Only the Bodhisattvas of the Earth, the original disciples of the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha, are able to teach the essential teaching [during the Latter Age of the Dharma when no other teaching is radical enough to shake beings out of their complacency, obstinacy, and spiritual blindness]. Even then, however, the provisional bodhisattvas are still present and able to protect and assist the Bodhisattvas of the Earth in accomplishing their mission.
Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the GohonzonMonthly Archives: October 2018
Daily Dharma – Oct. 16, 2018
Medicine-King! This sūtra is the store of the hidden core of all the Buddhas. Do not give it to others carelessly! It is protected by the Buddhas, by the World-Honored Ones. It has not been expounded explicitly. Many people hate it with jealousy even in my lifetime. Needless to say, more people will do so after my extinction.
The Buddha makes this declaration to Medicine-King Bodhisattva in Chapter Ten of the Lotus Sūtra. For us who recognize how the Buddha’s teaching transforms our lives and the world, it can be hard to imagine that anyone would reject it. However, there are beings who are so filled with fear and delusion that they mistake the Buddha’s good medicine for poison. While we are committed to leading all beings to enlightenment, we realize that we are not alone in our efforts. The protective deities and the Buddha himself are always working to benefit all beings. In our current capacities, we may not be able to reach everybody immediately. We should not let this discourage us. The least we can do is hope in our hearts for the happiness of all beings, even if they are not accessible to us.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Explaining the formation of the Four Siddhāntas (Shih-ch’eng)
This is to explain that the formation of each of the Four Siddhāntas is different. The Worldly Siddhānta is formed in order to comply with what is enjoyed and desired (Sui-lo-yü) by people. The Siddhānta for Each Person is formed in order to comply with what is suitable to individuals (Sui-p’ien-i) and arouse their virtues. The Siddhānta of Counteraction is formed in order to deal with particular cases of individual sickness. The Siddhānta of the Supreme Truth is formed in order to transmit the Supreme Truth. According to Chih-i, each Siddhānta contains the Four Siddhāntas. In addition, the first Siddhānta (i.e., Worldly Siddhānta) embodies the beginning stage for living beings to strive for Buddhahood as the cause, and the last Siddhānta (i.e., Siddhānta of the Supreme Truth) embodies the final stage of attaining Buddhahood as the effect. (Vol. 2, Page 38)
The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of BuddhismAdvancing to the Buddha World
At last, we have been able to meet the Lotus Sutra in this world. We who believe in it no longer need to worry about the worlds after death. We will be able to advance to the Buddha World by consistently chanting the Odaimoku. We can live following the teaching of the Lotus Sutra, which is the Bodhisattva way – to live for other people, helping and supporting people who are suffering, making them feel as at ease as possible. It is not necessarily just supporting people, but spirits also. Please come to the Temple to observe the O-Bon Segaki Service, which is a traditional Buddhist ceremony to save suffering spirits. With these merits, we can give peace to our ancestors and obtain merits in our life, extinguish misfortune and curses, and extend our lives to obtain good fortune.
Summer WritingsDaily Dharma – Oct. 15, 2018
Suppose bandits are surrounding you,
And attempting to kill you with swords.
If you think of the power of World-Voice-Perceiver,
The bandits will become compassionate towards you.
The Buddha gives this description of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva (Kannon, Kanzeon, Kuan Yin, Avalokitesvara) to Endless-Intent Bodhisattva in Chapter Twenty-Five of the Lotus Sūtra. When we allow this Bodhisattva, the embodiment of compassion, into our minds, we realize the value of the connections we have with all beings, even those who are so deluded that they want to harm us. When we ourselves embody compassion, we should not be surprised when it awakens the compassion that is at the core of our existence.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Ten Characteristics of Each of the Four Siddhāntas
The ten characteristics of each of the Four Siddhāntas
- The Worldly Siddhānta is characterized as (i) speaking about phenomenon and noumenon to comply with conditions that are suitable to, and are pleasurable to be heard by audiences; (ii) explaining both the Provisional (Unreal) and the Real; (iii) combinations of causes and conditions that result in differences between good and evil beings; (iv) a separate view of the five aggregates (i.e., form, sensation, conception, volitional activity, and consciousness) that are taken as real; (v) differentiating wholesomeness from evil; (vi) viewing the three periods (past, present, and future) of time separately; (vii) separating the Four Wholesome Factors (Ssu-shan-ken) that belong to the Ordinary Ranks of a Higher Level (Nei-fan) from the Ordinary Ranks of a Lower Level (Wai-fan); (viii) to differentiate between “the Path of Vision” and “the Path of Cultivation (ix) neither “learning” nor “no-learning 47 and (x) the Siddhānta for Each Person that is contained within.
