Monthly Archives: February 2019

LS32

Day 13

Day 13 covers all of Chapter 8, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Five Hundred Disciples.

Day 13 Text with annotationsPlay MP3

Having last month considered the reaction of the five hundred Arhats to Śākyamuni’s prediction, we conclude Chapter 8 with Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya and the others repeating what they had said in gāthās.

Thereupon Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya and the others, wishing to repeat what they had said, sang in gāthās:

Your assurance of our future Buddhahood
Gives us unsurpassed peace.
Hearing your voice, we have the greatest joy that we have ever had.
We bow to you, to the Buddha of Immeasurable Wisdom.

Now in your presence,
We reproach ourselves for our faults.
The Nirvāṇa we attained was
Only part of the immeasurable treasures of yours.
We were like a foolish man with no wisdom.
We satisfied ourselves with what little we had attained.

Suppose a poor man visited
His good friend, who was very rich.
The friend feasted him
With delicacies.

He fastened a priceless gem
Inside the garment of the man as a gift to him,
And went out without leaving a word.
The sleeping man did not notice [the gift].

The man woke up, and went to another country.
He worked to get food and clothing.
He had much difficulty
In earning his livelihood.

He satisfied himself with what little he earned.
He did not wish to get anything more.
He did not notice the priceless gem
Fastened inside his garment.

The good friend who gave the gem to the poor man
Happened to see him later.
He blamed him severely,
And showed him the gem fastened [inside the garment].

Seeing the gem,
The poor man had great joy.
Now he satisfied his five desires
With many treasures.

We are like the poor man.
In the long night you taught us
Out of your compassion towards us,
And caused us to aspire for unsurpassed [enlightenment].

Because we had no wisdom, we did not notice that.
The Nirvāṇa we attained was only part [of your wisdom].
Satisfying ourselves with it,
We did not wish to attain anything more.

Now you have awakened us, saying:
“What you attained was not true extinction.
When you have the unsurpassed wisdom of the Buddha,
You will attain true extinction.”

Hearing from you that we are assured
Of becoming Buddhas one after another,
And that our worlds will be adorned,
We are joyful in body and mind.

The Daily Dharma from Feb. 6, 2019, offers this:

He satisfied himself with what little he earned.
He did not wish to get anything more.
He did not notice the priceless gem
Fastened inside his garment.

These verses are part of a story told by Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya and other disciples in Chapter Eight of the Lotus Sūtra. It is about a man whose friend gives him a jewel while he is asleep. Not realizing he has this treasure, the man returns to his ordinary life, desperate to make a living and satisfy his ordinary desires. The story shows how we live when we forget about the jewel of Buddha nature we carry with us.

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

History of Japanese Religion

For the Glory of Buddha

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The last and bitterest of the combats was fought in Miyako in 1536, when the soldier-monks of Hiei in alliance with the Ikkō fanatics attacked the Nichirenites and burnt down twenty-one of their great temples in the capital and drove them out of the city. Shouts of “Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō,” the slogan of the Nichirenites, vied with “Namu Amida Butsu,” the prayer of the Ikkō men; many died on either side, each believing that the fight was fought for the glory of Buddha and that death secured his birth in paradise.

History of Japanese Religion

WONS

The Merit Of One Character Of The Lotus Sūtra

Although the Lotus Sūtra consists of only eight fascicles, it is as valuable as reading 16 fascicles because it is the teachings expounded by both Śākyamuni Buddha and the Buddha of Many Treasures. These 16 fascicles in turn hold the value of innumerable fascicles because they were verified by innumerable Buddhas all over the universe. In other words, a single character of the Lotus Sūtra is as valuable as two characters because it was confirmed by the two Buddhas, Śākyamuni and Many Treasures. It is equal to the value of numerous characters because it was verified by numerous Buddhas all over the universe. Just as treasures produced by a wish-fulfilling gem hold the equivalent value as those produced by numerous gems, the merit of one character of the Lotus Sūtra is as valuable as those of numerous characters.

Nichimyō Shōnin Gosho, A Letter to Nichimyō Shōnin, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 138

Daily Dharma, d2b

Daily Dharma – Feb. 25, 2019

Always seeking fame and gain,
He often visited noble families.
He did not understand what he had recited,
Gave it up, and forgot it.
Because of this,
He was called Fame-Seeking. But he [later] did many good karmas,
And became able to see innumerable Buddhas.

Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva sings these verses in Chapter One of the Lotus Sūtra. They are part of a story he tells about Fame-Seeking Bodhisattva (Gumyō, Yaśaskāma). This shows that each of the innumerable Bodhisattvas who are helping us to become enlightened use different ways of reaching people. Even those enmeshed in the suffering of self-importance, who use this Wonderful Dharma to make themselves seem superior to others, simply because they are leading others to this teaching, they too are creating boundless merit.

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

original

The Seed Being Simultaneously the Harvest of Liberation

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Although the very notion of a “seed” tends to suggest a gradual process of growth and maturation, in Nichiren’s thought, because “original cause” and “original effect” are simultaneous, the “process” of sowing, maturing, and harvesting also occurs simultaneously. This is called, in the terminology of Nichirenshū doctrine, “the seed being simultaneously [the harvest of] liberation” (shu soku datsu). Nichiren explains this idea in readily accessible terms to a lay follower:

The mahā-mandārava flowers in heaven and the cherry blossoms of the human world are both splendid flowers, but the Buddha did not choose them to represent the Lotus Sūtra. There is a reason why, from among all flowers, he chose this [lotus] flower to represent the sūtra. Some flowers first bloom and then produce fruit, while others bear fruit before flowers. Some bear only one blossom but many fruit, others send forth many blossoms but only one fruit, while others produce fruit without flowering. In the case of the lotus, however, flowers and fruit appear at the same time. The merit of all [other] sūtras is uncertain, because they teach that one must first plant good roots and [only] afterward become a Buddha. But in the case of the Lotus Sūtra, when one takes it in one’s hand, that hand at once becomes Buddha, and when one chants it with one’s mouth, that mouth is precisely Buddha. It is like the moon being reflected in the water the moment it appears above the eastern mountains, or like a sound and its echo occurring simultaneously.(Page 271)

Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese Buddhism


Profound

The ‘Line Marker’ of the Mind

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Five meanings that are related to mind are enumerated by Chih-i. …

With regard to the mind that contains the meaning “line marker” (Hsin-shih Sheng-mo), this refers to the mind that is correct without deviance, which is illustrated by Chih-i in reference to words, practice and principle. In terms of the mind that is related to words, this means that by contemplating mind, one is able to obtain correct words, and be removed from deviant words. In terms of the mind that is related to practice, this means that by contemplating mind, one is able to obtain correct thought and eliminate evil actions. In terms of the mind that is related to principle, this means that by contemplating mind, one’s correct mind is able to depart from false views and attachments, and to penetrate the correct principle. (Vol. 2, Page 397-398)

The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of Buddhism


LS32

Day 12

Day 12 concludes Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City, and completes the Third Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Day 12 Text with annotationsPlay MP3

Having last month considered the Parable of the Magic City in gāthās, we consider the Buddha’s explanation of the parable as we complete Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City.

I am like the leader.
I am the leader of all living beings.
I saw that halfway some got tired
With the seeking of enlightenment,
And that they could not pass through the dangerous road
Of birth-and-death and illusions.
Therefore, I expounded to them the teaching of Nirvāṇa
As an expedient to give them a rest, saying:
“You have already eliminated sufferings.
You have done everything you should do.”

Now I see that they have already attained Nirvāṇa
And that they have become Arhats.
Therefore, I now collect the great multitude,
And expound to them the true teaching.

The Buddhas expound the teaching of the Three Vehicles
Only as an expedient.
There is only the One Buddha-Vehicle.
The two [vehicles] were taught only as resting places.

Now I will tell you the truth.
What you attained is not [true] extinction.
Make great efforts in order to obtain
The Buddha’s knowledge of all things.
When you obtain the knowledge of all things
And the ten powers of the Buddha,
And the thirty-two physical marks,
You will be able to say that you attained true extinction.
The Buddhas, the Leaders, expound the teaching of Nirvāṇa
In order to give a rest [to all living beings].
When they see them having already had a rest,
They lead them to the wisdom of the Buddha.

[Here ends] the Third Volume of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

The Daily Dharma from Jan. 30, 2019, offers this:

The Buddhas expound the teaching of the Three Vehicles
Only as an expedient.
There is only the One Buddha-Vehicle.
The two [vehicles] were taught only as resting places.

