Category Archives: Blog

AI Contribution, Blog

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.

sixth patriarch, Blog

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

sixth patriarch, Blog, Books

The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra

sixth-patriarch's-dharma-jewel-platform-sutra-bookcoverIt is a family tradition in my home that on New Year’s Day you do only those things you want to do throughout the coming year. No housework. No laundry. Just relax and enjoy. This year I spent several hours in my office recliner reading The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra.

I finished this 226-page bilingual  English-Chinese edition recently and now I want to post stuff I found interesting. Here’s the book summary from the Buddhist Text Translation Society’s website:

The knowledge and vision of the Buddha is just your own mind; there is no other Buddha. Such is the teaching of Master Huineng (638-713), the most important and most revered figure in the Chan (Zen) School of East Asian Buddhism.

Master Huineng left no written record, but his students compiled accounts of his public lectures and one-on-one exchanges, together with the dramatic story of his life. The resulting volume was “Liu zu fa bao tan jing”; The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, sixth, because Master Huineng is counted as the sixth generation of patriarchal succession from the first Chan patriarch Bodhidharma. Master Huineng’s Platform Sutra is so highly regarded in Buddhist Asia that it is called a Sutra, a term otherwise reserved for texts spoken by the Buddha himself.

In presenting this entirely new English translation of The Sixth Patriarch’s Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, the editors, Professors Reverend Heng Sure and Martin Verhoeven of Dharma Realm Buddhist University, have aimed above all to bring across into English Master Huineng’s plain-spoken, forthright style.

As Professor Verhoeven writes, “Readers inclined to see Buddhist writings as abstruse metaphysical treatises will find The Platform Sutra refreshingly artless and spare. Those expecting a sutra to delve into the supernatural and otherworldly will be surprised at how down-to-earth and here-and-now this text is. The Platform Sutra is humanistic to its core.”

As Master Huineng says in a verse, ‘The Buddha Dharma is right here in the world, there is no awakening apart from this world.’ The essence of the Sixth Patriarch’s philosophy is that all beings have the buddha-nature and all can become a Buddha. Full awakening is not a future state or a distant place, but exists right here within your own mind, directly and immediately available. The text presents a powerful and resounding vision of unbounded human potential waiting to be fully realized if only we can see it.

The translators of this new edition are also important to me. In reading Buddhist texts I find those texts written by or translated by Buddhist adherents offer the best insights, especially when compared to dry, academic presentations of the teaching.

Here are biographies of translators Rev. Heng Sure and Martin Verhoeven from The Path Within, a 2024 collection of Dharma talks by teachers of the Dharma Realm Buddhist Association.

Reverend Heng Sure, Ph.D., ordained as a Buddhist monk in the Chinese Mahāyāna tradition at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, Talmage, California, in 1976. Born in Toledo, Ohio, he was finishing his M.A. in Oriental Languages at the University of California, Berkeley, when he met his teacher, the late Chan Master Hsuan Hua (1918-1995). After his ordination, he commenced a “Three Steps, One Bow” pilgrimage dedicating his efforts to world peace traveling up the California coast highway from South Pasadena to Ukiah, a distance of over six hundred miles in two years and nine months.

Rev. Sure regularly leads lectures, seminars, and retreats in a variety of venues on at least three continents a year. He is fluent in Mandarin, and also speaks French and some Japanese. He is involved in work on a new translation of the Avataṃsaka Sūtra and has recently completed a translation of the Sixth Patriarch Sūtra with Dr. Martin Verhoeven.

He has been an active participant in the interfaith community for many years and is also an accomplished musician and guitarist, translates traditional liturgical Buddhist music from Chinese and has written many Buddhist songs. He currently serves as Director of the Berkeley Buddhist Monastery, the Chair of the Dharma Realm Buddhist Association, and holds a Doctorate in Religion from the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, California.
(Pages 157-158)

Martin Verhoeven, Ph.D., is currently Professor of Buddhist Classics at Dharma Realm Buddhist University, as well as Adjunct Professor of Comparative Religion at the Graduate Theological Union, in Berkeley. He also teaches a weekly translation and meditation series at the Berkeley Buddhist Monastery that is open to the community and broadcast online.

Dr. Verhoeven’s background includes both academic study of history and various philosophical traditions and Buddhist practice. He was a Visiting Scholar at Stanford under a Ford Fellowship in the 1970s. In 1976, he met and trained under the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, becoming a monk (with the name Heng Chau) in 1977, and took full ordination in 1979.

