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Gusoku

The word myō means gusoku (to be equipped with perfect teaching); “six” means all kinds of practices collectively designated as six pāramitā or six kinds of practices required for the attainment of Buddhahood. Śāripūtra and others wished to know the way in which a bodhisattva could fulfill the six pāramitā in order to obtain Buddhahood. Gu in gusoku means “mutually-possessed characteristics of the Ten Realms, and soku means to be satisfactory, that is to say, it is satisfactory for each of the Ten Realms to contain in itself characteristics of the other Nine Realms. Altogether of the 69,384 characters of the Lotus Sūtra, in the twenty-eight chapters in eight fascicles, each contains the character myō; each of them represents the Buddha with thirty-two or eighty marks of physical excellence. As each of the Ten Realms contains in it characteristics of the realm of the Buddha, Grand Master Miao-lê states in his Annotations on the Great Concentration and Insight, “Each realm contains characteristics of the realm of the Buddha, not to speak of those of the other Nine Realms.”

In response to the request by Śāripūtra and others to know how to fulfill the six pāramitā, Śākyamuni Buddha declares in the second “Expedients” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra that all Buddhas hope to open the gate to the wisdom of the Buddha for the people. The people here refer to the men of the Two Vehicles such as Śāripūtra, who had been considered unable to obtain Buddhahood, men of icchantika lacking the Buddha-nature and all those in the Nine Realms (except the realm of the Buddha). Therefore, His vow to save all the numerous people was at last fulfilled in preaching the Lotus Sūtra. That is what He meant in declaring in the same second chapter of the Lotus Sūtra: “I had vowed to make everyone exactly like Myself. The original vow of Mine has already been fulfilled.”

Kaimoku-shō, Open Your Eyes to the Lotus Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 67-68

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Hagiography and History

By definition, a hagiography is an idealizing or idolizing biography. It’s not history. Threads of truth and threads of imagination are woven into a tapestry and pinned to the wall to encourage the faithful. But if the faithful recognize the hagiography for what it is, how are we to react?

Nichiren Shōnin offers a history Saichō, the Grand Master Dengyō, in his Ankoku-ron Gokanyurai, The Reason for Submitting the “Risshō Ankoku-ron” (Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Pages 147-148):

The line of Japanese sovereigns, beginning with the seven generations of heavenly deities and five generations of terrestrial deities, is supposed to be followed by one hundred generations of human emperors (hyakuō). During the reign of the thirtieth human emperor, Emperor Kimmei, Buddhism was introduced for the first time from the country of Paekche on the Korean Peninsula to Japan. It has been over 260 years since then to the reign of Emperor Kammu, a reign of more than fifty sovereigns. During this period all the scriptures of Buddhism, as well as the six schools of Buddhism in Nara (Kusha, Jōjitsu, Ritsu, Sanron, Hossō and Kegon Schools) were introduced to Japan. Tendai and Shingon schools, however, were not.

“During the reign of Emperor Kammu, a poor monk, Saichō, a disciple of Venerable Gyōhyō of the Yamashinadera (Kōfukuji) Temple in Nara, lived. He was later called Grand Master Dengyō. Saichō studied thoroughly the doctrines of the six schools of Nara, which had been transmitted to Japan earlier, and Zen Buddhism without finding them satisfactory. Later he read the T’ien-t’ai school’s writings transmitted to Japan by Venerable Chien-chên (Ganjin) of T’ang China forty years or so earlier during the reign of Emperor Shōmu, and was awakened to the profound meaning of Buddhism.

Thereupon Saichō founded the Enryakuji Temple on Mt. Hiei in the fourth year of the Enryaku Period (785) in order to pray for peace and tranquility of the country. Taking refuge in the temple, Emperor Kammu named it the “Temple of the Imperial Guardian Star.” He gave up faith in the six schools of Nara, putting sole faith in the “perfect” Tendai School.

In the thirteenth year of the same Enryaku Period (794), the imperial capital was moved from Nagaoka to the newly founded city of Heian (Kyoto). On the nineteenth of the first month in the twenty-first year of the same period (802), the Emperor ordered fourteen scholars of the six schools of Nara, such as Gonsō and Chōyō, from seven great temples in the southern capital (Nara), to meet with Saichō in the Takao-dera Temple for debate. The brilliant scholars of the six schools could not answer even one question, keeping their mouths shut tightly.

