Category Archives: Awakening to the Lotus

Seeing the Truth of the Lotus Sutra for Ourselves

In the [Lotus] sutra, the Buddha said, “They will be able to understand [this sutra] by faith.” The transfer of merit from the Odaimoku is based simply on faith, not on intellectual understanding. Note that this is not “blind faith” as it is sometimes understood in Western culture; instead, it is initial trust that allows us to move to a point at which we see the truth of the Lotus Sutra for ourselves.

Awakening to the Lotus

The Jewel of Salvation

In his Treatise on Spiritual Insight and the Most Venerable One, Nichiren Shonin explained how the Buddha extends his salvation to us:

For those who are incapable of understanding the truth of ichinen sanzen, Lord Sakyamumi Buddha, with his great compassion, wraps this jewel with the five characters of myo, ho, ren, ge, and kyo and hangs it around the neck of the ignorant in the Declining Age of the Dharma. [Writings of Nichiren Shonin: Doctrine 2, p. 164]

Awakening to the Lotus

The Precept Platform

Nichiren Shonin’s teachings indicate that the precept platform can be anywhere one practices chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.

Awakening to the Lotus

Rich Soil of Buddha Nature

Buddha nature is like rich soil that has great potential to bring forth excellent fruit. Nonetheless, in order to make the fruit, you need not only the soil but also seeds, water, and sunshine. This is the function that our Buddhist practice serves. In Nichiren Buddhism, the Lotus Sutra and the Odaimoku are the seeds of Buddhahood that with careful practice will sprout and grow. Eventually the “sprout” will mature and the flower of enlightenment can bloom.

Awakening to the Lotus

The Eightfold Path

The Eightfold Path is a set of guidelines for our lives that help us develop understanding and compassion. Developing that kind of deeply compassionate life can help release us from suffering. The Eightfold Path is:

  • Right Views
  • Right Thought
  • Right Speech
  • Right Action
  • Right Livelihood
  • Right Effort
  • Right Mindfulness
  • Right Meditation

… So what exactly do we mean by “right?” It means that we should use our judgment based on the Buddha’s teachings and be mindful of these things when living with others in our society.

Awakening to the Lotus

Six Perfections

A Bodhisattva practices the Six Perfections or pāramitās to obtain the goal of causing all beings to strive for Buddhahood. The Six Perfections are:

  • Giving
  • Observing Precepts
  • Patience
  • Striving
  • Meditation
  • Wisdom
Awakening to the Lotus

Four Noble Truths

The first thing the Buddha taught was the Four Noble Truths. Put simply, these are:

  • Life is Suffering
  • There is a cause for Suffering
  • Suffering can be overcome
  • The way to overcome suffering is the Eightfold Path
Awakening to the Lotus

Suffering

The unsatisfactoy nature of life is summarized in Buddhism by the “Four Sufferings,” which are birth (called suffering because it inevitably leads to the next three), old age, sickness and death. A more complete explanation of suffering – and a further expansion on why birth is considered suffering – is found in the “Eight Sufferings.” These eight include the Four Sufferings and adds the suffering of being separated from loved ones and other things one desires to keep, encountering people or circumstances that one dislikes, not being able to get things that one desires, and being attached to things that are impermanent, including one’s own mind and body.

Awakening to the Lotus

Awakening to the Lotus

An Introduction to Nichiren Shu

Awakening to the Lotus bookcover
This book is available for purchase at Nichiren-Shu.org

From NBIC website
:

One of the most important and widely practiced forms of Japanese Buddhism, Nichiren Shu is also one of the least known outside of Japan. The few books available in the West are either college-level texts or direct translations of works that assume some prior knowledge of this uniquely Japanese school of Buddhism.

Awakening to the Lotus finally explains Nichiren Shu in terms that everyone from the most basic beginner to those with previous experience of Nichiren Buddhist schools can understand. Examining the foundation, the teaching, the practice, and the beliefs of Nichiren Shu, this book can serve both as a handbook for those just beginning to practice Buddhism and as an information resource for those who simply want to learn more about this fascinating school.

Beginning with the basics of general Buddhism, Awakening to the Lotus quickly focuses in on the specific doctrines and teachings of Nichiren Shu. Ceremonies, special events, personal practice, the Lotus Sutra, and the teachings of the founder of the school, Nichiren Shonin, are all covered fully in easy to understand language.

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