His study with Master Hua took him to monasteries around the world. It also led him to undertake a three-year, 800-mile bowing pilgrimage up the California coast with Reverend Heng Sure from 1977 to 1979. After 18 years as a monk, Dr. Verhoeven returned to lay life, but continued to study and teach Buddhism and related topics in the u.s. as well as in Asia, Europe, and Canada. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison on the American encounter with Asian religions. His particular areas of interest are the historical teachings of Buddhism, the Euro-American encounter with Asian religions, and the process of religious acculturation.
(Pages 162-163)

I was especially appreciative of the translators’ efforts to interpret the Chinese in a way that goes beyond the original meaning to also capture the original intent. Here’s how the translators  explained this work in the book’s Translators’ Introduction.

ON INTERPRETATION

The fish trap exists because of the fish. Once you’ve gotten the fish you can forget the trap. The rabbit snare exists because of the rabbit. Once you’ve gotten the rabbit, you can forget the snare. Words exist because of meaning. Once you’ve gotten the meaning, you can forget the words. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can talk with him?
-Chuangzi

In language it is simply required that it convey the meaning,
-Analects of Confucius

In working with a classical text of this nature, our ability to get at the meaning is handicapped if we ask only, “What is the author(s) trying to say?” or “What do the words mean?” This can easily turn into a pedantic exercise of dictionary searching for equivalents in the target language, assuming they can be found. Moreover, an overly literal rendering that nails down the letter can stifle or even lose the spirit of the text. Here, we achieve a superb focus but the field has become irrelevant.

But if we also ask “What is it/he trying to do?” and “What are we being led to feel?” we enlarge the scope of the inquiry, and broaden the contextual field to include the emotive and existential thrust of the text. Here we are not just reading the text, but reading ourselves as we are challenged and changed through a serious engagement with the text.

To this end, we have found extremely helpful the following:

First, the brilliant work of the French classicist, Pierre Hadot. His insights into early Western philosophical texts provide a useful lens through which to view The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch.

Hadot argues that ancient philosophers aimed less at imparting systems of thought and ready-made knowledge than at cultivating an enlightened way of living, and in providing training that would foster their students’ efforts to carry this out. The texts themselves were “therapeutic” – intended, in the first instance, to form people and to transform souls. The transmission of a purely abstract knowledge was not the teachers’ goal. Their instructions were pragmatic: to be applied, lived directly, and embodied. The ‘doing’ of philosophy entailed study and practicing a method of spiritual exercises in learning to live the philosophical life. Hadot writes,

Ancient philosophy presented itself as a ‘therapeutics’ and that this goal meant doing philosophy. In this study/practice more than theses, one teaches ways, methods, and spiritual exercises; dogmas have only a secondary aspect.

The exercises were “spiritual” because they required effort, training, and a serious purpose of will to correct entrenched habits and effect a reorientation in one’s whole way of being. The aim of the teacher and the text (which was seen as a direct or indirect echo of the oral instructions of the teacher) was not to transmit knowledge, but to produce a certain psychic effect in the reader or listener. The encounter was intended more to form than to inform. The texts born of this tradition came embedded with spiritual exercises aimed at realizing a transformation of one’s vision of the world and a metamorphosis of one’s personality.

So too, we would argue, is the aim of The Platform Sutra. When a student asks the Master which of the “vehicles” (schools or traditions of Buddhism) is the correct one given that they all differ and seem to contradict each other, he answers:

Vehicles are methods of practice; not subjects for debate. Cultivate yourself; don’t ask me. At all times, your own essential nature is itself “truly as it is.”

This sutra is clearly “philosophical” in Hador’s sense. It aims at producing an effect upon and an affect in the reader. The Master is trying to get his disciples, and by extension the reader, to stop and consider, to act, feel, and live in a certain way. The Sixth Patriarch is not trying to indoctrinate, nor even set up a school of thought. His aim, to borrow Hadot’s phrase, is “therapeutic.” Huineng stirs his students from their complacency, and purposely unsettles them. He stimulates them to inquire, to take up a practice, and to directly engage their own minds, rather than to believe in a doctrinal exposition, however cogent and credible.

Huineng himself avoids calling his method a system of thought, or even a Teaching. He says, “If I said I had a teaching to give others, I would be deceiving you. Depending on the situation, I merely use expedients to untie people’s bonds, and provisionally call it ‘samadhi.” His goal it seems is not to be worshipped as an enlightened teacher, but to set his students on a course of self-cultivation leading them to directly awaken on their own. Put another way, he asks his students “to walk the same path the Buddha(s) walk.” Anything else is provisional, expedient, secondary. He deflects attention from himself the teacher, even as he is about to die, and instead redirects his students to the teaching. He tells them,

After I pass away, don’t indulge in worldly sentiment. If you cry tears like rain, receive condolences, or wear mourning garments, you are no longer my disciples; all of this runs counter to the Teaching. Just recognize your original mind and see your fundamental nature.