The doctrine of five teachings of the Flower Garland (Kegon) Sect, the three-period teaching of the Dharma Characteristics (Hossō) Sect and the doctrines of two storehouses and three periods of the Three Discourses (Sanron) Sect were all refuted by Saichō. Not only were their doctrines destroyed but it also became clear that they were all slanderers of the True Dharma. Ten days later, on the twenty-ninth of the same month, an imperial edict was issued censuring the fourteen scholars of the six schools of Nara, who respectfully submitted a letter of apology to the emperor.

Again in Senji-shō, Selecting the Right time: A Tract by Nichiren, the Buddha’s Disciple (Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 202-203), Nichiren Shōnin writes:

[D]uring the reign of Emperor Kammu, the fiftieth emperor, 800 years after the beginning of the Age of the Semblance Dharma, a monk called Saichō appeared, who was later known as Grand Master Dengyo. At first, he studied the six schools of Buddhism (Sanron, Hossō, Kegon, Kusha, Jōjitsu, and Ritsu) as well as Zen Buddhism from such masters as Bishop Gyōhyō. Meanwhile, he himself established the Kokushōji Temple (later renamed the Enryakuji Temple) on Mt. Hiei, where he checked basic sūtras and commentaries of the six schools against the interpretations by scholars of those schools. He found many discrepancies between interpretations of scholars and their basic sūtras and commentaries. Moreover, they produced so many false opinions that he felt that all those who believed in them would fall into the three evil realms (hell, realm of hungry souls, and that of beasts).

Besides, Saichō found that those scholars of the six schools each boastfully claimed mastery of the true teaching of the Lotus Sūtra without actually mastering it. He tormented himself thinking: “If I point this out, there will be disputes; if I keep silent, I will be going against the Buddha’s warning.” Fearful of the Buddha’s warning, he finally appealed to Emperor Kammu, who was astonished and ordered the scholars of the six schools to meet Saichō in debate. At the beginning their banner of self-pride waved as high as a mountain and their evil thoughts were more vicious than poisonous snakes. However, they finally had to surrender to Saichō in front of the Emperor, and the six schools and seven temples all became his disciples.

“A Buddhist Kaleidoscope: Essays on the Lotus Sutra,” published in 2002, includes an article by Nikkyō Niwano (1906-1999), the founder of Risshō Kōsei-kai. Niwano’s essay, “The Threefold Lotus Sutra: An Introduction,” was originally published in Japanese as part of Shinshaku Hokke Sambu-kyō (New Commentary on the Threefold Lotus Sutra) and translated into English for this book.

In discussing the history of Buddhism in Japan in his essay, Niwano writes:

Saichō established a temple called Ichijōshikan-in (later known as Komponchū-dō, the center of the Enryaku-ji temple complex) on Mount Hiei and made it his center for spreading the True Dharma, that is, the Lotus Sutra. His impressive learning and virtue earned him the trust of Emperor Kammu (781-806), who had moved the capital from Nara to Kyoto (then known as Heian-kyō) in 794, thus ushering in the long Heian period (794-1185). The emperor’s favor led to a dramatic increase in Saichō’s following, and the new Tendai sect flourished.

But the eminent priests of the Nara schools of Buddhism did not look kindly on Saichō’s popularity. How uncomfortable it must have made them to see this young man of only thirty or so gaining strength and support—and that in a new place rather than the traditional center of Japanese Buddhism, the old capital of Nara. Their opposition gradually became more overt, finally taking the form of political action. People who felt that this antagonism should not be allowed to fester any longer obtained the court’s permission for a debate between Saichō and representatives of the Nara schools on their positions and beliefs.

The debate was held at the temple Takaosan-ji (present-day Jingo-ji), in Kyoto, with Saichō facing more than ten leading Buddhist scholars of Nara. The entire party of Nara priests was won over by Saichō’s exposition of the wonderful teachings of the Lotus Sutra and conceded defeat. The excellent character of the Nara priests is evinced by the fact that after returning to the old capital they had representatives of the seven Nara schools send a letter to the emperor declaring that they had been made to realize the great worth of the Lotus Sutra. Their respect for the truth and their ability to humble themselves and acknowledge their error are admirable indeed.

