Category Archives: LS32

LS32

Day 4

Day 4 concludes Chapter 2, Expedients, and completes the first volume of the Sūtra of the Lotus flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Day 4 Text with annotationsPlay MP3
Having last month considered the teaching of the one vehicle, we consider small acts that lead to enlightenment.

Those who met a past Buddha,
Who heard the Dharma from him,
And who obtained various merits and virtues
By almsgiving or by observing the precepts
Or by patience or by making endeavors
Or by dhyāna or by wisdom,
Have already attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

Those who, after the extinction of a Buddha,
Were good and gentle,
Have already attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

Those who, after the extinction of a Buddha,
Erected billions of stupas,
And who purely and extensively adorned [those stupas]
With treasures
Such as gold, silver, crystal,
Shell, agate, ruby, and lapis lazuli,
And who offered those adornments to his śarīras;
Or those who made the mausoleum [of the Buddha]
With stone, bricks, or clay,
Or with many kinds of wood,
Such as candana, aloes, or agalloch;
Or those who made the mausoleum of the Buddha
With heaps of earth
In the wilderness;
Or the boys who made the stupa of the Buddha
With heaps of sand by playing,
Have already attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

Those who carved an image of the Buddha
With the [proper] physical marks in his honor
Have already attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

Those who made an image of the Buddha
With the seven treasures;
Or those who made it
Of copper, copper-gold alloy, nickel,
Pewter lead, tin, iron, wood, or clay;
Or those who made it in plaster work,
Have already attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

Those who drew or caused others to draw in color
A picture of the Buddha adorned with his physical marks,
Each mark representing one hundred merits,
Have already attained the enlightenment of the Buddha.

The boys who by playing drew
A picture of the Buddha
With a piece of grass or wood,
Or with a brush,
Or with the back of their fingernails,
Became able to accumulate merits one by one.
Having great compassion towards others,
They attained the enlightenment of the Buddha,
Taught only Bodhisattvas,
And saved many living beings.

Those who respectfully offered
Flowers, incense, streamers, and canopies
Enshrined in a stupa-mausoleum;
Or those who caused men to make music
By beating drums, by blowing horns and conches,
And by playing reed-pipes, flutes, lyres, harps,
Lutes, gongs, and copper cymbals,
And offered the wonderful sounds produced thereby
To the image or picture of the Buddha;
Or those who sang joyfully in praise of him for his virtues;
Or those who just murmured [in praise of him],
Have already attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

Those who, without concentrating their minds,
Offered nothing but a flower to the picture of the Buddha,
Became able to see
Innumerable Buddhas one after another.

The Daily Dharma from Aug. 1, 2021, offers this:

Those who, without concentrating their minds,
Offered nothing but a flower to the picture of the Buddha,
Became able to see
Innumerable Buddhas one after another.

We can read these words of the Buddha from Chapter Two of the Lotus Sūtra as if we had to wait until another life to see Buddhas. But by making offerings to an image of the Buddha, by practicing respect towards a representation of the Buddha, we start to look for and recognize the Buddha in ourselves and in all of the beings who share the world with us. When we see this world of conflict and suffering as the Buddha’s Pure Land, then we see all beings as our enlightened teachers. We see innumerable Buddhas.

The Daily Dharma is produced by the Lexington Nichiren Buddhist Community. To subscribe to the daily emails, visit zenzaizenzai.com

800years, Blog, d3b, d4b

800 Years: The Cause of the Great Purpose

In 1989, when I first chanted the Daimoku, I was encouraged to chant in order to get stuff. Didn’t matter what stuff. Chanting was magical. Have faith, I was told.

Since leaving Soka Gakkai, my understanding of faith has shifted 180 degrees. This was true on Nov. 15, 2015, when I published a blog post following an on-line service with Rev. Ryusho Jeffus. And it is even truer today.

My understanding of faith today has grown from my appreciation of the purpose of the Buddha’s teaching. That purpose is succinctly explained in Chapter 2 of the Lotus Sutra:

“Śāriputra! The purpose of the various teachings that the Buddhas expound according to the capacities of all living beings is difficult to understand. I also expound various teachings with innumerable expedients, that is to say, with stories of previous lives, parables, similes and discourses. [The purpose of the various teachings of the Buddhas is difficult to understand] because the Dharma cannot be understood by reasoning. Only the Buddhas know the Dharma because the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the worlds only for one great purpose.