By rephrasing our question from “What was the Sixth Patriarch trying to say?” to, “What was the Sixth Patriarch attempting to do?” we are able in some degree to enter into the dynamic dialogues from which the text emerged. We engage the material more intimately, as if sitting as participant-observers in the Sixth Patriarch’s presence, and push ourselves to reach beyond the words to get the meaning, as in the Zhuangzi quote above. Otherwise, we are left just holding the empty snare.

The Sixth Patriarch's Dharma Jewel Platform Sutra, plxiv-lxviii

I first learned of this book from references to it in Chinese Master Hsuan Hua’s 14-volume commentary on the Lotus Sutra. What attracted me was the Patriarch’s insistence that there was nothing to seek outside one’s self.

As Rev. Sure and Professor Verhoeven explain, this was pragmatic teaching meant “to be applied, lived directly, and embodied.”

The Nichiren Buddhism I know seems to lack this transformative intent. We are asked to believe, but not necessarily to act or live a certain way beyond simply upholding the supremacy of the Lotus Sutra.

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

AI Contribution, Blog

Show Gemini Thinking

show-gemini-thinking

I’ve decided I want to publish Gemini’s “thinking” that went into the creation of each illustration. You’ll now find a link under the illustration credit line inviting you to “Show Gemini’s Thinking.”  Clicking on that link displays a block of text copied from Gemini. If the illustration includes kanji text, Gemini’s translation of that text will be included at the bottom.

I’ve gone back and added this information to all of the illustrated Daily Dharmas.

AI Contribution, Blog

What’s With the Animals in Gemini’s Illustration?

Closeup of lower left corner of Daily Dharma illustration for January 13, 2026
Click to see full Gemini illustration

After publishing today’s Daily Dharma, I asked Gemini: “Why does the image include two animals in the crowd of followers?”

This is a wonderful observation. The inclusion of the two animals—a monkey and what appears to be a serpent or dragon (often called a naga in Buddhist terminology)—is not accidental. It is a deliberate and significant element in Buddhist iconography, especially in relation to the Lotus Sūtra.

Here’s why they are there:

Universal Compassion and Salvation: A central teaching of Mahayana Buddhism, and the Lotus Sūtra in particular, is that the Buddha’s compassion and teachings are not limited to human beings. They extend to all sentient beings in the six realms of existence (which include animals). Their presence visually signifies that the path to enlightenment is open to every form of life.

The Assembly of the Lotus Sūtra: The Lotus Sūtra itself describes a vast and diverse audience that gathers to hear the Buddha’s teaching. This assembly is not just human monks and laypeople; it includes vast numbers of bodhisattvas, gods (devas), and various non-human beings like nagas (dragons), garudas (mythical birds), and others. Depicting animals in the crowd is a way to represent this diverse, universal assembly described in the scripture.

The Buddha-Nature in All: The sūtra teaches that all beings possess the potential for Buddhahood (Buddha-nature). By showing animals listening reverently to the Dharma (teachings), the illustration visually reinforces this profound idea that even beings currently in animal form have the seed of enlightenment within them.

In essence, the animals are there to remind us of the boundless scope of the Buddha’s wisdom and the promise that his teaching is a vehicle for the liberation of all that lives.

The sources for this response:

Meridian University
meridianuniversity.edu
Mahayana Buddhism: Origins and Meaning – Meridian University
Mahayana tradition teaches people that a path that leads to their awakening is a path toward the awakening of all sentient beings because there isn’t a real …

Tricycle: The Buddhist Review
tricycle.org
The Four Limitless Thoughts – Tricycle: The Buddhist Review
Therefore, the power of our own buddha-nature can extend to eventually liberate all sentient beings. This is the reason we practice. If there were no …

SGI USA
www.sgi-usa.org
The Lotus Sutra – SGI USA
—Daisaku Ikeda, The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra, vol. 4, p. 181. The Lotus Sutra teaches that all people can attain Buddhahood, just as they are, in this …

I’m sure there are better sources than Daisaku Ikeda, but the “thinking” that went into Gemini’s illustration is fascinating to me.

AI Contribution, Blog

The Problem With Using Japanese Iconography

I have been using Google’s Gemini to illustrate the Daily Dharma for just 15 days and I’m still learning the problems inherent in having an AI illustrator interpret the teachings of the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren.

Here’s the text I asked Gemini to illustrate:

Medicine-King! The Bodhisattvas who, having been surprised at hearing this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, doubt and fear it, know this, are beginners in Bodhisattvahood. The Śrāvakas who, having been surprised at hearing this sūtra, doubt and fear it, know this, are men of arrogance.

