Two Buddhas, p162-163What particularly drew Nichiren’s attention in Chapter Thirteen … was the verse section … , comprising twenty lines in Kumārajiva’s Chinese version, in which eighty myriad kotis of nayutas of advanced bodhisattvas who have gathered from other worlds all vow to Śākyamuni Buddha to preach the Lotus Sūtra throughout the worlds of the ten directions, going on to enumerate the trials they are willing to undergo in order to disseminate the sūtra in an evil age after his final nirvāṇa. Based on this passage, in his commentary on Zhiyi’s Lotus Sūtra lectures, Zhanran formulated the concept of “three kinds of powerful enemies” who will obstruct Lotus Sūtra devotees: ignorant lay people, who will speak ill of them or attack them with staves and swords; deceitful monks of false wisdom who in their conceit “think they have attained what they have not”; and prominent monks who make a show of holiness, acting like forest-dwelling saints, but are actually greedy and arrogant and who slander Lotus devotees to persons in authority, including kings, ministers, and members of the priestly caste, as well as to other monks and lay householders. Sentenced to exile for the second time, Nichiren wrote that while the three types of enemies predicted in the “Perseverance” chapter were much in evidence in his day, not one of the eighty myriad kotis of nayutas of bodhisattvas who had pledged themselves to the Lotus Sūtra’s propagation was to be seen. There was only himself. Accordingly, he resolved, “I will propagate this sūtra on behalf of those eighty myriad kotis of nayutas of bodhisattvas. May they extend to me their aid and protection.”
Monthly Archives: November 2019
The Empty Space Beneath the Sahā World
Exactly what is meant by the empty space in the lower part of the sahā world below the earth is unclear. Probably it is simply the most convenient way to have this huge number of bodhisattvas be hidden, yet not be in the less than human regions within the earth, and not be among the heavenly deities, yet still be in the sahā world. In other words, both for the sake of the story and for the sake of the central message of the Lotus Sutra, it is important that these bodhisattvas be both hidden and of this world.
A Buddhist Kaleidoscope; Gene Reeves, The Lotus Sutra as Radically World-affirming, Page 184
Absolutely True Without Violating Precept Against Lying
The Buddha in the past as an ordinary person practiced Hinayāna sūtras. Having received the Five Precepts, He strictly upheld the fourth precept: not to tell lies. He did not breach this precept at the cost of His fortune or His life. Next, practicing the Mahāyāna precepts, He observed the Ten Major Precepts, the fourth of which prohibits telling lies. As he firmly upheld this precept for immeasurable kalpa (aeons), He finally was able to become a Buddha with a long and wide tongue, one of the 32 characteristics of the Buddha. This long and wide tongue of the Buddha covers the Buddha’s face, reaching the hair of His head. Or, it is said, it reaches the Brahma Heaven. There are five seal like letters on the tongue, which is bronze in color. Two gems under the tongue pour out nectar. These characteristics all stem from the virtue of observing the precept of not lying. With this tongue the Buddha has said, “Even if the eyes of various Buddhas throughout the past, present, and future should fall on the great earth, no woman in this dharma world would be able to become a Buddha.” Therefore, it seems that all women in the world can never attain Buddhahood regardless of what happens in the world.
Accordingly, once born as a woman, it seems useless even if she is chosen as the Empress, Empress Dowager, or Grand Empress Dowager. It seems to be worthless also for a woman to practice meritorious acts or perform Buddhist services. It is inexplicable, however, that the attainment of Buddhahood by women is allowed in this “Medicine King Bodhisattva” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra. Is this sūtra deceitful, or is that sūtra not truthful? Is either guilty of lying? One Buddha is making two opposing statements, which is impossible to believe.
However, it is preached in the Sūtra of Infinite Meaning, “The truth has not been revealed in 40 years or so,” and in the Nirvana Sūtra, “The Buddha has never uttered a false word, but if people make a false statement, He will follow their mind.” When we contemplate these scriptural statements, it seems untrue that the Buddha has ever negated rebirth in the Pure Land or attaining Buddhahood by women. It is preached in the Lotus Sūtra, “As for the Buddha’s Dharma, the truth will necessarily be revealed after a long time;” and “the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma … is nothing but true.” Contemplating these statements, I believe the Lotus Sūtra, that preaches certain rebirth in the Pure Land or attainment of Buddhahood by women, is absolutely true without violating the precept against lying.
Yakuō-bon Tokui-shō, The Essence of the “Medicine King Bodhisattva” Chapter, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 33-34
Daily Dharma – Nov. 21, 2019
I am grateful to have been born a human with this precious body due to accumulated causes and conditions in my past existences. According to the sutra, I must have encountered and given offerings to ten trillion Buddhas in the past. Even though I did not place my faith exclusively in the Lotus Sutra, thus slandering the Dharma and being born poor and lowly in this life as a result, my merit of giving offerings to the Buddhas was so great that I was born as a believer of the Lotus Sutra.
