Illness is not just the sicknesses that lead us to medical practitioners. It is also the many illnesses that rob us of the joy that is possible in each of our lives.
Physician’s Good MedicineAuthor: John Hughes
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Daily Dharma – Feb. 20, 2018
Now you have awakened us, saying:
“What you attained was not true extinction.
When you have the unsurpassed wisdom of the Buddha,
You will attain true extinction.”Five hundred of the Buddha’s monks give this explanation in Chapter Eight of the Lotus Sūtra. These monks believed that by extinguishing their desires and ending their suffering, they would reach the wisdom of the Buddha. They had not yet heard the teaching of the Lotus Sūtra in which the Buddha reveals his wisdom and the path to attain it. This is the path of the Bodhisattva: beings who resolve to work for the enlightenment of all beings and not just end their own suffering. We may start on the path towards enlightenment by wanting to be happy. Then as we progress, we find our happiness entwined with that of all beings.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
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Day 26
Day 26 concludes Chapter 21, The Supernatural Powers of the Tathāgatas, includes Chapter 22, Transmission, and introduces Chapter 23, The Previous Life of Medicine-King Bodhisattva.
Having last month met Gladly-Seen-By-All-Beings Bodhisattva, we witness Gladly-Seen-By-All-Beings’ ultimate offering to the Sun-Moon-Pure-Bright-Virtue Buddha.
“Having made these offerings [to the Buddha], he emerged from the samadhi, and thought, ‘I have now made offerings to the Buddha by my supernatural powers. But these offerings are less valuable than the offering of my own body.’
“Then he ate various kinds of incense taken from candana, kunduruka, turṣka, pṛkkā, aloes and sumac, and drank perfumed oil taken from the flowers of campaka and other flowers[. He continued doing all this] for twelve hundred years. Then he applied perfumed oil to his skin, put on a heavenly garment of treasures in the presence of Sun-Moon-Pure-Bright-Virtue Buddha, sprinkled various kinds of perfumed oil on the garment, and set fire to his body, making a vow by his supernatural powers. The light of the flame illumined the worlds numbering eight thousands of millions of times the number of the sands of the River Ganges.
“The Buddhas of those worlds praised him, saying simultaneously, ‘Excellent, excellent, good man! All you did was a true endeavor. You made an offering to us according to the true Dharma. This offering excels the offerings of flowers, incense, necklaces, incense to burn, powdered incense, incense applicable to the skin, streamers and canopies of heavenly cloth, and the incense of the candana grown on this shore of the sea. It also excels the offerings of countries, cities, wives and children. Good man! This is the most excellent and honorable offering because you made it to us according to the Dharma.’
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The Practice of a Bodhisattva
The main practice of Mahayana Buddhism, the Great Vehicle, is the Practice of a Bodhisattva: practice for helping others. The sutras in general give us many types of Bodhisattva-practices. In the Lotus Sutra, however, the principal Bodhisattva-practice is dissemination of the Sutra itself.
In Chapter Eleven, “Beholding the Stupa of Treasures,” and Chapter Eighteen, “Encouragement for Keeping the Sutra,” Sakyamuni asks Bodhisattvas to volunteer to disseminate the Sutra in the future. Answering his call, in Chapter Fifteen, “The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground,” Bodhisattvas well up from beneath the earth, and in Chapter Twenty-one, “Supernatural Powers of the Tathagatas,” Sakyamuni transmits the Sutra to them. Then in Chapter Twenty-two, “Transmission,” he transmits it to all the Bodhisattvas. The mission of all of them, both the Original Bodhisattvas and the Temporal Bodhisattvas, is to disseminate the Lotus Sutra after the Buddha’s extinction.
A principal feature of the Lotus Sutra lies in showing us spiritual and practical ways by which Bodhisattvas disseminate it, overcoming all hardships in this evil world.
Introduction to the Lotus Sutra
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Daily Dharma – Feb. 19, 2018
If they think that I am always here, and do not think that I will pass away, they will become too arrogant and lazy to realize the difficulty of seeing me, and they will not respect me. Therefore I say [to them] expediently, ’Bhikṣus, know this! It is difficult to see a Buddha who appears in [this] world.’
The Buddha makes this explanation to those gathered to hear him teach in Chapter Sixteen of the Lotus Sūtra. We may wonder what took the Buddha so long to give his highest teaching to us, whether he was holding it back because of stinginess, not wanting to share the great treasure of his wisdom. Here and in other parts of the Sūtra, he shows that unless we cultivate our respect for the Buddha, and thus for all beings, we take him for granted and lose his precious wisdom.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
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Day 25
Day 25 covers all of Chapter 20, Never-Despising Bodhisattva, and opens Chapter 21, The Supernatural Powers of the Tathāgatas.
