The Buddhist faith often expounds difficult doctrines consisting of abstract philosophical ideas. When it comes to the Lotus Sutra, however, such complicated dogmas do not appear on the surface. For this reason, some critics have argued that there are no doctrines in the Lotus Sutra. But this is not true. The Lotus Sutra does contain profound philosophical thoughts. Instead of using tortuous logic, however, the Sutra explains its philosophy in the simplified form of stories, drawing on examples familiar to us from everyday life. This is why we find many parables in the text.

We can come to faith only by encountering the absolute Buddha and believing his words. This is an act beyond the working of our knowledge. In Chapter Two, the Buddha says, “Sariputra, know this! The Buddhas do not speak differently.” The Buddhas speak truth. We can recognize that truth even when it is beyond our full understanding.

On the other hand, this does not mean that we should believe blindly. There is a Japanese saying that “even the head of a sardine seems blessed if you have faith in it.” This is not what we mean by faith. We can maintain a belief that is inspired by the experience of something beyond our ordinary capacities. We can evaluate it by means of our intellect and reason, and form our own mental attitudes. The title of Chapter Four, “Understanding by Faith,” refers to this process of the formation of our own psychological attitudes.

The Lotus Sutra contains seven parables, three of which are best known. The first is the “Parable of the Burning House of the Triple World” in Chapter Three. The second is the “Parable of the Rich Man and His Poor Son” in Chapter Four. The “Parable of the Physician and His Children” is presented in Chapter Sixteen. These three parables allegorically show the relationship between the Buddha and living beings by presenting a parental relationship. That is, faith in the Buddha is similar to the faith of a child in his father; and the Buddha’s compassion toward living beings is like a father’s love for his children. In other words, natural feelings drawn from the norms of everyday life eventually lead us toward faith in the Buddha.

In Buddhism, various Buddhas have been established as objects of devotion for different pious believers. Since each Buddha has a good reason for being venerated, Buddhism permits us to worship any or all of them. Nevertheless, the Most-Venerable-One should be One, just as the Truth is One. The second half of the Lotus Sutra (Hommon) emphasizes such a Buddhist position regarding unity of faith. As the object of faith is absolute, it must relate to the realm of eternity. Generally we think of Sakyamuni as a historical figure, bound by the limitations of time and space, and only a provisional manifestation of the infinite, eternal Buddha. According to the Lotus Sutra, however, every Buddha, including the historical Sakyamuni Buddha, is a representation of the eternal original being of Sakyamuni.

The idea of unity of doctrine … should lead logically to the concept of unity of faith. Although the ultimate Truth is one in essence, human beings have various conflicting ideas about it. Nevertheless, we are able to advance toward a higher truth, overcoming conceptual conflicts, since we all believe firmly that the Truth is only one. Indeed, human progress is possible only because we are confident of the existence of a Universal Truth. After all, it is our confidence in the ultimate Truth that leads to the formation of our attitudes toward faith.

Toward the end of [Chapter 2], the Buddha expounds a well-known teaching called, “A small good deed leads a person to become a Buddha.” This teaching states that whenever someone shows sincere faith in the Buddha by performing a good deed, no matter how tiny it may be, this act sets him on the path to Buddhahood, and he or she is sure to become a Buddha eventually. Even though such a person is not yet a Buddha, he or she is on the way, and deserves respect as a future Buddha.

For example, even a person who has never performed any special practice can become a Buddha simply by making an offering, such as incense, flowers, or the wonderful sounds of music, in front of a Stupa (a round dome-shaped shrine) or an image of the Buddha. The sutra repeatedly maintains that such people “have already attained the enlightenment of the Buddha.” Furthermore, just entering a shrine only once and reciting, “Namo Buddhaya” (Homage to the Buddha!), or offering a single flower, is enough to enable anyone to become a Buddha. What is more, even a child at play, who pretends to build a Stupa by heaping up a pile of sand or dirt, “has already become a Buddha.” In the same way, if a child draws a picture of the Buddha on a wall with a stick or the back of his fingernail, and makes a gesture of praying to it, he or she has already become a Buddha (or, as the sutra says again, “has already attained the enlightenment of the Buddha”), (The Buddha is pure good: any act of good on our part, no matter how small or insignificant it may appear to be, puts us in his embrace from which nothing can ever separate us.)

The sutra presents various instances, one by one in order, to show that any small act of good will on our part enables us to become a Buddha. From these concrete examples, we can see that the One Vehicle is the teaching of the Buddha himself—boundless in bounty, pouring forth perfect life in limitless supply, lending a hand to everyone, and leading all of us to his own enlightenment. Finally, the sutra adds, “Anyone who even hears the Dharma (law/truth) will not fail to become a Buddha!”