Two Buddhas, p9Nichiren’s fierce insistence on the sole efficacy of the Lotus Sūtra has not endeared him to modern scholarly commentators, who have often dismissed him as narrow and intolerant. Yet another aim of our volume is to show how Nichiren’s reading of the Lotus Sūtra made compelling sense in the context of his received tradition and his understanding of his own time; it illustrates how much can be at stake in the interpretation of scripture. Through his example, we demonstrate how what Lotus followers regard as an ancient and timeless revelation came to be deployed in a specific time and place – thirteenth-century Japan – in an effort to understand, and to transform, that time and place. Focusing on Nichiren allows us to provide a kind of case study of how an ancient Buddhist text was appropriated by someone in a very different historical and cultural context to address questions undreamed of by the sūtra’s compilers.
All posts by John Hughes
Teaching Devices
The arrival of Many Treasures Buddha in his Stupa and the image of him and Śākyamuni Buddha sitting side by side are very significant… . The sutra emphasizes the fact that the whole body of Many Treasures Buddha, not just his remains, is present in the Stupa and that his voice emerges from it. But Many Treasures Buddha, we are told, had long ago passed into final nirvana. In this way the whole meaning of nirvana is called into question. And the sitting of the two buddhas side by side violates the assumption that there can only be one buddha in this world at a time. This is one of the ways in which the Lotus Sutra teaches that stories of entering nirvana are teaching devices to get people to be more responsible for their own lives, a theme which is developed most explicitly in the story in chapter 7 of the guide who conjures up a city as a temporary resting place for some travelers who want to quit the journey.
A Buddhist Kaleidoscope; Gene Reeves, The Lotus Sutra as Radically World-affirming, Page 181
Devadatta and Ajātaśatru
Bimbisāra was a wise king and the greatest follower of the Buddha in the world (Jambudvīpa). Moreover, he ruled the kingdom of Magadha, where the Buddha was planning to preach the Lotus Sūtra. As the king and the Buddha were in one mind, it was expected that the Buddha would expound the Lotus Sūtra. However, Devadatta wanted to stop this plan by any means. As he could not think of any effective means to prevent this, Devadatta approached Prince Ajātaśatru, Crown Prince of King Bimbisāra. After befriending the prince for several years, Devadatta finally caused discord between the royal father and son and incited Ajātaśatru to kill his own father. As Devadatta and Ajātaśatru were united in one mind, non-Buddhists and evil men gathered from all over India to side with them like swarms of clouds and mist. Ajātaśatru gave them territories and treasures and flattered them. The king of Magadha thus became an archenemy of the Buddha. Catching sight of this, the King of Devils in the Sixth Heaven of the realm of desire, accompanied by his numerous followers, descended from the heavens into Magadha Kingdom and entered the bodies of Devadatta, Ajātaśatru, and his six ministers. They appeared to be humans but they had powers of the devils in the Sixth Heaven. They were more turbulent and horrible than a storm swaying trees and grasses, a typhoon raising big waves in the ocean, a severe earthquake shaking the great earth, or a conflagration consuming many houses. …
Thus, the Buddha endured all kinds of persecution, but He was somehow able to stay alive to preach the Lotus Sūtra. This Lotus Sūtra says: “Many people hate this sūtra with jealousy even in My lifetime. Needless to say, more people will do so after My extinction.” The meaning of this passage is that even in the Buddha’s lifetime, the enemies of the Lotus Sūtra arose like this, not to speak of those who will preach or believe in even a letter or a single stroke of the Lotus Sūtra in the Latter Age of Degeneration.
Reflecting on this passage, although it has been more than 2,200 years since the Buddha preached the Lotus Sūtra, no one has ever read and practiced it as the Buddha preached. Only he who has encountered great persecution can be said to have truly practiced the Lotus Sūtra. Even T’ien-t’ai and Dengyō, who have been considered to be practicers of the Lotus Sūtra, never encountered the kind of hardship which the Buddha did.
Ueno-dono Gohenji, A Reply to Lord Ueno, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 111-112
Daily Dharma – Nov. 16, 2019
He satisfied himself with what little he earned.
He did not wish to get anything more.
He did not notice the priceless gem
Fastened inside his garment.
These verses are part of a story told by Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya and other disciples in Chapter Eight of the Lotus Sūtra. It is about a man whose friend gives him a jewel while he is asleep. Not realizing he has this treasure, the man returns to his ordinary life, desperate to make a living and satisfy his ordinary desires. The story shows how we live when we forget about the jewel of Buddha nature we carry with us.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com
Day 12
Day 12 concludes Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City, and completes the Third Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.