The Buddha makes this declaration to Medicine-King Bodhisattva in Chapter Ten of the Lotus Sūtra. In his earlier teachings, he described the thoughts, words and deeds which would help shed our delusions and remove suffering. Many of those following him came to believe that they were superior to other beings and did not want to waste their time even associating with them much less attempting to save them from their suffering. With this Lotus Sūtra, the Buddha reveals that even the most wicked and deluded among us have the capacity for enlightenment and deserve our respect. The more we resist this teaching, in our thoughts, words and deeds, the farther we place ourselves from the Buddha’s wisdom.

Since I have “Thinking” mode selected, Gemini offers a readout of the creation process:

Focusing on Interpretation

I’m currently focused on the interpretation of the Lotus Sutra passage. The text’s core message regarding doubters is becoming clear, differentiating between beginner and arrogant perspectives. Now I’m grappling with how to best visually represent this duality within a square format.

Interpreting Visuals

I’m now breaking down the passage into concrete visual elements for the square format. Medicine-King Bodhisattva will be central, framed by the two groups of doubters: younger, uncertain Bodhisattvas, and older, dismissive Śrāvakas. The radiating Lotus Sūtra and a glowing Buddha figure will represent the enlightenment message. A contrasting element will show diverse, “wicked” beings with inner buddha-nature, and a path symbolizing the impact of accepting versus rejecting the teaching.

Analyzing Visuals

I’ve just finished the analytical phase and am now transitioning into the visual translation stage. I am now deciding the central figure will be Medicine-King Bodhisattva and the two groups of doubters will be depicted. I am currently considering the representation of “wicked” beings to incorporate diverse, flawed individuals, each possessing a subtle, internal buddha-nature.

Visualizing Buddhist Teachings

I’m now comparing the generated image to the user’s initial instructions, particularly concerning the use of Japanese Buddhist iconography and kanji labels. The composition effectively represents the textual prompt: Buddha’s teachings on Medicine…

Reviewing Iconography’s Precision

I’ve examined the visual representation against the provided text. The image accurately depicts the requested elements, including the kanji labels and the specific Buddhist iconography related to Medicine-King’s teachings. I’m satisfied that the visual composition closely aligns with the user’s initial instructions, particularly concerning the diverging paths representing accepting or rejecting the teachings, and the groups of doubters. The image seems suitable to share.

And, for my purposes, the “thinking” was excellent. It was in the execution that it stepped outside my needs.

fail-20260105-explain

The frame around the image contained a number of symbols. At the top center I recognized the svastika (manji in Japanese). I’ve written about this before. See this post. But I had no idea what the symbol in the upper right corner or the bottom center of the frame represented. So I asked Gemini.

1. Symbol in the Upper Right Corner

This character is the Siddham letter “A” (अ).

Meaning: In Buddhism, “A” is the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet and is considered the mother of all other letters and sounds. It symbolizes the origin of all things, the uncreated, and the unborn nature of ultimate reality.

Significance: It represents the fundamental truth that all phenomena are inherently empty of an independent existence. It is often associated with Dainichi Nyorai (Mahavairocana Buddha), the cosmic Buddha who embodies the absolute truth of the universe. Meditating on the letter “A” (Ajikan) is a key practice in Esoteric Buddhism to realize this ultimate reality.

2. Symbol in the Bottom Center

This character is the Siddham seed syllable “Hrih” (ह्रीः), known as Kirīku in Japanese.

Meaning: A “seed syllable” (bīja) is a single syllable that is believed to contain the essence and power of a specific buddha or bodhisattva.

Significance: The syllable “Hrih” is primarily the seed syllable for Amida Nyorai (Amitabha Buddha), the Buddha of Infinite Light and Life who presides over the Western Pure Land. It is also associated with certain forms of Kannon Bosatsu (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva), such as the Thousand-Armed Kannon, who is often seen as an emanation of Amida. Placing it at the bottom center could symbolize the foundation of compassion and the saving power of Amida and Kannon, which are central to many Buddhist practices.

I was willing to allow the Siddham letter “A” (अ) since that represents a fundamental teaching of Buddhism, even though it was associated with Dainichi Nyorai (Mahavairocana Buddha), but I couldn’t have at the center of the bottom frame the “the seed syllable for Amida Nyorai (Amitabha Buddha), the Buddha of Infinite Light and Life who presides over the Western Pure Land.”

I had Gemini edit the illustration to remove the problematic characters before I published it.

In hindsight it was obvious that a collection of Japanese Buddhist iconography was going to include a lot of Dainichi and Amida symbols. To prevent a recurrence, I modified my prompt to add: “Do not use symbols or images representing Amida Nyorai (Amitabha Buddha), the Buddha of Infinite Light and Life, or Dainichi Nyorai (Mahavairocana Buddha), the cosmic Buddha who embodies the absolute truth of the universe.”

