[I]t is preached in the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 5, chapter 14 on the “Peaceful Practices”: “Various gods always protect the practicer for the sake of the dharma day and night.” This means that the great King of the Brahma Heaven, Indra, the sun and moon, the Four Heavenly Kings and others will never fail to protect those who say “Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō.”
Kangyō Hachiman-shō, Remonstration with Bodhisattva Hachiman
Today is the sixth day of Higan week, the three days before the equinox and the three days after. As explained in a Nichiren Shu brochure:
For Buddhists, this period is not just one characterized by days with almost equal portions of light and dark. Rather, it is a period in which we strive to consciously reflect upon ourselves and our deeds.
The today we consider the Perfection of Dhyāna. For this Fall Higan week I’m using Hsuan Hua‘s commentary on the Lotus Sutra in which he discusses the 10 advantages of each pāramitā.
Hsuan Hua Lotus Sutra Commentary, v8, p158-160There are also ten advantages of investigating dhyāna.
- One will settle oneself in the ritual. You investigate dhyāna through meditation moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day, month by month, and year by year. In the Chan hall, the meditation periods are regulated. This common practice becomes a routine. In the Chan hall, you sit for a while, then you walk, then you run. When it’s time to run, someone calls out, “Run!” Then you run until you’re sweating and so engrossed in the moment that you can’t even see the sky above, the earth below, or the people in between. Everyone seems to have disappeared. Where did they go? They’re gone – but they’re not lost! Why does this happen? You’ve lost track of your self. There’s no more “me.” You’ve run to the point that you’ve lost the notion of self and others. At this point you can contemplate with ease. Since there isn’t any self, you don’t have any false thinking about self; since there aren’t any people, you don’t have any false thinking about them. This state, called contemplating at ease, is described in the following line of verse:
When neither emptiness nor form exists,
One sees the Tathagata.
The Buddha dwells neither in emptiness nor in existence. If you can perceive the Buddha’s Dharma body as being neither nonexistent nor existent, you’ll see the Tathagata’s Dharma body.- One will practice the attitude of compassion. Being compassionate doesn’t mean being nice to people. It means that you gather people in and transform them with compassion. But if you encounter stubborn people, you may use your compassion to scold or beat them to get them to become awakened. People may be hit in the Chan hall, but it’s not what you usually think of as getting hit. People are hit so that they’ll quit false thinking and become awakened. This isn’t unusual; it’s done so that people will be good and follow the rules. This is practicing the attitude of compassion.
- One will have no regrets or afflictions. Afflictions arise when there’s regret.
- One will guard the six sense faculties. Why do you guard your six sense faculties? If you don’t guard them, they’ll run off. Where to? The eyes will run after forms, the ears after sounds, the nose after scents, the tongue after flavors, the body after tangible objects, and the mind after mental objects. When the six sense faculties are well guarded, a light will emanate from the gates of these faculties, causing the earth to quake. Why do you emit light? Because you stop having false thoughts; therefore, your wisdom light comes forth and shines upon everything in the trichiliocosm.
- One will attain bliss even in the absence of food. People who investigate dhyāna take dhyāna bliss as nourishment and are filled with Dharma joy. They can go without food and still be full of joy. When one’s meditation progresses to the point where one doesn’t need to eat and doesn’t feel hungry at all, one has attained this advantage. Such a person can go without food and still be happy; he’s nourished by investigating dhyāna.
- One will leave love and desire behind. When the mind is apart from desire and love, it’s pure. Love and desire are defilement; defilement leads to birth and death. Why do we human beings undergo birth and death? Because we haven’t cut off love and desire. Why do most people keep revolving in the six paths of rebirth and fail to end birth and death? Again, because they haven’t managed to cut off their love and desire. Until you cut off love and desire, you won’t be able to end birth and death and will continue to revolve in the six paths of rebirth. If you can free yourself from love and desire, you’ll close the gates to the hells.
- One’s cultivation of dhyāna will not be in vain. If your cultivation of dhyāna will not be in vain, does it mean something will come into being? The only fear is that you won’t cultivate dhyāna. If you cultivate dhyāna, your effort will not be in vain. If one sits in meditation for one hour, one’s wisdom life will increase by one hour. If one sits in meditation for two hours, one’s wisdom life will increase by two hours. If one continues to investigate dhyāna at every moment, day by day, month by month, year by year, one will certainly develop great wisdom.
