It is difficult to keep this sūtra.
I shall be glad to see
Anyone keeping it even for a moment.
So will all the other Buddhas.
The Buddha sings these verses in Chapter Eleven of the Lotus Sūtra. He is well aware of how hard it is to move from expedient teachings to the Wonderful Dharma. We have habits and attachments built up over many lifetimes, and live in a world that does not always support our practice. Still, one cannot underestimate the importance of trying, even for the briefest amount of time, to hold on to this teaching and bring it to life in this world.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 32 covers Chapter 28, The Encouragement of Universal-Sage Bodhisattva, closing the Eighth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
Having last month learned how the good men or women who live after the extinction of the Buddha will be able to obtain this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, we hear the vow of Universal-Sage Bodhisattva.
Thereupon Universal-Sage Bodhisattva said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One! If anyone keeps this sūtra in the defiled world in the later five hundred years after [your extinction], I will protect him so that he may be free from any trouble, that he may be peaceful, and that no one may take advantage [of his weak points]. Mara, his sons, his daughters, his subjects, his attendants, yakṣas, rākṣasas, kumbhāṇḍas, piśācakas, kṛtyas, pūtanas, vetādas or other living beings who trouble men shall not take advantage [of his weak points]. If anyone keeps, reads and recites this sūtra while he walks or stands, I will mount a kingly white elephant with six tusks, go to him together with great Bodhisattvas, show myself to rum, make offerings to him, protect him, and comfort him, because I wish to make offerings to the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. If he sits and thinks over this sūtra, I also will mount a kingly white elephant and appear before him. If he forgets a phrase or a gāthā of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, I will remind him of it, and read and recite it with him so that he may be able to understand it. Anyone who keeps, reads and recites the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma [after your extinction], will be able to see me with such joy that he will make more efforts. Because he sees me, he will be able to obtain samadhis and a set of dhārāṇis. The set of dhārāṇis will be the dhārāṇis by which he can memorize repetitions of teachings, the dhārāṇis by which he can memorize hundreds of thousands of billions of repetitions of teachings, and the dhārāṇis by which he can understand the expediency of the voice of the Dharma.
Thereupon Universal-Sage Bodhisattva said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One! If anyone keeps this sūtra in the defiled world in the later five hundred years after [your extinction], I will protect him so that he may be free from any trouble, that he may be peaceful, and that no one may take advantage [of his weak points].”
Universal-Sage Bodhisattva (Fugen, Samantabhadra) makes this vow to the Buddha in Chapter Twenty-Eight of the Lotus Sutra. In this world of conflict, it can seem like very few people are practicing the Buddha Dharma with us. Nichiren compared those beings alive in this world of conflict to the amount of soil in the whole earth, while those who keep and practice the Lotus Sūtra are like the dirt under a fingernail. The vow of Universal-Sage reminds us that innumerable beings support our practice and that in turn, we support them with our practice.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Once the Eternal Buddha reveals his unborn and deathless true nature, Buddhahood is no longer just a theory, or the achievement of a special person who lived in the distant past, or a remote future possibility. Buddhahood is the essential truth of the present moment that the other teachings point toward. This is why the One Vehicle teaching of the historical Shakyamuni Buddha is considered to be the reflection of the Eternal Buddha in this world of impermanence, while the Eternal Buddha is the ever-present actuality that is the source of all such reflections. It is important that we receive this teaching with faith and rejoicing, and spread it to others.
All this while Śākyamuni Buddha sat in silence. The four kinds of devotees also kept silence for the fifty small kalpas. By his supernatural powers, however, the Buddha caused the great multitude to think that they kept silence for only half a day.
We find this description of the Buddha and his congregation in Chapter Fifteen of the Lotus Sūtra. Innumerable Bodhisattvas have sprung up from underground and come to pay their respects to the Buddha. This passage shows that in our suffering and attachment, we have a different concept of time than the Buddha. The kalpas the Lotus Sūtra uses to measure time are unimaginably long periods. When a stone a mile on each side is worn down to a pebble by a celestial being flying past it every thousand years and brushing it with her veil, a kalpa expires. When we see the world on this scale of time, rather than the limited years we have in our lives, it opens us up to the Buddha’s wisdom.
