As we look at each others’ faces, we notice our facial expression changes from time to time. It is full of delight, anger or calm sometimes; but other times it changes to greed, ignorance or flattery. Anger represents hells; greed – hungry spirits; ignorance – beasts; flattery – asura demons; delight – gods; and calm – men. Thus we can see in the countenance of people six realms of illusion, from hells to the realm of gods. We cannot see the four realms of holy ones (śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha, bodhisattvas and Buddhas), which are hidden from our eyes. Nevertheless, we must be able to see them too, if we look for them carefully.
Nichiren wrote this passage in his treatise on Spiritual Contemplation and the Most Venerable (Kanjin Honzon-Shō). In other writings, he described Hell as not being in the earth and Heaven as not in the sky, but both within the two meter frame of our own bodies. In this work he shows us to look outside ourselves and recognize these realms in the beings with whom we share our world. The higher realms of devotion, perseverance, generosity and wisdom are more difficult to recognize, so difficult that we sometimes wonder whether they exist at all. With the Buddha’s teaching, we know they exist. We find what we look for.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 31 covers Chapter 27, King Wonderful-Adornment as the Previous Life of a Bodhisattva.
Having last month reviewed the preparations prior to going to see Cloud-Thunderpeal-Star-King-Flower-Wisdom Buddha, we’re off to see the Buddha.
Thereupon King Wonderful-Adornment, Queen Pure-Virtue, and their two sons came to that Buddha. The king was accompanied by his ministers and attendants; the queen, by her ladies and attendants; and their two sons, by forty-two thousand men. They worshiped the feet of that Buddha with their heads, walked around the Buddha three times, retired, and stood to one side.
Thereupon the Buddha expounded the Dharma to the king, showed him the Way, taught him, benefited him, and caused him to rejoice. The king had great joy. The king and queen took off their necklaces of pearls worth hundreds of thousands, and strewed the necklaces to the Buddha. The necklaces flew up to the sky [seven times as high as the tala-tree], and changed into a jeweled platform equipped with four pillars. On the platform was a couch of great treasures, and thousands of millions of heavenly garment were spread [on the couch]. The Buddha [went up,] sat cross-legged [on the couch], and emitted great rays of light. King WonderfulAdonunent thought, ‘The Buddha is exceptional. He is exceedingly handsome. He has the most wonderful form.’
The Buddha uses this description as part of the story of King Wonderful-Adornment in Chapter Twenty-Seven of the Lotus Sūtra. This King was led by the supernatural powers of his children to meet Cloud-Thunderpeal-Star- King Flower-Wisdom Buddha who was teaching the Wonderful Dharma in that world. The King and his wife the Queen were both so inspired by that Buddha that they allowed the symbols of their wealth and power to be transformed into a sacred platform from which the Buddha could lead all beings to enlightenment. When they found that Buddha, the beauty of his wisdom far outshone the beauty of their jewels.
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I am grateful to have been born a human with this precious body due to accumulated causes and conditions in my past existences. According to the sutra, I must have encountered and given offerings to ten trillion Buddhas in the past. Even though I did not place my faith exclusively in the Lotus Sutra, thus slandering the Dharma and being born poor and lowly in this life as a result, my merit of giving offerings to the Buddhas was so great that I was born as a believer of the Lotus Sutra.
Nichiren wrote this passage in his Treatise on the Testimony of the Lotus Sutra (Hokke Shōmyō-shō) addressed to Nanjō Tokimitsu. Unlike most of those who practiced the Buddha Dharma in his time, Nichiren did not belong to the higher classes of royalty or warriors. He saw clearly the suffering of common people and vowed to end it. He realized that the superiority of the Lotus Sūtra does not lie in its power to bring rain or change history. The power of this sūtra lies in its determination to save all beings, rich or poor, noble or common, deluded or wise. Nichiren’s offering to the Buddha was to spread this Wonderful Dharma. To benefit the Buddha is to benefit all beings.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Having last month heard the dharani spells of Brave-In-Giving Bodhisattva, we come to Vaisravana Heavenly-King.
Thereupon Vaisravana Heavenly-King, the Protector of the World, said to the Buddha, ‘World-Honored One! I also will utter dharanis in order to protect this teacher of the Dharma out of my compassion towards all living beings.’
Then he uttered spells, ‘Ari, nari, tonari, anaro, nabi, kunabi.’
[He said to the Buddha:]
‘World-Honored One! I will protect this teacher of the Dharma with these divine spells. I also will protect the person who keeps this sutra so that he may have no trouble within a hundred yojanas’ distance [from here].’
