Monthly Archives: August 2020

WONS

The Rage of Terrestrial Deities

Although I am unworthy, I am a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra. When subjects of the ruler and people of Japan all slight me, the terrestrial deities, who pledged to protect the practicer at the lecture meeting of the Lotus Sūtra, tremble with rage and the heavenly gods shine a light that threatens this country. No matter how many times they admonish this country, their admonition is not heeded at all. Therefore, in the end the terrestrial deities and heavenly gods enter the people, causing the domestic disturbance and foreign invasion.

Hōren-shō, Letter to Hōren, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 60-61

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – Aug. 5, 2020

Did a god of great virtue or a Buddha
Appear somewhere in the universe?
This great light illumines
The worlds of the ten quarters.

The Brahma Heavenly Kings of the East sing these verses as part of a story the Buddha tells in Chapter Seven of the Lotus Sūtra. Long ago there was another Buddha named Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence. When he became enlightened, the entire universe was illuminated. Beings who had never seen each other could recognize each other clearly. We can see this story as a metaphor for what happens when the Buddha’s wisdom comes into our lives. We leave the darkness of our ego attachment and come into the light of the world as it is.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

LS32

Day 3

Day 3 covers the first half of Chapter 2, Expedients.

Day 3 Text with annotationsPlay MP3
Having last month learned of the difficulty of understanding the Dharma in gāthās, we learn the expediency of the teaching of the Three Vehicles.

(He said to Śāriputra again:)
I have already attained
The profound and wonderful Dharma,
The Dharma without āsravas, the inconceivable Dharma.
It is known only to me
And to the Buddhas of the worlds of the ten quarters.

Śāriputra, know this!
The Buddhas do not speak differently.
Have great power of faith
In the Dharma expounded by the Buddhas!
As a rule, the World-Honored Ones expound the true teaching
Only after a long period [of expounding expedient teachings].

(He said to the Śrāvakas
And to those who were seeking the vehicle of cause-knowers:)
I saved all living beings
From the bonds of suffering,
And caused them to attain Nirvāṇa.
I showed to them
The teaching of the Three Vehicles as an expedient
In order to save them from various attachments.

See The Most Inclusive and Important Expression of the Teachings of the Buddha

LS32, d3b, stories

The Most Inclusive and Important Expression of the Teachings of the Buddha

While Kumarajiva’s Chinese version has been adapted into Japanese, no one imagines that this Japanese version, or the Chinese version, or any other version is by itself the Dharma Flower Sutra, the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, to use the full title. The precise meaning of the term “The Dharma Flower Sutra” and its equivalents in other languages has to remain somewhat imprecise, as there is no single text which is “The Lotus Sutra,” no one original from which others are derived. Even in the Sutra itself, there is no consistently maintained distinction between the Dharma Flower Sutra and Buddha Dharma. In a sense, we can say that the Sutra understands itself to be the most inclusive and important expression of the teachings of the Buddha.

The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p9
Blog

The Power and Appeal of the Lotus Sutra

Following up on the quotes from Gene Reeves’ Translator’s Introduction to his 2008 translation of the The Lotus Sutra, I continue my Office Lens housecleaning with a quote from Burton Watson’s Translator’s Introduction to his 1993 translation of The Lotus Sutra.

The Lotus is not so much an integral work as a collection of religious texts, an anthology of sermons, stories and devotional manuals, some speaking with particular force to persons of one type or in one set of circumstances, some to those of another type or in other circumstances. This is no doubt one reason why it has had such broad and lasting appeal over the ages and has permeated so deeply into the cultures that have been exposed to it.

The present translation is offered in the hope that through it readers of English may come to appreciate something of the power and appeal of the Lotus Sutra, and that among its wealth of profound religious ideas and striking imagery they may find passages that speak compellingly to them as well. (Page xxii)

Lecture on Lotus Sutra

Beyond But Not Outside

Quote

An impossible to measure long time ago is when the Buddha became the Buddha. It wasn’t when he sat under the tree. That sitting under the tree event is what we, in our rational, physical-evidence-based minds attach to. It is an event, however, that is probably the least important for us to consider. It was merely the beginning of a small part of the entire story. However, until we can break free of the need to have Buddhism tied to this realm and plane of existence that event under the tree will only limit us. What the Lotus Sutra requires us to do is begin to understand that Buddha is not tied to one person, not tied to one point in time, and not tied to one realm of existence, or even one planet. The Buddha transcends all of that though it is in every bit of it too. It is beyond but not outside.

Lecture on the Lotus Sutra

d16b, WONS

‘The Eye of the World of Gods and Men’

The Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 4 (chapter 11 on the “Appearance of the Stupa of Treasures”) preaches: “Anyone who understands the meaning of this sūtra after My extinction, will be the eye of the world of gods and men.” Now am I, Nichiren, who spreads the daimoku, the essence of the Lotus Sūtra, in Japan, not “the eye of the world of gods and men”?

To begin with, there are five kinds of eyes—human eye, divine eye, wisdom eye, dharma eye and Buddha-eye. These five kinds of eyes are all born from the Lotus Sūtra, so it is preached in the Sūtra of Meditation on the Universal Sage Bodhisattva: “This Hōdō sūtra is the eyes of Buddhas; Buddhas are able to have five kinds of eyes because of this sūtra.” “This Hōdō sūtra” in this citation refers to a Mahāyāna sūtra that expounds the vast and equal truth of reality, namely the Lotus Sūtra. The Sūtra of Meditation on the Universal Sage Bodhisattva also states: “It (the Lotus Sūtra) is a fertile field where men and gods should sow the seeds of merit. Offerings to the practicer of this sūtra is most meritorious.”

