Category Archives: Blog

NotebookLM, Blog

Chanting Namu-Myoho-Renge-Kyo Every Morning at 8am

Shingyo-Hikkei-book-cover218x300In November 2023 I wrote about the Shingyō Hikkei, A Handbook for Members of the Nichiren Sect, which was the product of Nichiren Shu’s “Protect the Dharma Movement.” I had found the black, leatherbound pocketbook on a dusty shelf in an unused classroom at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church.

Given that (before I published this article) a Google search for “Protect the Dharma Movement” would get you exactly zero articles, one can assume the movement fizzled out. Whether Nichiren Shu headquarters lost interest, or the overseas ministers dropped the ball, the result is the same.

That’s unfortunate.

While I have many doctrinal arguments with Nichiren Shoshu and Soka Gakkai, one cannot fault the top-down direction of this global organization that focuses members on their practice. Go to any group meeting at a home or a chapter session at a community center and you feel right at home. It’s like going to Starbucks. No matter where you go, you know you’re in Starbucks and you know what you’ll get.

That’s not what you get with the confederation of temples that is Nichiren Shu. Less like Starbucks, the temples in America (the only ones I have experience with) are more like independent Italian restaurants. The restaurants are recognizable as Italian, but each has a different focus and flavor. The shami who left to strike out on his own focusing solely on Shodaigyo services has established the first pizzeria of the bunch.

The assumption I made at the time – that the “Protect the Dharma Movement” had fizzled out – was wildly off the mark. The Nichiren Shu headquarters had not lost interest, nor had the overseas ministers dropped the ball.

Today when you Google search “Protect the Dharma Movement” you still only get blog posts here and articles on the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church website. The only other citation is for a Harvard study of Religion and State in Meiji Japan, which discusses conditions a century before the 1966 Nichiren Shu project.

The fact that Google search results are still so sparse is a measure of how far Google’s AI efforts have progressed. When you use Google’s NotebookLM and ask it to do deep research on the “Protect the Dharma Movement” you get a much different result.

Launched in 1966, the Protect the Dharma Movement (Gohō Undō) was a radical revitalization campaign designed to save Nichiren Shū Buddhism from a severe postwar institutional crisis. Facing a deteriorating reputation as spiritually stagnant “funeral Buddhism” and rapidly losing members to aggressive new religious movements, the sect needed a total paradigm shift.

The core mission of the movement was to transform passive, hereditary “parishioners” participating out of social obligation into active, dedicated “followers” who viewed themselves as Bodhisattvas with a personal spiritual mission.

To achieve this, the movement functioned like a unified public education system for the religion. It forged global unity through the 1972 publication of the Shingyō Hikkei (Handbook of Faith and Practice), which established a shared curriculum of standardized chanting methods, unified ethical guidelines, and synchronized daily global prayers directed toward Mt. Minobu.

Theologically, the movement explicitly rejected the confrontational and exclusionary conversion tactics used by rival sects. Instead, it embraced a theology of “deep humanism” and gentle persuasion (shōju). Inspired by Bodhisattva Never-Disparaging, the movement taught followers to combat modern “spiraling egotism” by bowing in absolute respect to the inherent Buddha-nature within every person.

Ultimately, the movement successfully modernized Nichiren Shū, transitioning it from a traditional Japanese cultural institution into a globally unified spiritual force dedicated to establishing world peace through internal spiritual discipline.

What became of the “Protect the Dharma Movement”?

The Protect the Dharma Movement did not fade away; rather, it reached its planned organizational culmination in 1981, aligning with the 700th memorial anniversary of Nichiren Shonin’s passing.

By successfully mobilizing followers, renovating temple infrastructure, and standardizing global practices through the Shingyō Hikkei, the movement set a new precedent for the sect. Following its conclusion, Nichiren Shū transitioned this momentum into a series of highly organized, multi-decade propagation campaigns driven by major historical anniversaries:

  • The Odaimoku General Propagation Movement (1985–2002): After the Protect the Dharma Movement achieved its internal goal of unifying the faith of its followers, this 18-year successor campaign shifted the sect’s focus outward. Designed to culminate with the 750th anniversary of the sect’s founding in 2002, it aimed to spread the merits of the Odaimoku to the broader public while structurally enriching the sect through grants and commemorative projects.
  • The Risshō Ankoku Odaimoku Kechien Campaign (2007–2021+): Initiated to commemorate the 750th anniversary of the submission of the Risshō Ankoku Ron (2009) and the 800th anniversary of Nichiren’s birth (2021), this campaign operates under the slogan “Inochi ni Gassho” (Palm to Palm with All Life). It builds upon the Protect the Dharma Movement’s call for social engagement by actively addressing modern societal crises—such as isolation, poverty, environmental degradation, and climbing suicide rates—through the bodhisattva ideal of absolute respect for life.

Ultimately, the Protect the Dharma Movement permanently transformed Nichiren Shū from a traditional Japanese institution reliant on hereditary parishioners into a globally unified spiritual network, laying the groundwork for all of the sect’s contemporary propagation efforts.

The Shingyo-Hikkei which the Protect the Dharma Movement created calls for a daily prayer for the protection of the Dharma.

Eight O’clock Every Morning is the Time for the Prayer for the Protection of the Dharma

At eight o’clock every morning we, members of the Nichiren Sect, wherever we are and whatever we are doing, should direct our hearts towards Lord Śākyamuni Buddha and Nichiren Shonin, who reside on Mt. Minobu, and recite the Odaimoku and say a prayer for the protection of the Dharma. Let us all practice this prayer and encourage our neighbors to join us.

The way you recite the Odaimoku is up to you. It may be voiced or silent; it may be said three times or ten times. The point is for everybody, no matter where he lives, to say a prayer at the same time in one mind.

Back in 2023 I whined:

If Nichiren Shu in America is going to continue to act as independent Italian restaurants, it would be nice if they could settle on a single act such as the Protect the Dharma Movement prayer to establish a little more itai doshin.

Rather than continue whining, I want to cheer on everyone to face Mt. Minobu and chant Namu-Myoho-Renge-Kyo. Here in American we can do it at 8 in the morning local time or in the morning Tokyo time, which here in Sacramento is 4pm. Of course Europe doesn’t have it as easy since 8am in Tokyo is midnight in London and 1am in Paris. Still, there’s always 8am local time.

I’ve set a daily timer on my phone for 4pm. Mt. Minobu is west-northwest from Sacramento.

My NotebookLM research is publicly available. You are welcome to explore the Nichiren Shu propagation efforts from 1966 to today. Click here.

I’ve used Google’s Gemini to review the content in the notebook and to write two articles. One discusses the situation Nichiren Shu faced in Postwar Japan and the other details the efforts to counter the  Postwar threats.