We’ll see how that works.

Blog

Welcoming 2026


Began the New Year at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church ringing the bell 108 times.

2026 altar
For my first service of the New Year I used special incense that says “Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, Mount Minobu” when it burns.


And to complete the morning, I attended the New Year service at Kannon Temple in Las Vegas with Shoda Kanai Shonin and his father, Rev. Shokai Kanai.

Blog, WONS

2026 New Year’s Goal

For the New Year I’ve decided to repost the quotes I’ve gathered from the seven-volume Writings of Nichiren Shōnin. I collected those quotes originally during my 100 Days of Study project that started in March 2018.  Since then Nichiren Shu has published a  second edition of the writings.

My ostensible reason for reposting the quotes is to update them to reflect the page numbers from the second edition. To tell if a quote you find on this website is from the first or second edition, look at the bottom of the article for the “2ndEd” tag.

However, the real reason is I’m reposting these quotes is because I want to have something to read each day and this is a simple, if time consuming, project.

In a perfect world, I’d sit down and read the seven volumes again and gather a new collection of quotes. With more than a decade of study behind me I’m sure I’d find new material overlooked the first time. But with two grandkids to babysit and the requirements of my “Honey, do…” chores, I just don’t think I’ll have the time.

Between the 100 Days of Study, the Phrase a Day booklet and Rev. Shinkyo Warner’s Daily Dharma, this website contains more than 1,700 quotes from Nichiren’s writings. I’m unsure how many of those quotes I gathered from the Writings of Nichiren Shōnin.  I expect that I will be posting daily quotes well into 2027 and maybe beyond.

AI Contribution, Blog

Discussing Art with Nano Banana

I asked Google Gemini to illustrate this Daily Dharma:

The Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones,
Say only expediently [that some are not Bodhisattvas]
To tell the truth,
All living beings taught by them are Bodhisattvas.

This verse comes from Chapter Three of the Lotus Sūtra. In Chapter Two, the Buddha declared that he only teaches Bodhisattvas. If we believe that we are not Bodhisattvas, we could conclude that the Buddha does not teach us. Part of what the Buddha is explaining here is that we are all Bodhisattvas. The way to reach the Buddha’s enlightenment is by living as Bodhisattvas: beings whose every breath is intended to improve our world.

I got this response:
fail-20251230-ddi

I checked the Kanji text in Google Lens:
fail-20251230-ddi-google-lens

That didn’t make any sense so I asked Nano Banana, the image editor in Google’s Gemini, to translate the text. Nano Banana said:

The text on the scroll is in traditional Chinese/Japanese characters.

Reading from right to left, the large characters are: 佛感天和跡聖帝 (Fó gǎn tiān hé jī shèng dì)

The smaller characters on the left are: 千年廣繪画 (Qiān nián guǎng huì huà)

A direct translation is roughly:

佛感天和跡聖帝: Buddha feels Heaven, Harmony, and the Traces of the Sacred Emperors.

千年廣繪画: Thousand-Year Vast Painting (likely the artist’s signature or title).

That didn’t make any sense either, so I told Nano Banana to remove the text and the scroll.

The Nano Banana shows its thinking as it works:

Erasing and Replacing

I’m focusing on removing the scroll and text from the image. The aim is to seamlessly integrate traditional Japanese cloud and wave patterns in their place. Right now, I’m working with the original and figuring out the best way to extract the patterns needed.

Defining the Edits

I’m now zeroing in on the specific elements to remove: the scroll and all text. I’ve pinpointed the exact content that needs erasure, including the wooden components and the characters. The main focus is reconstructing the area where the scroll was to flawlessly incorporate the surrounding stylistic elements. The figures above must remain untouched.

Analyzing Image Accuracy

I’m currently verifying the image against the initial user instructions. My focus is on ensuring the complete removal of the scroll and its calligraphy as specified in the prompt. I’m carefully reviewing the background reconstruction to ensure it’s consistent with the original art style and meets the requirements.

Reviewing Background Elements

I’m now carefully examining the background reconstruction to confirm the consistency of the wave patterns and cloud formations with the original style. The prompt’s requirement for complete scroll removal has also been fulfilled; the text and scroll are entirely absent. I’m focusing on ensuring every detail meets the specified criteria.

The product of this work:

fail-20251230-ddi-no-scroll

I really didn’t understand the illustration, so, hoping for something different, I asked Nano Banana:

Focus the illustration on showing that all people who follow the Buddha are Bodhisattvas

As Nano Banana worked, it said:

Modifying the Bodhisattvas

I’m working on transforming the original illustration by depicting all the figures, including the men, women, and children, as luminous Bodhisattvas. The goal is to evolve the initial image into a representation of enlightened beings.

