If those of high rank reproach you, view them as formidable enemies of the Lotus Sutra. Consider the opportunity as rare as seeing an uḍumbara that blooms only once in 1000 years, or a blind turtle by chance encountering a log floating in the ocean, and respond with confidence. Even a person who possesses a … Continue reading Daily Dharma – April 23, 2023
When the sky is blue, the land is bright. In this way those who know the Lotus Sutra can see the reasons for occurrences in the world. For those who are incapable of understanding the truth of the “3000 existences contained in one thought,” Lord Śākyamuni Buddha with his great compassion, wraps this jewel with … Continue reading Daily Dharma – Feb. 12, 2023
Day 31 covers Chapter 27, King Wonderful-Adornment as the Previous Life of a Bodhisattva. Having last month considered the wonders displayed by the two sons and the effect those wonders had on their father, we consider two sons’ request to renounce the world. “Thereupon the two sons descended from the sky, came to their mother, … Continue reading Day 31
The photo above is a screenshot of the admin dashboard for 500yojanas.org showing that I now have more than 10,000 posts and 70 pages on my website. Only 428 of those posts are original content. (Everything with a Blog tag.) My reprints of the Daily Dharma make up 2,622 of the total and my daily … Continue reading 10,000+
Day 3 covers the first half of Chapter 2, Expedients. Having last month considered the departure of the 5,000 people in the congregation, we consider the Buddha’s great purpose. “Śāriputra! The purpose of the various teachings that the Buddhas expound according to the capacities of all living beings is difficult to understand. I also expound … Continue reading Day 3
Day 3 covers the first half of Chapter 2, Expedients. Having last month considered the Buddha’s hesitance to explain the Dharma, we consider the departure of the 5,000 people in the congregation. Thereupon the World-Honored One said to him: “You asked me three times with enthusiasm. How can I leave the Dharma unexpounded? Listen to … Continue reading Day 3
To see a Buddha is as difficult As to see an udumbara[-flower]. To avert a misfortune is also difficult. These verses are sung by two sons of a king in a story told by the Buddha in Chapter Twenty-Seven of the Lotus Sūtra. In the story, the boys have heard the Dharma from a previous … Continue reading Daily Dharma – Dec. 3, 2021
Day 13 covers all of Chapter 8, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Five Hundred Disciples. Having last month repeated in gāthās the prediction for Pūrṇa’s future Buddhahood, we consider the prediction for the twelve hundred arhats. Thereupon the twelve hundred Arhats, who had already obtained freedom of mind, thought: “We have never been … Continue reading Day 13
[W]hen Hinayāna people are shackled by Hinayāna teachings and go against Mahāyāna principles or try to be equal to Mahāyāna countries although they do not intend to go against Mahāyāna Buddhism, they (Hinayāna Buddhists) and their countries will contract various sicknesses. When they try to cure their mental sickness by means of the teaching of … Continue reading 84,000 Mental Sicknesses
[T]he hundred dharma realms and thousand suchlike characteristics are very numerous and interpenetrating, but through [examining] verses in the Sūtras and Sastras we can organize them so that they are easily understood. The Mūlamadhyamakakārika verse [24:18] says, “All things which arise through conditioned co-arising I explain as emptiness. Again, it is a conventional designation. Again, … Continue reading Three Truths of 100 Dharma Realms and 1000 Suchlike Characteristics