About the meaning of disaster

My name is Kameyama Junshi.
Claims that disasters such as the Great Earthquake have some meaning are simply interpreted by those who claim so, and it is Buddhism that sees that God's will is not at work there. Buddhism explains that everything “happens due to cause and effect.” Things happen due to various causes and relationships.
However, I myself don't think that all of those meanings are meaningless. This is because when it is beneficial to us, it can also lead to emotional comfort. For example, Izumi Shikibu, a female poet from the Heian dynasty, wrote a poem to mourn the death of my little child, “A child who tells me to know someone in the world of dreams is knowledge (meaning: my child who passed away at a young age was a Buddha who was born and died to teach me about the impermanence of this world).” I think it will be a source of comfort for those who lost their infants in the earthquake.
Also, as was asked, “We can only give tests we can overcome.” This idea may be beneficial for people who believe in God (people who say that God's will is at work in this world) like Christianity.

Now, does it mean nothing for Buddhism to hope for the future of this world? Of course, even if you wish for future peace, there is no guarantee that those wishes will reach the real world. However, where there are no wishes, there is no will, and I don't think actions occur where there is no will. For example, in Buddhism, there is something called the Four Pillars. When a Bodhisattva asks for Buddhism, these are the first four vows (“the unrestricted pledge of sentience - a vow to save every living thing above,” “the pledge to save all living beings above it,” “the Dharma inexhaustible pledge - the vow to know everything, even though the Dharma is endless,” and “the Buddha's path is supreme, but always a vow to attain Buddhism”). Based on these wishes, the will to walk the path to enlightenment arises, and action is born.

These are my answers.

I can only answer from the same point of view as Kameyama-sama from my own standpoint of Buddhism, especially from my own standpoint belonging to the same Jodo Shinshu as Kameyama-sama. For example, Shinran Shonin said, “Let's talk about the impermanence of life and death, let's leave the time of Nyorai in detail, let's not be surprised.”

Therefore, I would like to introduce the story of Dr. Kawakami Naoya, a Christian pastor in Tohoku who continues earthquake relief activities. The radio program Cafe de Monk, which this person is appearing on, is a good program where pastors, monks, doctors, and others involved in many earthquakes have appeared. You can listen to it on YouTube, so please listen to it. Pastor Kawakami's story.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuyigppMa9Q
I've heard it over and over again.

Certainly, I think it is sad to lose someone close to you due to a disaster.

However, the disaster itself only occurs when conditions are met, and I think it is human ego that attaches meaning to it.

There are places where people feel like they are at the top of the earth. I've only seen the human world.
However, it means that they are being kept alive in the larger work of life.

I think we should take more care of the Earth. The city is too bright at night. You can also dim it so it doesn't use more electricity.
I think it's important to cherish the Earth from such a familiar place.

In the first place, it is humans who say “disaster.”
Everything is a natural phenomenon in this world, but what harms us is called a disaster.

There is nature in this shaba world, and sometimes nature takes lives.
Then we have been reincarnated, and we have been born into this world as a result of the actions of our previous lives.
Now that I've been born, it can't be helped.
As long as we continue to be human, we cannot escape this natural providence.

The only way to escape is to break free from reincarnation and attain Buddhahood.
That's why every sect of Buddhism always explains how to attain Buddhism.

As for “hoping for the future of this world,” Buddhism says that the human world is a lost world.
No matter how much effort you make to make this world better, it won't change that it is a lost world.
Naturally, the purpose of politics and morality is to improve the world.
Buddhism is also responsible for this, but essentially it is slightly different.
It is said that this world is a place to end up in, and there is no place of absolute peace in this world.
No matter how much we try to make this world better, there's no end to it.
When humans gather, it becomes a phenomenon where if they stand on the right, the left does not stand, and there is nothing they can do about the fury of nature.

Of course, I think it's crazy not to make any effort just because of that...

Good evening Indigo.

How was the earth we live on made?

Yes, it is created by what we call a “disaster” from the standpoint of those living on it.

It's just that we humans treat crustal movements, rain, wind, heat, cold, and forest fires like “evil” with our faces on the Earth's earth, which has been repeated over hundreds of millions of years, calling them “disasters.”

