The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p307-308It is written that terrible things – leprosy, missing or bad teeth, ugly lips, a flat nose, squinty eyes, deformed hands and feet, body odor, severe illness, and so on, often for many generations – will come to those who expose the faults of followers of the Sutra. (LS 397—98) This passage is often used by the Sutra’s detractors to show that the Lotus Sutra is extremely intolerant. But we should be careful about this. At least a couple of things need to be said.
One is that the context makes it clear that what is being talked about primarily is not evil-doers but followers of the Lotus Sutra. The passage concludes with, “Therefore, Universal Sage, if anyone sees someone who receives and embraces this sutra, they should get up and greet them from afar, as if they were paying reverence to the Buddha.” The purpose of the passage is not, in other words, an attempt to describe consequences of evil actions; rather, it is to urge that special respect be given to those who embrace the Sutra.
Second, the passage does not point to supernatural intervention or action to punish evil-doers. It is not about literal punishment at all. At most, it should be taken to mean, again, that actions have consequences. Thus, just as planting good seeds is likely to produce good results, planting rotten seeds by doing bad things is likely to have bad results.
Having said this, perhaps we should also take a quick look at an earlier passage, one in which it is said that those who follow the Dharma Flower Sutra not only will no longer be attached to worldly pleasures, they will have no liking for scriptures of non-Buddhists or other jottings, nor ever again take pleasure in associating with such people or with other evil people, be they butchers or those who raise pigs, sheep, chickens, and dogs, or hunters, or pimps. The common thread here, of course, has to do with profiting from the sale of flesh, animal or human. It shows that some Buddhists have taken very seriously the prohibition against killing or profiting from killing and, in this case, prostitution.
Monthly Archives: April 2021
One Ignorant Thought Is Identical to Enlightenment
Foundations of T'ien T'ai Philosophy, p 225-226[C]ontemplating the mind means contemplating that one ignorant thought is identical to enlightenment. The Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra says, “Insight [concerning] ignorance is identical to ultimate emptiness.”465 Wisdom concerning emptiness illumines ignorance; [it clarifies the truth] that ignorance is identical to purity [because they are both empty of substantial Being].
To use an analogy, suppose there is a man who is discovered to be a thief; he is then unable to steal.466 If originally there is no place which is defiled by ignorance, then this “way of passionate delusions” is pure. If passionate delusions are pure, there are then no karmic deeds. If there are no karmic deeds, then there are no bonds. If there are no bonds, then one is a free self. If one’s self is free, one is not bound by karma. Who then experiences name-and-form, contact, and experience? Since there is no experience, there is no suffering. If there is no suffering within the aggregates, who then is transient and perishes? This is the virtue of eternity.
Thus one thought in the mind already includes the twelvefold links of conditioned co-arising. By contemplating [these aspects of] conditioned co-arising and constantly practicing the contemplation of eternity, bliss, selfhood, and purity, the mind will thought by thought come to dwell within the secret storehouse [of Buddhahood]. The constant practice of this contemplation is called “being entrusted to the noble womb.”467 If one practices this contemplation diligently and single-mindedly, one will bring to perfection the content of the womb [and advance toward Buddhahood]. If one destroys ignorance, this is called transcending the noble womb [to advance to Buddhahood].
- 465
- This is a paraphrase. The entire section reads: “Concerning insight, there are three kinds of insight. Bodhisattva insight, the insight of all Buddhas, and insight (concerning) ignorance. The insight of the bodhisattva is identical to Prajn͂āpāramitā. The insight of all Buddhas is identical to the Buddha-eye. The insight [concerning] ignorance is identical to ultimate emptiness.” This passage is not saying that ignorance and insight is the same; it is saying that realizing the truth of emptiness is to have insight into the true nature of ignorance. return
- 466
- The relevance of this analogy escapes my comprehension. return
- 467
- A simile for the bodhisattva stages, which are the “womb” from which a Buddha is born. The bodhisattva stages are called a “noble womb” in the Jên wang ching. The subject is discussed in more detail in Chih-i’s commentary to the Jên wang ching. return
On the 28th Day of the 4th Month in the 5th Year of Kenchō
I, Nichiren, started the propagation of the Lotus Sūtra on the 28th day of the 4th month in the 5th year of Kenchō (1253) in the district of Tōjō, Nagasa County of Awa Province. Tōjō District is now the county of Tōjō. This is where the shrine domain of the Goddess Amaterasu is located. This domain established by Mina moto Yoritomo was the second in importance among the domains of the Ise Shrine in Japan, but now it is the most important one. In the compound of the Seichōji Temple located also in the Tōjō District, there existed the Hall of the Buddha known as the Shobutsu-bō. On the south side of the Hall of the Buddha, I started preaching the teaching of the Lotus Sūtra at twelve noon. Since then till today in the second year of Kōan (1279), it has been 27 years. The Buddha revealed His true intent in the Lotus Sūtra after preaching expedient teachings for 40 years or so while Grand Masters T’ien-t’ai and Dengyō took more than 30 years and twenty years or so respectively to fulfill their wishes. As I have told you, the difficulties they encountered during those years were indescribable. In my case, it took twenty-seven years, and you all know about the great persecutions I encountered during this period.