Nichiren wrote this passage in his Treatise on the Testimony of the Lotus Sutra (Hokke Shōmyō-shō) addressed to Nanjō Tokimitsu. Unlike most of those who practiced the Buddha Dharma in his time, Nichiren did not belong to the higher classes of royalty or warriors. He saw clearly the suffering of common people and vowed to end it. He realized that the superiority of the Lotus Sūtra does not lie in its power to bring rain or change history. The power of this sūtra lies in its determination to save all beings, rich or poor, noble or common, deluded or wise. Nichiren’s offering to the Buddha was to spread this Wonderful Dharma. To benefit the Buddha is to benefit all beings.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 17
Day 17 covers all of Chapter 12, Devadatta, and opens Chapter 13, Encouragement for Keeping this Sutra.
Having last month heard the prediction for Devadatta’s future enlightenment, we greet Mañjuśrī who has been teaching in the palace of the Dragon-King Sagara.
At that time Many-Treasures, the World-Honored One, who had come from the nadir,’ was accompanied by a Bodhisattva called Accumulated-Wisdom. The Bodhisattva said to Many-Treasures Buddha, “Shall we go back to our home world?”
Śākyamuni Buddha said to Accumulated-Wisdom:
“Good man, wait for a while! A Bodhisattva called Mañjuśrī is coming. See him, talk about the Wonderful Dharma with him, and then go back to your home world!”
Thereupon Mañjuśrī came sitting on a one-thousand-petaled lotus-flower as large as the wheel of a chariot. He was accompanied by other Bodhisattvas who were also sitting on jeweled lotus-flowers. Mañjuśrī had sprung up from the palace of Dragon-King Sagara in the great ocean, gone up to the sky[, and traveled through the sky towards Mt. Sacred Eagle]. Having reached Mt. Sacred Eagle, he descended from the lotus flower, came to the two World-Honored Ones,” and worshipped their feet with his head. Having completed the worship, he came to Accumulated-Wisdom, exchanged greetings with him, retired and sat to one side.
Accumulated-Wisdom Bodhisattva asked Mañjuśrī, “You went to the palace of the dragon-king. How many living beings did you lead into the Way to Bodhi there?”
Mañjuśrī answered, “Their number is immeasurable, incalculable, inexplicable, unthinkable. Wait for a while! You will be able to see them.”
No sooner had he said this than innumerable Bodhisattvas, who were sitting on jeweled lotus-flowers, sprang up from the sea, came to Mt. Sacred Eagle, went up to the sky, and stayed there. All these Bodhisattvas had been led [into the Way to Bodhi] by Mañjuśrī. They had already performed the Bodhisattva practices. [Up in the sky] they [began to] expound the six pāramitās. Some of them were formerly Śrāvakas. When they were Śrāvakas, they expounded the Śrāvaka practices in the sky. Now they were acting according to the truth of the Void of the Great Vehicle.
Mañjuśrī said to Accumulated-Wisdom, “Now you see the living beings whom I taught in the sea.”
‘One Example that Applies to All’
Two Buddhas, p 157Nichiren maintained that the Lotus Sūtra enables women to attain buddhahood as women, because it embodies the mutual encompassing of the ten dharma realms. He writes: “The other Mahāyāna sūtras would seem to permit women to attain either buddhahood or birth in the pure land [of Amitābha], but that is an attainment premised on changing their [female] form, not the direct manifestation of buddhahood grounded in the three thousand realms in a single thought-moment. Thus, it is an attainment of buddhahood or pure land birth in name but not reality. The nāga girl represents the ‘one example that applies to all.’ Her attainment of buddhahood opened the way for the attainment of buddhahood … by all women of the latter age.”
Buddhism for Today
I am currently publishing here daily quotes taken from A Buddhist Kaleidoscope: Essays On The Lotus Sutra, an anthology edited by Gene Reeves. My 32 Days of the Lotus Sutra practice is currently using The Threefold Lotus Sutra: A Modern Translation for Contemporary Readers for my afternoon English recitation. And now I’m reading Buddhism for Today: A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra.
All three are published by Kosei Publishing, the printing arm of Rissho Kosei-Kai. And Buddhism for Today was written by the founder of Rissho Kosei-Kai, Nikkyō Niwano, 1906–1999.
I was incredibly impressed by the content of A Buddhist Kaleidoscope and I’m enjoying reading aloud this new translation of the The Threefold Lotus Sutra, but it was when I started Nikkyō Niwano’s commentary on the Lotus Sutra that I felt a need to step back and distance myself from Rissho Kosei-Kai doctrine.