- One will be released from demonic influences. One can be liberated from demonic obstruction. Demons will have no way to obstruct you.
- One will peacefully abide in the states of a Buddha. One can attain this advantage by constantly investigating dhyāna.
- One will attain perfect liberation. Everyone wishes for this advantage. When you reach this maturation of liberation,
It is said that the merit of all the Buddhist scriptures (except the Lotus Sūtra) is found in the promise that men can become Buddhas after they have done good deeds, which means the attainment of Buddhahood is not certain. In the case of the Lotus Sūtra, however, when one touches it, one’s hands immediately become Buddhas, and when one chants it, one’s mouth instantly becomes a Buddha.
Ueno-dono Gozen Gohenji, Reply to My Lady, the Nun of Ueno
Today is the fifth day of Higan week, the three days before the equinox and the three days after. As explained in a Nichiren Shu brochure:
For Buddhists, this period is not just one characterized by days with almost equal portions of light and dark. Rather, it is a period in which we strive to consciously reflect upon ourselves and our deeds.
The today we consider the Perfection of Vigor. For this Fall Higan week I’m using Hsuan Hua‘s commentary on the Lotus Sutra in which he discusses the 10 advantages of each pāramitā.
Hsuan Hua Lotus Sutra Commentary, v8, p151-154There are ten advantages of practicing vigor.
- One will not be defeated by others. You’ll be able to defeat others, but others won’t be able to defeat you. If you have the true skill of vigor, you’ll win every debate. No one will be able to defeat you in debate. You’ll never lose; you’re sure to win. Why is that? Because you have vigor. Just like two troops in a battle: if one is very high-spirited and energetic while the other is low-spirited and lazy, the former, the vigorous troop, will prevail.
- One will be gathered in and protected by the Buddhas. This is even more inconceivable. The Buddhas will look upon you and think, “This living being is pretty good. He cultivates seriously and doesn’t get lazy. What a good disciple!” The Buddhas will protect you and gather you in because you’re a good disciple. Would you not call that an advantage?
- One will be protected by nonhumans. Not only will the Buddhas protect you, but gods, dragons, other spiritual beings of the eightfold division, humans, and nonhumans will all protect you as well.
- One will not forget the Dharma one hears. This advantage is most beneficial. Why? Only if you haven’t heard the Dharma will this advantage not apply. Once you hear it, you’ll never forget it. As the saying goes,
When the Dharma enters one’s ears,
It plants the seed of the Path.
Wouldn’t you like to receive this benefit? I believe everyone in the audience would like to have this benefit. If so, you must be vigorous. If you’re not vigorous, you won’t get this benefit. The benefit you receive will be proportional to the effort you apply: one part vigor produces one part benefit, and ten parts vigor produce ten parts benefit.- One will hear what one has not heard before. This benefit is even more difficult to conceive. It’s wonderful! You’ll hear Dharma that you’ve never heard before. Isn’t that wonderful? Isn’t this a great advantage to you? Consider the three laypeople here today, a mother and her two sons. Previously, they didn’t have the opportunity to visit San Francisco and hear the Buddhadharma, but here they are today. The mother hadn’t intended to listen to the sūtra lecture either. However, after she heard my talk, she changed her mind. Then she asked her sons, “How about we stay and listen to the sūtra lecture?” Her sons agreed: “All right!” So they now have the opportunity to hear what they’ve never heard before. This mother hadn’t previously had the opportunity to hear the Buddhadharma, as she lives very far away, but because of her vigor in the distant past, now she has this chance. If she hadn’t cultivated vigorously before, how could she have become a vegetarian? Becoming a vegetarian, reciting the Buddha’s name, and having faith in the Buddha aren’t easy things to do. She couldn’t have made this resolve without causes and conditions from previous lives.
- One’s eloquence will increase. You may have found it difficult to explain the Buddhadharma before, but suddenly you obtain unobstructed eloquence. This sudden eloquence is a result of your vigor. What’s eloquence? Let me tell you. It’s the ability to speak well. What does that mean? Those with eloquence can persuade people who want to cry to laugh instead, those who are angry to feel compassionate, and those who want to run away from the hardships of this summer session to stay. Eloquent people know how to talk and make others feel good. Even if they scold others, their scolding sounds sweet and pleasant to the ears of those being scolded, who don’t find it at all hard to take.
