Category Archives: WONS

WONS

When the ‘World Is Dreadful and Evil’

[I]n both the Shō-hoke-kyō (Chinese translation of the
Lotus Sūtra by Dharmaraksa) and Myō-hoke-kyō (Kumārajīva’s Chinese translation of the Lotus Sūtra) the Buddha has precisely defined the time for the spread of this sūtra to be when the “world is dreadful and evil, the future Latter Age, the Latter Age when the dharma is about to be extinguished,” or “the last (fifth) five-hundred-year period after the death of the Buddha.”

Had there not been three kinds of strong enemies against the practicer of the Lotus today, who would believe in the Buddha? Had there not been Nichiren, who would be the practicer of the Lotus Sūtra to prove the Buddha’s prediction?

Kaimoku-shō, Open Your Eyes to the Lotus Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 57

WONS

Protection Against Suffering

Your late husband would not have been subject to such a suffering because he was a follower of Nichiren, a practicer of the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sūtra states: “Those who call upon the name of the Buddha will not be burned even if they fall into a great fire; they will immediately run ashore if carried away by a flood.” It states also: “Fire cannot burn the merit of practicing the teaching of the Lotus Sutra, and water cannot wash it away.” How reliable it is!

Ueno-dono Goke-ama Go-henji, A Response to the Nun, Widow of Lord Ueno, Nyonin Gosho, Letters Addressed to Female Followers, Page 48

LS32, WONS

Day 4

Day 4 concludes Chapter 2, Expedients, and completes the first volume of the Sūtra of the Lotus flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

DAY 4 FULL TEXT

Having last month concluded Chapter 2, Expedients, we begin again with the gāthās explaining why the 5,000 listeners left as Śākyamuni was about to talk.

Thereupon the World-Honored One, wishing to repeat what he had said, sang in gāthās:
Some bhikṣus and bhikṣunīs
Were arrogant.
Some upāsakās were self-conceited.
Some upāsikās were unfaithful.
Those four kinds of devotees
Were five thousand in number.

They could not see their own faults.
They could not observe all the precepts.
They were reluctant to heal their own wounds.
Those people of little wisdom are gone.
They were the dregs of this congregation.
They were driven away by my powers and virtues.

They had too few merits and virtues
To receive the Dharma.
Now there are only sincere people here.
All twigs and leaves are gone.

Nichiren had this to say about the “twigs and leaves”:

When the “Expedients” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra was preached, 5,000 self-conceited ones did not believe in what they heard and withdrew from the preaching of the Lotus Sūtra. Nevertheless, they became Buddhas in three months’ time because they did not slander the Lotus Sūtra. Referring to this incident, it is preached in the Nirvana Sūtra, “Both believers and non-believers will be born in the Immovable Land.” Those who heard the Lotus Sūtra can become Buddhas even if they do not put faith in the sūtra, so long as they do not slander it, due to the inexplicable merit of having heard the sūtra. This is like the person bitten by a poisonous snake called shichibuja who is bound to fall within taking seven steps and is unable to take the eighth step due to the inexplicable work of the poison. Or it is also like an embryo that changes its shape within seven days and never stays in one shape for more than eight days.

Hōren-shō, Letter to Hōren, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 52

WONS

The Guarantee of Future Buddhahood

Grand Master T’ien-t’ai, who thoroughly studied the holy teachings of the Buddha’s lifetime, declares, “In sūtras other than the Lotus Sūtra, attainment of future Buddhahood was guaranteed only to bodhisattvas exclusive of the Two Vehicles. … The guarantee of future Buddhahood was granted only to virtuous people, not evil people. In the Lotus Sūtra, on the contrary, the guarantee of future Buddhahood was made both to virtuous and evil people.”

Yakuō-bon Tokui-shō, The Essence of the “Medicine King Bodhisattva” Chapter, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 29

WONS

Refusing to follow Ruler, Parents, and Teacher

Generally speaking, one who acts against one’s parents or disobeys the ruler of the country is chastised by the heavens for being unfilial. Nevertheless, when the enemies of the Lotus Sūtra are one’s parents or the ruler of the country, it is an act of filial piety or patriotism to the country not to follow their directions. Therefore, ever since I encountered this sūtra I fearlessly upheld my faith in it even though my parents tried to restrain me by rubbing their hands together in prayer, my teacher disowned me, and the Kamakura Shogunate exiled me twice, indeed I was almost beheaded. Because my faith did not falter people in Japan are now beginning to believe I might be right. Besides me, Nichiren, who else in Japan has refused to follow the ruler of the country, parents, and teacher and still received heavenly blessings?

Ōshajō-ji, Town of Rājagṛha, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 128

WONS

Regarding Myō Hō Ren Ge Kyō

Regarding “the wonderful” of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, Grand Master T’ien-t’ai declares in his Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra, “Wonderful means something mysterious, absolute and beyond expression;” “the Lotus Sūtra is called wonderful because it is the hidden teaching of the Buddha,” or “it is named so because the sūtra is the supreme and ultimate Dharma like nectar.”

As for “the Dharma,” T’ien-t’ai’s Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra states, “The Dharma means the law of provisional and true teachings with ten realms and ten levels of suchness.” (The reality of all things means that each of the ten realms has ten suchness-aspects. When the reality of all things is considered, the ten suchness-aspects of nine realms are provisional because those are the worlds of delusions, while those of the Buddha realm is true because it is the true world. Because the ten realms represent the reality of all things, they are non-duality in their form of provisional or true teachings). It is said also, “The Dharma is so named because the provisional and true teachings are not separated from each other as the ultimate truth.”