Tomorrow: Nichiren Shū’s Postwar Crisis and Reform

NotebookLM, AI Contribution, Blog

Learning About Nichiren Buddhism

For years, the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church has shared a collection of 21 brochures and pamphlets from Nichiren Shu. To help people dive deeper into these teachings, I am working on a new Interactive Flashcard Study Tool.

Flashcards demoDeveloped using Google’s NotebookLM, these flashcards offer a way to engage with the Nichiren Shu brochures and pamphlets. Unlike standard AI, NotebookLM works strictly within the 21 specific brochures provided to it. This ensures that every answer is accurate, faithful to the source material, and free from outside interference.

Key Features of the Tool:

  • Deep Insights: Each card includes a question, a concise answer, and a detailed explanation.
  • Direct Sourcing: Every card provides a link back to the original brochure for further reading.
  • Global Reach: The tool is available in Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese, French, German, and Italian.

You can explore the prototype at: https://500yojanas.org/brochureFC/

Since this tool is still in its prototype phase, I would love feedback. I’m particularly interested in the accuracy of the foreign language versions. The translations were created by Google’s Gemini Pro.

Eventually this will be embedded into the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church website. I have an example of how it might look on this page.

NotebookLM, AI Contribution, Blog, Higan

Illustrating the Four Factors of the Six Pāramitās

For Higan week I’m using quotes from Chinese Master Hsuan Hua’s commentary on the Lotus Sutra. Each pāramitā and its corresponding four factors is illustrated by a slide created by Google’s NotebookLM.

While discussing the Devadatta chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Hsuan Hua outlined four corresponding factors that are related to each of the six pāramitās. I copied this text, which runs from page 185 in volume 8 to page 189, and used it as the source material in Google’s NotebookLM. One of the features of NotebookLM is its ability to create slides based on the source material. I gave NotebookLM this prompt:

Create a deck suitable for religious instruction on the Six Paramitas and the Four Factors for each.

This slideshow is the result:

202603_The_Six_Pāramitās_Page_01
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NotebookLM can also create Infographics. I asked NotebookLM to “Use Japanese iconography from medieval Japan to illustrate this infographic.” Here’s the result:

six-paramitas-four-factors-poster

Blog

Reciting the Lotus Sutra in Shindoku

Keeping track of my recitation of the shidoku Lotus Sutra

Today I completed my 112th recitation of the Lotus Sutra in shindoku.

For the first 10 years of my Journey to the Place of Treasures, I would recite a portion of the Lotus Sutra in shindoku in the morning and then in the evening read the same portion in English.

At the end of 2024 I decided forgo the shindoku and focus on a more traditional morning and evening service – Hoben Pon and Ji Ga Ge – followed with reading aloud a portion of the Lotus Sutra in English. At the same time, I decided to recite the entire Lotus Sutra in shindoku in February – a different chapter each day for 28 days. In the evening I would read aloud in English both the morning and evening portions of the Lotus Sutra due that day.

I started this routine in 2025 and I’ve continued it into 2026. However, I’m considering going back to my original 32 Days of the Lotus Sutra routine next year. I miss the mystical Dharma Sound paired with the native English.

AI Contribution, Blog

A Little AI Magic Revisited

Somebody somewhere posted a link to a blog post I wrote in August 2024 entitled A Little AI Magic. That’s become one of the top-five traffic destinations here.

In terms of AI, two years is a long time ago. When I wrote that post, Google had just re-enabled image generation after halting image generation in February of that year following controversy surrounding the generator’s insistence on racial diversity in all images.

Today, I decided to revisit the question of whether Microsoft’s Copilot or Google’s Gemini was the better choice for image generation.

For Copilot I selected the “Smart” setting – this utilizes GPT-5.1 – and clicked on the “Create an image” button. I then pasted in the prompt:

Generate image in style of emoji that represents Nichiren Buddhism

Here’s the result:

co-pilot-an emoji-style symbo

I then went to Gemini and selected “Thinking” mode and “Create images” and pasted the same prompt.

Here’s the result:

Gemini_emoji-style-web

Personally, I prefer the “imagination” shown in Gemini’s image. The Copilot image is, well, boring. It’s accurate and useable but it doesn’t “represent Nichiren Buddhism” as much as label it.

So, while there was no comparison two years ago, the image generators in 2026 are far more sophisticated.

Now I shall digress because Gemini tonight lapsed into declaring that the Daimoku is “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.”

Here’s the “thinking” that went into creating its image:

Analyzing Nichiren Buddhism
I’m currently focused on deconstructing Nichiren Buddhism to pinpoint its central symbols. I’ve identified the Daimoku (“Nam-myoho-renge-kyo“) and the Gohonzon (calligraphy) as critical. The challenge lies in condensing these elements into a single, readily interpretable emoji.

Embodying Nichiren’s Essence
I’m now zeroing in on embodying the core elements: Daimoku, Gohonzon, Nichiren, and the lotus. My strategy is to combine the lotus with a stylized scroll. The scroll will bear symbolic text in lieu of a detailed Gohonzon, and a friendly figure, representing Nichiren, will be added to the composition. The intent is to refine it with bold lines, vivid colors and a sticker appearance.

Verifying Visual Fidelity
I am now assessing the visual elements against the initial prompt. I am concentrating on how accurately the artwork reflects the specified style and whether key symbolic elements are present.

Analyzing Style Compliance
I am checking the image for alignment with the specified “emoji style,” looking at cartoon figures and strong lines. I am focusing on how well it visually captures Nichiren Buddhism. I also look at the monks and scrolls and whether the kanji ‘Nam-myoho-renge-kyo‘ is correctly written. I am preparing to share my findings.

I have been using a Gem – a reusable prompt – I wrote to generate images for the Daily Dharma since December of 2025. Not once has Gemini said that the Daimoku written representing the Japanese text using Roman letters – Romanji – begins “Nam” rather than “Namu.”

Gemini knows that seven Chinese characters make up the Daimoku – 南無妙法蓮華経 – and that the first two – 南無 – are rendered Namu in Romanji.

It is a phonetic transliteration of the Sanskrit word Namas, used to express deep respect and dedication. It does not carry the literal meanings of the individual characters, which are “south” (南) and “nothing/without” (無).

Why write “Nam” instead of “Namu”?

This is a very good question that touches on Japanese phonetics and how languages adapt foreign words.

The reason “南無” is romanized as Nam instead of the standard Japanese pronunciation Namu is due to a linguistic phenomenon called vowel devoicing or elision that occurs during the rhythmic chanting of the mantra.

Here is a breakdown of why this happens:

1. The Sanskrit Origin As mentioned before, the characters 南無 act as a phonetic transliteration of the Sanskrit word Namas (meaning devotion or bowing to). Ancient Chinese and Japanese monks chose characters that sounded similar to “Namas,” regardless of their literal meaning.

2. Standard Japanese Pronunciation In standard, isolated Japanese:

南 is usually pronounced Nan (or Minami).