Having last month learned that Never-Despising Bodhisattva encountered the twenty thousand billion gāthās of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, we learn Śākyamuni’s connection to Never-Despising Bodhisattva.
“Great-Power-Obtainer! This Never-Despising Bodhisattva-mahāsattva made offerings to those Buddhas, respected them, honored them, praised them, and planted the roots of good. After that, he was able to meet thousands of billions of Buddhas. He also expounded this sūtra under those Buddhas. By the merits he had accumulated in this way, he was able to become a Buddha.
“Great-Power-Obtainer! What do you think of this? The Never-Despising Bodhisattva at that time was no one but myself. If I had not kept, read or recited this sūtra or expounded it to others in my previous existence, I should not have been able to attain Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi so quickly. Because I kept, read and recited this sūtra, and expounded it to others under those past Buddhas, I attained Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi quickly.
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Ideal Bodhisattva Practice
It is said that the dirtier the pond from which it grows, the more beautifully a lotus blooms. The flower is itself pure and unaffected by the mud from which it has sprung. The Sutra tells us that the method of Bodhisattva-practice should be similar to that of a lotus flower. It can be said that “lotus flower,” which is part of the title (Daimoku) of the Lotus Sutra (“The Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law”), symbolizes this ideal Bodhisattva practice.
Introduction to the Lotus Sutra
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The Focus of Devotion
[The Gohonzon,] the physical form of such a focus of devotion, also serves as a reminder that the Buddha Dharma is not about abstract principles and theories. Instead, the Dharma is a living reality. It awakens us through the vast network of interrelationships within the real world that affects the unfathomable inner workings of our own minds and hearts. The focus of devotion, therefore, is not to be worshiped as an idol, something outside of ourselves and separate from daily reality. Rather, it is an expression of enlightenment, presented in such a way that it warmly and intimately engages our whole being with the living reality of Buddhahood.
Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the Gohonzon
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Daily Dharma – Feb. 18, 2018
Some children of mine are pure in heart, gentle and wise.
They have practiced the profound and wonderful teachings
Under innumerable Buddhas
[In their previous existence].
I will expound this sūtra of the Great Vehicle to them,
And assure them of their future Buddhahood, saying:
“You will attain the enlightenment of the Buddha
In your future lives.”The Buddha sings these verses in Chapter Two of the Lotus Sūtra. In the difficulties we face in this world of conflict and attachment, we can lose sight of our purpose to benefit all beings and try to avoid whatever is uncomfortable. When we hear the Buddha assure us of our inherent wisdom, and that our capacity to benefit others will continue to grow despite any obstacles we find, we learn to persevere through misfortunes, and increase our determination to lead all beings to enlightenment.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
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Day 24
Day 24 concludes Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma and closes the Sixth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
Having last month considered eight hundred merits of the nose to be received by the Teacher of the Dharma in gāthās, we consider the twelve hundred merit of the tongue.
“Furthermore, Constant-Endeavor! The good men or women who keep, read, recite, expound or copy this sūtra, will be able to obtain twelve hundred merit of the tongue. Anything which tastes good, bad, delicious, distasteful, bitter or astringent, will become as delicious as the nectar of heaven and not distasteful when it is put on their tongues. When they expound the Dharma to the great multitude with their tongues, they will be able to raise deep and wonderful voices, to cause their voices to reach the hearts of the great multitude so that the great multitude may be joyful and cheerful. Hearing their speeches given in good order by their deep and wonderful voices, Śakra, Brahman, and the other gods and goddesses will come and listen to them. In order to hear the Dharma, dragons, dragons’ daughters, gandharvas, gandharvas’ daughters, asuras, asuras’ daughters, garuḍas, garuḍas’ daughters, kiṃnaras, kiṃnaras’ daughters, mahoragas, and mahoragas’ daughters also will come to them, respect them, and make offerings to them. Bhikṣus, bhikṣunīs, upāsakās, and upāsikās; and kings, princes, ministers, and their attendants [also will come and hear the Dharma]. The wheel-turning[holy-]kings of small [countries], and the wheel-turning-[holy-]kings of great [countries, each of whom has the] seven treasures and one thousand children, also will come with their [treasures, children and] internal and external retinues, riding in their [movable] palaces, and hear the Dharma. These [good men or women, that is,] Bodhisattvas will expound the Dharma so well that the brahmanas, householders, and people of their country will, throughout their lives, attend on them, and make offering to them. The Śrāvakas, Pratyekabuddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Buddhas also will wish to them. [These good men or women] will expound the Dharma in the places which the Buddhas will face. They will keep all the teaching of the Buddhas and raise deep and wonderful voices of the Dharma.”