The meaning of the “Lotus Flower” is explained in the Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra, “The lotus flower is the simile of the provisional and true teachings. ‘Flower’ is applied to the provisional and ‘lotus’ is the true. Putting the two together, the provisional and true teachings are one as the lotus flower.” It is also stated, “It shows the true result (attainment of Buddhahood) of the Eternal Buddha and reveals the non-duality of the provisional and true teachings.”

Grand Master Chang-an speaks of “the Sūtra” in the second prologue of the Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra, “The Buddha’s voice teaches the Way to Buddhahood, which is called a sūtra.”

Ichidai Shōgyō Tai-I, Outline of All the Holy Teachings of the Buddha, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Page 85

d18b, WONS

Fulfilling the Prediction of Persecution

[I]f only I, Nichiren, had not been born in this country, the twenty-line verse of the thirteenth chapter, “The Encouragement for Upholding This Sūtra,” in the fifth fascicle of the Lotus Sūtra would be empty words and the Buddha would almost be a great liar. Those uncountable number of bodhisattvas, who made the vow to uphold the Lotus Sūtra, would be accused of committing the same sin of lying as Devadatta did. The verse says, “Ignorant people will speak ill of us, abuse us, and threaten us with swords or sticks.”

In the world today, is there any Buddhist priest other than me, Nichiren, who is spoken ill of, abused, and threatened with swords or sticks on account of the Lotus Sūtra? If I, Nichiren, were not here, this verse would be a false prediction.

It also says: “Monks in this evil world will be cunning and ready to flatter others. They will preach the dharma to laymen for worldly gain and be respected by the people just as the arhat who has the Six Superhuman Powers is.” If there were no Pure Land Buddhists or priests of Zen or Ritsu School of Buddhism in this world, this prediction would also make the Buddha a great liar.

It says, “In order to slander us in the midst of a great crowd of people they will speak ill of us to kings, ministers, Brahmans, and men of influence.” These would be empty words unless Buddhist priests in this world slandered me and had me exiled.

It is further stated, “We will be banished many times.” If I, Nichiren, had not been exiled repeatedly on account of the Lotus Sūtra, what could we do with these two words of “many times?” Even T’ien-t’ai and Dengyō did not read these two words from experience, not to speak of other people. I, Nichiren, alone read them from experience. For I perfectly fit the Buddha’s description of the person spreading the Lotus Sūtra “in the dreadful and evil world” at the beginning of the Latter Age of Degeneration.

Kaimoku-shō, Open Your Eyes to the Lotus Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 56-57

WONS

Extending Life Span Through Practicing the Lotus Sūtra

More than 1,500 years after the passing of Śākyamuni Buddha a man named Ch’én Ch’én lived in China. His life span was set for 50 years as stated in the Analects of Confucius: “At the age of 50, one knows one’s life.” However, as he encountered Grand Master T’ien-t’ai, from whom he learned about the Lotus Sūtra, he lengthened his own life span by 15 years, living until he reached 65 years old. Also, as it is preached that the Never Despising Bodhisattva lengthened his life span again by practicing the Lotus Sūtra, he extended his life span set by his immutable karma.

These people cited above were all males, not one was a female as cited in the Lotus Sūtra. Nevertheless, they lengthened their life span by practicing the Lotus Sūtra. Especially Ch’én Ch’én, who appeared 1,500 years after the passing of the Buddha, is not included in the prediction of the Buddha for the time of 2,500 years after His passing. Ch’én Ch’én, like the rice plant in winter or the chrysanthemum flower in summer, was out of season. On the contrary, today we are in the time of 2,500 years after the passing of the Buddha. Therefore, for a female today changing her immutable karma and extending her life span through practicing the Lotus Sūtra is like the rice plant in autumn or the chrysanthemum flower in winter. No one will be astonished at seeing this. Therefore, when I prayed for the recovery of my ill mother through the Lotus Sūtra, not only did she actually recover from her illness but also extended her life span by four years.

Kaen Jōgō Gosho, Writing About Lengthening the Life Span, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 7, Followers II, Pages 113

WONS

Benefiting from the Teaching of True Reality

Fascicle six of the Great Concentration and Insight asserts: “The pre-Lotus teachings were intended for those in the higher stages who could benefit from the teaching of expedient means; while the perfect teaching is intended for those in the lower stages who could only benefit from the teaching of true reality.”

Annotations on the Great Concentration and Insight states: “The passage cited about the earlier teachings correctly distinguishes between the provisional and the true. This is because it explains that the truer the teaching the lower the stage (of those enlightened by it); whereas the more provisional the teaching the higher the stage must be (of those enlightened by it).”

Fascicle nine of the Annotations on the Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sūtra says, “The stage of attainment can be determined in this way: the more profound the sphere of contemplation the lower the stage of the people it is intended for.”

Shishin Gohon-shō, The Four Depths of Faith and Five Stages of Practice, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 103-104

WONS

Undutiful Children

Even if one believes in the pre-Lotus sūtras, if one does not believe in the Lotus Sūtra and chant Namu Myōhō Renge-kyō even once, one is an undutiful child. He will be abandoned by the Buddhas and bodhisattvas in all the worlds throughout the universe in the past, present and future, and also will be begrudged by the gods of heaven and earth.

Nanjō Hyōe Shichirō-dono Gosho, A Letter to Lord Nanjō Hyōe Shichirō, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 140.