“Śāriputra! What is the one great purpose for which the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the worlds? The Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the worlds in order to cause all living beings to open [the gate to] the insight of the Buddha, and to cause them to purify themselves. They appear in the worlds in order to show the insight of the Buddha to all living beings. They appear in the worlds in order to cause all living beings to obtain the insight of the Buddha. They appear in the worlds in order to cause all living beings to enter the Way to the insight of the Buddha. Śāriputra! This is the one great purpose for which the Buddhas appear in the worlds.”

“The Buddha said to Śāriputra:

“The Buddhas, the Tathāgatas, teach only Bodhisattvas. All they do is for one purpose, that is, to show the insight of the Buddha to all living beings, to cause them to obtain the insight of the Buddha.”

We are not asked to sit idly and intellectualize the meaning of the teaching of the Buddha. No, the Buddha seeks to cause us to act.

“The Tathāgatas save all living beings
With innumerable expedients.
They cause all living beings to enter the Way
To the wisdom-without-āsravas of the Buddha.
Anyone who hears the Dharma
Will not fail to become a Buddha.

“Every Buddha vows at the outset:
‘I will cause all living beings
To attain the same enlightenment
That I attained.’ ”

Our role is to gather enough faith to step through the gate of the Buddha’s wisdom and with each subsequent step to advance along the path the Buddha has laid before us – to enter the Way to the same enlightenment.

As I wrote back in 2015, “Eliminating suffering in my life by awakening my inherent enlightenment is the reason for chanting, not getting stuff.”

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LS32

Day 3

Day 3 covers the first half of Chapter 2, Expedients.

Day 3 Text with annotationsPlay MP3
Having last month considered the Buddha’s hesitance to explain the Dharma, we consider the departure of the 5,000 people in the congregation.

Thereupon the World-Honored One said to him:

“You asked me three times with enthusiasm. How can I leave the Dharma unexpounded? Listen to me attentively, and think over my words! Now I will expound [the Dharma] to you.”

When he had said this, five thousand people among the bhikṣus, bhikṣunīs, upāsakās, and upāsikās of this congregation rose from their seats, bowed to the Buddha, and retired because they were so sinful and arrogant that they thought that they had already obtained what they had not yet, and that they had already understood what they had not yet. Because of these faults, they did not stay. The World-Honored One kept silence and did not check them.

Thereupon the World-Honored One said to Śāriputra:

“Now this congregation has been cleared of twigs and leaves, only sincere people being left. Śāriputra! Those arrogant people may go. Now listen to me attentively! I will expound [the Dharma] to you.”

Śāriputra said, “Certainly, World-Honored One! I wish to hear you.”

The Buddha said to him:

“The Buddhas, the Tathāgatas, expound this Wonderful Dharma as rarely as the udumbara-flower blooms. Śāriputra! Believe what I am going to say! My words are not false.

See At Root, All People Are The Same

800years, Blog, d2b

800 Years: Fame-Seeking Bodhisattva

Faith is a personal aspect. It has no relationship to others. My faith is mine; yours is yours. This is something I don’t believe many people appreciate.

In Chapter 1, Mañjuśrī tells a short story about the previous life of Maitreya. It seems the Buddha-to-be wasn’t always a perfect example of a man of faith.

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

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

No criticism of Fame-Seeking is offered. Instead, we learn:

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

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

The Lotus Sutra is clear on this topic: We are not to criticize those who practice the Lotus Sutra.

In Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma, the Buddha warns:

An evil man who speaks ill of me in my presence with evil intent for as long as a kalpa is not as sinful as the person who reproaches laymen or monks with even a single word of abuse for their reading and reciting the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

In Chapter 13, Peaceful Practices, we are instructed:

“A Bodhisattva-mahāsattvas who wishes to keep, read and recite this sūtra in the latter days after my extinction when the teachings are about to be destroyed, should not nurse jealousy against others, or flatter or deceive them. He should not despise those who study the Way to Buddhahood in any way. He should not speak ill of them or try to point out their faults. … He should not have fruitless disputes or quarrels about the teachings with others..”

