Buddhism for Today, p100-101When the Tathāgata Universal Surpassing Wisdom [Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Tathāgata] received the entreaty of the Brahma heavenly kings of the ten regions and of his sixteen royal sons, he taught them the doctrine of the Four Noble Truths through the three ways of preaching.
The three ways of preaching are “show-rolling,” or ji-ten (to show the Four Noble Truths) ; “exhortation-rolling,” or kan-ten (to exhort to the practice of the Four Noble Truths), and “proof-rolling,” or shō-ten (to witness or prove that the Buddha has accomplished the Four Noble Truths). Because the tathāgata preached the Four Noble Truths in these three ways, the sutra says, “the Tathāgata Universal Surpassing Wisdom at once thrice rolled the Law-wheel of the twelve divisions.” Then he expounded in detail the Law of the Twelve Causes (jūni-innen), one of the fundamental teachings of the Buddha.
Category Archives: b4today
Buddhism for Today: A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra
The Closing Verse of Vows
Buddhism for Today, p100At the end of the fourteenth verse portion of this chapter occur the following lines:
“May this deed of merit
Extend to all creatures
That we with all the living
May together accomplish the Buddha-way!”This is called “the closing verse of vows” because not only the practicers of the Lotus Sutra but all believers in Buddhism recite it as a closing verse in their sutra-chanting service. It is said that the spirit of the great vow and practice of Buddhists can be summed up in these few short lines. The words “this deed of merit” mean “this deed of merit of serving the buddhas.” This does not mean that the Brahma heavenly kings desire to receive some merit in compensation for their having presented their palaces to the buddhas. It goes without saying that the buddhas are not anxious to have material things. To serve the Buddha by presenting flowers and offerings is an expression of our worship of and gratitude to him. But the most important thing is to serve the Buddha through our practice, namely, to practice the Buddha-way after abandoning our ego, or “small self.” The sutra reciting service that we perform before Buddhist altars is one of our practices in which we forget the small self, abandoning it and devoting ourselves solely to the pursuit of the Buddha-way. Therefore, our sutra reciting service is also a great way of serving the Buddha.
Serving the Buddha should not be done merely for the sake of mental peace and a comfortable life. It should be our heartfelt desire that the merit of our practice of serving the Buddha extend to all living beings. It should be also our prayer to accomplish the Buddha-way together with all the living. Because the closing verse of vows has this deep significance, we should not merely learn it by heart but recite it earnestly as our great vow as Buddhists.
The Ten Epithets of the Buddha
Buddhism for Today, p76-77The Buddha then explained his identity with the following ten titles: “I am the Tathāgata, the Worshipful, the All Wise, the Perfectly Enlightened in Conduct, the Well Departed, the Understander of the World, the Peerless Leader, the Controller, the Teacher of Gods and Men, the Buddha, the World-honored One.” These are called the ten epithets of the Buddha, each of which represents an aspect of the Buddha’s virtue and power.
Tathāgata (nyorai) means “one who has come from the world of truth”; the Worshipful (ōgu), “one who deserves offerings in the human and the celestial worlds”; the All Wise (shōhenchi), “one who has the right and perfect wisdom”; the Perfectly Enlightened in Conduct (myōgyō-soku), “one who completely combines knowledge with practice”; the Well Departed (zenzei), “one who is free from everything”; the Understander of the World (sekenge), “one who can understand people in all circumstances”; the Peerless Leader (mujōji), “one who is unsurpassed”; the Controller (jōgo-jōbu), “one who is infallible in controlling men’s minds”; the Teacher of Gods and Men (tennin-shi), “one who leads all lives of creatures in the human and the celestial worlds”; and the Buddha, the World-honored One (butsu-seson), “the enlightened one who is most honored by the people of the world.” One who is possessed of these ten virtues and powers is called Buddha.
Because of such perfect virtues and powers, those who have not yet reached the mental state of being uninfluenced by changes in their circumstances, the Buddha causes to reach that state of mind; those who have not yet understood why their illusions occur and how they can be removed, he causes to understand; those who have not yet been comforted after their illusions are extinguished, he causes to be comforted; those who have not yet obtained true enlightenment, he causes to obtain it.