Having last month heard the Parable of the Magic City, we consider Śākyamuni’s explanation of the parable.
“Bhikṣus! I, the Tathāgata, am like the leader. I am your great leader. I know that the bad road, which is made of birth-and-death and illusions, is dangerous and long, and that we should pass through it and get off it. If you had heard only of the One Vehicle of the Buddha, you would not have wished to see or approach the Buddha, but would have thought, ‘The Way to Buddhahood is too long for us to pass through unless we make painstaking efforts for a long time.’
“I knew that you were mean and timid. In order to give you a rest halfway, I expounded expediently to you the teaching of Nirvāṇa by the two vehicles. To those who attained the two [ vehicles], I say, ‘You have not yet done all that you should do. You are near the wisdom of the Buddha. Think it over and consider it! The Nirvāṇa you attained is not true. I divided the One Vehicle of the Buddha into three only expediently.’
“I say this just as the leader, who saw that his party had had a rest in the great city which he had made by magic in order to give them a rest, said to them, ‘The place of treasures is near. This city was not true. I made it by magic.’ ”
The Greatest of the Lotus Sūtra Interpreters
Two Buddhas, p8Chinese commentaries on the Lotus and other sūtras were produced in great numbers, especially during the fifth through tenth centuries. Through commentary, and other forms of interpretation as well, the sūtras were given innovative readings and made to speak to issues specific to the interpreter’s own time and place. Thus, a third aim of the current volume is to explore this living interface between text and commentary in Buddhism, using the Lotus as an exemplar.
Rather than taking on the impossible task of cataloging the long tradition of commentary on the Lotus Sūtra across Asia, we focus on the Japanese figure Nichiren (1222-1282), who stands among the greatest of the Lotus Sūtra interpreters.
The Cosmic Significance and Superiority of Śākyamuni Buddha
Śākyamuni Buddha is praised for preaching the Lotus Sutra. Not only all of the creatures of this world and the gods in the heavens of this world, but even all of the buddhas of all of the countless other worlds in every direction also praise and subordinate themselves to Śākyamuni Buddha. Especially by designating the buddhas of the ten directions as his representatives, he is given central importance in the entire cosmos.
The Chinese term here rendered as “representatives,” but which might literally be rendered as “body parts,” has been interpreted and translated in various ways. It may be a reflection of the belief that one of a buddha’s supernatural powers is the ability to replicate himself. Exactly what is meant in the Lotus Sutra by the term is not clear. But one thing is very clear — all of these various buddhas, throughout the many, many worlds, are subordinate to Śākyamuni Buddha. Just how they are subordinate is not explained, no doubt because it is not important. What is important, given the priorities of the sutra, is the cosmic significance and superiority of Śākyamuni Buddha. Yet, at the same time, the reality or importance of those other buddhas is in no way denied.
A Buddhist Kaleidoscope; Gene Reeves, The Lotus Sutra as Radically World-affirming, Page 181
Transferring Merits
Without removing the karmic effects of past actions, a malefactor can find whole or partial salvation through repentance, for the merits that one person acquires through good deeds can be transferred (as in the case of the merits a Bodhisattva transfers to others) and used to atone for others’ transgressions.
Basic Buddhist Concepts
Giving Medicine to Sick Person
In order to spread Buddhism in a country, an understanding of the conditions of the teaching that had been spread there previously is important.
It is the same as giving medicine to a sick person. It is necessary to know the type of medicine a person has already taken otherwise mixing the medicines may have ill effects or even kill the patient. The same is true with Buddhism. Teachings of the Buddha may also conflict with one another, leaving the people at a loss.
Nanjō Hyōe Shichirō-dono Gosho, A Letter to Lord Nanjō Hyōe Shichirō, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 143.
Daily Dharma – Nov. 15, 2019
He should respect the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones,
As his unsurpassed fathers.
He should give up arrogance
So that he may expound the Dharma without hindrance.
The Buddha sings these verses in Chapter Fourteen of the Lotus Sūtra in which he describes the peaceful practices of a Bodhisattva. By arrogance, the Buddha means not only acting as if we know what we do not, but any fixed understanding of the world and the beings in it. This opening of our minds allows us to be receptive to the innumerable ways the Buddhas are teaching us, and to learn to see the world for what it is. This receptivity also allows us to see the Buddha nature in all beings, no matter how deluded they are and how much harm they create. Respect is what allows us to fully hear and be present for what the world has to offer us.
The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com