In Chapter 28, The Encouragement of Universal-Sage Bodhisattva, the Buddha warns:

“Those who, upon seeing the keeper of this sūtra, blame him justly or unjustly, will suffer from white leprosy in their present life. Those who laugh at him will have few teeth, ugly lips, flat noses, contorted limbs, squint eyes, and foul and filthy bodies, and suffer from bloody pus of scabs, abdominal dropsy, tuberculosis, and other serious diseases in their successive lives.”

It is not our place to judge others. Never-Despising Bodhisattva did not read or recite sūtras. He only bowed to the four kinds of devotees. When he saw them in the distance, he went to them on purpose, bowed to them, and praised them, saying, ‘I do not despise you because you can become Buddhas.’

Fame-seeking became Maitreya. Never-Despising became Śākyamuni. Our faith grows amid our causes and conditions. We should nurture and encourage others, not criticize.

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LS32

Day 2

Chapter 1, Introductory (Conclusion).

Day 2 Text with annotationsPlay MP3
Having last month considered the ray of light illumining the worlds in the east, we meet Wonderful-Light Bodhisattva and hear the ‘Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.’

“At that time there was a Bodhisattva called Wonderful-Light. He had eight hundred disciples. Sun-Moon-Light Buddha emerged from his samādhi, and expounded the sūtra of the Great Vehicle to Wonderful-Light Bodhisattva and others without rising from his seat for sixty small kalpas. It was called the ‘Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, the Dharma for Bodhisattvas, the Dharma Upheld by the Buddhas.’ The hearers in the congregation also sat in the same place for sixty small kalpas, and their bodies and minds were motionless. They thought that they had heard the Buddha expounding the Dharma for only a mealtime. None of them felt tired in body or mind. Having completed the expounding of this sūtra at the end of the period of sixty small kalpas, Sun-Moon-Light Buddha said to the Brahmans, Maras, śramaṇas, brahmanas, gods, men, and asuras, ‘I shall enter into the Nirvāṇa-without-remainder at midnight tonight.’

“At that time there was a Bodhisattva called Virtue-Store. Sun­Moon-Light Buddha assured him of his future Buddhahood. The Buddha said to the bhikṣus, ‘This Virtue-Store Bodhisattva will become a Buddha immediately after me. He will be called Pure-Body, the Tathagata, the Arhat, the Samyak-sambuddha.’

“Having assured him of his future Buddhahood, the Buddha then entered into the Nirvāṇa-without-remainder at midnight.

See The Prelude

LS32

Day 1

Day 1 covers the first half of Chapter 1, Introductory

Day 1 Text with annotationsPlay MP3
Having last month considered the activity of the Bodhisattvas, we consider the practices of those seeking the enlightenment of the Buddha.

Mañjuśrī!
I see some kings coming to a Buddha,
And asking him about unsurpassed enlightenment.
They have renounced the world of pleasures,
Left their palaces,
Parted from their ministers and women,
And shaved their beard and hair.
They now wear monastic robes.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Becoming bhikṣus,
Living alone in retired places,
And joyfully reciting sūtras.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Zealously and courageously
Entering remote mountains, and pondering
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

I also see some of them having given up desires,
And living in retired places,
Entering deep into dhyāna-concentration,
And obtaining the five supernatural powers.

I also see some Bodhisattvas finding peace in dhyāna,
Joining their hands together [towards the Buddha],
And praising the King of the Dharma
With tens of millions of gāthās.

I also see some Bodhisattvas resolute in mind.
They have obtained profound wisdom
By questioning the Buddha.
And now they remember what they heard from him.

I also see some sons of the Buddha
Concentrating their minds, having wisdom,
Expounding the Dharma to the multitude
With innumerable parables and similes,
Expounding the Dharma with joy,
Teaching [other] Bodhisattvas,
Defeating the army of Mara,
And beating the drum of the Dharma.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Being tranquil and peacefully calm,
Not delighting in being respected
By gods or dragons.

I also see some Bodhisattva
Living in forests, and emitting ray of light
In order to have the denizens in hell,
And cause them to enter the Way to Buddhahood.

