The Shin Buddhist path may be summed up in three phases: descriptive, evocative, and creative. Buddhism, including Shin, does not give clear and firm directives for everyday living. It is not prescriptive. Nor does it have solutions to every social problem confronting us. Its utility value is not a compelling concern. . . . It is primarily descriptive. By awakening to reality as-it-is and shattering false constructs about self and world, a person is on the right path to wisdom and compassion, and it may be used to change oneself and the world.

Taitetsu Unno, Shin Buddhism