The Buddha also knows the present, the past, and the world to come as they really arc. He is the one who knows everything perfectly (issaichisha, the All Knowing), the one who discerns the real state of all things (issai-kcnsha, the All Seeing), the one who knows the true Way (chidōsha, the Knower of the Way), the one who makes all living beings understand the Way and leads them to it (kaidō-sha, the Opener of the Way) , and the one who preaches the Way to them (setsudō-sha, the Preacher of the Way).
Realizing Real Salvation
Buddhism for Today, p47As long as even a man of great wisdom, such as Śāriputra, only desired to obtain enlightenment for himself and to be saved for his own sake, he could not possibly bridge the great gulf between his own and the Buddha’s enlightenment, though he had already nearly attained the Buddha’s enlightenment. However, he was able to leap the gulf at the moment when he realized that real salvation consists in one’s own salvation together with that of all other people.
This is the true meaning of the Buddha’s words, “The buddhas teach only bodhisattvas.” He said this in order to explain that only bodhisattvas, those who practice to save all living beings, can grasp the true teachings of the Buddha.
Another Innumerable Day Before Day 1
For today’s journey through The Sutra of Innumerable Meanings, I offer Nikkyō Niwano’s discussion of the 10 Merits gained by the practicer of this sutra:
Buddhism for Today, p13-14This [Ten Merits] chapter expounds the merit one can gain, the virtuous deeds he can accomplish, and the service he can render to society if he understands the teachings preached in this sutra. Some people say that religion should not bring merit to its believers, but this is a specious argument. It would be, rather, a wonder if one did not gain merit when he truly understood a correct religion, believed in it deeply, and practiced it. Needless to say, there are varying degrees of merit according to one’s degree of understanding and the speed of the actual manifestation of merit. In any case, it is natural for one to gain merit through his religion when he has faith in it.
As mentioned earlier, the teachings of the Buddha are the truth of the universe, which of course includes human beings. It is no wonder, and certainly no miracle, that if one lives according to the truth, his life works out well. This is like the fact that if we switch on the television set and tune in exactly to the wavelength beamed from a particular television station, a vivid image appears on the screen and a clear voice is heard.
If no image appears on the television screen, however often we try to tune in the channel, the television set is useless. It will be put away in some storeroom, where it will be covered with dust. Numerous religions have sprung up throughout history, but some of them have gradually lost their power and finally have become distant from the people. This is because they have forgotten the merit to be gained by believers, or because they have preached only the merit to be gained after death – that one will go to heaven or be reborn in paradise.
The true teachings of the Buddha, however, do not preach an intangible merit that one cannot realize until after death. The merit preached by the Buddha appears clearly in our lives in this world. In addition to ourselves, it is a merit that exerts an influence upon all of society and upon all people. If we disregard this merit and make light of it, it is as if we deliberately shut out the light of the Buddha’s teachings with a black curtain. Such an attitude is due to the shallow understanding peculiar to people today.
We should abandon such shallow thinking and bathe ourselves in the light of the Buddha by drawing aside the curtain. This is the true hope of the Buddha and the sole purpose of his appearance in this world.
Aiming Toward the Ultimate Ideal
Buddhism for Today, p426Especially noteworthy [in The Sutra of Contemplation of the Dharma Practice Of Universal Sage Bodhisattva] is the following expression: “How, without cutting off their earthly cares and renouncing their five desires, can they also purify their organs and destroy their sins?”
The ideal of our practice is to cut off our earthly cares and renounce our five desires. Though such an ideal should be demanded of Buddhist monks, it is much more difficult for lay devotees to pursue because they must maintain their faith while living and working in secular society. In their circumstances, situations caused by the five desires occur continually, and they are surrounded by people and situations that cause them earthly cares. Ideally speaking, they should become free from all desires, but in actuality, to expect them to reach such a spiritual level immediately is asking too much. Nevertheless, as long as they are believers, they must aim toward their ultimate ideal. But how should they bridge the gap between their ideal and actuality? This sutra teaches the answer to this practical question, which believers face in the age of degeneration.
Four Practices of The Bodhisattva Universal Sage
Buddhism for Today, p405-406As shown in this chapter and in the Sutra of Meditation on the Bodhisattva Universal [Sage], the so-called closing sutra of the Lotus Sutra, the Bodhisattva Universal [Sage] is perfect in the following four practices:
- He himself practices the teachings of the Lotus Sutra.
- He protects the teachings from all persecutions.
- He bears witness to the merits obtained by one who practices the teachings and to the punishments suffered by one who slanders the teachings or persecutes its followers.
