Two Buddhas, p116-117As with Chapter Three, Nichiren’s references to this chapter focus, not on the parable from which it takes its name, but on another element entirely, in this case, the story of the buddha Mahābhijfiājfiānābhibhū [Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Tathāgata].
Nichiren drew three chief conclusions from this narrative. The first is that beings of our own, Sahā world have a karmic connection solely to Śākyamuni Buddha and not to the buddhas of other words. Everything about the dharma known in this world originated with Śākyamuni. None of the great Pure Land teachers, Nichiren said, had ever actually met the buddha Amitābha or renounced the world to practice the way under his guidance. The name Sahā, from the Sanskrit word meaning “to bear or endure,” refers to the tradition that this world is an especially evil and benighted place where it is difficult to pursue the Buddhist path — quite unlike the radiant pure lands with which the Mahāyāna imagination populated the cosmos. Thus, Śākyamuni was said to have displayed exceptional compassion in appearing in this world. In the Greater Amitābha Sūtra or Sūtra of Immeasurable Life, Amitābha Buddha vows to accept into his pure land all who place faith in him except those persons who have committed the five heinous deeds or disparaged the dharma. Nichiren accordingly suggested that these most depraved of evil persons had been excluded from the pure lands of the ten directions and were gathered instead in the present, Sahā world, where Śākyamuni had undertaken to save them. This was the meaning, he said, of Śākyamuni Buddha’s statement in Chapter Three, “I am the only one who can protect them.” To forsake the original teacher Śākyamuni was a grave error, as the people of this world cannot escape samsāra by following any other buddha.
Monthly Archives: October 2019
Five Types of Bodhisattva
Saichō’s most innovative classification systems were devoted to revealing the differences between the practices advocated by the various Buddhist schools. One of the most important of these systems was based on a hierarchical classification of five types of bodhisattva found in the Pu pi ting ju ting ju yin Ching (Niyatāniyatagatimudrāvatārasūtra). Each type was compared with a man who was attempting to travel to a distant place. If the man boarded the wrong type of vehicle, he would never arrive at his destination because winds and storms would constantly delay him and force him to turn back. If he chose a more suitable vehicle, he would eventually arrive at his destination, but only after a very long period of time. If he rode the best vehicle, he would quickly arrive at his destination. The five types of bodhisattvas described in the sūtra and their vehicles were:
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- The bodhisattva who followed sheep vehicle practices (yōjōgyō)
- The bodhisattva who followed elephant vehicle practices (zōjōgyō)
- The bodhisattva who followed the practices of the vehicle which endowed him with superhuman powers enabling him to reach the sun and moon (gatsunichi jinzū jōgyō)
- The bodhisattva who followed the practices of the vehicle which endowed him with the superhuman powers of a Śrāvaka (shōmon jinzū jōgyō)
- The bodhisattva who followed the practices which endowed him with superhuman powers like those of the Buddha (Nyorai jinzū jōgyō)
The sūtra did not describe the actual practices which each vehicle represented. Rather, the main theme of the sūtra was that not all religious practices were of the same efficacy. Some practices enabled a person to advance rapidly towards his religious goal without any danger of backsliding. Others, especially Hinayāna practices, caused him to regress, removing him further away from his goal than ever. Although the sheep vehicle and the elephant vehicle were both subject to backsliding, the other three vehicles were not.
Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School, p183-184Suffering Minor Torments in this Life
It is stated in the six-fascicle Nirvana Sūtra (Hatsunaion Sūtra by Fa-hsien), fascicle 4 (‘Four Reliances’ chapter), “Short supply of clothing or food, the inability to make a fortune, being born to a poor family or parents with a wrong view, or persecutions by the king and various other people are the retributions for past crimes in this world. This is due to the merit of upholding the True Dharma.”
These scriptural statements mean that because we persecuted the practicer of the True Dharma in a past life, our destiny is to fall into the Great Avīci Hell. However, by strongly upholding the True Dharma in this life, we absolve the major torment of the future by suffering the comparatively minor torments in this life. According to these scriptural statements, retributions for the past slandering of the True Dharma include being born in a poor family or a family with mistaken views, and persecution by the king. A family with mistaken views means a family of parents who slander the True Dharma while persecution by the king means to be born during the rule of an evil king.
