Yesterday’s article, The Call to Polish the Mirror, concluded with this statement:
By identifying a practitioner’s daily behavior as the “manifestation-body” (niryāna-kāya) of the Buddha, the teachings close the loop: your inner faith is not an abstract theory, but a dynamic, compassionate force that must actively transform your conduct, your relationships, and your environment.
This sent me looping back to the beginning of this project where I felt there wasn’t enough focus on being good Buddhists, of acting in ways that showed charity, morality, patience, vigor, meditation and wisdom.
How does one convert inner faith from an abstract theory into a dynamic, compassionate force that actively transforms your conduct, your relationships, and your environment without the Eight Right Ways?
I put this question to my Nichiren Notebook in Gemini Notebook and it came back with seven expectations for daily conduct for those who expound the Odaimoku.
1. Daily Behavior Modeled on Bodhisattva Never-Despising (Jōfukyō)
The ultimate model of daily behavior is Bodhisattva Never-Despising, whose story serves as the very gist of practicing the Lotus Sutra. He was famous for bowing to everyone he met and declaring that they would eventually attain Buddhahood, patiently enduring their insults, beatings with staves, and stoning without ever yielding to anger. This model translates into an everyday ethic of absolute mutual respect and nonviolence. This is expressed through three categories of action:
- Bodily Action: Bowing in reverence and showing courtesy to others.
- Vocal Action: Chanting the Odaimoku.
- Mental Action: Sincerely respecting and recognizing the inherent Buddha-nature within every person, regardless of their social standing or how they treat you.
Recognizing and respecting the Buddha in every person is fundamental to the teaching of the Lotus Sutra. This is truly the first thing one must keep in mind and focus upon. And perhaps the hardest to do.
2. Diligence in Your Secular Occupation
Faith and daily life are entirely nondual. You are not to expect “pennies from heaven” or neglect your worldly responsibilities simply because you chant. Instead, the teachings declare:
“Make your best service in your occupation; that is the practice of the Hokekyo [Lotus Sutra].”
Working diligently and performing your daily duties at home, at school, or in the workplace is viewed as a primary opportunity to polish your character and change the quality of this world into the Buddha’s world.
This expectation is profound. Imagine a workplace environment where service is rendered not as an obligation but instead as a demonstration of faith in the Lotus Sutra. This would truly be world-changing.
3. Mindfulness, Prudence, and Mind-Polishing
Daily behavior should reflect deep self-reflection, courtesy, and mindfulness. You are encouraged to take to heart the examples of ancient sages, such as Confucius, who thought over what he intended to say nine times before speaking, and the Duke of Chou, who interrupted his washing or dining to greet visitors without making them wait. Furthermore, practitioners are advised to curb short-temperedness and act with prudence. For instance, to help a quick-tempered samurai disciple avoid trouble, the writings repeatedly advise him to steer clear of public drinking bouts and instead “just do your sake-drinking with your wife and chant Namu-myōhō-renge-kyō.”
My wife proofreads my posts. She will underline this section, circle it several times and add multiple exclamation points in both margins. During 36 years of marriage she has often said I should think first, wait a beat and then talk. As for my temper, it has been a lifelong struggle.
4. Remaining Unmoved by the “Eight Winds”
A true practitioner of the Lotus Sutra behaves with steadfastness and remains unaffected by the “eight winds”:
- Profit
- Sorrow
- Slander
- Fame
- Praise
- Censure
- Suffering
- Pleasure
This means you neither “take delight in your crowning hour nor grieve during the depths of despair.” Your faith should be like flowing water—steadfast and continuous, never retreating when confronted by obstacles—or like a “mountain of gold,” which only shines brighter when wild boars brush against it.
The metaphor of wild boars polishing mountains of gold has come up before. This is featured twice in the One Minute Daimoku content, both times when explaining the Diamond Chalice Precept. My son was trying to grasp the teaching and this just flummoxed him. I told him that I assume Nichiren’s audience in 13th century Japan were familiar with this image. I explained to him that I specifically asked the Nichiren Notebook to never include Nichiren’s statement, “When one enters the water carrying a rhinoceros horn, the water will be kept away by 5 feet.” I can accept boar bristles polishing gold but harvesting animal horns to part the water discomforts my modern sensibilities.
5. Active Compassion Through Shakubuku
Rather than a passive retreat from the world, you are expected to practice shakubuku—an assertive approach to proselytizing that actively rebukes attachment to incomplete or false teachings. Under this view, true compassion demands that you speak out against “slander of the True Dharma” to plant the seed of Buddhahood in others’ hearts. To remain silent in the face of such slander is to commit the sin of complicity (yodōzai) and act as their enemy rather than their friend.
The inclusion of this expectation is an outcome of the Nichiren Notebook’s reliance on Nichiren’s letters and essays. The modern Nichiren Shu leadership advocates for shōju, or leading others gradually without criticizing their present stance. Of course, if someone tells me I’m wrong and tries to convert me, I’m liable to Shakubuku them at the very least.
6. A Transfigured Understanding of Loyalty and Filial Piety
The teachings place supreme importance on showing active gratitude for the four favors received: from parents, people, the sovereign, and Buddhism. However, worldly loyalties are always subordinated to the true Dharma. True filial piety (kō) is redefined through the lens of causality: if a parent or a ruler opposes the Lotus Sutra, disregarding their wishes is actually the most filial and loyal conduct possible, because it is the only way to guide them to ultimate Buddhahood.
I want to joke about this item. As a 74-year-old man with dead parents I’m all for filial piety from my son and grandchildren. And as for “the sovereign” – Seriously? Not for the next three years. But that’s perhaps an example of where I need to do more to demonstrate my true devotion to the Lotus Sutra.
7. Praying for the Welfare of Others
When you chant, your focus should transcend selfish desires. The merits of the Odaimoku are unlocked when your prayers are directed outward: wishes are realized when a person chants the Odaimoku for the sake of others. The ultimate expected behavior is to walk the Bodhisattva path of helpfulness, taking responsibility to save all sentient beings.
We don’t chant for ourselves. We chant for the betterment of everyone, which is the true Bodhisattva path.
When I was a teenager in the late 1960s I went through a brief period of Christian evangelical enthusiasm, joining a group of self-described Jesus Freaks. My mother was unimpressed. She pointed out that true conversion causes recognizable changes in behavior and outlook. She didn’t see it in me, and I had to admit she was right.
It’s the recognizable changes that mark the presence of true faith and that’s no less true when it comes to faith in the Odaimoku.
