So the King’s beliefs are different, perhaps even more “orthodox” than those of the sons, who have decided to follow the Buddha of that time. What should the sons do in such a case? Here they are urged by their mother to continue to respect and honor their father.

Buddhism does not reject family life as such. And yet, by setting up an alternative, celibate, monastic institution, traditional Buddhism did have and continues to have a problematic relation to families. But the Lotus Sutra says little about monastic rules and life as such, emphasizing the importance of life in the world being dedicated to the work, especially to the teaching work, of the Buddha. Thus, we can understand this story as saying that it is good if a whole family can devote itself to the Buddha Way.