無 is usually pronounced Mu.

Put together, the standard dictionary pronunciation is Namu.

3. The “Vowel Drop” (Elision) In spoken Japanese, the vowel sounds ‘u’ and ‘i’ are often “devoiced” (whispered or dropped completely) when they appear at the end of a word or between certain consonants.

Think of the common Japanese word for “is/to be,” desu (です). In normal speech, it usually sounds like “dess,” with the final ‘u’ being almost silent.

4. The Chanting Rhythm When chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the rhythm is crucial. It is chanted rapidly and rhythmically.

Trying to pronounce every syllable fully—Na-Mu-Myo-Ho-Ren-Ge-Kyo—is awkward and breaks the flow. Therefore, in the natural rhythm of the chant, the final ‘u’ sound in “Namu” is dropped, compressing the two syllables into one sharp beat: Nam.

Summary While the strict character-by-character transliteration is “Namu,” the romanization “Nam” is used because it accurately reflects the actual sound made when practitioners chant the mantra rhythmically.

I certainly hope this prioritization of the spoken Japanese over the literal Japanese doesn’t creep into the “thinking” that’s illustrating the Daily Dharma. I may chant “nam” but I want to read “namu.”

sixth patriarch, Blog

Our Inherent Buddha Nature

inherent-buddha-nature-hidden-square-revised

Illustration by Google Gemini

The prompt given to Gemini
Viewed from the inside out, our inherent Buddha nature is surrounded Boddhisattva Nature of pure compassion. The Buddha nature is represented by a flame. The Bodhisattva nature is a crystal sphere enclosing the Buddha nature flame.

Viewed from the outside in, the visual, tactile, gustatory, olfactory and auditory inputs are interpreted by the mind and this prompts our thoughts, speech and actions. These karma created by our interpretation of our sense inputs obscures the shell around our inherent Buddha nature.

The illustration should be square. The illustration should use Japanese Buddhist iconography. Use only kanji characters. No English text.

Create an illustration explaining this concept. The illustration should be square. The inherent Buddha is a flame-like light and the Bodhisattva nature a globe enclosing this light. Viewed from outside, the Bodhisattva globe is obscured by the defiled thoughts, words and actions that are generated from our sense organs.

Use Japanese Buddhist iconography

Gemini's thinking
Defining initial concepts
I'm currently focused on defining the initial concepts for this project. I am starting by researching Japanese Buddhist iconography related to Buddha nature, Bodhisattva nature, the five senses, and karma. This search will inform the design of a square illustration.

Outlining the composition
I'm now outlining the composition for the square illustration. The central crystal sphere will enclose a flame. I intend to fill the illustration with Japanese Buddhist motifs. An outer layer will feature swirling patterns. I'm also planning to incorporate Kanji characters representing key terms. Finally, I will provide the illustration with translations.

Considering Core Elements
I'm currently focused on dissecting the inherent Buddha nature, conceptualized as a flame at the illustration's center. I'm also developing the middle layer representing the Bodhisattva's pure compassion.

Refining Iconography Choices
I've been working on the translation of key concepts into Japanese Kanji. The focus now is refining the symbolic representation of "sense inputs" and "defilement" for the illustration's outer layer, specifically how the karma will obscure the sphere.

Structuring Visual Flow
I'm now mapping out the visual structure, aiming for a square format. I'm focusing on how the defilement layer will be fed by channels representing the five senses. Also, the kanji are going to be added to the illustration and will need to be legible within the structure.

Structuring Input Flow
I'm now focusing on mapping out the visual structure in a square format. I'm developing the "Outside In" process: the five senses and mind inputs that create the defilement obscuring the sphere. I'm also considering the implications of the kanji, especially the sense inputs.

Defining the Visual Narrative
I'm now integrating the translation into the visual process. I'm focusing on the "Outside In" structure and kanji placements for the five senses and mind. Also, I've got to ensure the kanji are legible within the swirling outer obscuration of the Karma layer. I will work on adjusting the layers.

Analyzing Visual Correspondence
I'm currently focused on evaluating the visual elements, specifically how well the output aligns with the core concepts provided in the user's initial request. My analysis is ongoing, and I'm carefully checking the correspondence of the various layers described in the prompt.

Refining Conceptual Alignment
I'm now carefully checking the visual execution to be certain all elements are faithful to the original description. I'm prioritizing the clarity of the conceptual flow within the illustration, analyzing how the layers described are visually represented, and considering the overall coherence of the design.

Kanji translation
The kanji used in the illustration represent the core concepts of Buddhist psychology and the specific imagery you described. Here are the translations:

The Core (Inner Nature)
佛性 (Busshō): Buddha Nature. This is the flame at the very center.

慈悲 (Jihi): Compassion/Benevolence. This represents the Bodhisattva nature (the crystal sphere) protecting and radiating from the flame.

The Obscuration (Karma and Defilement)
煩悩覆 (Bonnō-fuku): Obscured by Kleshas (defiled/earthly desires).

業障 (Goshō): Karmic Hindrances. These labels describe the dark, cloudy layer blocking the light.

The Six Sense Organs (Input)
Located in the circular icons around the edge:

眼 (Gen): Eye (Vision)

耳 (Ni): Ear (Hearing)

鼻 (Bi): Nose (Smell)

舌 (Zetsu): Tongue (Taste)

身 (Shin): Body (Touch)

心 (Shin): Mind (Thought/Interpretation)

The Three Actions (Output/Karma)
Represented by the dark smoke-like paths flowing from the mind back toward the center:

意業 (Igō): Karma of Mind (Thoughts)

口業 (Kugō): Karma of Mouth (Speech)

身業 (Shingō): Karma of Body (Actions)

On September 25, 2016, Rev. Kenjo Igarashi gave a sermon at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church that he described as Consciousness Only as interpreted by the Nichiren school. (Here’s my post on the subject.) At the time I had been practicing Nichiren Shu Buddhism for less than two years. The sermon, complete with a hand-drawn chart, opened my mind to a new way of looking at the Buddha within.

This view of Buddha nature within everyone concealed by the cloud of our errant thoughts, words and actions is not different from the teaching found in the Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform sutra.

Consider how he redirects the Four Great Vows inward from something pointing to the outside world.

Good and Wise Friends, now that you have repented, I will teach you how to make the four great all-encompassing vows. Listen carefully:

Though the living beings of my own mind are limitless, I vow to liberate them all.
Though the afflictions of my own mind are limitless, I vow to change them all.
Though the Dharma teachings of my own nature could never be exhausted, I vow to learn them all.
Though the Buddhahood of my own nature is unsurpassed, I vow to realize it.

Good and Wise Friends, all of you just said, “I vow to liberate the limitless living beings of my own mind.” But what does that mean? It does not mean that I, Huineng, liberate them!