Kyōdai-shō, A Letter to the Ikegami Brothers, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 77
Daily Dharma – Oct. 12, 2019
Muddy water has no mind but it still catches the moon’s reflection and naturally becomes lucid. Plants and trees catch the rain in order to blossom, but can we say they do this deliberately? The five characters of Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo are not the text of the sutra nor a mere explanation; rather they are the sole intent of the whole sutra. Beginners may practice this without knowing the heart (of the Lotus Sutra), but their practice will naturally harmonize with its intention.
Nichiren wrote this passage in his Treatise on The Four Depths of Faith and Five Stages of Practice (Shishin Gohon-Shō). This is another way of saying that we do not need to rely on our own skills or wisdom to practice the Buddha Dharma. Whether we are brilliant or slow, focused or distracted, calm or agitated, when we rely on the Ever-Present Buddha, we are in harmony with the world.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 11
Day 11 continues Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City
Having last month considered the reaction of the Brahman-heavenly-kings of the five hundred billion worlds in the southeast, we consider the reaction of the Brahman-heavenly-kings of the five hundred billion worlds in the south.
“Bhikṣus! The great Brahman-[heavenly-]kings of the five hundred billion worlds in the south, who saw their palaces illumined more brightly than ever, also danced with joy. They wondered why [their palaces were so illumined]. They visited each other and discussed the reason, saying, ‘Why are our palaces illumined so brightly?’ There was a great Brahman-heavenlyking called Wonderful-Dharma among them. He said to the other Brahmans in gāthās:
Our palaces are illumined so brightly.
There must be some reason.
Let us find [the place]
[From where the light has come].We have never seen this [light]
For the past one hundred thousand kalpas.
Did a god of great virtue or a Buddha appear
Somewhere in the universe?“Thereupon the Brahman-heavenly-kings of the five hundred billion [worlds] went to the north, carrying flower-plates filled with heavenly flowers, in order to find [the place from where the light had come]. Their palaces also moved as they went. They [reached the Well-Composed World and] saw that GreatUniversal-Wisdom-Excellence Tathāgata was sitting on the lionlike seat under the Bodhi-tree of the place of enlightenment, surrounded respectfully by gods, dragon-kings, gandharvas, kiṃnaras, mahoragas, men and nonhuman beings. They also saw that the sixteen princes were begging the Buddha to turn the wheel of the Dharma. They worshipped the Buddha with their heads, walked around him a hundred thousand times, and strewed heavenly flowers to him. The strewn flowers were heaped up to the height of Mt. Sumeru. The Brahman-heavenly-king offered flowers also to the Bodhi-tree of the Buddha. Having offered flowers, they offered their palaces to the Buddha, saying, ‘We offer these palaces to you. Receive them and benefit us out of your compassion towards us!’ In the presence of the Buddha, they simultaneously praised him in gāthās with all their hearts:
It is difficult to see a World-Honored One.
You, the World-Honored One, eliminated all illusions.
We have not seen a World-Honored One
For the past one hundred and thirty kalpas.Send the rain of the Dharma
On the hungry and thirsty beings!
Possessor of immeasurable wisdom,
We have never seen anyone wiser than you.
You are as rare as an udumbara-flower.
Now we have met you today.Our palaces are beautifully adorned
With your light.
World-Honored One, receive them
Out of your great compassion towards us!“Thereupon the Brahman-heavenly-kings, having praised the Buddha with these gāthās, said, ‘World-Honored One! Turn the wheel of the Dharma so that Mara, Brahman, the other gods, śramaṇas, and brahmanas of the world may be peaceful, and that they may be saved!’ They simultaneously praised the Buddha in gāthās with all their hearts:
Most Honorable of Gods and Men!
Turn the wheel of the unsurpassed Dharma,
Beat the drum of the Great Dharma,
Blow the conch-shell horn of the Great Dharma,
Send the rain of the Great Dharma,
And save innumerable living beings!
Devoting ourselves to you, we beg you.
Resound your profound teaching!“Thereupon Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Tathāgata gave his tacit consent to their appeal.
