Quotes

Lotus World

Imprinted Gate and Original Gate

Quote

In the first half of the Lotus Sutra, the “imprinted gate” (Japanese, shakumon), the theoretical teaching of the One Vehicle is taught. This teaching is called theoretical because it teaches that “in theory” all people can become buddhas because all along the Buddha was teaching the One Vehicle that leads to buddhahood. The provisional bodhisattvas, like Maitreya Bodhisattva and Accumulated Wisdom Bodhisattva, represent this principle by providing a model of gradual cultivation to attain buddhahood. For them, bodhisattva practice must precede buddhahood as its cause.

The latter half of the Lotus Sutra, the “original gate,” is the essential teaching of the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha. The essential teaching reveals that buddhahood has no beginning or end: the cause of buddhahood, bodhisattva practice, is actually simultaneous with the effect, buddhahood in the eternal enlightenment of Shakyamuni Buddha. One enters into this unity of practice and enlightenment through faith in the living actuality of buddhahood already present in the figure of the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha. This is his teaching, and only his original disciples, the Bodhisattvas of the Earth, are entrusted to propagate such a teaching during the critical time of the Latter Age of the Dharma.

Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the Gohonzon

Profound

Number 10

Quote

Number “ten” symbolizes the completion of a concept or the infinity of the universe in Buddhism. The traditional view in Buddhism of the ten directions: east, west, north, south, north-east, north-west, south-east, south-west, above, and below, are intended to encompass the whole space. The concept of the Ten Dharma-realms (i.e., the realms of hell-dwellers, hungry ghosts, animals, asuras, humans, heavenly beings, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas and Buddhas that are arranged hierarchically), is formulated by Chih-i, and is Chih-i’s system in encompassing the whole universe. Completeness is an important character of Chih-i’s philosophical system. Correspondingly, that the Hsüan-i (Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra) consists of ten volumes can be seen as this symbol of completeness.

The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of Buddhism


Summer Writings

Nichiren Shonin’s Powerful Motive

Quote

Nichiren Shonin’s powerful motive to give relief to the people of Japan came from a simple and pure heart. “I would like to save suffering people and make the country peaceful.” This may seem like a simple and common wish – one which everyone has. The major difference is, Nichiren Shonin’s compassion was not common. In those days, the country was full of suffering people. The Shogunate did not have any effective policy for the relief of people’s suffering. Also, the Buddhism at that time taught people about, and particularly emphasized, happiness after death and did not encourage people with regard to their present real lives. Nichiren Shonin had questions about such Buddhism, and sought to find the true answer in Buddhism. In fact, most of his congregation were poor people and low-class samurai. This shows his purpose as giving relief to suffering people well. In order to achieve this, the Lotus Sutra, which had never been taught to ordinary people before, was awoken by Nichiren Shonin.

Summer Writings

Profound

Abiding in the Traces and Employing the Origin

Quote

The function “Abiding in the Traces and Employing the Origin” (Chuchi Yung-pen) signifies the Subtlety of the Original Life-span and the Subtlety of the Original Retinues. This is because by abiding in the Traces, the Buddha is able to manifest birth and death numerous times, and this life-death is only possible because it is derived from the Original Life-span of the eternal Buddha. Moreover, the Traces are represented by the disciples of the Three Vehicles, and these disciples are actually Original Retinues. Therefore, this function is linked to the meanings of Original Life-span and Original Retinues. (Page 121)

The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of Buddhism


beginning

Five explanations for Causes of Happiness and Unhappiness

Quote

At another time, when Shakyamuni was teaching in a town named Devadaha, the issue of karma was being discussed. In those times, in India, there were five explanations for the causes of present happiness and unhappiness:

  1. Everything, happiness and unhappiness, is determined by karma from previous existences.
  2. All fate is determined by the will of an all-powerful deity who created and controls the world.
  3. Human fate is determined by the good or bad ways in which the elements—earth, water, fire, and wind—constituting the fleshly body are combined.
  4. The fate of the entire life of an individual is determined by the social class and family into which he was born.
  5. Human fate does not depend on any of these definite causes but is determined, from minute to minute, by completely accidental occurrences.

From the Buddhist standpoint, all of these explanations either are deterministic and fatalistic or rely purely on chance and therefore deny the significance and value of education and training and fail to take into account the importance of free will in efforts to determine and develop fate. For the sake of a correct interpretation of cosmic workings, Buddhism proposed doing away with these explanations and offered in their place the Law of Causation and the Four Noble Truths as accurate explanations of the world and of human life. (Page 127)

The Beginnings of Buddhism

Lecture on Lotus Sutra

The True Joy of Buddhas

Quote

Because of the promise of the Buddha we can approach our difficulties with joy knowing that through our faith and our practice in the Lotus Sutra we are certain to accomplish the necessary changes to enable us to become Buddhas. With the joy of the certainty of becoming Buddhas we can live our lives free of fear and worry. With the burden of fear and worry lifted we can experience the true joy of Buddhas deep down in the core of our life.

