Orange County Buddhist Church
Orange County Buddhist Church
An Introduction to Naikan Therapy
This past week I have had the most enjoyable opportunity to learn about Naikan therapy from a wonderful teacher and Shin Buddhist, Gregg Krech, from the Todo Institute of Vermont. Naikan literally means, "looking inside", but a more poetic meaning of it is, "seeing oneself with the mind's eye". It is a form of self-reflection and introspection that originated from a Shin Buddhist in Japan, whose name was Ishin Yoshimoto. Because of its origins in a Shin Buddhist who undertook intense self reflection, this form of therapy can really help us to understand what Jodo Shinshu is teaching and trying to achieve through its teachings. Gregg Krech himself, although he had been a Buddhist for many years, and had been studying Jodo Shinshu with the late Rev. Kenryu Tsuji, did not understand or could not fully relate to Shin Buddhism until he encountered Naikan Therapy. That is why I feel that Naikan can be an important tool to help others understand Jodo Shinshu.
Ishin Yoshimoto undertook a severe form of self introspection called mishirabe, which entailed going into a cave alone and reflecting for days without food, water, or sleep. Yoshimoto gained deep spiritual insight through this self reflection, but of course realized that not many could do it. He developed a form of self reflection that others could do in a week long retreat, and there are also other forms of Naikan that one can do on a daily basis or in a weekend retreat. Through Naikan Therapy, people can gain deep insight into themselves and their lives. Today there are over forty Naikan centers in Japan, and there are also Naikan centers in Austria and Germany. It is used in mental health counseling, for addiction treatment, for rehabilitation of prisoners, and even in schools and businesses.
Naikan involves reflecting on three basic, very simple questions. The first question is:
1. What have I received from _____?
You reflect on the person or thing that you put in the blank. For example, what have I received from my mother, or my father, or my husband or wife.
The second question is:
2. What have I given to _______? (mother, father, wife, husband, etc.)
The third question is:
3. What troubles and difficulties have I caused _______? (mother, father, wife, husband, etc.)
In the week long Naikan retreat, the participant would live and spend all day long, reflecting on these questions, starting from their mother, their father, and going on to the major relationships in their life. At such a week-long retreat, you would reflect, for example, on what have I received from my mother, and you would go from birth to 9 years of age, and then reflect on what you received from your mother through 3 year periods of your life until the present.
At our seminar on Saturday, Gregg introduced this kind of reflection in a simpler form and we all spent a few minutes reflecting on the three questions in terms of what we have received, given, and caused others troubles, just within the past 24 hours of our life. It was a good introduction to what Naikan therapy is about.
What everyone found, even through the short amount of time that we had, is that our list of what we have received from others, was much longer than the list of what we have given. We were also made to reflect on what troubles we have caused others, which is not something we do on a daily basis. Usually we want to focus on the opposite question, "What others have done to cause us troubles and suffering." This question is intentionally not reflected on in Naikan therapy.
Through this form of self reflection, we begin to see that we live our life not seeing the truth, the reality of our life, that we are supported, loved, and nurtured by so many people and so many things. We think that we earn and deserve everything that we have in life, but when we reflect deeper on what we receive in relation to what we give, we find that we don't deserve all that we receive, but despite that we still receive it.
Just for example, let me use my own mother and how one would reflect in answering these questions.
1. What I received from (my mother.)?
I received life itself, feedings, nursings, diaper changes, being bathed, clothed, taught how to walk, how to speak, how to act, praises, scoldings, taking care of me when I was sick, driving me to school, picking me up from school, cooking three meals a day for about 18 years, countless loads of laundry (with no dryer), ironing clothes, mending clothes, cleaning the house, going to my sports events, school events, taking me to the doctor, to guitar lessons, and on and on and on.........
2. What have I given to (my mother)?
Gee, I usually give her a mother's day card, an anniversary card or flowers, and her birthday. After that, it is hard to think of many things I have given......
3. What troubles or sufferings have I caused (my mother)?
Worry and grief whenever I was sick, and I was sick a lot as a child, -- worry about driving trucks and tractors on the farm, worry about driving to school on snowy roads, worry about going away to college, not listening to her or doing what she asked, cooking for my friends that I brought over at a moment's notice, and the list goes on and on and on.......
So you can see, in reflecting on these three simple questions in regards to anyone in your life, --- your husband or wife, your mother or father, your boss or company, can lead to an awareness of all that we receive, in relation to how little we give, and how much trouble and grief we might have caused others, without ever realizing it. All of this puts into perspective the troubles and suffering that others cause me. Before, the troubles and suffering that others cause us might seem like the size of a mountain, but after Naikan reflection, they look like the size of an anthill.
Shin Buddhism is pointing to exactly the same thing, to see ourselves in a true sense, to see life and reality in its truest sense, not in the colored, self-centered way that I normally see it. Naikan therapy helps to provide a form, a methodology for coming to that insight and realization.
Namuamidabutsu,
Rev. Marvin Harada
(For more information on Naikan: www.todoinstitute.org)
April 2007