With all of that history in mind, I was more than surprised to find nothing about a debate with the leaders of the Nara temples, let alone their defeat and surrender to Saichō’s Tendai school, in Paul Groner’s Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School.

Groner’s book, originally published in 1984 and reissued in 2000 with a new preface, is a footnote-filled scholarly look at Saichō’s effort to carve out a home for his new school in the state machinery that governed Buddhism in that period.

While there is no dramatic showdown at Takaosan-ji where the Nara establishment is soundly defeated, Groner details Saichō’s efforts to gain recognition for his school.

After Saichō submitted his works [to the emperor], the accuracy of his quotations from other texts was verified by the assistant director of the Bureau of Books and Drawings, Tamazukuri. Finding them correct, he forwarded them to the Sōgō (Offce of Monastic Affairs). The Eizan Daishiden reports that the Sōgō was completely overwhelmed by Saichō’s arguments and unable to reply. In fact, Gomyō had already decided to fight Saichō’s proposals through the normal channels, challenging them in the Sōgō and Genbaryō, rather than engaging in a public debate.

Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School, p156-157


While Saichō’s arguments can be said to have won this “debate,” it wasn’t until after his death that the fruits of that victory could be harvested.

On the fourth day of the sixth month of 822, Saichō died. His most influential lay patrons, Minister of the Right (udaijin) Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu, Vice Councilor (chūnagon) Yoshimine no Yasuyo, Provisional Vice Councilor (gonchūnagon) Fujiwara no Mimori, and Vice Controller of the Left (sachūben) Ōtomo no Kunimichi, submitted a petition to the Emperor requesting approval of the Shijōshiki (Regulations in Four Articles). Seven days after he died, Saichō’s request was granted. …

Saichō’s death had presented Fuyutsugu and Saichō’s other supporters with a chance to press for approval of the Shijōshiki. In addition, it had presented the court with an opportunity to grant Saichō’s request as a token of its grief at his passing. Thus the court was able to honor Saichō without allowing the Tendai School an undue advantage over the Nara schools. Approval of Saichō’s requests during his lifetime would have been the equivalent of court recognition of Tendai superiority.

Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School, p162-163


Just to check the history, I purchased a copy of John Stevens’ The Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei, which includes a lengthy history of Saichō’s efforts to establish the Tendai school in Japan. His version matched Groner’s. Success in creating a new school, but no debate, no public defeat on the Nara schools.

Personally I find the history of Saichō’s bureaucratic battle very inspiring. The victory may not have been as clean as the hagiography, but it can still encourage the faithful.

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This Is What I Have Been Longing For

We proceeded along the beach of Yuigahama. In front of the Goryō Shrine, I told the escorting soldiers, “Please stop for a while. Here, I have a person to whom I want to inform about this matter.” I sent a young man named Kumaōmaru to Nakatsukasa Saburōzaemonnojō (Shijō Kingo), who came to see me in a hurry. I told him:

“I am going to be beheaded tonight. This is what I have been longing for the past several years. In the past lives I was born in this Sahā World many times. Sometimes I was born as a pheasant to be captured by a hawk; and other times as a rat to be eaten by a cat. Even when I was born as a human being, I lost my life for my wife, children, and enemies more often than the number of particles of the great earth without sacrificing my life for the sake of the Lotus Sūtra even once. As a result, I was born to this world as a poor monk unable to serve my parents as much as I would like and repay what I owe to my country. This is the time for me to dedicate my head to the Lotus Sūtra and present its merit to my parents and what is left to my disciples and followers. This is what I have been saying these days and it will become a reality tonight.”

Shuju Onfurumai Gosho, Reminiscences: from Tatsunokuchi to Minobu, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Biography and Disciples, Volume 5, Pages 28

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Day 8

Day 8 concludes Chapter 4, Understanding by Faith, and closes the second volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Day 8 Text with annotationsPlay MP3

Having last month considered the son’s inheritance, we consider how the Buddha is like the rich man training his son.