My hunger for commentary on the Lotus Sutra is insatiable. Nikkyō Niwano’s stated reason for writing his commentary mirrors my own reason for maintaining this website:
Buddhism for Today, pxviI regret greatly that the Lotus Sutra, which includes the supreme teachings of the Buddha, appears to be so difficult and that it is studied by only a limited number of people and by specialists in religion. The Lotus Sutra is neither truly appreciated nor understood by people in general, and therefore it does not penetrate people’s daily lives. This is the first reason for my decision to write this book. My earnest desire is to explain the Lotus Sutra so that its spirit can be understood by modern people and gain their sympathy, although I have remained faithful to the original intent of the sutra to the last.
We cannot truly understand the Lotus Sutra by reading only part of it. It is both a profound teaching and a wonderful work of art, unfolding like a drama. Therefore, we cannot grasp its true meaning unless we read it through from beginning to end. However, it is not easy to read the sutra, with its difficult and unfamiliar terminology, from cover to cover, and to grasp its meaning. We need a commentary that will help us understand the sutra in the context of our lives today. This is the second reason for my decision to write this book.
At the same time, we must always honor the original intent of the Lotus Sutra, as it is a noble work of art. Even in translation we find in the sutra an indescribable power that permeates our hearts. I think that readers will be able to understand the Lotus Sutra all the more if they consult it while reading this book. I believe, too, that they will be able to sense something of the spirit of the Lotus Sutra from this book.
If readers who understand the spirit of the sutra recite key portions morning and evening, its spirit will become more and more strongly rooted in the depths of their minds, and will surely be manifested in the conduct of their daily lives so that a new life will open before them. In this hope and belief, I have written this book.
And yet I am put off by Nikkyō Niwano’s view of modern Nichiren Buddhism:
Buddhism for Today, pxivFrom the standpoint of the history of the human race, two thousand five hundred years [since the death of Śākyamuni] is only a short time. In Japan, Buddhism, which was introduced from China, had a strong power for a time whenever a learned or distinguished priest appeared. But after a short time this power declined quickly. The thirteenth-century priest Nichiren, the founder of the Nichiren sect, for example, is believed to have infused new life into Japanese Buddhism. However, following his death, the teachings diverged from his true intention and degenerated into formalism.
And again:
Buddhism for Today, pxvThe Lotus Sutra is thought to have been recorded about seven hundred years after the death of Śākyamuni Buddha. I see a deep meaning in the fact that the changes in Buddhism during its first seven hundred years established a pattern of change that has been followed throughout its long history. In the twentieth century, when Buddhism has adhered too much to form and has lost the power to save people, a religious movement has again arisen among lay devotees to restore Buddhism to Śākyamuni’s true teachings and by the efforts of these lay believers is now spreading throughout Japan.
This new movement to reevaluate the Buddha’s teachings has been spreading throughout the world, not only in Japan. In Western countries, there are many people who are unsatisfied with monotheism, atheism, or materialism d finally seek the solution to their problems in Buddhism.
I have heard before the argument that Nichiren temples in Japan focus too much on memorial and funeral services, which pay the bills, and not enough, if at all, on propagation. I actually don’t know. And since my only experience in formal Nichiren services is based on five years of American temple practice that followed more than a quarter-century of organized lay services, what I have to say really doesn’t amount to much.
In the future I may write more about this, but for now I feel strongly that eliminating the priesthood and replacing it with a lay-leadership is a bad proposition. Yes, more can be done toward propagation and inspiring existing members to broaden their understanding of the Lotus Sutra, but the priests I’ve met in America – with strengths and weaknesses like us all – are invaluable.
Nikkyō Niwano’s introduction to Buddhism for Today also raises some doctrinal questions for me:
Buddhism for Today, pxxii[D]uring the seven hundred years following Nichiren’s death, the true spirit of the Lotus Sutra was again forgotten. Some people in Japan even believe that they can be saved merely by beating hand drums and repeating over and over again the formula including the title of the Lotus Sutra, Namu Myōhō Renge-kyō – I take refuge in the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law – or that their prayers will be answered if they only worship the verbal [?] mandala written by Nichiren, which centers on this formula.
The contents and spirit of the Lotus Sutra are very holy. The practice of its teaching is also holy. We lead ordinary everyday lives, but by understanding the teaching of the sutra, believing it, and practicing it, we try to approach a state of mind free from illusion and suffering. We realize that people should live in harmony and render service to each other. If one has such a feeling for even a few hours a day, his health and circumstances will naturally change for the better – this is his true salvation. That all the people in the world have such feelings and live happily – this is the ultimate idea and vow expressed in the Lotus Sutra.
