Category Archives: d27b

Daily Dharma, d27b

Daily Dharma – May 12, 2022

Star-King-Flower! Strew blue lotus flowers and a bowlful of powdered incense to the person who keeps this sūtra when you see him! After strewing these things [to him], you should think, ‘Before long he will collect grass [for his seat], sit at the place of enlightenment, and defeat the army of Māra. He will blow the conch-shell horn of the Dharma, beat the drum of the great Dharma, and save all living beings from the ocean of old age, disease and death.’

The Buddha gives this explanation to Star-King-Flower Bodhisattva in Chapter Twenty-Three of the Lotus Sūtra. Māra is the deity who creates confusion and delusion in the world. His army consists of those who reinforce these delusions and reward those who share them. Such rewards do not benefit those who receive them. They only serve to produce fear and attachment which creates misery in the world. With our practice of this Lotus Sūtra, we learn to recognize delusion for what it is, and reject the superficial benefits that come with it.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

Daily Dharma, d27b

Daily Dharma – Mar. 28, 2022

Having sung this gāthā, Gladly-Seen-By-All-Beings Bodhisattva said to the Buddha, ‘World-Honored One! You do not change, do you?’

This description of the life of Gladly-Seen-By-All-Beings Bodhisattva comes from Chapter Twenty-Three of the Lotus Sūtra. In a previous existence, this Bodhisattva had given up his body and his life for the sake of teaching the Wonderful Dharma. He was then reborn into a world in which the Buddha he served previously was still alive and benefitting all beings. Recognizing this unchanging aspect of the Buddha despite his changing appearances helps us see into our own capacity for enlightenment.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

LS32, d27b, b4today

Not Appearance But Substance; Not Empty Theory But Practice

The Buddha [Sun-Moon-Pure-Bright-Virtue Buddha] told the Bodhisattva [Gladly-Seen-By-All-Beings] to let his relics be distributed and paid homage to far and wide. But he meant not only to let his relics themselves be paid homage to but also, through this homage, to cause all living beings to raise the mind of cherishing a longing and thirst for the Buddha. The Buddha also told the bodhisattva to let thousands of stupas be erected. By this the buddha meant to cause all living beings to root the teaching in their minds through the erection of such stupas. The stupas were to be erected for the purpose of extolling the Buddha’s virtues. If we erect a Stupa with concern only for its form and appearance and forget the spirit of establishing the teaching in our minds, our minds cannot become attuned to the Buddha’s mind. What he wishes is not appearance but substance, not empty theory but practice.

Buddhism for Today, p356
d27b, WONS

The Mt. Sumeru of All Sūtras

It is said in the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 7 (chapter 23), “Mt. Sumeru is the greatest of mountains. Likewise, this Lotus Sūtra is supreme of all sūtras.” This means that the Lotus Sūtra transmitted to Japan is like Mt. Sumeru while all other sutras, that is 5,000 or 7,000 fascicles of pre-Lotus Sūtras such as the Flower Garland, Great Wisdom, and Great Sun Buddha Sūtras; the Sūtra of Infinite Meaning, which was preached at the same time as the Lotus Sūtra; and post-Lotus Sūtras such as the Nirvana Sūtra, as well as all the Buddhist sutras in India, the dragon’s palace, the heavens of the Four Heavenly Kings, Trāyastriṃsá Heaven, the sun and moon, and all the worlds in the universe are like earth mountains, black mountains, Small Surround ing Iron Mountains and Great Surrounding Iron Mountains, which encircle Mt. Sumeru.

Senji-shō, Selecting the Right time: A Tract by Nichiren, the Buddha’s Disciple, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 246-247

stories, LS32, d27b

Purification and the Three Poisons

Another way to approach purification is through the idea of the three poisons. The three poisons are mentioned several times in the Lotus Sutra, but are never discussed. In [Chapter 23], in accord with tradition, they are said to be greed, anger, and folly. Actually, while “greed” and “anger” are very common designations of the first two poisons, the third has sometimes been taken to be delusion, foolishness, or stupidity. Here we might best think of it as confusion. If we are going to be helpful to others, we need to purify ourselves of these three poisons. Our actions should not arise from greedy, selfish motives. Our actions should not be based on anger. And we should not be confused about what we are doing.