Enhancing Divine Aura

I’m now focusing on transforming the human figures at the ground level into Bodhisattvas. They will wear robes, crowns, and have halos, floating on lotus clouds. Animals will also receive glowing symbols. The goal is to enhance the overall golden light and divine energy to emphasize the transformation, while keeping the Ukiyo-e style and aged paper texture.

Evaluating Abstract Symbolism

I’m currently focused on the image’s symbolic representation. The model successfully conveyed the abstract notion of Bodhisattvas through the use of lotus thrones, signifying enlightenment. This visual element aligns well with the user’s intent. The interpretation of ‘showing that all people who follow the Buddha are Bodhisattvas’ is clear.

Analyzing Symbolic Placement

I’ve examined how the model has visualized the user’s intent to represent the idea that all followers of the Buddha are Bodhisattvas. The placement of all figures on lotus thrones is key. This directly addresses the prompt, conveying the abstract concept through strong symbolism. The alignment of the visual elements with the intended message is very good.

The result:

20251230-ddi

I gave up and published this version of the illustration.

In dealing with Google’s Gemini it is important to get the “prompt’ – the instructions – right. After publishing the day’s illustration, I went back to see if I could write a prompt that would generate a better illustration.

After starting a new session of my Illustrated Daily Dharma gem on Gemini, I submitted this prompt.

Special instruction: Focus this image on the line ” Part of what the Buddha is explaining here is that we are all Bodhisattvas. The way to reach the Buddha’s enlightenment is by living as Bodhisattvas: beings whose every breath is intended to improve our world.”

Source text: The Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones,
Say only expediently [that some are not Bodhisattvas]
To tell the truth,
All living beings taught by them are Bodhisattvas.

This verse comes from Chapter Three of the Lotus Sūtra. In Chapter Two, the Buddha declared that he only teaches Bodhisattvas. If we believe that we are not Bodhisattvas, we could conclude that the Buddha does not teach us. Part of what the Buddha is explaining here is that we are all Bodhisattvas. The way to reach the Buddha’s enlightenment is by living as Bodhisattvas: beings whose every breath is intended to improve our world.

As Nano Banana worked, it explained:

Considering Theme & Scope

I’m currently focused on the overarching theme and scope for this illustration. I’ve distilled the core message down to the concept of universal Bodhisattvahood and compassionate action as the path to enlightenment. Now I’m working on specific imagery elements.

Formulating the Visuals

My current focus is on the visual details. I’m exploring how to represent the concept of “all beings as Bodhisattvas” through diverse figures in a Japanese Buddhist art style, maybe ukiyo-e. I’m also considering how to depict the “breath” of compassionate action flowing into a central, glowing world. I’m trying to figure out how to best integrate the text and quote.

Evaluating Visual Fidelity

I’m checking the image against the user’s instructions. The square format seems fitting for Instagram. It incorporates the “Bodhisattvas” message and the source text. There’s an effort to depict people breathing intention, though this needs further refinement.

Confirming Image Integration

I’m confirming the image’s alignment with the user’s intent. The square dimension is ideal for the intended platform. The graphic successfully conveys the “Bodhisattvas” message alongside the cited text. The visualization of people breathing intention is a strong element that enhances the central concept. It appears to meet all the criteria.

And the result:
fail-20251230-ddi-Kannon

This was worse than the original. I asked Nano Banana to explain the central figure in the image.

With pleasure. Here is an explanation of the central figure in this illustration.

The Embodiment of Compassion: The Bodhisattva

The radiant, multi-armed figure at the heart of this illustration is a Bodhisattva (known in Japanese as a Bosatsu).

In Mahayana Buddhism, a Bodhisattva is an awakened being who, motivated by great compassion (bodhicitta), vows to attain supreme enlightenment not just for themselves, but for the sake of liberating all sentient beings from suffering.

While they share many attributes with a Buddha, Bodhisattvas in Japanese iconography are typically depicted wearing crowns, jewelry, and flowing celestial scarves—resembling Indian royalty—rather than the simple monastic robes of a Buddha. This signifies that they remain connected to the world to help us, rather than having departed into final Nirvana.

Specific Iconography in this Image:

Given the theme of universal compassion and the visual cues, this figure is highly likely a representation of Kannon Bosatsu (Avalokiteśvara in Sanskrit), the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion, who is one of the most beloved figures in East Asian Buddhism.

The Multiple Arms: Kannon is often depicted with many arms (sometimes eleven, sometimes a thousand). In this eight-armed form, the multitude of limbs symbolizes their immense capacity and “skillful means” to reach out and assist countless suffering beings simultaneously, using the appropriate tool or method for each situation.