According to these scriptures, the Lotus Sūtra is the eye of men and gods, the eye of the Two Vehicles (śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha) and bodhisattvas, and the eye of the Buddhas in all the worlds throughout the universe in the past, present and future lives. Therefore, those who hate a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra scoop out the eyes of men and gods, and those protective deities who do not punish such people in effect protect those who gouge out the eyes of men and gods.

Kangyō Hachiman-shō, Remonstration with Bodhisattva Hachiman, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 267-268

Daily Dharma

Daily Dharma – Aug. 4, 2020

The mother said to them, ‘Show some wonders to your father out of your compassion towards him! If he sees [the wonders], he will have his mind purified and allow us to go to that Buddha.’

These lines are from a story told by the Buddha in Chapter Twenty-Seven of the Lotus Sūtra. The two sons of King Wonderful-Adornment have asked their mother for permission to leave home and follow the Buddha Cloud-Thunderpeal-Star-King-Flower-Wisdom. The wonders in the story are beyond the capacity of human beings, but they show the King that another way of living is possible, and induce him to seek the teaching of that Buddha. Even if we cannot develop supernatural powers, there are wonders we can develop in our practice. We can learn the value of respecting all beings. We can control our desires and not be devastated by life’s tragedies. We can share “even a word or phrase,” as Nichiren put it, of the teaching and bring great benefit to others. In our normal lives, changed by our practice, we too can purify the minds of others.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

LS32

Day 2

Chapter 1, Introductory (Conclusion).

Day 2 Text with annotationsPlay MP3
Having last month considered what happened when the Buddha emitted a ray of light, we consider the reaction of the four kinds of devotees of the world of Sun-Moon-Light Buddha.

The four kinds of devotees
Of the world of Sun-Moon-Light Buddha
Also saw the Buddha displaying this great wonder.
They had great joy.
They asked one another:
“Why is he doing this?”

He who was honored by gods and men
Emerged from his samādhi,
And praised Wonderful-Light Bodhisattva, saying:
“You are the eyes of the world.

You are believed and relied on
By all living beings.
You are keeping the store of the Dharma.
Only you will understand the Dharma which I shall expound.”

Having praised Wonderful-Light
And caused him to rejoice,
That World-Honored One expounded
The Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
He never rose from his seat for sixty small kalpas.
Wonderful-Light, the Teacher of the Dharma,
Kept the Wonderful Dharma
Expounded by that World-Honored One.

Having expounded the Sūtra
Of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma,
And caused the multitude to rejoice,
The Buddha told the gods and men
At that moment on that day,
“I have already expounded to you
The truth of the reality of all things.
I shall enter into Nirvāṇa at midnight tonight.
Make efforts with all your hearts!
Leave the life of license!
It is difficult to see a Buddha, who can be seen
Only once in hundreds of millions of kalpas.”

Having heard that the Buddha would enter into Nirvāṇa,
Those sons of the World-Honored One
Were filled with sorrow.
They said, “How quickly the Buddha is gone!”

The Saintly Master, the King of the Dharma,
Consoled the countless living beings, saying:
“Although I shall pass away,
You must not worry.
This Virtue-Store Bodhisattva has already understood
The truth of the reality [of all things]
[To be attained by the wisdom] without asravas.
He will become a Buddha immediately after me.
He will be called Pure-Body.
He will save innumerable living beings.”

The Buddha passed away that night
Just as fire dies out when wood is gone.
His śarīras were distributed.
Countless stupas were erected to enshrine them.

As many bhikṣus and bhikṣunīs
As there are sands in the River Ganges
Redoubled their endeavors
In order to attain unsurpassed enlightenment.

See Sharing the Dharma

LS32, d1b, d2b, stories

Sharing the Dharma

In this story, the Buddha says he intends “to teach the great Dharma, to send down the rain of the great Dharma, to blow the conch of the great Dharma, to beat the drum of the great Dharma, and to explain the meaning of the great Dharma.”

This represents an interesting mix of emotional and intellectual practices. … Dharma rain … is a symbol of equality among the living, in that all the living equally receive the Dharma without discrimination or distinction.

The meaning of the conch and the drum is not so obvious. Almost certainly they are instruments used to lead an army in battle, to inspire and motivate soldiers to move forward. Similarly, those who receive the Dharma Flower Sutra in their hearts are not merely comforted by it; they are motivated to practice it passionately and to share it with others. Buddhism is in this sense a missionary religion. Here in Chapter 1 of the Lotus Sutra we can see that the Dharma is intended for all the living and that those who share it should enthusiastically share it with others. We can also think of the sound of the conch as representing the beauty of the Dharma, while the sound of the drums represents the power of the Dharma.

It is important to notice, also, that even enthusiastic teaching is to be accompanied by explanation of the Dharma. This suggests that we should not attempt to make only emotional appeals on behalf of the Dharma or treat it only as an object of faith. It is equally important that the Dharma be understood. What is both embraced and understood will have a more lasting value than what is embraced merely on an emotional basis. This is probably truer now than it was when the Sutra was composed. Today people are trained to think scientifically, rationally, and critically. For the Dharma Flower Sutra to be accepted by modern people, it has to be carefully taught and explained, and even criticized, in terms that people can understand.

The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, p32-33