Through the Lens of the Lotus Sutra

The teachings which had come before Buddhism, Confucianism and Brahmanism, provided a basic moral framework for society. Hinayana Buddhism had introduced the beginning of Buddhist philosophy. Pre-Lotus Sutra Mahāyāna Buddhism had introduced the selfless ethics of the Bodhisattva. However, though Nichiren Shonin’s ethics were based on these systems, Open Your Eyes to the Lotus Teaching also provided a means of comparison between all of the systems. Each of the previous teachings showed only a portion of the truth; they were incomplete in themselves. Only the Lotus Sutra is complete; we can find ethical truths in other systems only when they are viewed through the lens of the Lotus Sutra.

Awakening to the Lotus