Though the physical gohonzon provides a concrete focus for our devotion and contemplation, the gohonzon in its fullest sense transcends any particular form or concept used to represent it, though it includes them as well. It is certainly not merely an idol or object of worship. Rather, the gohonzon is the selfless and compassionate nature of reality that all beings can awaken to as their own true nature.
Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the GohonzonQuotes
Devotion
Namu originates from the Sanskrit word “Namas” which means “Devotion,” and was transliterated with the two Chinese characters “Na” and “Mu,” which were pronounced similarly a long time ago. The two characters are not, therefore, used for their literal meanings, “South” and “Nothing,” nor are they thought of individually. What is used is “Namu,” two characters to represent one word, signifying “Devotion.”
Spring WritingsThe Jewel of the Sangha
I would like to remind you there are the Three Jewels in Buddhism of the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. The Buddha and the Dharma are usually easy for people to respect and cherish. It is frequently the jewel of the Sangha that seems less important to some. I believe this is a great mistake and deprives us of tremendous benefit, if we choose to ignore the community of practitioners. If we think Buddhism is a solitary practice then I think we are missing many of the messages the Buddha tells us.
Lecture on the Lotus SutraThe Boundless Emptiness of Everything
The word “Emptiness” can sound very bleak and intimidating. However, the word was not chosen to be comforting. It is used in Mahayana Buddhism to challenge the fixed idea that we can grasp the nature of reality or anything within it, or that we can find any real boundaries between one thing and another. Emptiness means that all people, places, and things are empty of anything we can hold on to as unchanging or separate from everything else. Looked at in a positive way, this means that all of reality is without any real boundaries. As the Lotus Sutra says, “all things are open like the sky.” They are not non-dual, which means that they have no fixed boundaries, because all things are bound up with one another as part of the overall dynamic process of life. So Emptiness is not a dark nothingness. It is a way of helping us to open up our minds to the true nature of reality that transcends the rigid and ultimately false categories of birth and death, of self and other.
Lotus SeedsThe Unity of the Three Bodies of the Buddha
In the Lotus Sutra, the unity of the Three Bodies in the person of Shakyamuni Buddha is a key teaching. The reason this unity is so important is that none of the three aspects of Buddhahood makes any sense without the others. They are all aspects of one buddha, of one reality. By focusing on only one aspect, we lose sight of the living reality of Buddhahood and are left with mere abstractions. For example, the Dharma-body by itself cannot he perceived through concepts or images, but only through a spiritual intuition of its universal nature. The Enjoyment-body is the embodiment of that intuition in an ideal spiritual form that can impart his awakening to others. But this awakening remains hidden from us until it is expressed in this world by the Transformation-body in the form of the historical Buddha.
Lotus SeedsNichiren Shu Creed
Nichiren Shu creed:
- We base our life on the example of the Lotus Sutra as personally experienced by Nichiren Shonin.
- We put our faith in the Eternal Buddha Sakyamumi, who is the true teacher of wisdom and compassion for all people.
- We train ourselves to attain Buddhahood by upholding Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, both in action and in spirit.
- Our teacher is Nichiren Shonin, who vowed to cultivate the Buddha nature of all people and create the land of the Buddha in this world. We also vow to work for that goal.
- We are all the Buddha’s children, and we will live together peacefully with all people in our search for the Truth.
Four Noble Truths
The Four Noble Truths, a kind of simplified law of causation, are perhaps the best known of all the Buddha’s teachings: all existence is suffering, the cause of suffering is craving and illusion, suffering can be eliminated, and the way to eliminate suffering is to follow the Eightfold Path (ashtangika-marga) consisting of right views, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right meditation. As if to indicate their importance, Shakyamuni took the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path as the subjects of his very first sermon, celebrated as “setting the Wheel of the Law in motion,” delivered to five ascetics at Deer Park near Benares.
Basic Buddhist ConceptsThe Three Constituents of 3,000
The Three Constituents of the World (San Seken) are:
- Shujō Seken – World of sentient beings; living beings such as human and animals.
- Go-on Seken – World of the five elemental aggregates which form body, mind and environment.
- Kokudo Seken – World of non sentient beings; the land where living beings live.
Each of the constituents has the ten suchnesses, so one thousand suchnesses multiplied by the Three Constituents equal 3,000 realms.
The Paradise of the Buddhas Here
Since all things are one in essence, even Buddha and the common people, the inhabited world is identical with the Paradise where all the Buddhas live. Therefore the Buddha says, “I am ever in this lower world of evils”; and again, “I am ever on the Vulture Peak.” These words signify that the world, which is apparently so full of evils, is in reality not different from the Paradise of all the Buddhas, which is illuminated with Glorious Light.
Doctrines of Nichiren (1893)Enjoying Good Things, Recognizing Struggles
It is not easy, this is true. We don’t realize how much effort we have put into becoming what we are now, or we may not realize how little effort we have put into being who we are. So when we undertake a practice that works on fixing our mistaken views, or tackles our habits, we think it extremely difficult. We boarded a plane to take us to a destination, enlightenment. The Buddha is our pilot, our fellow Sangha members are also passengers along with us. Together we can reach our goal. Let us together enjoy the good things and recognize the struggles, always making efforts to become enlightened and enable others to do the same.
Lotus Path: Practicing the Lotus Sutra Volume 1