The Buddha says to Bodhisattva Medicine King, “If after I have passed into nirvana there is a person who, having heard even one gatha or phrase of the Lotus Sutra and having rejoiced in it, that person shall attain the highest enlightenment and become a Buddha. And if there is a person who receives and upholds, reads and recites, explains or copies in writing even one gatha of this Sutra, or who looks upon it with reverence and makes various offerings, it is the same as if that person had made offerings to the Buddha and taken the great vow of the bodhisattva, and he or she too will become a Buddha.” Long after the Buddha has passed into nirvana, the future Buddhahood of any person who is able to hear the Lotus Sutra, even just one gatha or phrase of it – even just the title of the Sutra – and at that moment give rise in their hearts to great satisfaction and joy, has already been affirmed. We do not have to go back 2,500 years, climb the The Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain Peak, and sit among the assembly of Shakyamuni Buddha in order to receive the benefit of this Sutra.

Chapter 10 of the Lotus Sutra, “Preachers of Dharma,” can be seen as the concluding chapter of the first section of the Sutra, on the historical dimension. At the same time, this chapter opens the door to the ultimate dimension, which is the focus of the second half of the Sutra. In this chapter, the importance of the Scripture of the Lotus Blossom of the Wonderful Dharma is revealed. The Dharma is as important as the Buddha, as worthy of our offerings and respect. The practice of recollecting the Buddha can take us to a point of deep transformation and bring about immeasurable merit, but recollecting the Dharma brings equal transformation and merit. The Lotus Sutra, “foremost among all sutras,” is thus the Buddha himself. When we express our deep respect for this Sutra, when we uphold and teach it, then we are at the same time expressing our respect for the Buddha.

Chapter 14 of the Lotus Sutra, “Comfortable Conduct,” also a later addition, still bears traces of the deep-seated attitude of discrimination against women and others. For this reason, it is not as outstanding as other chapters in the Sutra. But it offers a teaching on how to carry out the work of a bodhisattva in times when there are fewer opportunities to hear and practice the Dharma and there is a lot of suffering in the world.

The first of the Four Ways [Peaceful Practices] is that the bodhisattva who wishes to offer teachings must dwell in the place of action and the place of closeness. “Dwelling in the place of action” means practicing patience and seeking harmony with others in everything that you do. If you are patient and tolerant of others, then you can create peace and joy for yourself, and thanks to that, those around you will also feel peaceful and joyful. Patience is not weakness, but a stance of moderation and restraint. You do not try to force people to adopt your views. “Dwelling in the place of closeness” means that practitioners do not choose to approach those who have worldly power, who practice wrong livelihood, or who have wrong intentions. This does not mean that you reject such people, but you do not seek them out to try to convert them.

This passage [showing the naga girl attaining Buddhahood] in the Sutra offers another glimpse into the ultimate dimension. Right in that very place and in that very moment, the entire assembly was able to see a young child instantly realize the fruit of anuttara samyak sambodhi, the highest, most perfect enlightenment. This is the world of the ultimate dimension; there is nothing more to do or learn in order to be a Buddha and serve as a Buddha. Once you have arrived in the ultimate dimension it becomes possible to relax and do everything you need to do joyfully, without fear or anxiety. You recognize your innate Buddha nature and in that very moment you are already a Buddha, you are already what you want to become.

In [Chapter 12] we also learn about an eight-year-old girl, the daughter of the naga king, who has the capacity to become a Buddha. This girl has a jewel of incalculable value, equal to the trichiliocosm (the cosmos), which she offered to the Buddha. What is the meaning of this? When we have something that is very precious, we say that it is as valuable as the trichiliocosm. Suppose while practicing walking meditation in the autumn we pick up a red leaf. If we’re able to see the ultimate dimension of that leaf, all the phenomena of the universe that helped create it – the galaxies, the sun and moon, the clouds and rain, the rivers and soil – then quite naturally that one small leaf becomes a very precious jewel, as valuable as the trichiliocosm. And if we give that leaf as an offering to the Buddha, then the merit of our offering is no less than the merit of the daughter of the naga king who offered a precious jewel to the Buddha. So we must not think that if we do not have precious jewels or wealth, then we have nothing to offer the Buddha. A pebble or a leaf, if we are able to see its true nature, has the same value as an incalculably precious jewel. When we can see into the ultimate dimension of things in this way, we can see their true value as something infinitely precious.

