Monthly Archives: September 2019

d14b, WONS

The Merit of Making Offerings to a Practicer of the Lotus Sūtra

The “Teacher of the Dharma” chapter in the 4th fascicle of the Lotus Sūtra states: “If there is one who, in the quest for the Buddha Way, honors me in countless verses with palms pressed together in my presence throughout one kalpa (aeon), such a person will gain immeasurable benefits because of this praise. But one who extols the upholders of this sūtra will accrue blessings that surpass even those.” This means that the merits received for making offerings to a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in the Latter Age of Degeneration surpass the benefits received for serving with sincerity a Buddha as noble as Śākyamuni with one’s body; mouth, and mind for an entire medium kalpa (aeon). Although this may seem implausible, there should be no doubt about it because such are the Buddha’s golden words.

Grand Master Miao-lê further clarifies this passage from the sūtra by saying: “Those who slander them (practicers of the Lotus Sūtra), will have their heads split into seven pieces. However, those who make offerings to them (practicers of the Lotus Sūtra) will find that their merits exceed those of a Buddha endowed with the ten honorable titles.” This means that the merit of making offerings to a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in the Latter Age of Degeneration exceeds that of making offerings to a Buddha with ten honorable titles. It also means that those who persecute a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in the impure age will have their heads split into seven pieces.

Kō no Ama Gozen Gosho, A Letter to My lady, the Nun Kō, the Nun Myōichi, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 7, Followers II, Pages 165-166

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – Sept. 16, 2019

I know who is practicing the Way and who is not.
Therefore I expound various teachings
To all living beings
According to their capacities.

The Buddha sings these verses in Chapter Sixteen of the Lotus Sūtra. Even though the Buddha knows when we have strayed from the way of compassion and wisdom that he has opened for us, he knows that the innate capacity we have for enlightenment remains unchanged. Therefore, he does not judge us, or give up in his efforts to lead us away from our delusions. When we maintain our determination to save all beings despite their delusions, we maintain this mind of the Buddha and nourish the seeds of our own enlightenment.

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

LS32, WONS

Day 19

Day 19 concludes Chapter 14, Peaceful Practices, and begins Chapter 15, The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground.

Day 19 Text with annotationsPlay MP3

Having last month considered how Śākyamuni is like the king who rewards his soldiers’ efforts, we consider why Śākyamuni teaches this sūtra lastly.

“Mañjuśrī! This Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma is the most excellent and profound teaching of all the Tathāgatas. Therefore, I expound it lastly just as the powerful king gave the brilliant gem lastly, the one which he had kept [in his topknot) for a long time.

“Mañjuśrī! This Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma is the treasury of the hidden core of the Buddhas, of the Tathāgatas. It is superior to all the other sūtras. I kept it [in secret] and refrained from expounding it for the long night. Now I expound it to you today for the first time.”

Nichiren comments on this in Selecting the Right Time:

It is said in the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 5 (chapter 14): “This Lotus Sūtra is the secret treasure of all Buddhas. It is supreme of all sūtras.” Please note that “it is supreme of all sūtras.” According to this sūtra, therefore, he who insists that the Lotus Sūtra is supreme of all sūtras is a true practicer of the Lotus Sūtra, isn’t he? Nevertheless, many who are revered in the land insist that there are sūtras superior to the Lotus. Standing against these monks, who are revered by the king and his subjects, the practicer of the Lotus Sūtra is poor and powerless, with all the people in the land despising him. Under such circumstances, if he points out their sin of slandering the True Dharma as stubbornly as Never Despising Bodhisattva or as decisively as Commentator Bhadraruci defeated Brahman, the Boaster, his life will be in jeopardy. This seems of prime importance. This fits me, Nichiren.

Senji-shō, Selecting the Right Time: A Tract by Nichiren, the Buddha’s Disciple, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1,
Page 250-251

Blog

Retirement News from Myoshoji

2019-09-15_ryusho_retiring

Attended the online service with Rev. Ryusho Jeffus and three other members of the Myoshoji sangha today. I haven’t been attending as often as I once did. And now, apparently, I will soon have even fewer chances to attend.

Today, Rev. Ryusho Jeffus announced that he will be retiring on Oct. 13, 2019. He plans a formal announcement later, so I’ll leave the details of his plans for that time.

I became a Nichiren Shu follower at the start of 2015 and, as you can tell from the story about why I started this blog – see the About page – Ryusho has been an important influence.

Ryusho plans to continue services after his retirement but other activities he plans to pursue will make those services less frequent. That will be a real loss.

Sept. 6, 2015, Service at Myoshoji with Ryusho Jeffus Shonin
This is the first photo I posted of an online service – Sept. 6, 2015. At the time, Myoshoji was in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Saicho

The Ten Good Precepts

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The ten good precepts (jūzenkai) were one of the earliest formulations of bodhisattva precepts; they were granted to both laymen and monks. They originated from a list of ten actions which produced good karma.

  1. Abstention from killing living things
  2. Abstention from stealing
  3. Abstention from unchastity
  4. Abstention from lying
  5. Abstention from malicious speech
  6. Abstention from harsh speech
  7. Abstention from indistinct prattling
  8. Abstention from covetousness
  9. Abstention from anger
  10. Abstention from wrong views
Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School, p119
buddhaseed

The Buddha’s True Intention

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Please be aware of the Buddha’s true intention. Understand the basics of what the Odaimoku is, what the Lotus Sūtra is, and what teachings Nichiren Shōnin left for us at the risk of his own life. Endeavor to strengthen your practice, chant and transmit the Odaimoku to other people. We sometimes tend to be self-righteous about our own faith. At that time we should try to correct our way of faith and life by checking ourselves against the true intention of the Buddha and Nichiren Shōnin and the Lotus Sūtra.