Lotus World offers this about Vaishravana, whom Nichiren placed in the upper left corner of the Mandala Gohonzon.
Vaishravana is the chief of the four heavenly kings. The Flammarion Iconographic Guide: Buddhism describes Vaishravana as follows: Vaisravana is the guardian of the north and the chief of the four guardian kings, ‘He who is knowing’, ‘He who hears everything in the kingdom’, the protector of the state par excellence, sometimes thought to be a god of defensive warfare. In China, he is considered to be a Buddhicization of the Indian god of wealth, Kuvera, the north being considered to hold fabulous treasures. He presides over winter and is black, so is also called ‘the black warrior’. His symbols are a jewel and a serpent, and he commands a large army of Yaksas.
Vaishravana’s army and attendants consisted of the kimnaras and the yakshas, two of the eight kinds of supernatural beings who are said to revere and protect the Dharma. The kimnaras are celestial musicians and dancers who have the bodies of birds with human heads and torsos. They officiate at Vaishravana’s court. The yakshas are a kind of flesh-eating demon or spirit who make up Vaishravana’s army. Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the Gohonzon
When we chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo let us do so with great joy welling up from within our lives, with the mind of praise for the Lotus Sutra and with the desire to enable not only our own self to become enlightened but for everyone to attain enlightenment.
Great-Power-Obtainer, know this! This Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma benefits Bodhisattva-mahāsattvas, and causes them to attain Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi. Therefore, they should keep, read, recite, expound and copy this sūtra after my extinction.
The Buddha gives this explanation to Great-Power-Obtainer Bodhisattva in Chapter Twenty of the Lotus Sūtra. In several places in the sūtra, the Buddha asked who would continue to teach this Wonderful Dharma after his extinction and lead all beings to Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi: perfect unsurpassed enlightenment. When he revealed his Ever-Present Existence in Chapter Sixteen, he assured all those receiving his words that his life is not limited to that of the physical body he inhabited. In truth he is leading all beings throughout all time and space to his wisdom, and this Lotus Sūtra he has given us is the embodiment of that wisdom.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 29 covers all of Chapter 25, The Universal Gate of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva.
Having last month covered lust, anger and stupidity, we complete the enumeration of the supernatural powers of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva-mahasattva.
A woman who, wishing to have a boy, bows and makes offerings to World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva, will be able to give birth to a boy endowed with merits, virtues and wisdom. [A woman] who, wishing to have a girl, [does the same,] will be able to give birth to a beautiful girl who will be loved and respected by many people because of the roots of virtue which the [newly-born] girl planted in her previous existence. Endless-Intent! Because World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva has these powers, the merits of those who respect him and bow to him will not be fruitless. Therefore, all living beings should keep the name of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva.
Endless-Intent! Suppose a good man or woman keeps the names of six thousand and two hundred million Bodhisattvas, that is, of as many Bodhisattvas as there are sands in the River Ganges, and offers drink, food, clothing, bedding and medicine to them throughout his or her life. What do you think of this? Are his or her merits many or not?
Anyone who keeps the name of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva and bows and makes offerings to him even for a moment, will be given as many merits as to be given to the good man or woman as previously stated. The merits will not be exhausted even after hundreds of thousands of billions of kalpas. Endless-Intent! Anyone who keeps the name of World-VoicePerceiver Bodhisattva will be given these benefits of innumerable merits and virtues.
In the February 1, 2017, Nichiren Shu News, Rev. Shokai Kanai of the Las Vegas Kannonji Temple, has an article entitled, “Before Trying to Become a Buddha, Behave like a Bodhisattva!”
Kannon Bodhisattava (the statue) with Omandara Gohonzon (the object of veneration, behind the statue)There is a big difference between statues of Buddha and those of Bodhisattvas. Statues of the Buddha only have one robe because they have renounced worldly matters and attained Buddhahood leaving them with no attachments to anything. On the other hand, Bodhisattvas are lay people. Therefore most statues wear garments, crowns, necklaces, and bracelets. Some Bodhisattvas hold a flower or a medicine bottle in their hand. Thus the Bodhisattvas are decorated with many jewels.
Bodhisattva means, “One who seeks enlightenment not only for himself but also for others.” The most well-known Bodhisattva is “Kannan” described in the Lotus Sutra Chapter 25. The title of the chapter is “The Universal Gate of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva.” Many Buddhists consider this chapter as an independent sutra, therefore it is widely accepted and read regardless of their denomination. The “Universal Gate” symbolizes that it is open to everyone! Some Kannan Bodhisattva statues, such as the one enshrined in the Nevada Kannan Temple, have eleven faces to perceive all directions.