Good and Wise Friends, the “living beings” within your own mind are the deluded thoughts, deceitful and untrue thoughts, unwholesome thoughts, jealous thoughts, malicious thoughts – all mental states like these, are “living beings.” Each must be liberated from within your own nature. This is true liberation.

What is meant by liberating yourself through your own essential nature? It means liberating the living beings of false views, the afflictions and delusions within your own mind by means of right views. Once you have right views, you use the wisdom of prajña to lay bare and untangle [your] mistaken, confused and deluded “living beings.” You yourself liberate each and every one. When falseness occurs, liberate it with truth; when confusion arises, liberate it with awakening; when delusion sets in, liberate it with wisdom, when evil takes hold, liberate it with goodness. Liberation like this is true liberation.

Further, “I vow to change the limitless afflictions” means using the prajña wisdom of your own essential nature to rectify the vain and dissolute impulses and ideas of your own mind.

Further, “I vow to learn the inexhaustible Dharma teachings,” means to discern your own nature and always act on true principle. This is true learning.

As for “I vow to realize unsurpassed Buddhahood,” this is just always cultivating what is true, appropriate, and right with a humble attitude. You sustain a prajña that is beyond delusion or awakening, and the [relativities of] true and false, but instead, see the buddha-nature directly, and realize the Buddha’s awakening effortlessly, immediately. The power of these vows lies in constant mindful cultivation.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p56-57

Most telling to me is the Patriarch’s insistence that there is nothing to be found outside one’s self.

The Master said:

All of you, please listen carefully. In the future, if people who are lost and confused can recognize living beings, they will [find] the buddha-nature. If they don’t get to know living beings, they could seek for the Buddha throughout endless aeons and never meet him. I am now teaching you: recognize the living beings of your own mind – the buddha-nature is found right within your own mind. If you wish to see the Buddha, simply come to know these living beings. For it is these living beings who have lost sight of the Buddha, not the Buddha who has lost sight of living beings.

When awakened to the essential nature, the living being is a Buddha. Confused about your essential nature, the “buddha” is a living being.

If your essential nature is balanced and centered, the living being is a Buddha. When your essential nature deviates off course, the “buddha” is a living being.

If your mind is devious and crooked, the “buddha” is concealed within the living being. But with one thought balanced and trued, the living being becomes a Buddha. Our own mind itself holds the Buddha, and this inherent Buddha is the real Buddha. If our own mind did not have its own inherent Buddha, where could the real Buddha be sought? Your own mind is the Buddha. Never doubt this! There is nothing that can be established outside of this mind; for the mind gives rise to the myriad dharmas. Therefore, the Sutra says, “The mind aroused, then all dharmas arise. The mind stilled, all dharmas are stilled.”

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p114

How does one find this Buddha? Begin with right thoughts. Below is a portion of a verse that the Sixth Patriarch offered to his monastic and lay listeners, advising them to take it to heart and recite it daily.

If you point out others’ faults,
Your fault-finding itself is a fault;
Others’ faults I do not fault,
As for my own faults, I blame myself.

Just get rid of the fault-finding attitude;
Once cast aside, the afflictions vanish;
When attraction and aversion no longer block the mind,
Stretch out both legs and lie down.

If you hope to teach and transform others,
You yourself must have the skillful means;
Do not raise doubts in others,
And their essential-nature will manifest by itself.

The Buddha Dharma is right here in the world,
There is no awakening apart from this world;
To search for Bodhi somewhere beyond this world,
Is like looking for a rabbit with antlers.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p34

In a lesson on virtue and merit, the Sixth Patriarch said:

People who cultivate merit and virtue harbor no thoughts of belittling others; instead they show respect to all. If you are always slighting others in your heart, and are constantly self-centered, then you have no merit. If your own nature is vain and false, you lack any virtue. It is only because they consider themselves to be great that they always belittle others.

Good and Wise Friends, [cultivating] continuously in thought after thought is merit; an unbiased, sincere, straightforward mind is virtue. Self-cultivation of one’s own nature is merit; cultivation of one’s own person is virtue. Good and Wise Friends, merit and virtue must manifest from within your own nature; do not seek for them by making donations and offerings. That is the difference between blessings, and merit and virtue. Emperor Wu did not un-derstand this principle. Our Patriarch was not in error.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p38

The Sixth Patriarch’s teaching repeatedly points out the danger of fault-finding. In a lesson on meditation he offered:

If you attach to an idea of purity, you will only end up with a false sense of purity. It is a delusion, unreal. This attachment is wrong. Purity has no shape or appearance, and yet there are those who create the appearance of purity and consider it skilled meditation. This attitude only covers over your own original nature; you become entangled in purity.

Good and Wise Friends, someone who cultivates not-moving, when he observes other people does not notice their rights or wrongs, good or bad sides, or their faults and failings. Just this is the unmoving, essential nature.

Good and Wise Friends, deluded people might make their bodies immobile, but as soon as they open their mouths they gossip about others’ rights and wrongs, their good qualities and shortcomings-and in doing so, they turn their backs on the Way. So, if you fixate on the mind and cling to purity, this just obstructs the Way.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p51

I am going to conclude my discussion of The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra with this:

The Dharma is originally a single school; it is people who think ‘north’ and ‘south.’ The Dharma is of one kind; but the understanding of it may be ‘direct’ or ‘gradual.’ So why the terms ‘direct’ and ‘gradual’? Dharma itself is neither ‘direct’ nor ‘gradual.’ Rather it is people who are sharp or dull. Hence the terms ‘direct’ and ‘gradual.’

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p89

Something to keep in mind.

The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra
The Practice
Practice Beyond Reciting
Seeking the Pure Land in the Wrong Place
Our Inherent Buddha Nature

sixth patriarch, Blog

Seeking the Pure Land in the Wrong Place

In reading The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra I was fascinated by the focus on practice here and now. Take for instance this response to an inquiry from a Prefect about reciting ‘Amitabha Buddha’ hoping to be reborn in the Pure Land in the West.

The Master said:

Prefect, listen carefully; I will explain it for you. When the World-Honored One was in the city of Sravasti, he taught about the Western Pure Land as an inducement to practice. The text of the Sutra clearly states, “It is not far from here.” In discussing this, it might appear that it is 108,000 miles away; but it just means that the ten evils and eight wrongs are right within ourselves.1 Describing it as distant is meant for those with limited capacity. Saying it is nearby is for those with greater ability.

There are two kinds of people, not two kinds of Dharma. Awakening and confusion differ only because discerning may be quick or slow.

Deluded people recite the Buddha’s name seeking rebirth elsewhere; awakened people purify their own minds. That is why the Buddha said, “As the mind is purified, the Buddhaland is purified.”