Sowing, Maturing, and Harvesting
Two Buddhas, p117-118Nichiren drew from the Mahābhijfiājfiānābhibhū [Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Tathāgata] story an understanding of how the Buddha’s pedagogical method unfolds over time. Zhiyi had identified three standards of comparison by which the Lotus Sūtra could be said to surpass all others. The first, based on Śākyamuni’s declaration of the one buddha vehicle in the “Skillful Means” and subsequent chapters, is that it encompasses persons of all capacities. The second, based on the present, “Apparitional City” chapter, is that it reveals the process of the Buddha’s instruction from beginning to end. Drawing on the Mahābhijfiājfiānābhibhū narrative, Zhiyi described this process with the metaphor of “sowing, maturing, and harvesting.” That is, the Buddha implants the seed of buddhahood in the mind of his disciples with an initial teaching; cultivates it through subsequent teachings, enabling their capacity to mature; and finally reaps the harvest by bringing those disciples to full enlightenment. As the opening passage of this chapter describes, the buddha Mahābhijfiājfiānābhibhū lived an immensely long time ago, so long that one could measure it only by grinding a vast number of world systems to dust and using each dust speck to represent one eon. In that distant time, Mahābhijfiājfiānābhibhū and his sixteen sons planted the seed of buddhahood in the minds of their auditors by preaching the Lotus Sūtra. Those who heard the Lotus Sūtra from the sixteenth son were born together with him in lifetime after lifetime, as he nurtured their capacity, bringing it to maturity with subsequent teachings over the course of innumerable lifetimes. When that son preached the Lotus Sūtra in the Sahā world as Śākyamuni Buddha, some were at last able to reap the harvest of enlightenment, while others would do so in the future. In other words, Śākyamuni’s resolve to lead all beings to the one vehicle was not merely a matter of this lifetime, but a project initiated in the inconceivably remote past. Indeed, this chapter offers another early hint that Śākyamuni’s buddhahood encompasses a time frame far exceeding the present lifetime, a theme that the Lotus Sūtra develops in later chapters.
Revealing the Superiority of Tendai Teachings
In his writings Saichō frequently mentioned traditional Tendai classifications of Buddhist doctrine, such as the division of the Buddha’s teaching into five periods and eight types of teaching (goji hakkyō). In addition, he developed a number of new systems of classification which were designed to reveal various aspects of the superiority of Tendai teachings over those of other schools. Even before studying in China, Saichō had divided Buddhist schools into two categories, those based on sūtras (the words of the Buddha) and those based on Sāstras (works by Buddhist monks). Using this classification, Saichō criticized the two preeminent Buddhist schools in Japan, the Hossō and Sanron, because they were based on works (sāstras) by Buddhist monks rather than on the words of the Buddha. Twenty years later in the Hokke shūku he further refined this system by dividing the schools based on sūtras into two groups: the Tendai School, which was based on the Lotus Sūtra, and all other schools based on sūtras, such as the Kegon School.
Saichō: The Establishment of the Japanese Tendai School, p183Daily Dharma – Oct. 11, 2019
Many priests in the Latter Age of Degeneration do not discern the capacity of people. When it is impossible to discern the capacity of people, the true teaching should be preached vigorously.
Nichiren wrote this passage in his Treatise on Chanting the Great Title of the Lotus Sūtra (Shō Hokke Daimoku-shō). When the Buddha taught using expedient means, he could see the delusions and attachments of those whom he taught, and adjust his teachings to them for their benefit. For us who live in this time where most people are not aware of the ever-present Buddha Śākyamuni, all we need to know about those whom we wish to benefit is that they are convinced that this age is headed towards ruin. We cannot know who is ready to receive the Buddha’s highest teaching. Therefore our generosity compels us to provide the teaching that leads towards enlightenment, not merely the teaching that leads away from suffering.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 10
Day 10 concludes Chapter 6, Assurance of Future Buddhahood, and opens Chapter 7, The Parable of a Magic City.
Having last month concluded today’s portion of Chapter 7, The Parable of a Magic City, we return to today’s portion of Chapter 6, Assurance of Future Buddhahood, and the prediction of Buddhahood for Subhūti.
Thereupon the World-Honored One, having understood the wishes of the great disciples, said to the bhikṣus:
“In his future life, this Subhūti will see three hundred billion nayutas of Buddhas, make offerings to them, respect them, honor them, praise them, perform brahma practices, complete the Way of Bodhisattvas, and become a Buddha on the final stage of his physical existence. He will be called Beautiful-Form, the Tathāgata, the Deserver of Offerings, the Perfectly Enlightened One, the Man of Wisdom and Practice, the Well-Gone, the Knower of the World, the Unsurpassed Man, the Controller of Men, the Teacher of Gods and Men, the Buddha, the World-Honored One. The kalpa in which he will become that Buddha will be called Having-Treasures; and his world, Treasure-Born. The ground [of his world] will be even, made of crystal, adorned with jeweled trees, and devoid of mounds, pits, rubble, thorns and dirt. Jeweled flowers will cover the ground to purify it. The people of that world will live in buildings of wonderful treasures. His disciples in Śrāvakahood will be numberless, beyond calculation or comparison. The Bodhisattvas will be many thousands of billions of nayutas in number. The duration of the life of that Buddha will be twelve small kalpas. His right teachings will be preserved for twenty small kalpas. The counterfeit of his right teachings will be preserved also for twenty small kalpas. That Buddha will always stay in the sky, expound the Dharma to the multitude, and save innumerable Bodhisattvas and Śrāvakas.Thereupon the World-Honored One, wishing to repeat what he had said, sang in gāthās:
Bhikṣus!
