Monthly Archives: June 2018

LS32

Day 23

Day 23 covers all of Chapter 18, The Merits of a Person Who Rejoices at Hearing This Sutra, and opens Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma.

Having last month concluded today’s portion of Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma, we begin again with Chapter 18, The Merits of a Person Who Rejoices at Hearing This Sutra.

Thereupon Maitreya Bodhisattva-mahāsattva said to the Buddha: “World-Honored One! How many merits will be given to a good man or woman who rejoices at hearing this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma?” He sang in a gāthā:

How many merits will be given
To a person who rejoices
At hearing this sūtra
After your extinction?

Thereupon the Buddha said to Maitreya Bodhisattva-mahāsattva: “Ajita! Suppose a bhikṣu, a bhikṣunī, an upāsakā, an upāsikā, or some other wise person, whether young or old, rejoices at hearing this sūtra in a congregation after my extinction. After leaving the congregation, he or she goes to some other place, for instance, to a monastery, a retired place, a city, a street, a town, or a village. There he or she expounds this sūtra, as he or she has heard it, to his or her father, mother relative, friend or acquaintance as far as he or she can. Another person who has heard [this sūtra from him or her], rejoices, goes [to some other place] and expounds it to a third person. The third person also rejoices at hearing it and expounds it to a fourth person. In this way this sūtra is heard by a fiftieth person. Ajita! Now I will tell you the merits of the fiftieth good man or woman who rejoices at hearing [this sūtra]. Listen attentively!

Day 88 OF 100 of my 100 Days of Study covers a quote from Shugo Kokka-ron, Treatise on Protecting the Nation, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Pages 39-40. The quote explains in part:

Grand Master Miao-lê, in explaining the practice of the Lotus teaching in his Annotations on the Great Concentration and Insight, declared that the Lotus Sūtra would be easy to practice for the ignorant and slow in the Latter Age because they would be able to meet Universal Sage Bodhisattva, the Buddha of Many Treasures and Buddhas manifested in various worlds throughout the universe, by simply practicing the teaching of the sūtra. In addition, Miao-lê declared, “You may recite the Lotus Sūtra inattentively; you don’t have to meditate or concentrate; with your whole heart pray to characters of the Lotus Sūtra all the time whether sitting, standing or walking.”

The aim of this interpretation is solely to save the ignorant in the Latter Age. The “inattentive mind” meaning the mind of an ordinary person engaged in daily routines is contrasted to the “concentrated mind.” “Reciting the Lotus Sūtra” means to recite either the whole eight fascicles or just one fascicle, one character, one phrase, one verse or the daimoku; it means also to rejoice upon hearing the Lotus Sūtra even for a moment or the joy of the fiftieth person who hears the sūtra transmitted from one person to the next. “Whether sitting, standing or walking” means regardless of what you are doing in daily life. “Whole heart” means neither spiritual concentration nor the rational faculty of the mind; it is the ordinary inattentive mind. “Praying to characters of the Lotus Sūtra” means that each character of the Lotus Sūtra, unlike that of other sūtras, contains all the characters of all the Buddhist scriptures and the merit of all Buddhas.

Awakening to the Lotus

Social Action

Quote

There is one final element that deserves mention because it is so easy to overlook. Though not a part of our ritual practice, it is very important that we, as Buddhists, express the virtue of generosity in our lives. Donation to a Buddhist does not mean only the giving of money, but sharing our time and compassion. Therefore, social action should be an important part of our lives. This can mean many different things – Buddhism does not impose political or social beliefs upon its practitioners. However, whether it is working to feed the hungry, supporting disarmament, or whatever cause suits our personal beliefs within the context of Buddhist ethics, we should reach out to our communities and give our time and energy to make the world a better place. This is, after all, the goal of Buddhism – making this world the Buddha’s Pure Land and easing the suffering of all sentient begins.

Awakening to the Lotus

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – June 24, 2018

A bhikṣu who expounds this Sūtra
Of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma
With patience
After my extinction,
Will be emancipated
From jealousy, anger, and other illusions,
That is to say, from all obstacles.

The Buddha sings these verses to Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva in Chapter Fourteen of the Lotus Sūtra in which he describes the peaceful practices of a Bodhisattva. We may realize that jealousy and anger are not desirable states, but only because what these states do to our moods. No matter how justified we may feel in our jealousy or anger, these are not pleasant states to be in or even to be around. The Buddha reminds us that the real problem with these states is that they keep us from seeing things as they are. Jealousy exaggerates the importance of what we want but do not have. Anger exaggerates the bad qualities of the targets of our anger. When we focus on this wonderful teaching, develop our patience, and remain determined to benefit all beings, we see things for what they are, and are liberated from illusions.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

LS32

Day 22

Day 22 covers all of Chapter 17, The Variety of Merits.

Having last month heard Maitreya Bodhisattva detail how Śākyamuni’s teachings benefited living beings as limitless as the sky, we witness the reaction of the gods.

[The gods] rained down mandārava-flower ,
And mahā-mandārava-flowers of heaven.
Sakras and Brahmans came from the [other] Buddha-worlds
As many as there are sands in the River Ganges.

[The gods] rained down candana and aloes [powder],
And offered it to the Buddhas.
The powder came down fluttering
Just as birds fly down from the sky.

Heavenly drums automatically sounded
Wonderful in the sky.
Thousands of billions of heavenly garments
Whirled down.

[The gods] burned priceless incense which was put
In wonderful incense-burners of many treasures.
The incense-burners automatically went around,
And the odor was offered to the World-Honored Ones.