The Buddha declares these verses in Chapter Seven of the Lotus Sūtra after telling the parable of the Magic City. The parable is his explanation of why expedient teachings are necessary, and why we must eventually set them aside to attain the enlightenment that is our true nature.

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

WONS

Preaching The Very True Teaching In The End

The Lord Śākyamuni Buddha is the lifetime head of a Buddhist Order and guiding teacher of all living beings. The eighty thousand Buddhist teachings preached by Śākyamuni Buddha are all words of wisdom, and the 12 divisions of Mahāyāna scriptures are all true. All the scriptures of Buddhism were preached by Śākyamuni Buddha who upheld the precept of not spreading lies. Therefore, each of the teachings should not be doubted. This, however, is a generalization. If we study them thoroughly, we can perceive differences between the Mahāyāna and Hinayana, exoteric and esoteric, and provisional and true teachings, though they were all uttered from the golden mouth of Śākyamuni Buddha. Now in this Lotus Sūtra (the “Expedients” chapter) the Buddha declares, “He honestly abandons the expedient teachings and expounds only the true way; after preaching various sūtras He inevitably preaches the very true teaching in the end.” Who can doubt this?

Shijō Kingo-dono Gohenji, Response to Lord Shijō Kingo, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers I, Volume 6, Page 117-118

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – Feb. 24, 2019

He endured all insults and disturbances
Inflicted upon him by arrogant people who thought
That they had already obtained the Dharma.

The Buddha sings these verses to Maitreya Bodhisattva in Chapter Seventeen of the Lotus Sūtra. In Chapter Two of the sūtra, five thousand people left the assembly after the Buddha declared that everything he had taught until then had been an expedient. The Buddha did not stop these people. He said they were arrogant, meaning they believed they already had reached enlightenment and could learn nothing from the Buddha. In this description of the Bodhisattva perfection of Endurance, the Buddha prepares us for the reactions of those who are too attached to their misery to hear the Buddha’s teaching. When we can anticipate this kind of reaction, rather than being shocked by it, we can more easily stay determined to benefit even these abusive beings.

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

original

The Daimoku as the ‘Seed’ of Buddhahood

Quote

Nichiren accepted the received Mahāyāna view that “all sentient beings have the Buddha nature,” as well as Tendai ideas about the Buddhahood of insentient beings, but did not himself develop a particular theory of Buddha nature. Rather, as a number of postwar Nichirenshū scholars have pointed out, he emphasized the daimoku as the “seed” of Buddhahood. While ideas about the “Buddha-seed” (busshu) have a long and varied history, Nichiren’s concept draws explicitly on Chih-i’s Fa-hua hsüan-i, which describes the Buddha as leading the beings to enlightenment by first sowing the seed of enlightenment by preaching them the Lotus Sūtra, then bringing it to maturity, and finally reaping the harvest of liberation, a process transpiring over successive lifetimes. Nichiren makes explicit that it is always the Lotus Sūtra that sows the initial seed. While people in the True and Semblance Dharma ages might have progressed spiritually and even reached the maturity of full enlightenment through other teachings, this was only because they had first received the seed of Buddhahood by hearing the Lotus Sūtra in prior lifetimes. This idea also occurs in certain medieval Tendai texts attributed to Saichō, and it is possible that Nichiren’s emphasis on the seed of Buddhahood reflects more general developments within the broader field of contemporary Lotus Sūtra interpretation. However, Nichiren’s reading is distinctive in that it identifies the seed of Buddhahood as the daimoku (“All Buddhas of the three time periods and ten directions in variably attain Buddhahood with the seed of the five characters Myōhōrenge-kyō”) or as the “three thousand realms in one thought-moment.” Nichiren also connects the notion of the seed of Buddhahood specifically to the Final Dharma age. People in this age, he claims, have never before received this seed in prior lifetimes; they are people “originally without good [roots] ” (honmi uzen):

At this time, Namu-Myōhō-Renge-Kyō of the “Fathoming the Lifespan” chapter, the heart of the teaching of origin, should be planted as the seed [of Buddhahood in the minds] of the two kinds of persons who inhabit this defiled and evil age–those who commit the [five] perverse [offenses] and those who slander [the True Dharma].

(Page 270-271)

Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese Buddhism