- The Siddhānta for Each Person is characterized as (i) to arouse the wholesome mind that existed previously; (ii) to only talk about the Provisional (Unreal) of living beings; (iii) if wholesome conditions are combined, a wholesome person comes into being; (iv) from the wholesome five aggregates, the wholesome five aggregates can be reproduced; (v) to explain that the present wholesomeness can reproduce the future wholesomeness; (vi) concerning future period of time; (vii) concerning stages of “heat” and “summit”; (viii) concerning “the path of vision;” (ix) realizing the “learning and (x) the Siddhānta of Counteraction that is contained within.
- The Siddhānta of Counteraction is characterized as (i) to get rid of new evil; (ii) to only talk about the Real (i.e., evil is real because it causes the real effect of generating more evil); (iii) when evil conditions are combined, an evil person comes into being; (iv) to destroy the evil five aggregates with the wholesome five aggregates; (v) to destroy the present evil with the present wholesomeness; (vi) concerning the present period oftime; (vii) concerning the Four Types of Mindfulness (Ch., Ssu-nien-ch’u; Skt., catvāri smṛtyupasthānāni) that are practiced together and individually$ l (viii) concerning “the path of cultivation”; (ix) cultivating the “learning”; and (x) the Siddhānta of the Supreme Truth that is contained within.
- The Siddhānta of the Supreme Truth is characterized as (i) enabling a person to realize the path of a sage; (ii) not Unreal and not Real; (iii) not good and not evil; (iv) attaining the five aggregates with “non-defilement (v) neither good nor evil; (vi) attaining the negation of the three periods of time; (vii) attaining the Highest Mundane Dharma that is closest to “real non-defilement (viii) attaining “the path of no-learning”; (ix) attaining the arhatship of “no-learning”; and (x) the Supreme Truth that does not include the three other siddhāntas. (Vol. 2, Page 35-36)
Practices of a Bodhisattva
Of the five practices of a Bodhisattva – saint practice, Brama practice, nature practice, child practice, and sickness practice – Saint practice refers to daily practice and study. We are carrying out the practices of a saint when we perform our daily service and when we try to increase our understanding of the Buddha’s teachings. The Brama practice is a practice of not wanting, in other words living simply and being mindful of the distinction between our desires and our needs. We could also say that the Brama practice and saint practice are ones of renouncing honor or gain for the benefit of others.
Lecture on the Lotus SutraDaily Dharma – Oct. 14, 2018
I am the World-Honored One.
I am not surpassed by anyone.
I have appeared in this world
To give peace to all living beings.
The Buddha makes this declaration in Chapter Five of the Lotus Sūtra. If it were anybody but the Buddha saying this, we would accuse them of arrogance: pretending to know more than they really do. However, with the Buddha, we realize that his wisdom and compassion are boundless, and that his superiority is for our benefit.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Four Siddhāntas and the Five Sections
The correspondence between the Four Siddhāntas and the Five Sections are: The Worldly Siddhānta corresponds with the Name; the Siddhānta of the Supreme Truth with the Substance; the Siddhānta for Each Person with the Gist; the Siddhānta of Counteraction with the Function; and to distinguish these Siddhānta is to correspond with the Characteristics of the Teachings. (Vol. 2, Page 33)
The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of BuddhismThe Completion of Nichiren’s Studies
At noon on April 28, 1253, Nichiren Shonin gave his first sermon to his former mentor and fellow monks to commemorate the completion of his studies. In that sermon, he shocked his audience by criticizing the teaching of the Pure Land sect of Buddhism. … In place of that practice, Nichiren Shonin taught the practice of chanting the Odaimoku of the Lotus Sutra, which is Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. He taught the Odaimoku as a practical and accessible way by which all people can realize the deepest truths of Buddhism. Just as the name of a country can bring to mind all its characteristics, the title of the Lotus Sutra embodies all the merits and virtues of the Buddha expounded in the Sutra. Nichiren Shonin taught that by chanting the Odaimoku, we can directly receive the ultimate truth of the Lotus Sutra from the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha and attain Buddhahood within our lifetime.
Lotus Seeds