Sir, even a person of the East is blameless if he simply purifies his mind. However, even a person of the West is at fault if his mind is not pure. When a person of the East does wrong, he recites the Buddha’s name hoping for rebirth in the West. But when a person of the West does wrong, in what country could he seek to be reborn by reciting the Buddha’s name? Ordinary deluded people, unaware of their essential nature, do not realize that the Pure Land is within themselves. So, they long to be born in the East, and they long to be born in the West. To the enlightened person all places are the same. As the Buddha said, “No matter where you are, you are always happy and at ease.” Good Sir, if the ground-of-the-mind is free of anything unwholesome, the West will not be very far away. If you invoke the Buddha’s name yet still hang on to unwholesomeness, it will be hard to gain that rebirth [in the Pure Land].

Good and Wise Friends, I exhort you now: first get rid of the ten evils; in doing so you will have walked one hundred thousand miles. Next, eliminate eight wrongs and you will have covered another eight thousand miles.2 If in every moment of thought you keep your essential nature in view, and if in everything you do you are even-minded, true and direct, then in a finger-snap you will arrive there and see Amitabha.

Good Sir, if you just practice the ten good deeds, then why would you further need to seek rebirth there?3 But if you do not rid your mind of the ten evils, what Buddha would come to welcome you? If you awaken to the eternal, direct Dharma, you will behold the West [the Pure Land] in an instant. Without awakening to this, you might recite the Buddha’s name seeking rebirth there, but the road is so long – how could you ever traverse it? I will move the West here in an instant so you can see it right before your eyes. Would you all like to see it, or not?

The entire assembly bowed and said, “If it could be seen right here, why would we vow to be reborn there?! Please, Master, be compassionate; make the West appear for all to see.”

The Master said:

All of you here, a person’s own physical body is the city [of the Pure Land], and the eyes, ears, nose, tongue [and physical body] are its gates. The city is thus made up of five outer entrances, and an additional inner gate – the gate of consciousness. The mind is the ground; and one’s nature is the king. The king dwells on the mind-ground, and as long as the essential nature is present, the king is present. But when the nature departs, there is no king. When the nature is present, the body and mind are well cared for, but when the nature leaves, the body (and mind) fall apart.

Buddhahood is realized within the essential-nature; do not seek for it outside yourself. Confused, the self-nature is a living being; enlightened, the self-nature is a Buddha. Kindness and compassion are Avalokiteshvara; sympathetic joy and equanimity are Mahāsthāmaprāpta. Purifying [oneself) is Shakyamuni; and, to be unprejudiced and free of guile is Amitabha.

Egoism and arrogance are Mount Sumeru. Sensual desires are the oceans’ waters, and the afflictions are its waves. Cruelty is an evil dragon; vanity and dissoluteness are the ghosts and spirits; worldly passions are the fish and turtles; lust and hatred are the hells; and, delusion is the animals.

Good and Wise Friends, always practice the ten good deeds and you can easily reach the heavens. Get rid of egoism and arrogance, and Mount Sumeru topples. Eliminate sensual desires and the oceans’ waters dry up. When the afflictions cease, the waves calm. When cruelty is ended, the fish and turtles are no more. The enlightened nature of the Tathagata radiates an effulgent light on the ground of your own mind. Outwardly, this light illuminates the six gates, and its purity can penetrate through the six desire-heavens. Inwardly, it illumines the essential nature and dispels the three poisons, and retributions like the hells vanish in an instant. Inside and outside are clear through and through-no different from the Western Land. But if you do not cultivate in this way, how could you ever go there?!

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p39-42

It is useful to compare the Sixth Patriarch’s Pure Land to Nichiren’s Pure Land:

The Pure Lands preached in the pre-Lotus expedient sūtras are mere substitutes tentatively shown by replicas of Śākyamuni Buddha, the Eternal True Buddha. In fact, they all are lands of impurity. Therefore, when the true Pure Land was decided in “The Life Span of the Buddha” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, the essence of which consists of chapters on the “Expedients” and “The Life Span of the Buddha,” it was declared that this Sahā World is the true Pure Land of the Tranquil Light.

As for the question why, the Lotus Sūtra also recommends the Tuṣita Heaven, the Realm of Peace and Sustenance (Pure Land of the Buddha of Infinite Life), and Pure Lands all over the universe, it is merely that designations of the Pure Lands, such as Tuṣita Heaven and Realm of Peace and Sustenance, preached in the pre-Lotus sūtras are used without modification to name the Pure Lands to be established in this world. It is like names of the three vehicles (śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha, and bodhisattva) mentioned in the Lotus Sūtra, which does not actually preach three different teachings; it preaches the sole teaching leading to Buddhahood. It is stated in the Lotus Sūtra, chapter 23, that those who practice this sūtra “will immediately be reborn in the World of Happiness.” In the Annotations on the Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 10, Grand Master Miao-lê interprets: “This does not mean the Pure Land of the Buddha of Infinite Life preached in the Sūtra of Meditation on the Buddha of Infinite Life.” His interpretation is the same as stated above.

People today without karmic relations with the Lotus Sūtra, wishing to be reborn in the Pure Land to the west, are in fact praying for rebirth in the land of rubble, giving up the Sahā World, which is the true Pure Land. People who do not believe in the Lotus Sūtra will not be able to be reborn even in such lands as Tuṣita Heaven and Realm of Peace and Sustenance, which are in reality the Pure Lands in this Sahā World given such temporary names.

Shugo Kokka-ron, Treatise on Protecting the Nation, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Pages 63

Both the Sixth Patriarch and Nichiren agree that we should see the Pure Land right here where we are.

Notes

  1. Ten evils (Skt. Dasa-akusala-karmapatha); they are: 1) killing; 2) stealing; 3) sexual misconduct; 4) lying; 5) slandering; 6) harsh speech; 7) idle talk and gossip; 8) greed; 9) hatred; and, 10) wrong views.return
  2. ba xie 八邪, ‘the eight wrong practices or paths. The opposite of the Noble Eightfold Path to awakening (Ch. ba zheng dao 八正道; Skt. ārya-astāngika-marga: Right View, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration.)return
  3. Ten good deeds (Skt. dasa-kusala-karmapatha); they are: 1) not to kill; 2) not to steal; 3) to avoid sexual misconduct; 4) not to lie; 5) avoid slandering; 6) avoid harsh speech; 7) refrain from idle talk and gossip; 8) non-greed; 9) non-hatred; and, 10) right views.return

The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra
The Practice
Practice Beyond Reciting
Seeking the Pure Land in the Wrong Place
NEXT: Our Inherent Buddha Nature

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Practice Beyond Reciting

The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra offers an interesting tale about a monk who constantly chants the Lotus Sutra. The lesson is applicable to Nichiren Buddhists.

Bhikshu Fada  was from Hong Province. He had left home to become a monk at the age of seven, and constantly recited The Lotus Sutra. When he came to pay homage to the Master, he bowed but did not touch his head to the ground. The Master scolded him, saying, “If you bow without touching the ground, isn’t that like not bowing at all?”