The story of Devadatta is well-known. He was a very bright and highly charismatic monk who, because of his ambition, brought about a schism in the Sangha. Devadatta first tried to get the Buddha to appoint him leader of the Sangha. The Buddha was then over seventy years old, near the end of his life and ministry. But while he considered himself to be a teacher and an inspiration, the Buddha didn’t think of himself as the leader of the Sangha, and he didn’t want to appoint someone as a leader, either. So he refused Devadatta’s request.

Devadatta then allied himself with Prince Ajātaśatru, King Bimbisara’s son, and the two schemed to usurp the kingdom so that Ajātaśatru could ascend the throne and Devadatta could gain control of the Sangha. Devadatta went before an assembly of the Buddha’s Sangha and proposed a set of ascetic guidelines for the monks, trying to show that his way of practice was more serious and austere. The Buddha did not accept these new guidelines for the Sangha but said that any monk who wished to practice them was free to do so. Devadatta was highly charismatic, and he was able to persuade nearly 500 monks to join his new Sangha. Many of these monks were young and had not yet had much opportunity to learn from the Buddha.

In this way, Devadatta brought about the first schism of the Buddhist Sangha. He and his group went to live on Mount Gayashisa, and Ajātaśatru supported them with donations of food and medicine. Then Ajātaśatru initiated his plan to take over the kingdom. After an attempt on his father’s life was unsuccessful, he had his father put under house arrest and deprived him of food so that he would starve to death. Queen Vaidehi, wife of Bimbisara and Ajātaśatru’s mother, visited her husband every day, hiding food on her person, and for a while she was able to keep the king nourished. But her subterfuge was discovered, and Ajātaśatru barred her from seeing the king. The king eventually died in confinement. The Buddha’s personal physician, Jīvaka, also served Queen Vaidehi. Through Jīvaka, the Buddha learned of Ajātaśatru’s schemes and that Devadatta was behind them.

Devadatta was also behind three attempts on the Buddha’s life. The first time a swordsman was sent to assassinate him. But when he saw the Buddha sitting in meditation in the moonlight, he was not able to carry out the murder. Instead he knelt before the Buddha and confessed. According to the plan, once he had killed the Buddha, the assassin was to leave the mountain by a certain path, unaware that he himself would be killed in order to cover up the murder. So the Buddha advised him to go down a different path and then, with his mother, flee to the neighboring kingdom of Kosala for refuge.

In the second attempt, the would-be murderers rolled a big boulder down from the mountaintop. The stone struck the Buddha, and though it did not kill him, his left foot was badly wounded and he lost a lot of blood. In the third attempt, Devadatta’s men released a wild elephant to attack the Buddha, but the Buddha was able to calm the animal and was not harmed. The Buddha survived all three attempts on his life and he did not leave the kingdom, even though it was a very difficult time for him. He continued to stay and practice there, and through the practice, he exemplified nonviolent resistance.

Eventually, with the help of the bhikshus Śāriputra and Maudgalyāyana, who visited Devadatta’s Sangha to teach and help the young monks, nearly everyone returned to the Buddha and the schism in the Sangha was healed. Later on Devadatta became very sick and was near death. He was so weak and ill that he could not stand or walk on his own anymore, so he asked two monks to carry him to The Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain Peak. There, before the Buddha, Devadatta said, “1 take refuge in the Buddha, I go back to the Buddha and take refuge in him,” and the Buddha accepted him back into the Sangha.