Shōnin Gonan Ji, Persecution Befalling Nichiren Shōnin, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 5, Page 117-118
Planting Good Seeds in a Fertile Field
As I observe Japan today, it is just like this. Those who support this practicer receive the merit of supporting the Lotus Sūtra. Grand Master Dengyō annotated, “Those who praise the practicer of the Lotus Sūtra accumulate merit as high as Mt. Sumeru, and those who slander the practicer commit a sin as serious as falling into the Hell of Incessant Suffering.” It is said that the person who served a meal of millet to a pratyekabuddha became the Treasure Light Buddha, and the child who offered a rice cake made of mud to a Buddha became the king of this world in the past.
If a person of meritorious deeds makes an offering against the truth, his commitment would become a great evil, not a virtue. On the contrary, even if a person is foolish in mind, if he serves even a little to a true person, his merit is great. Needless to say, if a person who has a strong will serves the True Dharma, the merit gained is immeasurable. Although the world today is corrupt, and people are powerless and without leisure, because of your good will, you sent bamboo shoots to the altar of the Lotus Sūtra on Mt. Minobu. Doesn’t it seem that you planted good seeds in a fertile field? I cannot hold back my tears.
Zui-jii Gosho, The Sūtra Preached in Accordance to [the Buddha’s] Own Mind, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 161
Daily Dharma – April 28, 2021
Knowing that people wish to hear
The teachings of the Lesser Vehicle,
And that they are afraid of having the great wisdom,
[My sons, that is,] the Bodhisattvas transform themselves
Into Śrāvakas or cause-knowers,
And teach the people with innumerable expedients.
The Buddha sings these verses in Chapter Eight of the Lotus S̄ūtra. Our fear of the Buddha’s wisdom comes from the attachment we have to our delusions. At some level we know that we are suffering, but we believe that anything different from how we live now will be worse. There are times when someone who seems to share our delusions can help us move away from them. But then as an actor becomes so absorbed in a role that he forgets his real life, those who choose a life in this world of conflict can forget their existence as Bodhisattvas who have vowed to benefit all beings. This Wonderful Dharma reminds us of this vow and helps us appreciate those who are still bound by delusion and what we can learn from them.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 31
Day 31 covers Chapter 27, King Wonderful-Adornment as the Previous Life of a Bodhisattva.
“Thereupon Cloud-Thunderpeal-Star-King-Flower-Wisdom Buddha said to the four kinds of devotees, ‘Do you see this King Wonderful-Adornment standing before me with his hands joined together, or not? This king will become a bhikṣu under me, strenuously study and practice the various ways to the enlightenment of the Buddha, and then become a Buddha called Sala-Tree-King in a world called Great-Light in a kalpa called Great-Height-King. Sala-Tree-King Buddha will be accompanied by innumerable Bodhisattvas and Śrāvakas. The ground of his world will be even. [King Wonderful-Adornment) will have these merits.’
“Thereupon the king abdicated from the throne in favor of his younger brother, renounced the world, and with his wife, two sons, and attendants, practiced the Way under that Buddha. After he renounced the world, the king acted according to the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma constantly and strenuously for eighty-four thousand years. Then he practiced the samādhi for the adornment of all pure merits. Then he went up to the sky seven times as high as the tala-tree, and said to that Buddha, ‘World-Honored One! These two sons of mine did the work of the Buddha. They converted me from wrong views by displaying wonders. They caused me to dwell peacefully in your teachings. They caused me to see you. These two sons of mine are my teachers. They appeared in my family in order to benefit me. They inspired the roots of good which I had planted in my previous existence.’
“Thereupon Cloud-Thunderpeal-Star-King-Flower-Wisdom Buddha said to King Wonderful-Adornment, ‘So it is, so it is. It is just as you say. The good men or women who plant the roots of good will obtain teachers in their successive lives. The teachers will do the work of the Buddha, show the Way [to them], teach them, benefit them, cause them to rejoice, and cause them to enter into the Way to Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi. Great King, know this! A teacher is a great cause [of your enlightenment] because he leads you, and causes you to see a Buddha and aspire for Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi. Great King! Do you see these two sons of yours, or not? They made offerings to six trillion and five hundred thousand billion Buddhas, that is, as many Buddhas as there are sands in the River Ganges, in their previous existence. They attended on those Buddhas respectfully. They kept the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma under those Buddhas, and caused the people of wrong views to have right views out of their compassion towards them.