We humans are the ones who arbitrarily choose a convenient place on the earth created by natural will, draw a line there without permission, and use it selfishly while insisting that it is mine from here to here.

No matter what kind of good person you are or what kind of bad person you are, there is no discrimination in front of nature.

However, it is also true that humans induce natural disasters.

It may be a reward for humans being caught up in the “greed” of “convenience,” but I don't think it's something that can be avoided, big or small, even if they coexist with nature without overtrusting civilization.

What's more, there is the reality that we continue to destroy the earth itself.

Unless we think about passive coexistence where we live “as a whole” on this earth, the existence of humans who continue to destroy this nature will have to be called “evil” in a nutshell from the perspective of this earth.

From nature's point of view, humans may be more of a disaster.

There is an aspect that disasters themselves are natural phenomena before they are called disasters.
A volcano is erupting somewhere today too.
An earthquake has occurred.
This is because the Earth is active.
Living creatures, starting with us humans, live there.
There is no “me” at all in the activity of space and Earth.
There are no private movements.
Selfless, colorless, selfless.
They work in a way that has nothing to do with human wishes and desires.
I am suffering from internal organs, and my internal organs also move completely unrelated to my will.
It moves even if I don't touch it.
You, too, should first realize that all of the activities in the world, starting with your own body, operate in a way that is almost unrelated to your own will, desires, and wishes.
By doing so, a second life begins.
It's not an activity centered on “me,” it's not about me; in fact, it's an activity centered around the world.
An activity where I became selfless and united with the world.
A way of life left to this world.
It's actually a very comfortable way to live.
I'll leave it to you, I won't do it, I don't have any possessions.
There is such a way of being.
It is only by doing this that humans are freed from negative thoughts like you.
On top of that, wishes, vows, and vows are very precious.
That's because it's a way of being away from “me.”
Buddhism is a vision away from “me.”
If you have a vision centered on “me,” hardships and likes and dislikes are born.
When you leave “me,” the facts unfold just as they are.
A person cannot be saved by thinking.
When you encounter “facts” as they are, which have left human ways of thinking and have no private opinions, you will find the real answer.

Indigo-sama

This is Kawaguchi Hidetoshi. This is my humble answer to the question.

We already have answers, but I would be happy if you could use the following as a reference.

Actually, there used to be a ridiculous argument called the “earthquake disaster punishment theory,” and in order to criticize it, I have considered the content of the question quite a bit. The following is the content, and I hope you can read each one even when you have a free time.

[Great Earthquake, Sky, and Good Luck] (1-11)
http://goo.gl/IZmwpq

My opinion on the theory of divine punishment so far [Great Earthquake, Sky, and Fortune] (12-47)
http://goo.gl/gPGHG8

Private opinion related considerations on the theory of divine punishment, [Great Earthquake, Sky, and Luck]
(48-72) ・Completed
http://goo.gl/w58ILI

Additional notes on my opinion related considerations on the theory of divine punishment
http://goo.gl/RXoLhO

Also, regarding disasters, I hope you can also refer to the humble answers below.

Question “I'm afraid of natural disasters”
http://goo.gl/rDTQ7q

“... we cannot defy natural threats... it is necessary to accept them, and we should acknowledge the sense of impermanence. Of course, if it's something you can prevent in order not to regret it later, it's important to make an effort to prevent it. We should work as much as possible on disaster prevention and mitigation. However, when there is nothing you can do about it, it is also important to accept that there is really nothing you can do about it and give up. ・・”

Also, I think it can be said that disasters correspond to “grudge and hate,” one of our eight struggles.

“... Ryokan Zenji says, “When you meet a disaster, you often encounter a disaster, but when you die, you often die, and the weather waits for the miracle of escaping disasters.” Even in the event of a disaster, it is essential to firmly accept reality as such and calmly deal with what you can do at that time as much as possible. Even if you worry about something that hasn't happened yet, it's nothing but disappointment. Anyway, it's up to you to sincerely face each of the realities in front of you and do what you need to do. ・・”

I'm really sorry for all the quotes above, but I'm sorry for your reference.

Kawaguchi Hidetoshi Gassho