- One will attain the essence of samadhi. You’ll attain the essence of concentration.
- One will have little trouble or sickness. All your illnesses and afflictions will vanish. You’ll be free from illness and affliction. These things will disappear without a trace.
- One will be able to digest whatever one eats. If you cultivate with vigor, you’ll be able to digest whatever you eat. No matter how full you are, you’ll feel hungry again shortly afterward. Why? Because you’re vigorous! You work very hard; you work energetically. You don’t slack off or take it easy. You don’t sit around thinking, “The teacher isn’t here, so I think I’ll take a break. Let’s close our eyes and take a nap!” Vigor means not slacking off or taking it easy. That’s the reason you’re able to digest all the food you eat. You also have a strong digestive system and a good appetite. Being vigorous gives you this benefit.
- One will grow like the udumbara flower. You’ll grow day by day, just like the udumbara flower.
Very well! Whether the lecture was good or bad, we have to call it a day. There are still fifteen minutes left for me to take a rest. It’s fine for the teacher to be lazy, but it’s absolutely not okay for the students to be lazy. Why? “Only the student can become a valedictorian, not the teacher!” So you mustn’t be lazy. While I urge you not to be lazy, I don’t care whether I’m lazy or not. Don’t be lazy. Just now, I told you to slay your “lazy bugs” and become vigorous tigers. But upon reflection, I think tigers are too fierce. Turn your “lazy bugs” into vigorous dragons instead that would be better. You can transform bugs into dragons. I hope your “lazy bugs” will all become vigorous dragons.
Is there anything which is brighter than the sun and the moon? Is there anything which is more pure than the lotus blossom? The Lotus Sutra is the sun and the moon and the lotus flower. Therefore, it is called the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law. I, Nichiren, am also like the sun and moon and the lotus flower.
Letter to the Wife of Shijō Kingo, Shijō Kingo Nyōbō Gosho
Yoshiro Tamura, "Introduction to the Lotus Sutra", p100-101Chapter 28 teaches the four kinds of normative conduct appropriate to the Lotus Sutra: securing the protection of the Buddha, planting roots of goodness, joining a good congregation, and resolving to save all beings. It then teaches in various ways the protection of followers of the Lotus Sutra through the grace of the Bodhisattva Universal Sage (Samantabhadra), which in turn became Universal Sage’s vow to practice the faith.
The Lotus Sutra itself comes to an end here. Yet the Sutra of Contemplation of the Dharma Practice of Universal Sage Bodhisattva (which is in line with chapter 28 of the Lotus Sutra) immediately follows, and has been taken as the concluding sutra of the Lotus Sutra, just as the Sutra of Innumerable Meanings (in line with on the “innumerable meanings” found in chapter 1) was placed at the beginning of the Lotus Sutra and regarded as its opening sutra. The three sutras taken together are called “The Threefold Lotus Sutra.” The Contemplation of Universal Sage Sutra emphasizes the vow of Universal Sage to practice the faith, or the repentance part of his meditation on practice. The theory of reality repentance found in this sutra especially has received much attention. Reality repentance is the teaching that:
The whole ocean of hindrances from past actions
Arises from illusion.
If you want to repent, you should sit upright
And reflect on the true nature of things.
All sins are like frost and dew.
The sun of wisdom can dissipate them.Here the key point has to do with meditation on emptiness. In other words:
What is sin? What is virtue? As the thought of self is itself empty, neither sin nor virtue is our master.
It recommends that:
You should recite the Great Vehicle
And meditate on the emptiness and formlessness of things . . .The sutra itself calls this “repentance without Sin.”
This “repentance without sin” was later misunderstood to mean that there is neither sin nor evil. But originally it was based on being captivated by sin or evil, and it advocates getting rid of such captivation through meditation on emptiness. Tiantai Zhiyi created the Lotus samadhi or meditation on the basis of this reality repentance.
Today is the Fall Equinox, the middle of Higan week, the three days before the equinox and the three days after. As explained in a Nichiren Shu brochure:
For Buddhists, this period is not just one characterized by days with almost equal portions of light and dark. Rather, it is a period in which we strive to consciously reflect upon ourselves and our deeds.