Lecture on the Lotus Sutra

Profound

Substance and Gist

Quote

As the direct use of sign, analogy is also applied by Chih-i to clarify certain issues. For example, to reveal the meaning of the Substance as the Ultimate Truth and its relationship with the Gist as the cause and effect of Buddhahood, different parts of a house are taken as an analogy:

“As with pillars and roof beams, houses are neither beams nor pillars but empty space inside a house. Pillars and beams analogize Cause and Effect; neither beams nor pillars analogize the Ultimate Truth. The Ultimate Truth is the Substance but not beams and pillars. If a house has no empty space, it cannot contain anything. If Cause and Effect have no Ultimate Truth, they cannot be founded.”

This analogy distinguishes different functions the Substance and the Gist exert. Yet, the significance of both is indispensable. The Substance is what the Gist can be founded upon, and the Gist is what can display the Substance. (Page 116)

The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of Buddhism


beginning

Mental Motivation

Quote

Shakyamuni said he was willing to engage in debate if Upali was truly serious. Upali said that he was. Shakyamuni then proceeded to prove by means of many actual examples that good or bad mental motivation is more important than actual actions and words. Moreover, he proved this from the Jainist standpoint, calling upon examples taken from Jainist teachings.

In one instance, Shakyamuni countered Upali’s insistence that the physical act takes precedence in importance over the mental motivation in the following way. He asked what would happen to a Jainist who, out of respect for the minute living creatures in cool water, refused to drink it, even when suffering from a high fever, and consequently died. Upali said that attachment to the mind at the time of death would result in the man’s being born again in a heaven for those who remain attached to mind. In other words, mental attachment and not the actual act of drinking or not drinking cool water produced the effect.

Jainism strictly forbids the taking of life, even that of the small creatures living in water. But, should a person unwittingly step in a puddle of water on the road and kill some of these creatures, according to Jainism his sin is not grave, since he was unaware of what he was doing. In adopting this standpoint, Jainism tacitly puts greater emphasis on mental motivation than on physical result and thus contradicts itself.

Upali found it impossible to reply to these demonstrations of Jainist inconsistencies and at once became a believer in Buddhism. (Page 125-126)

The Beginnings of Buddhism

Lotus Seeds

The Essential and the Theoretical

Quote

Though the Essential Section of the Lotus Sutra is of primary importance for determining the faith and practice of Nichiren Buddhism, this does not imply that the Theoretical Section should be discarded. The Theoretical Section derives its own meaning from the Essential Section, but it can also be used to help us better understand the Essential Section. The point of this is that though the theory of the One Vehicle depends upon the essential reality of the Eternal Buddha, the theory and the reality are consistent with one another. If we have faith in the Eternal Buddha we will understand the meaning of the One Vehicle, and if we truly understand the meaning of the One Vehicle, we will be in accord with the true intention of the Eternal Buddha. For this reason, Nichiren Shonin taught that the whole sutra was worthy of respect, both the theoretical and essential sections.

Lotus Seeds

Profound

The Yellow Rock Analogy

Quote

The third analogy is concerned with gold that is contained in a yellow rock. The gold symbolizes the Ultimate Truth possessed by all living beings. Chih-i describes:

“It is like the gold that is contained inside the yellow rock. The foolish man does not know and thinks that it is only a piece of rock. He throws it in the manure pit and does not even take care of it. When the appraiser gets it, he melts the rock and gets the gold out, but only keeps its value. When the goldsmith gets it, he makes various kinds of ornaments. When the immortal gets it, he makes a golden elixir, with which he can fly to the sky and enter the ground, reach the moon and the sun, and assume whatever shapes as he wants. The foolish man analogizes all common men: though embracing the Ultimate Truth, they do not know how to practice. The appraiser analogizes the Two Vehicles, who only sever the affliction, and keep the value of emptiness, but do not do anything with it. The goldsmith analogizes the bodhisattva of the Separate, who is skillful in using expedient means. Knowing that emptiness is not empty, he enters the Provisional, adorns the Buddha land, and accomplishes living beings. The immortal analogizes the bodhisattva of the Perfect. By perceiving the Absolute that is contained in the Facts, he immediately attains the proper enlightenment as soon as he brings forth the Bodhi mind. With one body, he gains immeasurable bodies, and universally responds to all. The present [Lotus] Sütra only takes the Ultimate Truth that is the golden elixir as the substance of the Sūtra.”

This analogy indicates that, in respect to commonality, the Ultimate Truth is possessed by all beings, from the common men to the disciples of the Perfect Teaching. However, in respect to difference, the rock differs from the gold; the gold differs from the jewelry; and the jewelry differs from the elixir. This symbolizes differences among disciples of the Four Teachings in terms of their capacities and dispositions of realizing truth.

The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of Buddhism