“World-Honored One! The great rich man is you. We are like [his son, that is,] your sons because you always tell us that we are your sons. World-Honored One! We once had many troubles in the world of birth and death because of the three kinds of sufferings.’ We were so distracted and so ignorant that we clung to the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle. At that time you caused us to think over all things and to clear away the dirt of fruitless discussions about them. We made strenuous efforts according to the teachings [of the Lesser Vehicle] and attained Nirvāṇa as a day’s pay. Having attained it, we had great joy, and felt satisfied [with the attainment of it]. We said, ‘We have obtained much because we made efforts according to the teachings of the Buddha.’ But when you saw that we clung to mean desires and wished to hear only the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle, you left us alone. You did not tell us that we had the treasure-store, that is, the insight of the Tathāgata. You expounded the wisdom of the Buddha[, that is, the Great Vehicle] with expedients, but we did not aspire for that vehicle because, when we had obtained the day’s pay of Nirvāṇa from the Buddha, we thought that we had already obtained enough. We did not wish to have what you had showed and expounded to the Bodhisattvas by your wisdom. You expounded the Dharma to us with expedients according to our capacities because you knew that we wished to hear the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle. We did not know that we were your sons. Now we know that you do not grudge your wisdom to anyone. Although we were your sons then as we are now, we wished to hear only the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle. If we had aspired for the teaching of the Great Vehicle, you would have already expounded it to us. Now you expound only the One Vehicle in this sūtra. You once reproached us Śrāvakas in the presence of the Bodhisattvas because we wished to hear the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle. [At that time we thought that you had taught us only the Lesser Vehicle,] but now we know that you have been teaching us the Great Vehicle from the outset. Therefore, we say that the great treasures of the King of the Dharma have come to us although we did not seek them, and that we have already obtained all that the sons of the Buddha should obtain.”

The underlying message of this chapter is explained by Nichiren in his Kanjin Honzon-shō:

Thus, it is stated in the Lotus Sūtra (chapter four, “Understanding by Faith” that four great Śrāvakas such as Kāśyapa rejoiced in their understanding of the teaching of the Lotus Sūtra enabling śrāvakas to attain Buddhahood, and reported to the Buddha that they had been given invaluable jewels without asking for them. This represents the attainment of Buddhahood by the śrāvaka realm contained in our minds.

Not only the śrāvaka but also Śākyamuni Buddha is within us. For, we encounter such a statement like this in the second chapter of the Lotus Sūtra: “It was My (Śākyamuni’s) original vow to let all beings become like Myself. My vow has now been fulfilled. I have helped them all enter the way of the Buddha.” Does this not mean, that Śākyamuni Buddha, who has attained Perfect Enlightenment, is our flesh and blood, and all the merits He has accumulated before and after attaining Buddhahood are our bones?

Kanjin Honzon-shō, A Treatise Revealing the Spiritual Contemplation and the Most Verable One, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 146

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Icchantika

It is stated in the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 2, chapter 3 on “A Parable,” “If a person does not believe in but slanders this sutra, he will immediately destroy all the seeds for attaining Buddhahood in this world.” It is because one aspect of having no faith in this sūtra causes others to abandon the Lotus Sūtra. Interpreting this, Bodhisattva Vasubandhu, therefore, states in the first fascicle of his Treatise on the Buddha-nature, “He who hates and contradicts Mahāyāna becomes an icchantika (one who has no goodness in his nature and therefore, no possibility of attaining Buddhahood) because such a person causes people to abandon this dharma.”

Shugo Kokka-ron, Treatise on Protecting the Nation, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 30-31

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Mantras Representing the Gist of the Lotus Sūtra

The Miao-fa lien-hua-ching is a Chinese designation for the Lotus Sūtra, which is called the Saddharma-pundarīka-sūtra in India. Tripiṭaka Master Subhākarasimha’s mantras representing the gist of the Lotus Sūtra are as follows: “I put my faith in the everywhere-penetrating Buddha, the three-bodied Buddha. When one attains Buddha Wisdom, which is opened and revealed to all the people, he will, like the crisp-clear sky, be able to get rid of all delusions and evil passions, accept the teaching of the Sūtra of the Wonderful Dharma and live with joy, firmly upholding the teaching.”

These mantras representing the gist of the Lotus Sūtra came from an iron Stupa in Southern India. The Satsuri-daruma among them means the True Dharma, while “satsu” means shō (true) or myō (wonderful). Therefore, the Lotus Sūtra is called either the Sūtra of the Lotus Flowers of the True Dharma or the Sūtra of the Lotus Flowers of the Wonderful Dharma. Placing the two words of na and mu in front of the latter, we get Namu Myōhō Renge-kyō (I put my faith in the Sūtra of the Lotus Flowers of the Wonderful Dharma).

