Before I go further in this yearlong journey of faith I want to explain why that initial discussion of faith during the Tea Time with the Priest led me to devote an entire year to this topic.
I began my 32 Days of the Lotus Sutra practice in March 2015 and have continued to cycle through the 28 chapters of the Lotus Sutra daily without interruption. In 2019 I added the Sutra of Innumerable Meanings and The Sutra of Contemplation of the Dharma Practice of Universal Sage Bodhisattva to the cycle. In all that time nothing has surprised me more than the definition of faith revealed in the Parable of the Skillful Physician and His Sick Children. T’ien T’ai is said to have attained awakening through a phrase of the “Medicine King Chapter” of the Lotus Sūtra1. I consider this to be my equivalent.
In the Parable of the Skillful Physician and His Sick Children in Chapter 16, The Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata, the physician’s children drink poison while he is away from home on business. When the physician returns home, he finds his children writhing in agony on the ground and pleading to be cured. The physician concocts a medicine that has a good color and smell and tastes good and offers it to his sick children.
“The sons who had not lost their right minds saw that this good medicine had a good color and smell, took it at once, and were cured completely. But the sons who had already lost their right minds did not consent to take the medicine given to them, although they rejoiced at seeing their father come home and asked him to cure them, because they were so perverted that they did not believe that this medicine having a good color and smell had a good taste.”
In reading this, I realized that the sons who had “lost their right minds” lacked faith. All of the sons could see the good color of the medicine. They could even check and confirm the good smell. But taste required faith. They could not know how the medicine tasted without taking it.
I remember being very excited about this realization. I even made a point of sharing my understanding with Rev. Igarashi at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church. This was early in my practice with Nichiren Shu, and I was hesitant then to discuss doctrine with Rev. Igarashi. That’s one measure of how special this was to me.
Throughout the Lotus Sutra we are told to understand by faith. Chapter 16 famously begins, “Good men! Understand my sincere and infallible words by faith!” Through the remainder of this year, I hope to illustrate and reinforce my understanding of faith and invite readers of 500yojanas.org to consider their faith.
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- T’ien T’ai’s special phrase: “The Buddhas of those worlds praised him, saying simultaneously, ‘Excellent, excellent, good man! All you did was a true endeavor. You made an offering to us according to the true Dharma.’ ” return
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