Following the Truth
The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p293[King Wonderful-Adornment] follows the truth when it is shown to him, even though it is his own sons who lead him to the truth. This probably is the main point intended in the story. The Dharma Flower Sutra wants us to realize that we too must follow the truth, regardless of the source.
Following the truth means not only recognizing it, but also acting in accord with it. The King sees truth in the deeds of his sons and he follows them to see the Buddha.
In this sense, Buddhism can be seen as radically anti-authoritarian. We should follow the truth regardless of convention, regardless of from where or from whom it comes. But, at the same time, this final authority of the individual has to be kept in check by having good associations, good friends, and teachers.
Thus, Buddhism is here again a kind of middle way – saying follow the truth as you yourself see it, but be sure that you are looking in the right places, that you are looking critically, and that your perceptions are shared by good friends. Doing so makes you a “child of the Buddha.”
Exposing the Crude and Manifesting the Subtle
Foundations of T'ien T'ai Philosophy, p 224-225[E]xposing the crude and manifesting the subtle means, as the Lotus Sūtra says, “My dharma is subtle and difficult to conceptualize.”457 The first three [understandings] are all the dharma-teachings of the Buddha.458 How can there be a crude [understanding] which is conceptual and which is different from the subtle [understanding] which is beyond conceptualization? [There cannot.]
There is no explanation of the meaning of liberation which is not verbal. Truly the essence of that which can be conceptualized is identical with that which is beyond conceptualization. It is like the rich man [in the analogy of the poor son] supplied “pots and vessels, rice and noodles” to the poor son and made them his.459 According to his innate nature [i.e., his genealogy] the poor son is neither a guest nor a servant. The “pots and vessels” thus stay in the family and do not become the possessions of a stranger.460
The Tathāgata takes that which is beyond conceptualization and uses expedient means to explain it crudely. How can one isolate the crude as [ultimately] different from the subtle? [One cannot.]
This [Lotus Sūtra] fulfills the dharma of the śrāvakas, so it is the king of all Sutras.461 It exposes [the meaning of] two [Tripiṭaka and Shared understandings of] conditioned co-arising and discourses on [the identity of all with] the subtle.
- 457
- In other words, the ultimate teaching of the Buddha is beyond conceptual understanding, but it is finally revealed in its essence in the Lotus Sūtra. return
- 458
- The other Sūtras and the content of the Tripiṭaka, Shared, and Distinct Teachings are the Buddha-dharma and not to be taken lightly, but the Buddha-dharma is finally fully exposed in the Lotus Sūtra. return
- 459
- In other words, he supplied him with any and all his needs, as the Buddha supplies the teaching needed by each sentient being. This phrase is from the analogy of the poor son. See also Hurvitz, Lotus Sūtra, 87. return
- 460
- The father “giving” to his son what is rightfully and originally his is an expedient means, like the Buddha leading sentient beings to realize their inherent Buddha-nature. return
- 461
- The Lotus Sūtra itself claims that it is “the king of all Sutras.” return
When Evil-Minded People Are Respected
Only I, Nichiren, remained in this country to declare these facts. The ruler of this country was reproachful of me and had hundreds of people slander me, speak ill of me, attack me with sticks and swords, and chase me out of my house. As I did not stop my protest to the government, the ruler personally exiled me two times.
On the 12th of the 9th month in the 8th year of the Bun’ei Era (1271) he even tried to have me beheaded at Tatsunokuchi. In the Sūtra of the Golden Splendor it is said: “If the evil-minded people are respected while the good are punished, the country will be attacked and destroyed by foreign enemies.”
Hōon-jō, Essay on Gratitude, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 32.
Daily Dharma – April 27, 2021
Our palaces are beautifully adorned
Because we accumulated merits in our previous existence.
We offer [these palaces] to you.
Receive them out of your compassion towards us!
The Brahma-Heavenly-Kings of the East sing these verses in Chapter Seven of the Lotus Sutra. In the story, they came to the world of Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence-Buddha from their worlds of beauty and pleasure when that Buddha became enlightened. Their offering shows their understanding that while they can enjoy the results of the merits they have created, these results are meant to be shared with all beings. No matter how much or how little we have, being grateful for what we have, rather than being resentful for what we lack, is an expression of the Buddha’s wisdom.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com