Buddha Seed: Understanding the Odaimoku

WONS

Difficulty in Meeting a Practicer of the Lotus Sūtra

Putting aside the preciousness of the Lotus Sūtra for now, it is all the more difficult for us to meet a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra who preaches the sūtra as expounded in it than for a one-eyed turtle to find a piece of sandalwood tree floating on the sea or for anyone to lift Mt. Sumeru with a lotus root into the air.

Kyōdai-shō, A Letter to the Ikegami Brothers, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 74

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – Sept. 15, 2019

Good men! Ānanda and I resolved to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi under the Void-King Buddha at the same time [in our previous existence]. At that time Ānanda always wished to hear much while I always practiced strenuously. Therefore, I have already attained Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi[, but he has not yet]. Now he protects my teachings.

The Buddha gives this description to those gathered to hear him teach in Chapter Nine of the Lotus Sūtra. In the story, he has just assured his cousin Ānanda that he will become a Buddha. He then explains the difference between hearing what the Buddha teaches and making it a part of our lives. It is when we practice the Buddha Dharma that we truly understand it. But even if we believe we do not have the capacity to practice, it is still important for us to hear and protect what the Buddha left for us. By giving others the opportunity to learn and do what perhaps we cannot, we help to improve their lives, and give them a chance to improve ours.

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

LS32

Day 18

Day 18 concludes Chapter 13, Encouragement for Keeping this Sutra, and begins Chapter 14, Peaceful Practices.

Day 18 Text with annotationsPlay MP3

Having last month considered the third set of peaceful practices, we conclude today’s portion of Chapter 14, Peaceful Practices, with the third set of peaceful practices in gāthās.

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

Anyone who wishes to expound this sūtra
Should give up jealousy, anger, arrogance,
Flattery, deception and dishonesty.
He should always be upright.

He should not despise others,
Or have fruitless disputes about the teachings.
He should not perplex others by saying to them:
“You will not be able to attain Buddhahood.”

Any son of mine who expounds the Dharma
Should be gentle, patient and compassionate
Towards all living beings.
He should not be lazy.

In the worlds of the ten quarters,
The great Bodhisattvas are practicing the Way
Out of their compassion towards all living beings.
He should respect them as his great teachers.

He should respect the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones,
As his unsurpassed fathers.
He should give up arrogance
So that he may expound the Dharma without hindrance.

This is the third set of peaceful practices.
A man of wisdom should perform all this.
Anyone who performs these peaceful practices
Will be respected by innumerable living beings.

The Daily Dharma from Aug. 14, 2019, offers this:

Anyone who wishes to expound this sūtra
Should give up jealousy, anger, arrogance,
Flattery, deception and dishonesty.
He should always be upright.

The Buddha sings these verses to Mañjuśrī in Chapter Fourteen of the Lotus Sūtra in which he describes the peaceful practices of a Bodhisattva. The way we live our lives can either reinforce our delusions or help us gain more clarity about how things really are. In these verses, the Buddha advises against these actions not because he will think less of us when we do them, but because when we find ourselves behaving these ways it is because we are not seeing things for what they are.

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

Saicho

Saichō’s Regulations in Six Articles

Quote

[I]n the fifth month of 818, Saichō authored the first of a series of petitions to the court, the Rokujōshiki (Regulations in Six Articles):

Regulations For Tendai-Hokke Annually Allotted Students

What is the treasure of the nation? It is our religious nature. Thus those who have this religious nature are the treasures of the nation. Long ago a man said, “Ten large pearls do not constitute the nation’s treasure, but he who sheds his light over a corner of the country is the nation’s treasure.” A philosopher of old said, “He who can speak but not act is a teacher to the nation. He who can act but not speak is an asset to the nation. He who can both act and speak is a treasure to the nation. Aside from these three, he who can neither speak nor act is a traitor to the nation.”

Buddhists with religious minds are called bodhisattvas in the West, and gentlemen (chün tzu) in the East. They take the bad upon themselves in order to benefit others. This is the height of compassion.34

Two types of Buddhist monks exist, the Hinayāna and the Mahāyāna. Buddhists with a religious nature are of the latter type. Today in Japan only Hinayāna monks are found ; Mahāyāna monks have not yet appeared. Mahāyāna teachings have not yet spread (in Japan); thus it is difficult for Mahāyāna practitioners to arise. I sincerely ask that in accordance with the late emperor’s wish, Tendai yearly ordinands be forever designated Mahāyāna practitioners and bodhisattva monks. Thus the nine (bad) monkeys of King Kṛki’s dream shall be chased away. Of the five vehicles specified by Mañjuśrī, (the numbers of) those who follow the latter three (the Mahāyāna ones) will increase. With this attitude and desire we shall strive to benefit those who live now and those who come after us throughout the endless eons.

Note 34: This phrase can be found in the seventh major precept of the Fan wang Ching which concerns praising oneself and slandering others or teaching another person to do so. ‘Taking the bad upon himself and turning the good towards others’ is the positive side of the precept. It describes the bodhisattva way.

Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School, p116-118