the 2nd death"i.e."the judgment soon after or before death."
I am sure that the death without being forgiven actually exists. If I can say
those feelings are the hell, the hell no doubt awaits the materialist. It is true
that I am destined to go to live in the inescapable inferno.
"What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For
the end of those things is death.( Romans 6:21)"
As ‚hsay repeatedly, this "death" is "the 2nd death." And Paul had to scream
"Who will deliver me from this body of death?"
Here, facing the despair, we can find the way of solution. Right after the scream
of desperation, Paul said:
"Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God -through Jesus Christ
our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God,but with the flesh the
law of sin."( Romans 7:24-25)"
Yes, it is Jesus Christ Himself that will deliver us from this "body of the 2nd
death." "It is Christ who died,"in place of me who am destined to fall into the
hell,"and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God,also makes
intercession for us.( Romans 8:34), " saying to me "Assuredly, I say to you, today
you will be with Me in Paradise. (Luke 23:43) "
Meanwhile we have committed lots of crimes throughout the life,and have to
apologize to numerous people. But it is impossible to meet all of them in order to
apologize, and to be forgiven before we die. On behalf of us Jesus Christ will
apologize by crucifying himself. In place of people and in place of God, Jesus
Christ will forgive us. Now I can pass away! Now I can be released from the
situation that I can not leave this world even if I die. We all die "the 1st death".
It is the natural death of creatures. But "the 2nd death", which is really fearful,
has been overcome. Death has been deprived of its sting and become something which is
not fearful.
Paul declared the victory triumphantly:
"O Death, where is your sting? O Hades,where is your victory? (1 Corinthians 15:55)"
And he announced that Eternal life is promised:
"But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have
your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:22-23)"
We consider that Paul got this conviction not by his logical reasoning but byhis
experience. Paul had a experience of revelation that we might consider to be the
same kind experience as NDE.
We can read it in 2 Corinthians 12:1-4:
"It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and
revelations of the Lord: I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago-whether in the
body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows-such a one was
caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man-whether in the body or out of
the body I do not know, God knows-how he was caught up into Paradise and heard
inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.(2 Corinthians 12:1-4)"
Well, let's recall Barbara Harris again. Barbara said:
"So I became able to forgive everyone and myself, too. (Omission) After I saw
myself in those bubbles and re-experienced my 32-year life again, I was completely
changed. (Omission) I realized why I was born. I was filled with joy to live."
As Barbara said, the conviction that we ourselves are forgiven is the same as the
fact that we can forgive others at the same time. Please remember the phrase of the
Lord's Prayer "And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted
to us. (Luke 11:4)"
To be able to die with forgiving others and conviction of being forgiven by others
is to be able to die after life full of joy. It is also the life of love and death
to die while loving. "The 2nd death" that should be really feared has already been
overcome. Love excels death.
"We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren.
He who does not love his brother abides in death.(1 John 3:14)"
Today's message is coming near to an end. Since I began with Shinran's words, I'd
like to end with the words of the same person. It is the phrases at the beginning of
"Tannisho."
"When I begin to intend to recite Buddhist invocation (recite Amitabha's name),
believing that I am sure to be saved by Amitabha and to go to Jodo (Buddhist Paradise),
immediately I shall be saved and never deserted."
In our Christian words, "When I begin to intend to pray in Jesus' name, believing
that I am sure to be saved by Christ and to go to the Paradise, immediately I am saved
and assured of entering into the Eternal Life." It is not due to the achievement on
my side by any means but due to the grace of God, the gift of God. that I, who am
destined to go to live in the inescapable Inferno, am saved.
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord.(Romans 6:23)"
[Translated by Hiroshi Takasaki with the kind help of Mr.Yoh-ichi Kakuno]
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