Now I will tell you.
Listen to me
With one mind!Subhūti, a disciple of mine,
Will be able
To become a Buddha
Called Beautiful-Form.He will make offerings
To many billions of Buddhas, and practice
According to the practices of the Buddhas,
And finally attain great enlightenment.On the final stage of his physical existence,
He will obtain the thirty-two physical marks,
And become as beautiful and as wonderful
As a mountain of treasures.The world of that Buddha
Will be the purest.
Anyone will be happy to see it.
That Buddha will save
Innumerable living beings
Of that world.Many Bodhisattvas
In the world of that Buddha
Will be clever.
They will turn
The irrevocable wheel of the Dharma,
And adorn that world.The Śrāvakas in that world also
Will be countless.
They will have the six supernatural powers,
Including the three major supernatural powers.
They will have the eight emancipations.
They will be exceedingly powerful and virtuous.The supernatural powers
Employed by that Buddha
For the expounding of the Dharma
Will be inconceivable.As many gods and men
As there are sands in the River Ganges
Will join their hands together
And listen to the words of that Buddha.The duration of the life of that Buddha
Will be twelve small kalpas.
His right teachings will be preserved
For twenty small kalpas.
The counterfeit of his right teachings
Also will be preserved for twenty small kalpas.
Teaching Śrāvakas the Taste of Ghee
Two Buddhas, p106-107Nichiren explained that these four great śrāvakas “had not even heard the name of the delicacy called ghee,” but when the Lotus Sūtra was expounded, they experienced it for the first time, savoring it as much as they wished and “immediately satisfying the hunger that had long been in their hearts.” Nichiren’s reference here to “ghee,” or clarified butter, invokes the concept of the “five flavors,” an analogy by which Zhiyi had likened the stages in human religious development to the five stages in the Indian practice of making ghee from fresh milk. As we have seen, like other educated Buddhists of his day, Nichiren took the Tendai division of the Buddha’s teaching into five sequential periods to represent historical fact. From that perspective, Nichiren sometimes described the sufferings that he imagined the Buddha’s leading śrāvaka disciples must have endured during the period when Śākyamuni began to preach the Mahāyāna, seeing their status plummet from that of revered elders to targets of scorn and reproach for their attachment to the inferior “Hinayāna” goal of a personal nirvāṇa. Some Mahāyāna sūtras excoriate the śrāvakas as those who have “destroyed the seeds of buddhahood” or “fallen into the pit of nirvāṇa” and can benefit neither themselves nor others. Their “hunger” then would have represented their chagrin and regret at not having followed the bodhisattva path and thus having excluded themselves from the possibility of buddhahood.
At the same time, Nichiren imagined them suffering hunger in the literal sense. As monks, they would have had to beg for their food each day. Nichiren imagined that on hearing the érävakas rebuked as followers of a lesser vehicle, humans and gods no longer viewed them as worthy sources of merit and stopped putting food in their begging bowls. “Had the Buddha entered final nirvāṇa after preaching only the sūtras of the first forty years or so without expounding the Lotus Sūtra in his last eight years, who then would have made offerings to these elders?” he asked. “In their present bodies, they would have known the sufferings of the realm of hungry ghosts.” Serious hunger was a condition that Nichiren had experienced at multiple points in his life and with which he could readily sympathize. But when the Buddha preached the Lotus Sūtra and predicted buddhahood for the śrāvakas, Nichiren continued, his words were like the brilliant spring sun emerging to dissolve the ice of winter or a strong wind dispersing dew from all the grass. “Because [these predictions] appear in this phoenix of writings, this mirror of truth [i.e., the Lotus], after the Buddha’s passing, the śrāvakas were venerated by all supporters of the dharma, both humans and gods, just as though they had been buddhas.”