The sutra teaches about benefits in this world. It says, “If living beings call the name of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva with all their heart when they are under various sufferings, the Bodhisattva will immediately perceive their voices and cause them to emancipate themselves from their suffering.”
There are two kinds of people who come to our temple. One group is seeking salvation from Kannan Bodhisattva. For these people, we do counseling, memorial services, kito blessings and teach them to have peace of body, mind and soul. The other group who comes to the temple wants to learn how to behave like a Bodhisattva. The Kannan Bodhisattva called them to come to the temple. They practice. chanting, Shodaigyo meditation, and studying the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren Buddhism. They are the leaders in our communities.
To behave like a Bodhisattva means to keep up your work in the office, do chores at home and help the community. Bringing happiness to others is behaving like a Bodhisattva.
The ingredients of the Physician’s Cure are the five practices of the Lotus Sutra – to keep, read, recite, copy, and teach this Sutra. All of these are simple enough except they are indeed very difficult.
Join your hands together and bow
To the person who keeps this sūtra
In the evil world after my extinction,
Just as you do to me!
The Buddha sings these verses to Medicine-King Bodhisattva at the beginning of Chapter Ten of the Lotus Sūtra. By extension he is giving this instruction to all Bodhisattvas and great beings of the universe, and explaining to them that those who keep the Lotus Sūtra are as precious in this world of conflict at the Buddha himself. If we hear these verses with a mind of ego and attachment, we could conclude that we deserve respect and begin to demand it from others. Those who demand respect only generate fear. The Buddha gained respect by respecting all beings. When we treat others as Buddhas, we are certain to have that treatment reflected back towards us.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 28 covers all of Chapter 24, Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva, and concludes the Seventh Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
Last month covered the benefits obtained by Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva-mahasattva, and now we return to the All-Pure-Light-Adornment World and complete Chapter 24.
Thereupon Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva-mahasattva made offerings to Sakyamuni Buddha and to the stupa of ManyTreasures Buddha, [benefited the living beings of the SahaWorld,] and left for his home world] accompanied by the eighty-four thousand Bodhisattvas. As they passed through the [one hundred and eight billion nayuta] worlds, the ground of those worlds quaked in the six ways; lotus-flowers of treasures rained down; and hundreds of thousands of billions of kinds of music were made. Having reached his home world, accompanied by the eighty-four thousand Bodhisattvas who surrounded him, he came to Pure-Flower-Star-King-Wisdom Buddha. He said to the Buddha:
World-Honored One! I went to the Saha-World and benefited the living beings there. I saw Sakyamuni Buddha and the stupa of Many-Treasures Buddha. I bowed and made offerings to them. I also saw Manjusri Bodhisattva, the Son of the King of the Dharma. [I also saw] Medkine-King Bodhisattva, Endeavor-Power-Obtainer Bodhisattva, Brave-In-Giving Bodhisattva, and others. I also caused these eighty-four thousand Bodhisattvas to obtain the ability to practise the samadhi by which they could transform themselves into any other living being.
When [Sakyamuni Buddha] expounded this chapter of the Coming and Going of Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva, forty-two thousand gods obtained the truth of birthlessness, and Flower-Virtue Bodhisattva obtained the ability to practice the samadhi for the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
I’m pondering the position of gods and the truth of birthlessness. The truth of birthlessness is first mentioned in the Devadatta chapter as something to which some of his disciples will aspire. In The Variety of Merits, six hundred and eighty billion nayuta livings beings obtained the truth of birthlessness after Sakyamuni revealed the duration of his life in the previous chapter. Realizing the truth of birthlessness is one of the benefits obtained by a woman, reborn a man, who hears of the Previous Life of Medicine-King Bodhisattva. And, finally, 68,000 people obtained the truth of birthlessness when the Buddha expounded the Dharanis chapter.
Today’s quote from Awakening to the Lotus offers this on life and death and, I suppose, birthlessness:
The suffering of birth, old age, sickness, and death are facts of everyone’s lives. No matter how developed science may become or how far medicine may advance, these cannot be avoided. Buddhism teaches, however, that when a person discovers that he or she exists within the life of the Eternal Buddha and can perceive the great stream of life flowing endlessly from the past through the present and into the future, he or she will escape the suffering that these events normally cause. Awakening to the Lotus