Sometime later, Ajātaśatru was also struck down, by a mental illness. He was filled with remorse and afflicted in body and mind because he had killed his own father and had done many bad things in order to gain power. He consulted various teachers and healers, but no one could cure him. Finally, he consulted with Jīvaka, who advised him to go directly to the Buddha. Ajātaśatru was ashamed. He said, “I cannot go to the Buddha. He must be very angry with me!” But Jīvaka assured him, “No, the Buddha has a lot of compassion, he is not angry with you. If you go to him and ask him with all your heart, he will help you overcome this illness.”

Jīvaka arranged for Ajātaśatru to attend a Dharma talk by the Buddha in the Mango Grove at the foot of The Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain Peak. The Buddha spoke on the fruits of the practice, and after the talk the king was invited to ask a few questions. The Buddha took this opportunity to undo the knots within Ajātaśatru and help him recover his health. That day the Buddha served as a skillful physician, a wise and patient psychotherapist to the king, and a good relationship between them was restored. In fact, in the opening scene of the Lotus Sutra we learn that Ajātaśatru is also in the audience, a detail that tells us the Sutra was delivered toward the end of the Buddha’s life, and which shows that Ajātaśatru had returned to the family of the Buddha. From the stories of Devadatta and Ajātaśatru we can see how great is the Buddha’s power of inclusiveness, tolerance, and patience. Even though these two men had committed the worst possible offenses, through his love and compassion the Buddha was able to help them transform and rejoin the family of humanity.

The terms “in training” and “those who no longer train” have to be understood here in a special way, not in the conventional way we might understand those who study or those who do not study in the world. Those in training (learners) have not yet mastered the practice, while those who no longer train (adepts) have. Yet even those who have much more to learn, who have just set out on the path, are predicted to become a Buddha, just as adepts, arhats, and great disciples have been. This prophecy reflects the great inclusiveness of the Lotus Sutra’s teaching. No one is left out; the white ox cart of the One Vehicle is spacious enough to carry everyone to Buddhahood. And in the next chapter, we will see how this spirit of inclusiveness was expanded even more by later additions to the Sutra.

After Buddha had predicted Purna’s Buddhahood, 1,200 arhats in the assembly thought, “Now the bhikshu Purna has received the prophecy of his Buddhahood. If the Buddha would predict Buddhahood for all his other disciples, we would be overjoyed.” The Buddha was able to know the thoughts in the minds of those in the assembly, and so he predicted Buddhahood for his disciple Kaundinya and 500 other arhats. Kaundinya represents the most senior disciples of the Buddha. He was the eldest of the five ascetics who had practiced with Siddhartha before his attainment of Buddhahood, and who had abandoned him when, near death, Siddhartha had given up ascetic practice, bathed and took food, and sat under the bodhi tree. After he had attained enlightenment and became the Buddha, he went looking for these five ascetics in order to teach them what he had learned. Though they had rejected him, these five men were so struck by the Buddha’s radiant and serene appearance that they agreed to listen to what he had to say. Thus, they heard the Buddha’s first Dharma talk on the Four Noble Truths, in the Deer Park at Sarnath, and became the first members of the Buddha’s Sangha.

[The Buddha] predicted that [Purna] would become the Buddha Dharma Glow (Dharmaprabhasa) in a Buddha Land called Well Purified (Suvishuddha). In that land there are two kinds of food that are given to the people every day – the food of Dharma Joy and the food of Meditative Delight. Dharma Joy is the feeling of joy we have when we are able to hear and learn about the Dharma. When we listen to a Dharma talk, participate in a Dharma discussion, and study the teachings, it is great joy and it is also a kind of nourishment for us. The food of Dharma Joy belongs to the realm of study, and the food of Meditative Delight, meditative concentration, belongs to the field of practice. When you listen to the teachings with concentration, you are at the same time enjoying the food of Dharma Joy and the food of Meditative Delight. These two expressions, Dharma Joy and Meditative Delight, are taken from a gatha in the Avatamsaka Sutra.