Here is Ven. Kenjo Igarashi’s lecture on Higan from the September-October 2025 Sacramento Nichiren News.
As summer ends, we start the official transition into the fall season with Higan. It is a time to primarily self-reflect and focus on your Buddhist studies. However, as I have mentioned before, throughout our practice, we also find ways to help others in all realms of existence, especially our ancestors. I realize that the multiple underlying purposes behind Higan can remain very confusing for many, especially because many seen to overlap with those of other Buddhist observances. I was recently reminded of a conversation I had several years ago with a member. They said, “There are many special Buddhist services and traditions that happen throughout the year. Higan, Obon, memorial services for the deceased, etc. But many of them seem very similar – they all emphasize the importance of praying for your ancestors. I have a hard time understanding the differences between them.” The concept of ancestor veneration is prevalent in Asian cultures. For example, in Japan it is common for people to spend time with their families, as well as visit and clean their ancestors’ graves during these important Buddhist observances. However, this concept is not as common in Western cultures. For that reason, I would like to take this time to further explain why we honor our ancestors during Higan.
We observe Higan twice a year for approximately a week around the time of the spring and fall equinox. The reason for this timing stems from the agricultural history of Japan. Rice farmers would be busy from March when they would sow the seeds until September when they would harvest their crop. Higan is observed before and right after the end of this rice cultivation season, outside of which they were expected to have more time away from the field to focus on their Buddhist studies.
Aside from this timing, one of the major differences between Higan and other Buddhist observances is the emphasis on studying the Six Paramitas, which I’ve explained previously. Briefly, they include the following: (1) generosity, (2) observance of Buddhist precepts, (3) patience, (4) energy and diligence, (5) meditation, and (6) wisdom cultivated by studying Buddhism.
As I mentioned earlier, I have previously spoken about how we strive to help others during this time of Higan. One of the ways we do this is by practicing these Six Paramitas with our ancestors. What differentiates us from the deceased is our physical body and the five senses we use in our practice. Through these senses, we can garner good karma and virtues, but also unknowingly accumulate bad karma through actions we partake in or even witness. Without these senses, our ancestors cannot accumulate virtues in the same way that we do in this human realm. Any deceased, especially in the suffering world, therefore have a difficult time moving to a higher realm. Higan is a time when our ancestors can practice “with us,” meaning at the same time. This is different from Obon when the deceased are allowed to visit the living and practice with us at the same time and in the same location. In a way, during Higan, our ancestors are not only practicing themselves, but also through us. The good karma we accumulate during Higan benefits not only ourselves but can also be shared with our ancestors. Using the virtues we accumulate during Higan, the deceased can gradually try to progress to a higher realm. This is also a reminder that as humans, we ourselves still have work to do in order to move to a higher realm. Our senses make us unique and provide an advantage for us to accumulate virtues in this current realm that we live in. Therefore, our practice and prayer during Higan holds a special meaning. I hope that many of you will use Higan as an opportunity to focus on your Buddhist studies, keeping in mind that our ancestors are practicing with us during this time.
Ven. Kenjo Igarashi
September / October 2025
The Lotus Sūtra is named the “Wonderful Dharma” because it expounds that each of the Ten Realms mutually possesses the characteristics of the other nine realms, which means that all of the Ten Realms are equipped with the realm of Buddhas. In the mutual possession of the Ten Realms, each realm includes the other nine realms. As a result the Ten Realms have other Ten Realms, consisting of the hundred realms of all phenomena. The second fascicle of the Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sūtra says, “The one realm of all phenomena equipped with the other nine realms of all phenomena means the hundred realms of all phenomena.” It is not only in the Lotus Sūtra that the Ten Realms are mentioned. The cause and effect of the Ten Realms is revealed in the pre-Lotus sūtras as well. The reason why the Lotus Sūtra is regarded as the Wonderful Dharma is because the sūtra expounds the mutual possession of the cause and effect of the Ten Realms.
Ichidai Shōgyō Tai-I, Outline of All the Holy Teachings of the Buddha
Yoshiro Tamura, "Introduction to the Lotus Sutra", p100Chapter 27 tells a story about two princes who converted their father, a non-Buddhist king, to faith in the Lotus Sutra. These words are often quoted from it:
A buddha is as difficult to meet as an udumbara flower, or as a one-eyed tortoise meeting the hole in a floating log.
