Foundations of T'ien T'ai Philosophy, p 192If one examines the words of the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, the passage “May I attain the supreme reward”222 clarifies that the reward of the Buddha realm is supreme. The reward of Buddhahood is already recognized as supreme; the appearances, nature and all the [other] nine suchlike characteristics [of the Buddha] are [also] supreme. The reason is that the appearances, nature, and so forth of those in the six destinies [from hell to heaven] manifest all the five types of passions and delusions.223
The appearances, nature, and so forth of those in the two vehicles manifest their destruction of four types of passions and delusions but still manifest ignorance. The appearances, nature, and so forth of the bodhisattvas manifest a gradual destruction of the five types of passions and delusions, but the appearance, nature, and so forth of the Buddha manifests universal wisdom,224 which is pure like space and not defiled by the five types of passions and delusions. Therefore the ten dharmas [of the suchlike characteristics] of the Buddha are most supreme.
Monthly Archives: May 2021
King Aśoka
Once there were two boys named Unvanquished and Virtuous-Victory [who met the Buddha but had nothing of value to offer] so they offered a mud pie to the Buddha, and by virtue of this one of them was reborn as King Aśoka the lord of Jambudvīpa. After building 84,000 stupas and sending them to various countries, he was able to fulfill his long time wish and attain enlightenment.
Minobu-san Gosho, Mt. Minobu Letter, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 5, Page 131
Daily Dharma – May 25, 2021
Flower-Virtue! This Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva protects all living beings in this Sahā-World. He transforms himself into one or another of these various living beings in this Sahā-World and expounds this sūtra to all living beings without reducing his supernatural powers, [his power of] transformation, and his wisdom.
The Buddha gives this explanation to Flower-Virtue Bodhisattva in Chapter Twenty-Four of the Lotus Sūtra. Like many of the Bodhisattvas, Wonderful-Voice takes on the form of countless beings to reach those whom he has vowed to lead to enlightenment. For those who can be reached by a teacher, he becomes a teacher. For those who can be reached by a child, he becomes a child. For those who can be reached by a stranger, he becomes a stranger. Understanding the innumerable forms the Bodhisattvas take on to help us, we can ask: Who in this world of conflict and suffering is not a Bodhisattva? From whom can we not learn how to see 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
Day 24
Day 24 concludes Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma, and closes the Sixth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
“Furthermore, Constant-Endeavor! The good men or women who keep, read, recite, expound or copy this sūtra, will be able to obtain twelve hundred merit of the tongue. Anything which tastes good, bad, delicious, distasteful, bitter or astringent, will become as delicious as the nectar of heaven and not distasteful when it is put on their tongues. When they expound the Dharma to the great multitude with their tongues, they will be able to raise deep and wonderful voices, to cause their voices to reach the hearts of the great multitude so that the great multitude may be joyful and cheerful. Hearing their speeches given in good order by their deep and wonderful voices, Śakra, Brahman, and the other gods and goddesses will come and listen to them. In order to hear the Dharma, dragons, dragons’ daughters, gandharvas, gandharvas’ daughters, asuras, asuras’ daughters, garuḍas, garuḍas’ daughters, kiṃnaras, kiṃnaras’ daughters, mahoragas, and mahoragas’ daughters also will come to them, respect them, and make offerings to them. Bhikṣus, bhikṣunīs, upāsakās, and upāsikās; and kings, princes, ministers, and their attendants [also will come and hear the Dharma]. The wheel-turning[holy-]kings of small [countries], and the wheel-turning-[holy-]kings of great [countries, each of whom has the] seven treasures and one thousand children, also will come with their [treasures, children and] internal and external retinues, riding in their [movable] palaces, and hear the Dharma. These [good men or women, that is,] Bodhisattvas will expound the Dharma so well that the brahmanas, householders, and people of their country will, throughout their lives, attend on them, and make offering to them. The Śrāvakas, Pratyekabuddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Buddhas also will wish to them. [These good men or women] will expound the Dharma in the places which the Buddhas will face. They will keep all the teaching of the Buddhas and raise deep and wonderful voices of the Dharma.”
The Daily Dharma from April 22, 2021, offers this:
Anything which tastes good, bad, delicious, distasteful, bitter or astringent, will become as delicious as the nectar of heaven and not distasteful when it is put on their tongues.
The Buddha gives this explanation to Constant-Endeavor Bodhisattva in Chapter Nineteen of the Lotus Sūtra, describing those who keep the Lotus Sūtra. In our habitual pursuit of pleasure, we often forget that what is pleasant to some people is irritating to others. This is most obvious with food. Flavors that some find delicious others find disgusting. When we understand that the things in the world are not the cause of our happiness or misery, and that our minds affect how we perceive the world, we find more joy and wonder than we thought possible, and no longer depend on this capricious existence for our happiness.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Appearances
Foundations of T'ien T'ai Philosophy, p 192[T]he appearance of those in the six destinies manifests the sufferings of saṃsāric existence. The appearance of those in the two vehicles manifest the bliss of nirvāṇa. The appearance of the Buddha realm manifests neither saṃsāra nor nirvāṇa. The Buddha realm is said to be most supreme because it consists of the middle path [which is] eternal, blissful, selfhood, and pure.