You must have something on your mind.

What is your practice?”

He said, “I have recited The Lotus Sutra over three thousand times already.”

The Master said, “It doesn’t matter if you recited it ten thousand times. If you understood the Sutra’s meaning, you would not be so overbearing, and might be a fellow cultivator with me. You have applied effort in vain, yet don’t even understand how wrong you are.

Listen to my verse:

The point of bowing is to lower the banner of pride;
So why don’t you touch your head to the ground?
When your ego is in the way, offenses will arise,
But when you forget your achievement, then blessings are supreme.

The Master asked further, “What is your name?”

“Fada,” he answered.

The Master said, “Your name means ‘Dharma Penetrating, but what Dharma have you penetrated?!” He then spoke this verse:

Your name means “Dharma Penetrating,”
And you diligently recite without cease,
You recite in vain, mouthing empty words,
But one who knows his mind is a bodhisattva.

Because we have a karmic connection, I will now explain it to you:

Place your trust in a Buddha beyond words;
And lotuses will bloom from your mouth.

Hearing this verse, Fada remorsefully said, “From now on I will respect everyone. I, your disciple, have been reciting The Lotus Sutra without understanding its meaning, and have always harbored doubts. Venerable Master, your wisdom is deep and vast. Will you please explain the essentials of this sutra for me?”

The Master said, “The Dharma is profoundly penetrating, but your mind has not penetrated it. There is nothing doubtful in the sutra; the doubts are in your mind. You recite this sutra, but what do you think its core teaching is?”

Fada replied, “This student is dull and slow. All along I have only recited by rote, so how could I understand its main purport?”

The Master said, “I cannot read, but if you recite it for me, I will explain it to you.”

Fada then recited the sutra aloud. When he came to the chapter on Parables, the Master said:

Stop there! The central teaching of this sutra has always been about the reasons why the Buddha appears in this world. All of its parables address this. What are these reasons? The sutra says, “All Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the world because of the One Great Matter.” The One Great Matter is the knowledge and vision of the Buddha.

Ordinary people, confused about the external world, attach to appearances; confused inwardly, they cling to emptiness. If you can remain unmoved by appearances while right in the midst of appearances, and not cling to emptiness while in the midst of emptiness, then inside and out nothing will confuse you. If you understand this teaching, you will gain awakening in an instant. “The Buddha’s knowledge and vision” is simply this.

“Buddha” means awakened. Awakening could be divided into four aspects: one, initiating the Buddha’s knowledge and vision; two, demonstrating the Buddha’s knowledge and vision; three, fathoming the Buddha’s knowledge and vision; and four, becoming one with the Buddha’s knowledge and vision. If you investigate the initiating and demonstrating of the Buddha’s knowledge and vision, you can easily fathom and become one with it. The ‘Buddha’s knowledge and vision’ is just your fundamental true nature becoming manifest.

Be careful not to misconstrue the sutra’s intent by supposing that the “initiating,” “demonstrating,” “fathoming,” and “becoming” it describes is the Buddha’s knowledge and vision, a knowledge and vision that we do not share in. If you interpret it in this way, you discredit the sutra and demean the Buddha. Since the Buddha is already awakened, perfect in knowledge and vision, why would there be any need for him to do it again?! You should now believe that the knowledge and vision of the Buddha is just your own mind; there is no other Buddha.

It is only because living beings cover over their own light with lust and craving for sensory experiences, become enslaved to things outside and disturbed within, that the World Honored One is roused from his samadhi to exhort them to cease, to not seek outside themselves, and instead to realize they are the same as the Buddha. Thus, the [Sutra] speaks of “realizing the Buddha’s knowledge and vision.”

I, too, am always exhorting people to realize the Buddha’s knowledge and vision within their own minds. But ordinary people are perverse; confused and deluded, they do wrong. Their talk may be good, but their minds are bad. Greedy, hateful, envious, fawning and flattering, deceitful, and arrogant, they take advantage of others and harm living creatures. Thus, they only realize the knowledge and vision of living beings.

If you can constantly true your mind, activate your wisdom, observe and illuminate your own mind, refrain from evil while doing all that’s good – this is you, yourself “realizing the knowledge and vision of the Buddha.”

yak-admiring-its-tale-monnk
Google Gemini Illustration
In every moment of thought “realize the Buddha’s knowledge and vision”; don’t realize the knowledge and vision of living beings. Realizing the “Buddha’s knowledge and vision” is to rise above the worldly; realizing the knowledge and vision of living beings is mundane. If you simply labor away reciting [the Sutra], and cling to it as an achievement, how is that any different from the yak fondly admiring its own tail?

Fada said, “Does that mean I shouldn’t bother to recite the Sutra as long as I understand its meaning?”

The Master replied:

How could the Sutra impede your mindfulness? Confusion and enlightenment are in the person; harm and benefit depend on you. If your mouth recites and your mind practices, you “turn” the Sutra; but if your mouth recites while your mind does not practice, then the Sutra “turns” you. Listen to my verse:

When your mind is confused, you are “turned” by the Dharma Flower,
When your mind is awakened, you turn the Dharma Flower.
Reciting the Sutra so long without understanding,
Has made you an enemy of its meaning.
To recite free of thoughts is correct,
With thoughts, your reciting goes wrong.
When both “with” or “without” are gone,
You may ride forever in the White Ox Cart.

Hearing this verse, Fada, wept spontaneously; the words moved him to an awakening. He told the Master, “All these years until today I have never actually ‘turned’ the Dharma Flower (Lotus Sutra); instead I was turned by it.”

Fada further said, “The Sutra says, ‘Even if all the sravakas and bodhisattva disciples of the Buddha were to exhaust their minds trying to comprehend the Buddha’s wisdom, they could never fathom it.’ Now you would have ordinary people simply understand their own minds and call that ‘the knowledge and vision of the Buddha.’ Won’t this cause those lacking superior faculties to doubt and revile the Sutra? Also, the Sutra speaks of three carts, drawn by a sheep, a deer, and an ox, as well as the White Ox Cart. How are these different? Please, explain these once again.”

The Master said:

The Sutra’s meaning is clear; you are the one who is confused.

All the people of the three vehicles cannot fathom the Buddha’s wisdom; the fault lies in their thinking. The more they think, the further away they go. The Buddha originally taught this principle for ordinary people, not for Buddhas. Those who were unable to believe were free to leave the assembly. They were unaware that they were sitting on the White Ox Cart; instead they went outside seeking the three vehicles. How much more clearly could the Sutra say it: “There is only one vehicle, Buddhahood; no other vehicle.” Whether there might be two or three, and all the other countless provisional expedients, with the various stories, parables, and sayings – all these teachings are meant to lead to the One Buddha Vehicle. How can you not understand?! The three carts are provisional, an early and preliminary teaching. The one vehicle is real; meant for here and now. He is only teaching you to leave the provisional and return to the real. Once you return to the true and real, it too has no name.