Today is the third day of Higan week, the three days before the equinox and the three days after. As explained in a Nichiren Shu brochure:
For Buddhists, this period is not just one characterized by days with almost equal portions of light and dark. Rather, it is a period in which we strive to consciously reflect upon ourselves and our deeds.
The today we consider the Perfection of Patience. For this Fall Higan week I’m using Hsuan Hua‘s commentary on the Lotus Sutra in which he discusses the 10 advantages of each pāramitā.
Hsuan Hua Lotus Sutra Commentary, v8, p147-149Today let’s discuss the ten advantages of practicing the paramita of patience. In this world, the harder something is to do, the more it’s worth doing. If the task isn’t difficult, it doesn’t have too much value. Therefore, even though it’s hard to practice patience, it brings great benefit and is of tremendous value. What are the ten advantages?
If, in the formative stage of practice, one cultivates patience, in the future one will receive in general the following ten benefits:
- Fire will not burn one. Why? Those who practice patience have no internal fire. If there’s no fire within, then fire from the outside has no way to harm one. If one has fire inside, one will get burned. It’s also said:With no deficiency internally,
One does not attract trouble from outside.If you have problems inside, you’ll attract sickness from the outside. For example, if you catch a cold, it’s often because you’ve been doing a lot of false thinking internally, which leads to “inner” weakness. You then catch an “external” cold as a result. If you cultivate patience and internally extinguish your fiery temper, so that your nature is like dead ashes, then no external fire will be able to burn you.- Knives will not hurt one. If one cultivates patience, one will not be injured by knives because there are no “knives or guns” within. Without “knives or guns” inside – that is, having no thoughts of harming others – external knives and guns can’t harm one. It’s said:If inside the house there is a superior person,
Superior people will come to visit.
If inside the house there are petty people,
Petty people will stop by.If there are no knives or guns in your inherent nature, you won’t be hurt by knives or guns from the outside. This is genuine philosophy!- Poison will not harm one. Not only can knives not harm one, neither can poison. If one has practiced patience to perfection, then,At knife point, I remain completely calm;
Even poisoned, I am totally at ease.One will remain unscathed when encountering the danger of knives and poison. Patriarch Bodhidharma was poisoned six times by jealous rivals but didn’t die. Why? He’d practiced patience for countless eons and with its perfection had attained this pāramitā. Which pāramitā? The antidote to poison.- Water will not drown one. One who cultivates patience to perfection won’t drown in water.
- Nonhumans will protect one. Nonhumans refers to gods, dragons, and other spiritual beings of the eightfold division. They will all look out for you and watch over your bodhimaṇḍ
- One will obtain a splendid and majestic appearance. Didn’t I tell you that if you cultivate patience, you’ll have a sublime appearance? You’ll delight all who see you and will make no one afraid. People will respect and cherish you and won’t be able to leave you even if they want to. They’ll always want to be around you. A splendid and majestic appearance is the physical manifestation of the purity of one’s thoughts when they’re free of defilement. It’s not the kind of beauty associated with glamour and sex appeal. The splendor and majesty of one’s appearance will inspire reverence. It won’t cause people to become emotionally infatuated or have impure thoughts.
- The lower destinies will be closed to one. What are the lower destinies? They refer to the three lower realms: the hells, the realm of animals, and the realm of hungry ghosts. The doors to these destinies will be closed to you. You won’t fall into the destinies of hungry ghosts and hell beings or be reborn as an animal.
- One will be born in the Brahma heavens. If you practice patience, in the future you can be born in the great Brahma heavens.
- One will be peaceful and joyful day and night. Throughout the three periods of the day and the three periods of the night, you’ll be peaceful and joyful. You won’t be worried about your business during the day and then in the evening wonder whether or not you’re going to lose your job the next day or if you’ll have anything to eat. Most people have a lot of worries and afflictions. If you practice patience, you won’t have these kinds of afflictions. Throughout the day and night, you’ll always be very peaceful and joyful, worry-free.
- One will never be separated from joy and happiness. You’ll always be in good spirits and will always be very happy. This kind of happiness isn’t based on external events and stimuli. Rather, it comes from within your inherent nature and is not a contrived display of happiness.
These are the ten advantages of practicing patience.