The Lotus Pedestal: The figure stands upon a blooming lotus. The lotus is a paramount symbol in Buddhism; it roots in the mud at the bottom of a pond but rises to bloom, pristine and untouched, above the water. This symbolizes the Bodhisattva remaining in the “mud” of samsara (the cycle of suffering) to help others, while their mind remains pure and undefiled.

The Halo and Position: The golden halo and their elevated position above the globe establish them as an enlightened archetype. They are the ideal model of compassion that the text encourages us to emulate.

The Figure’s Role in the Composition:

This central Bodhisattva acts as the visual anchor for the text excerpt from the Lotus Sūtra.

The illustration suggests that this magnificent, divine being is not fundamentally different from the ordinary monks, villagers, and children standing below. The central figure is the realization of the potential that lies within the people below.

As the text states, “We are all Bodhisattvas.” The central figure shows us the perfection of that state—a being whose entire existence, whose “every breath,” is dedicated to healing the world depicted beneath their feet.

For years I worked with illustrators – actual people who drew artwork – to illustrate opinion pieces on the Opinion Pages of The Sacramento Bee. Looking back, I realize I didn’t have any more luck with the real people then than I did today with an AI agent named  Nano Banana. There’s just no forcing art.

AI Contribution, Blog

The Peril of Using AI to Illustrate the Daily Dharma

Each morning for the past six days I’ve asked Google’s Gemini to create an illustration based on the text of the Daily Dharma sent by zenzaizenzai.com. I’ve been refining the workflow, but in general it has become a simple task.

Until this morning.

I asked Gemini to illustrate this text:

What does the doctrine of spiritual contemplation mean? It means the way of practicing the teaching of the Buddha according to the intent of the Buddha, not necessarily according to what is literally said in the sutra. Suppose there is a man during the time of a famine who offers to the Buddha the only food he has to stay alive for a day. This is the same as offering his life to the Buddha.

Nichiren wrote this passage in his Treatise on Phenomenal and Noumenal Offering (Jiri Kuyō Gosho). The Lotus Sūtra is the highest teaching because it encompasses all beings in all worlds, assuring everyone that they can rid themselves of delusion and reach the Buddha’s enlightenment. The Buddha showed that the universe is constantly changing, even from one moment to the next. When we read the Lotus Sūtra, and allow our minds to become more like the Buddha mind, we learn the meaning behind the words and put that into practice. We do not merely go through the motions mechanically. We understand that calamities are opportunities for us to bring the Buddha’s teaching to life, and that whatever prosperity we gain does not belong to us alone. Whatever we have is for the benefit of all beings.

The illustration I received from Gemini:
fail-20251227-ddi

I have decades of experience selecting artwork to illustrate articles. That was one of my jobs during my career as a newspaper editor. This illustration puzzled me.

20251227-lens-translateUsing the Google Lens app on my phone I translated the text as saying, “Protect the Unique.” I then asked Google Lens to explain the statue, 20251227-amida-explain only to learn this was a representation of Amida Buddha. The app said, “The standing posture often represents the Buddha descending from the heavens to welcome devotees to his paradise. The hand gesture, or mudra, with the right hand raised and the palm facing outward, is known as the abhayada-mudra, which bestows fearlessness. The left hand, with the palm facing outward and downwards, forms the varada-mudra, representing compassion.

As a Nichiren Buddhist I’m not going to use a statue of Amida Buddha to illustrate the Daily Dharma, let alone a quote that doesn’t appear to relate. I went back to Gemini and told it to focus the illustration on the line: The Lotus Sūtra is the highest teaching because it encompasses all beings in all worlds, assuring everyone that they can rid themselves of delusion and reach the Buddha’s enlightenment.

That prompt produced the image I used today:
20251227-ddi
As an editor, I don’t like this image as much as earlier ones. It relies too heavily on words to explain its meaning. A good illustration shouldn’t need words.

I expect to have this happen again in the future and I’ll handle it the same way. But the story doesn’t end here. I went back to Google Gemini to see if it could explain why it produced that original illustration.

I uploaded the illustration to Gemini and asked:

Explain the symbolism of this image in detail and explain the story the illustrator was trying to tell.

Gemini responded:

This image is a rich tapestry of Buddhist iconography and ethical teaching. It illustrates a core tenet of Mahayana Buddhism: that the “sincerity and sacrifice” behind an act are far more spiritually significant than the material value of the gift itself.

The illustrator is telling a story of “ultimate devotion,” specifically highlighting the concept of Dana (generosity) practiced to its highest degree.

1. Key Symbols and Their Meanings

The image uses several classical Buddhist symbols to ground the story in spiritual tradition:

The Bodhi Tree: The monk sits beneath a tree with heart-shaped leaves, representing the tree under which Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment. This signifies that the scene is one of high spiritual realization and truth.