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 witnessed the efforts of Pure-Store and Pure-Eyes to influence their father, we see the two sons tell their mother that their father now understands the Dharma by faith.
“Thereupon the two sons descended from the sky, came to their mother, joined their hands together, and said to her, ‘Our father, the king, has now understood the Dharma by faith. He is now able to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi. We did the work of the Buddha for the sake of our father. Mother! Allow us to renounce the world and practice the Way under that Buddha!’
“Thereupon the two sons, wishing to repeat what they had said, said to their mother in gāthās:
Mother! Allow us to renounce the world
And become śramaṇas!
It is difficult to see a Buddha.
We will follow that Buddha and study.
To see a Buddha is as difficult
As to see an udumbara[-flower ]
To avert a misfortune is also difficult.
Allow us to renounce the world!
“The mother said, ‘I allow you to renounce the world because it is difficult to see a Buddha.’
“Thereupon the [father came to them. The] two sons said to their parents, ‘Excellent, Father and Mother! Go to Cloud-Thunderpeal-Star-King-Flower-Wisdom Buddha, see him, and make offerings to him because to see a Buddha is as difficult as to see an udumbara flower or as for a one-eyed tortoise to find a hole in a floating piece of wood! We accumulated so many merits in our previous existence that we are now able to meet the teachings of the Buddha in this life of ours. Allow us to renounce the world because it is difficult to see a Buddha, and also because it is difficult to have such a good opportunity as this to see him.’
This tale of the children helping their father to understand the dharma by faith always inspires. This letter from “A Phrase A Day” puts faith in perspective:
Faith is nothing special. A wife loves her husband, the husband devotes his life to her, parents do not give away their children, and children do not desert their mother. Likewise, believe in the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha Sakyamuni, the Buddha Taho, all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and deities. Then chant “Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.” This is faith.
(Background : May 18, 1280, 58 years old, at Minobu, Showa Teihon, p.] 749)
“Gotama Buddha: A Biography Based on the Most Reliable Texts” by Hajime Nakamura is sold by the Nichiren Buddhist International Center under the heading “General Buddhism.”
If the point of the book wasn’t clear in the subhead – A Biography Based on the Most Reliable Texts – the author makes his intent in writing this book explicit when he opens his Preface with:
“My central concern in this volume is to elucidate how Gotama Buddha, or Sakyamuni, the historical figure revered as the teacher of humankind, lived his life and taught his doctrine.”
Having read this book, I’m at a loss to understand why the official Nichiren Shu organization tasked with the promotion of Nichiren Buddhism in the English-speaking world would find this book appropriate.
Keeping in mind that all Nichiren Buddhists view the Lotus Sūtra as Śākyamuni’s great vehicle capable of carrying everyone to the other shore, why does a Nichiren organization promote a book that has this to say of Mahāyāna Buddhists:
“In one sense Buddhism is a ‘founded religion,’ and in another sense it is not. Mahāyāna Buddhists rely on the one who teaches the Dharma, whether it be the bodhisattva Maitreya, Buddha Amitābha, or some other figure. They do not rely on Śākyamuni the individual. It was on this philosophical foundation that Mahāyāna Buddhism was able to declare its orthodoxy as the Buddha’s teaching.”
Page 261
The Lotus Sūtra does not rely on Śākyamuni, the individual?
There were a few tidbits in “Gotama Buddha: A Biography Based on the Most Reliable Texts” that I felt merited keeping.
The Mahābodhi Society built a large modern temple at Sārnāth, called the Mūlagandha-kutī Vihāra, in 1931. Just coincidentally that’s the same year five families in Sacramento founded their Nichiren Church. In addition, a Japanese artist, Kōsetsu Nousu, was invited to paint the murals depicting the life of the Buddha. This task required four years.