The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p249
d27b, WONS

Those Who Keep This Sūtra

In his Outstanding Principles of the Lotus Sūtra, Grand Master Dengyō cites the passage of the Lotus Sūtra, chapter 23, which claims: “This sūtra likewise is superior to any of the other sūtras. Those who keep this sūtra are also superior to all living beings.” Noting that the above is a scriptural statement, Grand Master Dengyō then quotes from the Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra of Grand Master T’ien-t’ai. Noting that this is a citation from the Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra, he interprets its meaning: “You should know that the canons of other schools are not perfect, and those who uphold them are also not perfect. The basic canon of the Tendai-Hokke School, the Lotus Sūtra, is superior. Therefore, those who uphold it are superior to all people. This is what the Buddha stated. How could it be self-admiration?”

Hōon-jō, Essay on Gratitude, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 28.

stories, LS32, d26b, d27b

The Most Important Display of Devotion

Purification of ourselves in preparation for sacrificing ourselves to the Buddha can still be an important part of Buddhist practice. For followers of the Dharma Flower Sutra, the highest act of devotion to the Buddha is not meditation or chanting or burning incense, though they may be helpful. The most important display of devotion is bodhisattva practice, the practice of helping others. And for this, preparation is often needed. One kind of preparation is the development of appropriate skills, perhaps especially skill in listening. But more foundational than the development of skills is the matter of purifying our selves of things that get in the way of our being actually helpful.

The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p248
stories, LS32, d27b

Promoting Buddha Dharma Where It Is Most Needed

Toward the end of [Chapter 23, The Previous Life of Medicine-King Bodhisattva,] we read that if there is a woman who hears this Sutra and acts in accord with its teachings, she will become a bodhisattva, one who is becoming a fully awakened buddha, in the pure land of Amitabha Buddha. Because she has been able to “embrace, read and recite, and ponder over this sutra and teach it for others,” she will obtain boundless merit, be praised by countless buddhas throughout the universe, be protected by hundreds of thousands of buddhas, and become equal to the Buddha; in other words, she will become a buddha. Here, in a sense, we have an alternative vision to that of a paradise in which there are no women – one in which a woman becomes a buddha through embracing the Sutra, by living the Sutra in this world.

A great Taiwanese monk, Master Yin Shun, passed away at the age of 100 in June of 2005. Normally, in Taiwan, the name of Amitabha, the buddha who presides over the Western Paradise, the land of happiness and bliss, is chanted for the benefit of someone who has died. But shortly before he died, Master Yin Shun requested that the name of Shakyamuni Buddha be chanted after his death because Shakyamuni Buddha is the Buddha of the world in which we live now. Master Yin Shun wanted to be reborn into this world of suffering and hardship rather than in a world of eternal happiness and bliss, so that he could continue promoting Buddha Dharma where it is most needed.

The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p251-252
Peaceful Action, d26b, d27b

The Practice of Devotion, Dedication and Love

Just as the practice of Never Disparaging Bodhisattva had a specific function, to remind people of their inherent Buddha nature and potential Buddhahood, Medicine King represents another aspect of practice – the practice of devotion, dedication, and love. Without devotion and constancy you cannot go very far or deep. Without this kind of affection and dedication it is quite difficult to gain insight. This is why it is very important to establish good relationships with our Sangha brothers and sisters and our teachers. We should not underestimate the practice of devotion, but devotion alone is not enough – it must go together with the practice of meditation, of looking deeply, and the practice of compassion in action. The great bodhisattvas presented in the action dimension of the Lotus Sutra offer us examples of the many ways and forms of practice through which we can become the hands and arms of the Buddha in the world.

Peaceful Action, Open Heart, p164
Peaceful Action, d26b, d27b

We Need Love and Affection, Warmth and Nurturance

Bodhisattva Seen with Joy by All Living Beings became a very good disciple of the Buddha Pure and Bright Excellence of Sun and Moon. He felt great devotion and love toward his teacher, and the bond between them was very deep. Because of the great affection between teacher and disciple, he made a lot of progress. Looking deeply into the nature of this bodhisattva’s practice, we can see the devotion, dedication, love, and faithfulness.

You might wonder how devotion and affection are part of the practice of looking deeply and attaining enlightenment. Do we need to love our teacher? Do we need to love our disciples? Do we need to love our Dharma brothers and sisters in order to succeed in our practice? The answer is, yes. Just as the loving presence of the parents is quite crucial for the growth of a baby, the loving presence of a teacher is very important for his or her disciples. The loving presence of our brothers and sisters in the Sangha is very important for us to grow as practitioners. That is the message sent forth by this bodhisattva. We need love and affection, warmth and nurturance in order to grow and progress on the path.

Peaceful Action, Open Heart, p156-157