The Buddha’s Messengers
I, Nichiren, am the lone forerunner of the bodhisattvas who emerged from the earth. I may even be one of them. If I am counted as one of the bodhisattvas that emerged from the earth, my disciples and followers too are among the rank of those bodhisattvas from the earth, are they not? The “Teacher of the Dharma” chapter states, “If someone expounds even a phrase of the Lotus Sūtra even to one person in secret, then you should know that such a person is My messenger, dispatched by Me and carries out My work.” This refers to none other than us.
Shohō Jisso-shō, Treatise on All Phenomena as Ultimate Reality, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 77
Daily Dharma – May 24, 2021
Medicine-King! An evil man who speaks ill of me in my presence with evil intent for as long as a kalpa is not as sinful as the person who reproaches laymen or monks with even a single word of abuse for their reading and reciting the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
The Buddha declares this sentence in Chapter Ten of the Lotus Sūtra. Since the Buddha is secure in the enlightenment he enjoys, anyone attacking him either questioning his enlightenment or disparaging his wisdom is only going to make themselves look bad. Attacking someone just starting on the path towards enlightenment could lead them to doubt the value of the Wonderful Dharma. It is beneficial to remember these words, not just for what they mean about how we treat others, but for how we treat ourselves.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 23
Day 23 covers all of Chapter 18, The Merits of a Person Who Rejoices at Hearing This Sutra, and opens Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma.
Thereupon the Buddha said to Constant-Endeavor Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva:
“The good men or women who keep, read, recite, expound or copy this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, will be able to obtain eight hundred merits of the eye, twelve hundred merits of the ear, eight hundred merits of the nose, twelve hundred merits of the tongue, eight hundred merits of the body, and twelve hundred merits of the mind. They will be able to adorn and purify their six sense-organs with these merits.
The Daily Dharam from Nov. 20, 2020, offers this:
The Buddha gives this teaching in Chapter Nineteen of the Lotus Sūtra. This is another reminder that the practice of the Wonderful Dharma does not take us out of the world of conflict we live in. Instead, it helps us to use the senses we have, in ways we did not think were possible, to see the world for what it is. Merits in this sense are not status symbols. They are an indication of clarity, of our faculties not being impeded by anything that blocks their capacity.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Making Paradise in This World
Enjoyed attending the Kaji Kito service at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church Sunday. By the time the next Kaji Kito service is held on June 27 Rev. Kenjo Igarashi hopes to be able to return to individual blessings. For more than a year now, the group blessings has had to suffice.
Following the blessing Rev. Igarashi gave a sermon that covered a number of points. For me, the most notable point was the difference in the motivation of Nichiren to become a monk in comparison to the other Kamakura-era reformers – Honen, Shinran and Dogen. Nichiren had questions he wanted resolved, most important why people are born into this suffering world. The other reformers were placed by their families or because their parents had died.
That search for answers brought Nichiren to the realization that the greatest sin one can commit is to slander the Lotus Sutra.
The Lotus Sutra, Nichiren found, was the Supreme Teaching. In the Lotus Sutra everyone is equal. Everybody can become a Buddha because everyone has the Buddha nature in their mind.
“That’s why we chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, Namu Myoho Renge Kyo to awaken our Buddha nature,” Rev. Igarashi said. “That’s why we chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, Namu Myoho Renge Kyo so that our Buddha nature will come out some day. Then we can make a paradise in this world.”
Reaching the Stage of Subtle Awakening
Foundations of T'ien T'ai Philosophy, p 191-192If one reaches the stage of subtle awakening, there are [either] nine or ten dharmas [of suchlike characteristics]. The reason is that the wisdom of the middle path causes rebirth to be lost. Since [in some stages of some Teachings] birth is not completely exhausted, there are differences among the stages concerning birth and extinction.217
The stage of subtle awakening completes the process of losing further rebirth. Why then can one speak of retribution at this level? Therefore it is written, “Only the Buddha alone dwells in the Pure Land.”218 “The passage through the ten bhūmi stages is finished219 and one is equivalent to Great Awakening. [The Buddha] has no further rebirths in this saṃsāric world because he has exhausted all passions [kleśa]. His wisdom and virtue is already perfect so he has no more repetitive results. He no longer experiences rebirth in another physical body, therefore he has no retributive results. But from the perspective of [the Buddha’s] present life, one can speak of nine or ten [such-like characteristics].221
- 217
- In this passage Chih-i is warily circumscribing the issue of whether or not one can speak of the Buddha having any retribution. The texts that Chih-i quotes make clear that one can speak it in the sense of the reward for his perfection of practice and attainment of enlightenment, and thus the Buddha also has ten suchlike characteristics. However, since the Buddha has severed all delusions and utterly destroyed all vestiges of ignorance, one cannot speak of any “retribution” for the Buddha in the sense of his being reborn in saṃsāra as a result of bad karma. In this sense the Buddha has only nine suchlike characteristics. Thus Chih-i discriminates between “retribution” and the “resultant reward” of Buddhahood. return
- 218
- A continuation of the same passage in the Jên wang ching quoted above. return
- 219
- “Thirty lives are exhausted.” return
- 220
- From the Jên wang ching, immediately preceding the above quotes. The context is describing the attainment of supreme Buddhahood after passing through the various bodhisattva stages. return
- 221
- One can speak of the Buddha’s present life as a “reward” for his past virtuous deeds. return