This is the description of the interior of the temple:
The central part of the temple enshrines relics discovered in Taxila. The innermost altar contains a replica of the fifth-century statue of the seated Buddha delivering his first discourse discovered in Sārnāth. (The original is in the Archaeological Museum in Sārnāth.) It is surrounded by banners and offerings of flowers and candles. There are also relics from Mirpur Khas and Nāgārjunakovda. Placed below the pedestal of the statue to the left is a long, narrow plaque inscribed with the words “Homage to the Lotus Sutra.”
Page 268
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, indeed.
Also of interest was this quote:
[The naga king Muchalinda sheltered the Buddha from rain for seven days while he was deep in meditation. When the storm had passed the naga] appeared in the form of a youth, venerating the Blessed One with the palms of his hands together and standing before him. Then the Blessed One, understanding the meaning of it, recited the following verse of uplift: “His solitude is happy, he who is content, who has heard the teachings, who has seen the Truth. Happy is freedom from malice toward others and self-restraint toward all living beings. Happy it is to be rid of all creed toward the world and to transcend all desires. The greatest happiness is control of the pride that comes of the thought ‘I am!’ ”
Page 222
Two points of interest. First is the “verse to uplift” itself. Reading these are what make such books interesting. The second point is the idea of a naga as a deity in the form of a cobra, with a great hood that shielded the Buddha from the rain. The Sanskrit means “serpent” but, as I’ve read before, the Chinese, not knowing what to make of this idea, transformed the naga into dragons. Of course, that gets picked up Japan. Nichiren, in discussing the Dragon King’s Daughter, says, “The Buddha helped a small snake, who was actually a daughter of the dragon king, attain Buddhahood with her present body.” (Sennichi-ama Gozen Gohenji, A Reply to My Lady Nun Sennici, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Pages 146-147)
Finally is the discussion of Śākyamuni’s visit home and his response when his father, the king, chides him for embarrassing his family by begging:
“Your lineage, O King, is the lineage of kings, but ours is that of the buddhas, extending from Dīpaṃkara and Koṇḍan͂n͂a down to Kassapa. These, and thousands of other buddhas, have begged for alms and lived on their alms alone.” And standing in the middle of the road, he recited this verse:
“Rouse yourself! Be not idle! Follow the Good Way! One who acts correctly rests in ease In this world and the next.”
When Gotama had finished reciting that verse, the king attained the first stage of the sage. He attained the second stage on hearing this verse:
“Follow the Good Way! Do not that which is evil! One who acts correctly rests in ease In this world and the next.”
Buddhism requires regular practice; in fact, most students of Buddhism – including those who do not necessarily consider themselves Buddhists – say that Buddhism cannot be understood without at least trying the practice for a period of time.
Universal-Sage! Anyone who keeps, reads and recites this sūtra [in the later five hundred years] after [my extinction], will not be attached to clothing, bedding, food or drink, or any other thing for living. What he wishes will not remain unfulfilled. He will be able to obtain the rewards of his merits in his present life.
The Buddha makes this promise to Universal-Sage Bodhisattva in Chapter Twenty-Eight of the Lotus Sūtra. When we who are living in this latter age of Degeneration keep and practice this Sūtra, we change the focus of our own existence. We lose our dependence on the things we thought we needed to make us happy, and thus learn to appreciate them for what they are. We set aside our fear of losing these things and gain the courage to handle situations we previously thought were impossible. We stop focusing on what we need to live and find gratitude for what sustains our lives.
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 dhāraṇīs of the rākṣasas and the Mother-Of-Devils, we hear Śākyamuni’s response and conclude the chapter.