The great Bodhisattvas lined up vertically one upon another
To the Heaven of Brahman, holding
Billions of lofty and wonderful canopies and streamers
Made of the seven treasures.

[The great Bodhisattvas] hoisted before the Buddha
Jeweled banner adorned with excellent streamers.
They also praised the Tathāgatas
With tens of millions of gāthās.

I have never seen these things before.
All living beings
Rejoice at hearing
That the duration of your life is immeasurable.

Your fame is extended over the worlds of the ten quarters.
You benefit all living beings.
The root of good which they have planted
Will help them aspire for unsurpassed [enlightenment].

See Hombutsu

LS32, d21b, LS Introduction

Hombutsu

In [Chapter 15, The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground], countless Bodhisattvas sprang up from underground. [Chapter 16, The Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata] tells why they appeared. It is presented as an answer to the questions posed by Maitreya Bodhisattva, when he wondered about the marvelous phenomenon which he and his companions had witnessed. It asserts that the Buddha’s lifetime is eternal.

This eternal and immortal Sakyamuni is called the Original Buddha (Hombutsu), because he is the true form of the Buddha. On the other hand, all kinds of limited Buddhas are called duplicates, because they are traces or shadows reflecting the true form. Buddhism believes in many Buddhas, but they are all manifestations of the Original Sakyamuni Buddha. In this way, all religious faiths are seen as one.

Introduction to the Lotus Sutra

Basics

Pleasures and Pain

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Impermanence is not itself suffering. Human beings suffer because they fail to realize that all things change. Desiring constancy, they think their hopes are betrayed when they fail to find stability in a world that cannot offer it. For the person whose outlook and desires are mistaken, impermanence causes suffering. In the Buddhist’s long-term view, the inconstant condition of all mortals is suffering because all transient pleasures must pass into pain.
Basic Buddhist Concepts

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – June 23, 2018

No, good men! I do not want you to protect or keep this sūtra because there are Bodhisattva-mahāsattvas sixty thousand times as many as the sands of the River Ganges in this Sahā-World. They are each accompanied by attendants also numbering sixty thousand times as many as the sands of the River Ganges. They will protect, keep, read, recite and expound this sūtra after my extinction.

The Buddha makes this declaration to the uncountable number of Bodhisattvas who came from other worlds to hear him teach in Chapter Fifteen of the Lotus Sūtra. These Bodhisattvas had responded to the Buddha’s question of who would keep and expound the Buddha’s highest teaching after his death. They promised that they would remain in this world of conflict and fulfill the Buddha’s request. After the Buddha spoke these words, an unimaginable number of Bodhisattvas came up from underground and paid their respects to the Buddha. We can understand this story, and this image, as showing that our capacity for enlightenment, and our ability to benefit all beings, is already within us. We do not need an outside agent to give these to us.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

LS32

Day 21

Day 21 covers all of Chapter 16, The Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata.

Having last month considered the lesson of the Parable of the Skillful Physician and His Sick Children, we repeat in gāthās the many hundreds of thousands of billions of trillions of asaṃkhyas of kalpas since Śākyamuni became the Buddha.

Thereupon the World-Honored One, wishing to repeat what he had said, sang in gāthās:

It is many hundreds of thousands
Of billions of trillions
Of asaṃkhyas of kalpas
Since I became the Buddha.

For the past innumerable kalpas
I have always been expounding the Dharma
To many hundreds of millions of living beings
In order to lead them into the Way to Buddhahood.

In order to save the [perverted] people,
I expediently show my Nirvāṇa to them.
In reality I shall never pass away.
I always live here and expound the Dharma.

Although I always live here
With the perverted people
I disappear from their eyes
By my supernatural powers.

When they see me seemingly pass away,
And make offerings to my śarīras,
And adore me, admire me,
And become devout, upright and gentle,
And wish to see me
With all their hearts
At the cost of their lives,
I reappear on Mt. Sacred Eagle
With my Saṃgha,
And say to them:
“I always live here.
I shall never be extinct.
I show my extinction to you expediently
Although I never pass away.
I also expound the unsurpassed Dharma
To the living beings of the other worlds
If they respect me, believe me,
And wish to see me.
You have never heard this
Therefore, you thought that I pass away.”

See The True Form of Sakyamuni

LS32, d21b, LS Introduction

The True Form of Sakyamuni

We usually think that Sakyamuni led a limited existence, was born in India over two millennia ago, and died there at the age of eighty. This is correct as far as history goes. But from the essential standpoint, such a limited existence is not the true form of Sakyamuni. An eternal and immortal existence, which exists within and beyond the limited one, is the substance of Sakyamuni Buddha. The vital point of [Chapter 16], “The Duration of the Life of the Tathagata,” is that Sakyamuni, as a historical figure, declares that his essence is eternal and immeasurable. This declaration, the salient feature of the Lotus Sutra, cannot be found in any other sutra.

Introduction to the Lotus Sutra

buddhaseed

Developing A Capacity for Compassion and Wisdom

Quote

Because the Buddha’s life and heart exist without regard to time and space, his capacity for compassion and wisdom are equally as endless. We humans often have small hearts and lives and perhaps cannot imagine ever having as great a capacity for compassion and wisdom as the Buddha. We may never be able to conceive of living without hate, jealousy or anger. Through our connection with the Buddha, however, we can develop such a capacity for compassion and wisdom as well as connection with all living beings.

Buddha Seed: Understanding the Odaimoku