Day 2 completes Chapter 1, Introductory

Yesterday’s consideration of the circle that is life brings my attention today to the circular relationship of the lives of the great disciples.

When we begin this second of the 32 days of the Lotus Sutra, Manjusri is answering Maitreya’s request to explain the meaning of the great omen seen by the multitude – the light emitted by Sakyamuni “from the white curls between his eyebrows, and illumined all the corners of eighteen thousand worlds in the east, down to the Avici Hell of each world, and up to the Akanistha Heaven of each world.” Manjusri tells about one of his long-ago lives and in doing so explains the story of a Bodhisattva called Wonderful-Light, who had 800 disciples.

One of the eight hundred disciples [of Wonderful-Light] was called Fame-­Seeking. He was attached to gain. He read and recited many sutras, but did not understand them. He forgot many parts of those sutras. Therefore, he was called Fame-Seeking. But he [later] planted the roots of good, and became able to see many hundreds of thousands of billions of Buddhas. He made offerings to them, respected them, honored them, and praised them.

Maitreya, know this! Wonderful-Light Bodhisattva at that time was no one but myself; and Fame-Seeking Bodhisattva, no one but you. This good omen we see now is not different from what I saw at that time. Therefore, I think that the Tathagata of today also will expound the sutra of the Great Vehicle called the ‘Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, the Dharma for Bodhisattvas, the Dharma Upheld by the Buddhas.’

And in gathas:

There was a lazy man
Among the disciples
Of Wonderful-Light, the Teacher of the Dharma.
[The lazy man] was attached to fame and gain.

Always seeking fame and gain,
He often visited noble families.
He did not understand what he had recited,
Gave it up, and forgot it.
Because of this,
He was called Fame-Seeking.

But he [later] did many good karmas,
And became able to see innumerable Buddhas.
He made offerings to them,
Followed them, practiced the Great Way,
And performed the six paramitas.
Now he sees the Lion-Like One of the Sakyas.

He will become a Buddha
In his future life.
He will be called Maitreya.
He will save innumerable living beings.

The lazy man who Lived after the extinction
Of [Sun-Moon-] Light Buddha was
No one but you.
Wonderful-Light, the Teacher of the Dharma, was I.

The ray of light of [Sun-Moon-] Light Buddha,
That is, the good omen, was the same as what I see now. Judging from this, the present Buddha also will expound The Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Back in the days of my youth, when all telephones were wired (and they even had dials to “dial” a phone number), the handsets were often attached to the phone with a coiled wire. When relaxed, the coils appeared to be individual loops with beginnings and ends, but as you pulled on the coil you realized the beginnings and ends were an illusion and when you stretched the coil to its limit it became a single line. That’s today’s image for the circle of life.

Day 1 covers the first half of Chapter 1, Introductory

I find this circle of 32 days enjoyable, with a sense of completion and renewed anticipation as I move from one end through the beginning again. What if we could appreciate the circle of our lives in the same way?

And so it begins again with “Thus have I heard.”

Here I’d like to bring up an explanation offered by Ryusho Jeffus Shonin:

There are actually two ways of looking at the phrase “thus have I heard.” The difference is which way or which direction “thus have I heard” points. In one understanding, “thus have I heard” points to the text that follows. So in this interpretation Ananda is saying what he heard from the Buddha and it is titled Myoho Renge Kyo. The other interpretation is “thus have I heard” is pointing to Myoho Renge Kyo, and what follows is an explanation, or interpretation of Myoho Renge Kyo. In the first understanding the text of the sutra is primary, in the second the text is secondary to the title. As different sentence constructions it might look like this. ‘Myoho Renge Kyo is what I heard’ versus ‘This is what I heard. The Buddha one …’ The difference is slight but important. In the first Myoho Renge Kyo is the most important thing and all that follows is a way to understand Myoho Renge Kyo. The second understanding places the text of the sutra as key and the title is a summary of the contents.

Nichiren argues that “thus have I heard” is referring to Myoho Renge Kyo and this supports the conclusion that chanting the title as a single practice is very much appropriate and correct. Everything then recounted in the text of the sutra is similar to an exegesis of the most important thing, which is Myoho Renge Kyo.

Lecture on the Lotus Sutra

“Thus have I heard” at that point between the end and the beginning, containing both, encompassing everything. Namu Myoho Renge Kyo

Day 32 covers Chapter 28, The Encouragement of Universal-Sage Bodhisattva, closing the Eighth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Today completes my first month of my self-imposed single-topic sharing of what I read each day. On this last day I’ll set aside for future months the ambivalent attitude about women shown by Universal Sage Bodhisattva and instead take this opportunity to focus on Sakyamuni’s promise:

Universal-Sage! Anyone who keeps, reads and recites this Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, memorizes it correctly, studies it, practices it, and copies it, should be considered to see me, and hear this sutra from my mouth. He should be considered to be making offerings to me. He should be considered to be praised by me with the word ‘Excellent!’ He should be considered to be caressed by me on the head. He should be considered to be covered with my robe.

And…

Universal-Sage! If you see anyone who keeps, reads and recites the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma in the later five hundred years after my extinction, you should think, ‘Before long be will go to the place of enlightenment, defeat Mara and his followers, attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, turn the wheel of the Dharma, beat the drum of the Dharma, blow the conch-shell horn of the Dharma, send the rain of the Dharma, and sit on the lion-like seat of the Dharma in the midst of the great multitude of gods and men.’

Day 31 covers Chapter 27, King Wonderful-Adornment as the Previous Life of a Bodhisattva.

This story of two sons who, at the invitation of their mother, seek to convince their father, a king, to hear the Buddha is always inspiring. And this time through I want to underline the effect of their efforts:

By displaying these various wonders, they purified the mind of their father, that is, of the king, and caused him to understand the Dharma by faith.

And…

Thereupon the two sons descended from the sky, came to their mother, joined their hands together, and said to her, ‘Our father, the king, has now understood the Dharma by faith. He is now able to aspire for Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. We did the work of the Buddha for the sake of our father.

And…

The two sons led their father by these expedients and caused him to understand the teachings of the Buddha by faith and to wish [to act according to those teachings].

They did the work of the Buddha and caused the king, their father, to understand the Dharma by faith and to wish to act according to those teachings.