The Buddha said to the rākṣasas:
“Excellent, excellent! Your merits will be immeasurable even when you protect the person who keeps only the name of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. Needless to say, so will be your merits when you protect the person who keeps the sūtra itself, and makes to a copy of this sūtra hundreds of thousands of offerings such as flowers, incense, necklaces, powdered incense, incense applicable to the skin, incense to burn, streamers, canopies, music, and various lamps like lamps of butter oil, oil lamps, lamps of perfumed oil, lamps of sumanas-flower oil, lamps of campaka flower oil, lamps of vārṣika-flower oil, and lamps of utpala-flower oil. Kunti! You [rākṣasas] and your attendants should protect this teacher of the Dharma.”
When the Buddha expounded this chapter of Dhārānis, sixty-eight thousand people obtained the truth of birthlessness.
The Daily Dharma from April 22, 2018, offers this:
The Buddha said to the rākṣasīs: “Excellent, excellent! Your merits will be immeasurable even when you protect the person who keeps only the name of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.”
The Buddha declares these lines in Chapter Twenty-Six of the Lotus Sūtra. The rākṣasīs are violent, bloodthirsty demons whose nature is to satisfy their own cravings at the expense of beings weaker than themselves. In the Lotus Sūtra, they learn of their capacity to use their strength to protect others and vow to the Buddha to defend anyone who keeps this sūtra. They understand that when they dedicate their strength to caring for other beings rather than destroying them, they gain the merit which will bring them closer to enlightenment. We learn from this example about our own natures, and that of the beings we share this world with.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
As I work my way through books on Buddhism, I’m constantly weighing them against Nichiren’s writings and the Lotus Sūtra. In introductory books such as Basic Buddhist Concepts and The Beginnings of Buddhism, I find pieces of Buddhist concepts implied in the Lotus Sūtra but glossed over. I wonder how this all fits together.
Chih-i has stressed the unique feature of the Lotus Sūtra by comparing the Lotus Sūtra with other sūtras:
“All these various sūtras aim at catering to the will of others [i.e., living beings], causing others to gain benefits. They do not discuss the intention of the Buddha, and to where his intention tends. The present [Lotus] Sūtra is not so. Regarding the doctrines [which make up the Buddhist] system [of thought], the Mahāyāna and Hinayāna methods of contemplation, the ten powers and [four forms of] fearlessness [of the Buddha], and various rules and customs [of the Buddhist religion], [the Lotus Sūtra] does not discuss them at all, for they have already been stated in the previous sūtras. [The Lotus Sūtra] only discusses the original career of the Tathāgata’s preaching, how he resorted to the sudden and gradual [methods of the teaching] in [his] middle career, and how he finally approached [his] end career [by revealing] the great cause [of universal salvation]. [The Lotus Sūtra exhibits] the framework of [the Buddha’s] teaching, and [makes known] the expedient means [the Buddha employs] to universally transform [sentient beings].
Mou Tsung-san also reiterates the superiority of the Lotus Sūtra, in a way which is akin to Chih-i’s viewpoint. Its superiority is demonstrated by the fact that it is not concerned with expressing certain doctrines, but it only establishes the merging and ultimate teaching in order to reveal the real intention of the Buddha for universal salvation of sentient beings underlying his various teachings. Mou Tsung-san considers this nature of the sūtra as belonging to the level of the transcendent. This is to say that the Lotus Sūtra is concerned with wisdom and insight into the Ultimate Truth. In order for one to understand this Truth, one first has to acquire the basic knowledge stated in other Buddhist scriptures.
Hurvitz has also indicated a similar view when he comments on the nature of the Lotus Sūtra. He states that the Lotus Sūtra takes the existence of a formulated Hinayāna philosophy (Four Noble Truths, dependent origination, substantiality of the dharmas, insubstantiality of the ego, personal release, etc) and of an equally formulated Mahāyāna philosophy (insubstantiality of the dharmas, bodhisattvahood, the Six Perfections, etc) for granted.
And as I read I discover the threads of Buddhism taken for granted and acquire some of the basic knowledge merged in the Ultimate Truth contained in the Lotus Sūtra.