- He proves that even those who violate the teachings can be delivered from their sins if they are sincerely penitent.
The Bodhisattva Universal [Sage] encourages those who have finished hearing the Lotus Sutra and are beginning a new life with these words: “I vow to do these four practices as a conclusion of the practices of the Lotus Sutra. Try to be assiduous in your practices, without anxiety.”
His encouragement may be likened to the commencement address that the principal of a school delivers to the graduating students. They are now leaving school, carrying with them the truth that they have studied there. When they go out into the world, they are often puzzled as to how best to use what they have studied at school. Sometimes they have the unfortunate experience of having the truth they have studied denied by others, or even of being persecuted for it. “Whenever you have trouble, you can visit your old school. We will try to prove that the truth is not wrong. Moreover, we will teach you how you should apply the truth to each practical problem. If you fail in anything, we will show you how to overcome your failure.” In this way, the principal’s commencement speech guarantees the graduates the protection of their activities even after leaving school. No farewell speech of encouragement could be more inspiring than this.
Leading Others to the Teachings of the Buddha
Buddhism for Today, p400-401Let us now consider the important points of this story. First, we must think of the true meaning of the two sons’ showing their father many kinds of supernatural deeds. This does not mean that they became able to display supernatural deeds by means of the Buddha’s teachings, nor that they stimulated their father’s curiosity by showing him such deeds. Their performing various supernatural deeds means that they completely changed their character and their daily lives by studying and believing the Buddha’s teachings. Their showing their father supernatural deeds thus means nothing but the fact that before their father they proved the true value of the Buddha’s teachings by their deeds and led him to be aroused to the aspiration for Perfect Enlightenment.
When we lead others to the teachings of the Buddha, none will follow us only through hearing us praise the teachings. We must clearly show them the reason that the Buddha’s teachings are worshipful. It is important for us to explain the content of the teachings. We must elucidate the teachings to others’ satisfaction according to their level of understanding, sometimes simply, sometimes theoretically, sometimes by using parables, and sometimes in the light of modern science.
Mystic Syllables
Buddhism for Today, p389This chapter declares how with mystic syllables nonhuman beings representing the spiritual world, who are deeply moved by the teachings of the Lotus Sutra, vow to protect the teachings and their preachers.
First two bodhisattvas, Medicine King and Courageous Giver, vow to guard and protect the preachers of the Lotus Sutra. Their vows are only to be expected, for these two bodhisattvas are the disciples and messengers of the Buddha. Next two Brahma heavenly kings, the Divine King Vaiśravaṇa and the Divine King Domain Holder, vow to protect the sutra. The vows of these two non-Buddhist divine kings signify that the Buddha’s teachings comprehend all other teachings and infuse religious life into them.
Following this, ten female rākṣasas and the Mother of Demon Sons vow to protect the Lotus Sutra. These female demons with one voice declared before the Buddha that if anyone harassed the preachers of the sutra, they would protect the preachers and rid them of such persecution. Their declaration bears witness to the fact that the Buddha-mind is found even in these demons. Conversely, the teachings of the Lotus Sutra can be said to have the power to enable even these demons to become buddhas.
Superficially and Literally
Buddhism for Today, p377Of the twenty-eight chapters of the Lotus Sutra, there is none that has been more misinterpreted than this one. Having been interpreted superficially and literally, it has been regarded as teaching an easygoing faith: anyone who calls upon the Bodhisattva Regarder of the Cries of the World will be delivered instantly from all his sufferings.
To be sure, the first half of this chapter deals for the most part with the supernatural power of this bodhisattva, declaring that if living beings keep in mind and revere the Bodhisattva Regarder of the Cries of the World, they will be freed from the seven dangers of fire, water, wind, sword, demon, torture, and robbery. If they continue to revere the bodhisattva, they will be delivered from the four human sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, and death. If they revere the bodhisattva still more, they will be emancipated from the three poisons of desire, anger, and foolishness, and they will be able to obtain the kind of children they desire.
When ordinary people read chapter 25 with a shallow understanding, it is only to be expected that they will fall into an easygoing faith. Such a misinterpretation of this chapter comes from their insufficient understanding of the teachings preached in the rest of the Lotus Sutra. If they could truly understand at least chapter 16, “Revelation of the [Eternal] Life of the Tathāgata,” they could not misunderstand chapter 25 in this way.