Kaimoku-shō, Open Your Eyes to the Lotus Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 67

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3,000 Dust-Particle Kalpa

As we observe the writings in the Lotus Sūtra, we find 20 important doctrines, the first and second of which are the two doctrines of 3,000 dust-particle kalpa and 500 (million) dust-particle kalpa. The 3,000 dust-particle kalpa is preached in the “Parable of a Magic City” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 3: “Suppose a major world system (consisting of 1,000 X 1,000 X 1,000 worlds) was crushed into dust. A particle of dust was then dropped over 1,000 worlds traveling eastward until the dust was exhausted. After this, all the worlds that were passed over with or without dropping a particle of dust were crushed into dust. Suppose each of the dust particles thus produced stands for one kalpa. The total number of the kalpa is called the 3,000 dust-particle kalpa (aeons).”

Kyōdai-shō, A Letter to the Ikegami Brothers, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 72

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Our Teacher-Protector

We, ignorant icchantika of the Latter Age, always drowned in the sea of life and death, are desirous of believing the Lotus Sūtra. It forecasts our inherent Buddha-nature being revealed. Grand Master Miao-lê explains this in his Annotations on the Great Concentration and Insight, fascicle 4, “Unless the Buddha-nature in each of us develops gradually to fill our minds, how can we attain Buddhahood? It is this wonderful power of the Buddha-nature in each of our minds that enlightens us. Therefore, we call this wonderful power of the Buddha nature our teacher-protector.”

Kaimoku-shō, Open Your Eyes to the Lotus Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 60-61

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Believers of the Lotus Sūtra

The believers of the Lotus Sūtra today are like the cold winter. Winter inevitably becomes spring. Has anyone experienced winter turning back to autumn? Likewise, there has never been a case of a believer of the Lotus Sūtra being an ordinary person without attaining Buddhahood. Therefore, it is preached in the Lotus Sūtra, “Expedients” chapter, “Having heard of the Lotus Sūtra, no one remains without attaining Buddhahood.”

Myōichi-ama Gozen Goshōsoku, A Letter to My Lady, the Nun Myōichi, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 7, Followers II, Pages 134

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Those Who Abandon the Lotus Sūtra

The śrāvaka disciples such as Śāriputra, Kāśyapa, Ānanda, and Rāhula, who were guaranteed to be future Buddhas in the theoretical section of the Lotus Sūtra through the three cycles of the Buddha’s preaching (dharma, parable, and past relationships) had learned the Lotus Sūtra far in the past, 3,000 dust-particle kalpa (aeons) ago, from a bodhisattva who was the 16th prince of the Great Universal Wisdom Buddha, namely Śākyamuni Buddha today. Nevertheless, due to evil karma they abandoned the Lotus Sūtra, embracing such Mahāyāna sūtras as the Flower Garland Sūtra, Wisdom Sūtra, Sūtra of Great Assembly, Nirvana Sūtra, Great Sun Buddha Sūtra, Revealing the Profound and Secret Sūtra, and Sūtra of Meditation on the Buddha of Infinite Life or Hinayāna Āgama sūtras. While doing so, they gradually declined in status to the realms of heavenly and human beings and finally to the three evil realms. As a result for as long as 3,000 dust-particle kalpa they spent much of their time in the Hell of Incessant Suffering, some of their time in the seven major hells, once in a long while in the other one hundred or so hells, and on rare occasions in the realms of hungry souls, beasts, and asura. It was after the 3,000 dust-particle kalpa (aeons) that they were able to be born in the realm of human or heavenly beings.

Therefore, it is stated in the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 2 (chapter 3), “They will always stay in hell, strolling in it as though it were a garden, and remain in other evil realms as if they were at home.” Those who committed the ten evil acts will fall into such hells as the hell of regeneration and that of black ropes, where they spend 500 or 1,000 years. Those who committed the five rebellious sins, are destined to the Hell of Incessant Suffering for as long as one medium kalpa before being reborn. Those who abandoned the Lotus Sūtra, however, will fall into the Hell of Incessant Suffering and remain there for innumerable number of kalpa, though their sin does not seem to be as terrible as the sin of murdering parents.

Kyōdai-shō, A Letter to the Ikegami Brothers, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 73