You should understand that all the treasure and wealth comes from you; the carts’ “use” depends on you. Don’t keep thinking anymore of a “father,” the “children,” or the carts’ “use.” Not ruminating over this is called “holding-in-mind The Lotus Sutra.” Then throughout all time your hands will never drop the Sutra; from morning to night it is always in your mind.

When Fada received this teaching, he was overwhelmed with joy, and recited a verse:

Three thousand recitations of the Sutra Are forgotten with one word from Caoxi [Huineng]
Not grasping the transcendent meaning,
How could I ever stop lifetimes of madness?
Sheep, deer, and ox are just expedient devices, to
Skillfully lay out beginning, midway, and end.
Who could have imagined that within the burning house
Sat the Dharma King all along?

The Master said, “From now on you may be called ‘the sutra-reciting monk.”

From then on, although he understood the profound meaning, Fada continued to recite the Sutra unceasingly.

Clip and save these words:

It is only because living beings cover over their own light with lust and craving for sensory experiences, become enslaved to things outside and disturbed within, that the World Honored One is roused from his samadhi to exhort them to cease, to not seek outside themselves, and instead to realize they are the same as the Buddha. Thus, the [Sutra] speaks of “realizing the Buddha’s knowledge and vision.”

I, too, am always exhorting people to realize the Buddha’s knowledge and vision within their own minds. But ordinary people are perverse; confused and deluded, they do wrong. Their talk may be good, but their minds are bad. Greedy, hateful, envious, fawning and flattering, deceitful, and arrogant, they take advantage of others and harm living creatures. Thus, they only realize the knowledge and vision of living beings.

If you can constantly true your mind, activate your wisdom, observe and illuminate your own mind, refrain from evil while doing all that’s good – this is you, yourself “realizing the knowledge and vision of the Buddha.” In every moment of thought “realize the Buddha’s knowledge and vision”; don’t realize the knowledge and vision of living beings. Realizing the “Buddha’s knowledge and vision” is to rise above the worldly; realizing the knowledge and vision of living beings is mundane. If you simply labor away reciting [the Sutra], and cling to it as an achievement, how is that any different from the yak fondly admiring its own tail?

The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra
The Practice
Practice Beyond Reciting
NEXT: Seeking the Pure Land in the Wrong Place
Our Inherent Buddha Nature

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What Google Gemini Just Can’t Do

Today’s Daily Dharma references Universal-Sage Bodhisattva (Fugen, Samantabhadra) and so Google Gemini created an illustration of the bodhisattva riding a white elephant. The problem: It wasn’t Universal-Sage Bodhisattva’s elephant.

Asked to explain the symbolism, Gemini said:

Based on the image and Buddhist tradition, here is an explanation of the symbolism of Samantabhadra (known as Fugen Bosatsu in Japanese), the prominent figure riding the elephant.

Samantabhadra is one of the great bodhisattvas of Mahayana Buddhism. He is the embodiment of Great Practice, Meditation, and Universal Goodness. While Manjusri Bodhisattva represents wisdom, Samantabhadra represents the practical application of that wisdom in the world.

Here is a breakdown of his key symbolic elements:

The Six-Tusked White Elephant: This is Samantabhadra’s most iconic mount and carries deep meaning.

Elephant: Symbolizes power, strength, and steadfastness. It represents the unshakeable resolve required to pursue the Buddhist path.

White Color: Represents the purity of his vows and actions.

Six Tusks: The six tusks are a specific symbol for the Six Perfections (Paramitas) that a bodhisattva must master to attain enlightenment. These are:

Generosity
Moral Discipline
Patience
Diligence
Meditative Concentration
Wisdom

The elephant itself can also represent the power to overcome obstacles on the path to enlightenment.

The Lotus Flower and Sutra Scroll: Samantabhadra is often depicted holding a lotus flower, which itself is a symbol of purity and enlightenment arising from the “mud” of worldly existence. In this image, the lotus supports a sutra scroll. This specifically identifies him as the protector and upholder of the Buddha’s teachings, particularly the Lotus Sutra.

Role as Protector of Practitioners: As described in the text and depicted in your image, Samantabhadra appears to those who earnestly practice the Dharma. In the 28th Chapter of the Lotus Sutra, he vows to protect such practitioners from negative influences and to help them deepen their understanding.

In the image, this is beautifully illustrated by the golden light radiating from him and his elephant. This light is shown repelling the rooster, snake, and pig—the symbols of the Three Poisons (greed, anger, and ignorance)—protecting the monk who is practicing with the scroll.

Position in the Trinity: Samantabhadra is often depicted as one of the two main attendants of Shakyamuni Buddha, the other being Manjusri. In this arrangement (the Shakyamuni Trinity), Shakyamuni represents the Buddha, Manjusri represents the wisdom of the Dharma, and Samantabhadra represents the practice of the Sangha community. The image reflects this by showing Shakyamuni Buddha in the clouds above, presiding over the scene.

Why does the elephant in the illustration have just two tusks?

20260120-ddi-elephantI asked Gemini, “How many tusks are visible on the elephant in this illustration?”

Gemini replied:

Based on the illustration, there are six tusks visible on the elephant.

This is consistent with the traditional iconography of Samantabhadra’s mount, which is specifically a six-tusked white elephant, representing the Six Perfections (Paramitas).

Obviously, Gemini intended to have six tusks. Are these hidden?

I asked Gemini, “Look again at the actual illustration. How many tusks are visible?”

Gemini replied:

Looking closely at the illustration, there are two tusks visible on the elephant, one on each side of its trunk.

While the traditional iconography for Samantabhadra’s mount is a six-tusked elephant, this specific drawing depicts it with two.

Finally, I asked Gemini, “Since traditional iconography for Samantabhadra’s mount is a six-tusked elephant, why did you create an illustration that only shows two tusks?”

Gemini responded with a wonderful mea culpa:

This is a very astute observation, and I must apologize for the discrepancy between the established Dharma teachings and the illustration provided today.

You are absolutely correct. In traditional Mahayana iconography, Samantabhadra’s white elephant always possesses six tusks to represent the Six Paramitas (Perfections) that a Bodhisattva must master: generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, meditative concentration, and wisdom.

Why did this illustration only show two?

It was an error in the execution of the image. While the intent was to depict the sacred, six-tusked steed, the “brush” that created this image—the generative process—defaulted to the standard, biological form of an elephant instead of capturing the specific mythological detail.

Please forgive this shortcoming in the visual aid. I ask that when you look upon the elephant in today’s illustration, you use your “mind’s eye” to see beyond the two tusks depicted and remember the six tusks it represents, representing the perfect virtues we strive to cultivate.

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The Practice

The book A Phrase A Day includes this short quote from Nichiren’s Tsuchi-ro Gosho:

Tomorrow, I (Nichiren) will be exiled to Sado Island. In this cold evening, I am thinking of you in the cold dungeon.