The Lotus Flowers: Emerging from clouds and water, the lotus symbolizes “purity and rebirth.” Even in the “mud” of a famine or suffering, a beautiful, pure act of devotion can bloom.

The Golden Buddha: The glowing figure in the background represents the “Triple Gem” (the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha). The rays of light (auras) signify the boundless compassion and wisdom that witness the man’s sacrifice.

The Scroll and the Monk: The monk represents the preservation of the teachings. He is a witness to the man’s karma.

The Bowl of Rice: In the context of a famine, this is not just food; it is a “biological lifeline.” By offering it, the man is physically divesting himself of his means of survival.

2. The Narrative: Sacrifice and Sincerity

The story being told is a classic Buddhist parable (similar to the story of the “Poor Woman’s Lamp” or the “Offering of the Hare”).

The Contrast of Form
The illustrator creates a sharp visual contrast between the monk (who looks healthy, serene, and well-clothed) and the poor man (who is skeletal, wearing rags, and barefoot). This emphasizes that the man is giving from a place of “lack” rather than “abundance.”
The “Life” Offering
The text at the bottom is the key to the story: “This is the same as offering his life.” In Buddhist philosophy, the merit of an action is determined by the intention (cetana).

If a king gives a thousand gold coins, it is a great gift.
If a starving man gives his last bowl of rice, he has given everything.

The illustrator is showing that this man has transcended his fear of death and his attachment to his own body. By feeding the “Buddha” (or the Sangha) instead of himself, he has achieved a state of selflessness that is the precursor to Enlightenment.

3. Analysis of the Text

The vertical Japanese/Chinese text in the center reads 「唯道のを守る」 (roughly: “Only protecting/keeping the Way”). This reinforces the idea that the man’s act is not just charity, but a strict adherence to the spiritual path (the Way), even when faced with the ultimate personal cost.

Summary of the Illustrator’s Message
The illustrator is teaching the viewer that “true spirituality is found in the depth of one’s sacrifice.” The image serves as a “contemplation” piece to make the viewer ask: “What am I willing to let go of for the sake of what is holy?”

Note that, from Gemini’s perspective, none of this has anything to do with Pure Land teaching or Amida Buddha, which were my primary concern.

I went back to Gemini again. This time I asked:

The statement: “Suppose there is a man during the time of a famine who offers to the Buddha the only food he has to stay alive for a day. This is the same as offering his life to the Buddha.”

Where could I expect to find this statement — what teaching, whose teaching?

Gemini responded:

This statement is a central teaching of Nichiren Daishonin (1222–1282), the 13th-century Japanese Buddhist priest who founded Nichiren Buddhism.

Specifically, you can find this passage in one of his letters (known as Gosho) titled “The Gift of Rice” (Hakumai-ippo-sho).

The Source and Context
Nichiren wrote this letter while living in extreme poverty and isolation on Mount Minobu. During this time, he and his disciples often faced starvation and harsh winters. The letter was written as a thank-you note to a follower who had sent him a gift of polished rice, yams, and other food.

In the letter, Nichiren writes:

“…in a time of famine, offering the food that is the only means for sustaining one’s life that day to the Buddha is offering one’s life to the Buddha.” — The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol. 1, p. 1126

Key Concepts in This Teaching
Nichiren uses this statement to explain how ordinary people can attain enlightenment. He distinguishes between two types of offerings:

Offering in Actuality
This refers to the legendary stories of ancient sages and bodhisattvas who literally gave up their bodies or lives for the Law (e.g., the boy Snow Mountains who offered his life to a demon to hear a Buddhist verse).
Offering in Principle
This is the practice for ordinary people. Since most people cannot (and are not expected to) literally sacrifice their lives, Nichiren teaches that offering something vital to your own survival—like your last bit of food during a famine—is spiritually equivalent to offering your life.
The Philosophy of “Earnest Resolve”
The core message is that the sincerity of the heart (Japanese: kokorozashi) is what matters most in Buddhism.
Life is the Foremost Treasure
Nichiren explains that life is the most precious thing in the universe. Therefore, the food that sustains life is also a “treasure.”
The Spirit of Contribution
Giving from a place of abundance is easy, but giving from a place of personal lack (the “only food he has to stay alive”) represents the highest form of faith and “earnest resolve.”
Equality of Benefit
By making such a sincere offering, an ordinary person gains the same immense “fortune” or merit as the sages of old who performed literal physical sacrifices.

Note that I didn’t direct Gemini to focus on Nichiren or his teachings. This was its genuine view. This raises the question: Why didn’t the first illustration reflect this understanding?

Such is the peril of Using AI to Illustrate the Daily Dharma.