Indeed, the Lotus Sutra is the teaching of human respect, self-perfection, and peace. In short, it is the teaching of humanism. Today, just seven hundred years after the death of Nichiren, we must restore the spirit of the Lotus Sutra and establish a better life for the sake of ourselves, our families, our societies, and the entire world.
Nikkyō Niwano doesn’t discuss this topic further so I’m unsure what he imagines replaces Namu Myōhō Renge-kyō. I can’t imagine moving the Daimoku out of the center of my practice of Buddhism. The Daimoku enhances my study and practice of the Lotus Sutra.
And then there’s this:
Buddhism for Today, pxviiiSome people argue over the relative merits of various sutras and even harbor the illusion that the comparative merits of the sutras stem from differences in Sakyamuni’s teachings. This is a serious mistake. No sutra was compiled by Sakyamuni himself. The fact is that he preached his numerous sermons to countless people during the fifty years between his first sermon to the five monks at the Deer Park in (Benares) and his death at eighty years of age. From among these many sermons each group of disciples and their followers placed in their own sutras the sermons that they had heard directly or had been taught by others. Through whatever sutra we may study the teachings of Sakyamuni, Sakyamuni himself is the same honored one who casts the same light of wisdom on us. Therefore, although the Lotus Sutra is certainly the most excellent teaching among the many sutras, it reflects a basic misunderstanding to despise other sutras by excessively extolling the Lotus Sutra.
How can one not excessively extol the Lotus Sutra after reading and reciting it?
As Nichiren writes:
There are ten similes preached in the “Medicine King Bodhisattva” chapter, the first of which is the simile of a great ocean. Let me speak of this simile. In the continent of Jambudvīpa, where we human beings live, there are 2,500 rivers. In the continent of Aparagodānīya there exists 5,000 rivers. Altogether 25,900 rivers flow in the four continents lying in the four directions from Mt. Sumeru. Some of these rivers are as long as 100 or 250 miles. Others are as short as 25 miles, 100 yards, or six feet. None of these rivers, however, can compare to an ocean in depth.
Likewise, the Lotus Sūtra is supreme among all the sūtras—all the sūtras expounded before the Lotus Sūtra such as the Flower Garland Sūtra, the Āgama sūtras, the Hōdō sūtras, the Wisdom Sūtra, the Revealing the Profound and Secret Sūtra, the Amitābha Sūtra, the Nirvana Sūtra, the Great Sun Buddha Sūtra, the Diamond Peak Sūtra, the Sūtra on the Act of Perfection, and the Sūtra of Mystic Glorification—all the sūtras preached by Śākyamuni Buddha, the Great Sun Buddha, the Buddha of Infinite Life, Medicine Master Buddha as well as all the sūtras preached by all the Buddhas in the past, present and future.
Yakuō-bon Tokui-shō, The Essence of the “Medicine King Bodhisattva” Chapter, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 28
See Nikkyō Niwano and the Lotus Sutra
Book Quotes
A World-Affirmative Lesson
In the [Parable Of The Skillful Physician And His Sick Children], the physician-father of course represents the Buddha, and his supposed death is like the Buddha’s entry into nirvana. In reality, in the view of the Lotus Sutra, the universal Buddha, the loving father of the world who is working to save all from suffering, has not and will not pass away. He pretends to pass away only in order to get people to be more responsible for their own lives. This is a good example of how the sutra takes what is a basically negative notion, nirvana, and turns it into a world-affirmative one.
A Buddhist Kaleidoscope; Gene Reeves, The Lotus Sutra as Radically World-affirming, Page 183
Understanding that Buddhas Naturally Possess the Nine Realms
Because the pre-Lotus sūtras do not make clear the mutual possession of the Ten Realms, those who adhere to these sūtras must reject the nine realms in order to become Buddhas. For they do not understand that the nine realms are included in the realm of Buddhas. Therefore, they claim that living beings cannot become Buddhas until evil passions and delusions are eliminated. This is because the truth that the characteristics of ordinary people are included in a Buddha is not preached. Consequently, they maintain that getting rid of the characteristics of human beings, heavenly beings, and evil people must be accomplished first in order to become Buddhas. Grand Master Miao-lê called this “the Buddhahood sought by rejecting and avoiding the delusions of the nine realms.” Those who believe in the pre-Lotus sūtras see the Buddhas that appear in front of them as beings of the nine realms. They believe this is due to the mysterious and divine powers of the Buddhas because they do not understand that the Buddhas naturally possess the nine realms.
Ichidai Shōgyō Tai-I, Outline of All the Holy Teachings of the Buddha, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Page 91-92
Daily Dharma – Nov. 20, 2019
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