I also see some sons of the Buddha
Walking about forests without sleeping
In order to attain
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

I also see some of them
Observing the precepts with due deportment,
And keeping purity like that of gems,
In order to attain the enlightenment of the Buddha.

I also see some sons of the Buddha
Enduring abuse
Or blows with sticks
Inflicted by arrogant people
In order to attain
The enlightenment of the Buddha.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Giving up wanton pleasures,
Parting from foolish companions,
Approaching men of wisdom,

Controlling their minds from distraction,
And concentrating their minds in hills or forests
For thousands of billions of years
In order to attain the enlightenment of the Buddha.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Offering delicious food and drink
And hundreds of kinds of medicines
To the Buddha and the Sangha.

Some offer garments and beautiful robes
Worth tens of millions
Or beyond monetary value
To the Buddha and the Sangha.

Some offer thousands of billions
Of jeweled houses made of candana
And wonderful bedding
To the Buddha and the Sangha.

Some offer pure gardens and forests
Abounding in flowers and fruits,
And furnished with rivers, springs,
and pools for bathing,
To the Buddha and the Saṃgha.

I see those Bodhisattvas
Making offerings of those wonderful things
Joyfully and untiringly
In order to attain unsurpassed enlightenment.

Some Bodhisattvas expound
The truth of tranquil extinction,
And with various expedients,
Teach innumerable living beings.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Who attained the following truth:
“The nature of things is not dual.
It is [formless] like the sky.”

I also see some sons of the Buddha
Having no attachment in their minds.
They seek unsurpassed enlightenment
With this wonderful wisdom.

See Familiar and Unfamiliar Appearances

800years, LS Introduction, d21b

800 Years: Seeing the Real Figure of the Buddha

[W]e can see the real figure of the Buddha when we devote ourselves to him in faith. We can attain this faithful state when we devote both our body and our soul to the Buddha and become unselfish. In other words, we reach a state in which our hearts are completely honest and gentle, and we leave all our cares in the hands of the Buddha. A simple fervent feeling of entrusting one’s life to the Buddha is the essence of faith. In the words of [Chapter 16, The Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata], we “wish to see (him) with all our hearts, and at the cost of our lives.”

Introduction to the Lotus Sutra

Innumerable, LS32

Another Innumerable Day Before Day 1

Having last month considered the powers of the bodhisattvas, we consider the attributes of the Buddha.

The monks known by name were Greatly Wise Śāriputra; Transcendent Maudgalyāyana; Lifelong Sage Subhūti; Mahākātyāyana; Pūrṇa, Son of Maitrāyaṇī; and Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya. Others like them were Supremely Perceptive Aniruddha; Upāli, Upholder of Behavioral Principles; Ānanda, the Attendant; Rāhula, Son of the Buddha; Upananda; Revata; Kapphiṇa; Vakkula; Acyuta; Svāgata; Mahākāśyapa, He of Constant Practice; Uruvilvākāśyapa; Gayākāśyapa; and Nadīkāśyapa. Such monks as these were twelve thousand in number; all of them were arhats, had ended the outflow of all desires, were unhindered by attachments, and had gained true emancipation.

There came a certain moment when the great-being bodhisattva Fully Composed—having recognized that all at the gathering had seated themselves with a settled mind—arose from where he sat, as did the eighty thousand great-being bodhisattvas within the assembly. They made their way to where the Buddha was, bowed their heads at his feet in homage, walked around him a hundred thousand times, and burned incense and scattered flowers.8 Heavenly flowers, heavenly incense and garments, garlands of celestial jewels, and priceless celestial treasures accumulated like clouds in the four directions and spiraled down from the sky as offerings to the Buddha. Celestial bowls and containers were filled to overflowing with hundreds of heavenly delicacies that were spontaneously fully satisfying by appearance and aroma. Celestial flags, celestial banners and canopies, and marvelous celestial amusements were arranged everywhere, and heavenly music was played for the Buddha’s enjoyment. Thereupon they went before the Buddha, knelt formally on one knee, placed their palms together, and, with one mind and one voice, spoke words of praise in verse:

Great One! Most Venerable Fully Awakened Master!
You are without stain, contamination, or attachment!
Nurturer of human and heavenly beings! Tamer of elephants and horses!
You infuse the fragrance of virtue into all things by means of the winds of the Way!
You are serene in wisdom, calm in emotion, composed in deep reflection,
And—volition extinguished, discriminations set aside—likewise tranquil in mind.
You have forever cast away delusive ideas, reflections, and thoughts—
No more to become entangled in all the facets of existence.
What you embody is not existing, and yet not nonexistent;
Is neither direct nor indirect cause; has no sense of self or other;
Is neither square nor round; is not brief or long;
Neither appears nor disappears; is without origination or cessation;
Is neither created nor self-arisen, nor is it produced;
Neither sits nor lies down; does not walk or stand; Neither moves nor turns; is not static or idle;
Neither advances nor retreats; is not imperiled or secure;
Neither is, nor is not; has no gain or loss;
Is neither here nor there; does not come or go;
Is neither blue nor yellow; is not red or white;
Is not crimson, is not purple or multicolored;
Comes forth from the perfection of behavioral principles, concentration, discernment, emancipation, and perspective that pertains to emancipation;
Rises from three kinds of transcendent knowledge, the six transcendent powers, and the avenues to enlightenment;9
Emanates from kindness, compassion, ten capabilities, and dauntlessness;
And emerges according to the good karmic actions of living beings.

See Innumerable Matters of Translation

Innumerable, LS32

Innumerable Matters of Translation

I’ve been waiting since Jan. 17 to get to this point in my monthly review of the Sutra of Innumerable Meanings so that I can discuss something I discovered in my reading for an online class I’m taking on the Lotus Sutra offered by Rissho Kōsei-kai in North America (RKINA).

As preparation for the class discussion on the first chapter of the sutra, I discovered a very significant difference in Rissho Kōsei-kai’s “modern” translation published in 2019 and the BDK English Tripiṭaka translation that I use in my monthly practice.

Here’s the Rissho Kōsei-kai translation of the gāthās describing the attributes of the Buddha and his manifestation:

“He has forever put an end to fantasies and delusional thoughts,
Having transcended all elements of experience,
His physical existence is neither being nor nothingness.
It has neither causes nor conditions and is neither itself nor something else.
It is neither square nor round, not short or long;
Neither appearing nor disappearing, not arising or perishing;
Neither created nor arisen, not made or produced;
Neither sitting nor lying, not walking or stopping;
Neither moving nor turning, not calm or quiet;
Neither advancing nor retreating, not in safety or danger;
Neither right nor wrong, having no gain or loss;
Neither this nor that, not coming or going;
Neither blue nor yellow, not red or white;
Neither crimson nor purple, and not any other color.
He is born of precepts, meditation, wisdom, emancipation, and perception.
He springs forth from the merits of samadhi, the six transcendent powers, and the practices that assist the Way.
He arises from compassion, the ten powers, and fearlessness.
And he comes forth as a result of his good karma as a living being.”

Note in that last line: “He comes forth as a result of his good karma as a living being.”

The BDK English Tripiṭaka translation renders that last line:

“And emerges according to the good karmic actions of living beings.”

In reading these verses I’ve always enjoyed this revelation that the Buddha, having removed himself from provisional existence, shows himself and makes himself available to us through his merits and powers because of “the good karmic actions of living beings.”

My good causes make it possible to see the Buddha in my life.

I have three additional translations of this sutra.

Gene Reeves says, “He emerges from / The good actions of living beings”

Burton Watson says, “emerging because of the good actions of living beings.”

And Rissho Kosei-Kai’s 1975 translation says, “He has come in response / To good karmas of living beings.”

This is not an insignificant difference. The Buddha’s reliance on the “good karmas of living beings” is an important lesson we should take to heart.

800years, Lotus Seeds, d21b

800 Years: Realizing Buddhahood Through Faith

Nichiren Shonin recognized that the eternal life of the Buddha was of crucial importance. Therefore, he taught that we do not need to be born into a pure land after death so that we can come into the presence of the Buddha and thereby awaken to the truth. According to Nichiren Shonin, the essential teaching of the Lotus Sutra reveals that we are already in the pure land. We are already in the presence of the Buddha. We are able to directly realize Buddhahood through our faith, because it is already a part of our lives.

Lotus Seeds