Namu Amida Butsu

I hope this video works (I hope you get sound to listen to it too). It was from Christmas day this past year.

I was going to title the Blog "Good Bye" because of the video, but Namu Amida Butsu seemed more fitting. Why you may ask? The answer is in Star Wars + Buddhims + Christianity.

Well, watching Star Wars lately made me think of the "force." Those fully in touch with the "force" and who have completed their task actually become even stronger and more influential after they die or are killed. They evaporate and are joined back to the "force" to aid those in the "force." Thus Obi-wan can help Luke destroy the Death Star in movie 4, even though Obi-wan had been killed by Darth Vader. Obi-wan was in the "force" and able to still guide Luke from it.

One can think of Amida, the source of infinite source of Wisdom and Compassion as that "force." In death, the soul reaches Nirvana and becomes extinguished, so to speak. The soul becomes part of Nirvana, it goes back to or get assumed into the great realm. And in Jodo Shinshu, that is of course of the primal vow of Amida to aid those who called upon his name. Amida is "force" because the "force" brings about that extinguishing to join the great beyond.

One can think that God is that "force." Christianity believes when one dies in a state of grace with God, they will be reunited to God in heaven. This reuniting of the soul to God can be explained as the most intimate connection between two beings, even closer than any human bonds. And because all Christians, living or dead, are in some manner connected to God, they are all connected to each other in a spiritual or "force-ish" manner. So, as I taught my kids last year, death is not the end of a relationship. Rather if you believe that the soul of your loved one is with God, and you believe in God, the perfect relationship that the three of you share is unending, for God and the soul have no end. Whereas when they were living, time and space kept you physically apart. In death, the soul is always with God and you're always in God's presence, so theoretically death can create an even stronger bond. This is part of the idea that makes up the Catholic teaching of "communion of saints."

So simply put, Im saying Star Wars-ism, Buddhism, and Christianity all teach the same thing on this issue: Ironically, death doesn't separate, but rather makes bonds stronger.

Tidbit By Thomas: (see above four paragraphs cause if that isn't a good tidbit, then I dont know what is!)