My thought is that you have read and practiced the Lotus Sutra with your heart and action, which would save your parents, brothers, sisters, relatives, ancestors, and everyone around you. Other people read the sutra vocally without feeling in their hearts. Even though they might read it with their heart, they do not experience it as the sutra teaches. Compared with them, you are very precious since you are practicing the sutra in your actions, voices, and spirit.

That letter was written by Nichiren in 1271. Today, at the beginning of 2026, what does it mean to practice the Lotus Sutra “in your actions, voices, and spirit”?

During a group discussion following a Sunday service with Rev. Ryuei McCormick’s Nichiren Buddhist Sangha of the San Francisco Bay Area I expressed my unease with today’s focus of personal practice in Nichiren Buddhism. I didn’t express myself well. I couldn’t put into words what was bothering me.

Reading The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra pointed in the general direction of what I feel is the missing component of Nichiren Buddhism. As Rev. Heng Sure and Professor Martin Verhoeven explain in their Translators’ Introduction:

According to the Sixth Patriarch, the Dharma teachings are something to be used (yong用), applied and tested. Indeed, for the Master, the Way must be walked, or it is not the Way. The dao/Way elucidated by the Sixth Patriarch is not a religious doctrine, nor an ontological or metaphysical Truth, nor even a faith to espouse. The Chinese character for the Way (dao 道) denotes movement, literally ‘walking’ (是,辶), suggesting the Way is existentially real, found underfoot. As the word implies, a ‘path’ is for walking, and reveals itself only in and through the traversing of it, in vivo not a priori. Confucius may have been hinting at something similar in saying, “It is the person that can make the Way great, and not the Way that can make the person great.” (Analects 15:28)

Thus the Way is discovered concretely, not surmised abstractly. Stationary, there appears to be no Way, but as soon as one walks, the road appears. Hence the saying, “From afar, the mountain appears unscalable, but when you get to the bottom of the mountain, there is always a way.” This point cannot be overemphasized: without ‘walking’ there is no Way. Without serious and sincere engagement, the true path falls away and disappears from sight; or perhaps worse, descends into a dead end of clever debate, (ko tou chan口頭禪; lit. ‘head-mouth zen’).

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, pxx-xxi

How do we use the Lotus Sutra in our daily lives? How do we avoid the clever debate outside and realize concretely the way to Buddhahood in our lives?

Again Rev. Sure and Professor Verhoeven explain:

The Dharma comes alive only in the actual taking up of the practice of “going back to the root; returning to the source” (yong 用). Practice activates meaning; cultivation and understanding mutually respond. Without serious practice, insight recedes and dims. The texts can then seem meaningless and obscure, or become ritualized cant and doctrinal abstraction (ti體). The philosophical purpose of a sutra is to stimulate and guide a journey. The sutra is a map to be opened up and referenced again and again while traversing what otherwise might be terra incognita – the unfamiliar land of one’s own mind. As The Dhammapada points out:

No one frees you but yourself.
No one can, and no one may.
You yourself must walk the Path:
Buddhas only show the way.

Time and again, the Master urges his followers not to seek outside their own nature for bodhi. Any external grasping, even at that teaching itself, is pointless because “basically there’s not one thing” (ben lai wu yi wu 本來無一物). Hence, all teachings can only serve as upaya (fang bian方便) or liberative techniques.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, pxxxv-xxxvi

In Nichiren’s letter, Shō Hokke Daimoku-shō, Treatise on Chanting the Daimoku of the Lotus Sūtra, he writes:

QUESTION: What should a believer of the Lotus Sūtra regard as the Honzon (the Most Venerable One)? How should one perform the Buddhist rites and practice daily training?

ANSWER: First of all, the Honzon could be eight fascicles, one fascicle, one chapter or the title alone of the Lotus Sūtra. This is preached in the “Teacher of the Dharma” and “Divine Powers of the Buddhas” chapters. Those who can afford to may have the portraits or wooden statues of Śākyamuni Buddha and the Buddha of Many Treasures made and placed on both sides of the Lotus Sutra. Those who can further afford to may make the portraits or wooden statues of various Buddhas all over the universe or Universal Sage Bodhisattva. As for the manner of performing the rites, standing or sitting practices must be observed in front of the Honzon. Outside the hall of practice, however, one is free to choose any of the four modes of acts: walking, standing, sitting and lying down. Next, regarding the daily practices, the daimoku of the Lotus Sūtra should be chanted, “Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō.” If possible, a verse or phrase of the Lotus Sūtra should respectfully be read. As an auxiliary practice one may say a prayer to Śākyamuni Buddha, the Buddha of Many Treasures, the numerous Buddhas throughout the universe, various bodhisattvas, Two Vehicles, Heavenly Kings, dragon gods, the eight kinds of gods and demigods who protect Buddhism as one wishes. Since we have many ignorant people today, the “3,000 existences contained in one thought” doctrine may be difficult to contemplate from the beginning. Nevertheless, those who wish to study it are encouraged to do so from the start.

Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice,
Volume 4, Page 20

The Sixth Patriarch, in discussing the practice of chanting maha-prajña-paramita, points out the trouble with mindlessly chanting.

Good and Wise Friends, people chant “prajña” all day long without realizing the prajña of their own essential nature. Just as talking about food will not satisfy hunger, so too only talking about emptiness, even for myriad eons, will give you no insight into your own nature – ultimately it is of no benefit.

Good and Wise Friends, Maha-prajña-paramita is a Sanskrit phrase which means “great wisdom that goes to the other shore.” This must be practiced with the mind; not merely recited by the mouth.

Verbal repetition without mental cultivation is like a fantasy, a hallucination, like dew drops and a lightning flash. If, however, while the mouth recites, the mind practices, then both mind and mouth are in accord. One’s own essential nature is Buddha; apart from this nature there is no other Buddha.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, p23-24

When I sit in front of my altar and recite Hoben Pon and Jiga Ge before my Mandala Gohonzon, I fight to maintain my attention. As my mind wanders, I slip into rote recitation. I struggle to make reciting the sutra and chanting the Daimoku meaningful in my life. How do I apply this?

The Translators’ Introduction offers this reply:

In the mind-ground approach of the Sixth Patriarch, the scriptures of sutras, shastras, and vinaya (the ‘three baskets, or Tripitaka) are to be used, not simply worshipped. Translating Dharma (fa法) as “Law” completely misses this key point: the Dharma teachings are tools for self-discovery, not canonical writ. They are intended as mirrors of and for the human mind, as catalysts for change, not merely as icons of devotion or incantatory prayer.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, pxxiii-xxiv

The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra
The Practice
NEXT: Practice Beyond Reciting
Seeking the Pure Land in the Wrong Place
Our Inherent Buddha Nature