Alfred Bloom > Quotes

“The hallmark of Shinran’s teaching is essentially “salvation by faith alone.” This teaching has attracted Western scholars because of its similarity to the Apostle Paul and Martin Luther’s understanding of religious faith. Taking seriously his inability to gain enlightenment on his own, Shinran interpreted faith as a gift of Amida Buddha’s compassion that secures salvation and spiritual liberation for even the most evil person.”
― Alfred Bloom, The Essential Shinran: A Buddhist Path of True Entrusting

“Shinran’s understanding of Buddhism is all-embracing and comprehensive, offering a way of life that can be realized in the workaday world, as well as the religious experience that we are accepted and destined for enlightenment, despite the limitations we encounter constantly in our struggle for existence.”
― Alfred Bloom, The Essential Shinran: A Buddhist Path of True Entrusting