According to Chih-i, at the initial grade of the Five Preliminary Grades of Disciples of the Pertfect Teaching “Preliminary Grade of Joy Following the Truth” (Sui-hsi-p’in Wei), the person has already conceived the perfect faith and understanding (Ch’i Yüan-hsin-chieh). With a single mind, one embraces the Ten Dharma-realms (I-hsin-chung Chii Shih-fa-chieh). The cultivation of the practice of the Perfect Teaching enables one to incorporate all practices with a single practice, owing to the fact that one’s mind is constantly quiescent and reflective (Tz ‘u-hsin Ch ‘ang-chi Ch ‘ang-chao). With such a state of mind, all dharmas are eliminated as a result of one’s recognition that all dharmas are identical to Emptiness, the Provisional, and the Middle Way. Consequently, every thought in one’s mind is always correspondent with various pāramitās. At the second grade “Preliminary Grade of Reading and Reciting Sūtras” (Tu-sung p’in Wei), Chih-i illustrates that the practitioner, in order to enhance his faith in the Perfect Teaching, internally, continues to contemplate the Middle Way as the principle; externally, accepts, upholds, reads, and recites Mahāyāna scriptures. Being informed with knowledge derived from the scriptures, one is able to exert power of function to assist one’s contemplation. At the third grade “Preliminary Grade of Expounding the Dharma” (Shuo-fa-p’in Wei), one’s internal contemplation and external aid enhances, one starts to expound the teaching of the Buddha to others. At the fourth grade “Practicing Six Perfections in a Concurrent Way” (Chien-hsing Liu-tu), while the practitioner’s priority is still concerned with contemplation, he starts to carry out concurrent cultivation of the Six Perfections for the purpose of benefiting others. The last grade “Primary Practice of the Six Perfections” (Cheng-hsing Liu-tu) signifies a further progress in religious practice. Chih-i says that the practitioner’s priority is to practice the Six Perfections. As his contemplation (that is in accordance with the Perfect Teaching) is maturing, the principle and the facts become integrated. The practice of the Six Perfections enables him to realize that the Ultimate Truth is embedded in mundane affairs, and that these two are not contradictory: “Involving in the facts does not hinder [one to perceive] the principle, and residing in the principle does not isolate [one] from [perceiving] the facts.” Obviously, the empirical world entails an interpretation revealing the knowledge and insight of the Buddha. (Vol. 2, Page 218)
The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of BuddhismQuotes
The Devas and Buddhism
Louis Frederic in “Flammarion Iconographic Guides: Buddhism” gives the following summary of the position of the devas within Buddhism: “The gods of Buddhism are not saviours, but beings with more power than humans. They live in pleasure for extremely long lives, but are nevertheless ultimately subject to the cycle of rebirth and suffering. They may be worshiped for material gain, and the earliest Buddhist literature contains stories of their service to the Buddha, and their promotion and protection of Buddhism. Thus we find the gods of the Indian pantheon assisting at all the major events in the life of the Buddha, more as attentive servants than as followers.”
Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the GohonzonThe Story of Yajñadattā
Here it is appropriate to note some of [the impact of Tendai] thought on the broader intellectual life of medieval Japan. This discourse did not remain confined to Buddhist scholastic circles but was quickly assimilated to other vocabularies and found other modes of expression. It can be found, for example, in didactic tales and poetry of the medieval period. Shasekishū (Sand and pebbles), a collection of setsuwa (tales) by Mujū Ichien (a.k.a. Dōgyō, 1226—1312), relates the following:
The Shou-leng-yen Ching tells the story of Yajn͂adattā, who looked in a mirror one morning and could not see her face because of the way she was holding the mirror. Believing that her head had been taken by a demon, she ran about distractedly until someone showed her how to hold the mirror correctly. Then she thought that her head had been restored. Both her wretchedness and her delight were without foundation. The unenlightened man is like one who looks for his lost head. The mind of original enlightenment (hongaku) is not lost; the loss comes only from thinking that this is so. Thinking that we have discovered and attained something for the first time is what we feel when we experience enlightenment for the first time (shikaku). But how can we attain it for the very first time [when it has been there since the beginning]? (Page 39-40)
Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese BuddhismDefining Perfect
Defining the meaning “perfect” (Chien Ming-i), … Chih-i examines the meaning Yiian (perfect) in three perspectives, seeing that the Perfect Teaching as the ultimate embraces the Three Vehicles (śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha and bodhisattva), whereby the Three Vehicles are converged into the One Buddha-vehicle. Thus, in Chih-i’s opinion, the meaning “perfect” can be defined in terms of common in name and perfect in meaning (Ming-t ‘ung I-yüan), separate in name and perfect in meaning (Ming-pieh I-yüan), and perfect in both name and meaning (Ming-i Chü-yüan). These three perspectives are explicated in reference to the passages in the Lotus Sūtra.
Ming-t ‘ung I-yüan (Common in name and perfect in meaning) refers to the position of śrāvakas in the Perfect Teaching. Although it shares a common name with the position of śrāvakas in other teachings, it contains the meaning “perfect.” This is evidenced from a passage in the Lotus Sūtra regarding the declaration of śrāvakas:
“We are today true ‘sound-hearers,’ for [we] have made the sound of the Buddha-path heard by all.”
Chih-i argues that the true meaning Sheng-wen (Chinese etymological rendering for śrāvakas, meaning “sound-hearers”) signifies that they are the ones who can benefit all beings with the sound of the Buddha. Therefore, in this context, notwithstanding the position of śrāvakas share the same name with that of śrāvakas in the Common and Tripiṭaka Teachings, the meaning “to make the sound of the Buddha-path heard by all” implies that the position of the former is perfect. The device Chih-i applies for judging whether or not the position is perfect is by evaluating its underlying meaning rather than by its name, rendering the position of śrāvakas in the Perfect Teaching common in name and perfect in meaning. (Vol. 2, Page 216-217)
The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of BuddhismMana-shiki and Alaya-shiki
Having been created, bad karma is … transferred into and deeply embedded in the spiritual realm. We human beings have “five senses”: those of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body. Actually they are only the five senses which we can recognize. Buddhism teaches that there are two more undetectable realms stored deep in our psychological mind, “Mana-shiki” and “Alaya-shiki”.
Mana-shiki is a realm which is dominated by illusion or selfishness. This is an unconscious mind which loves the self and prioritizes self-merit. As proof of the existence of this realm, there is an example: When we see a group portrait, we first check ourselves – where we are in the picture and how we look. We do this whether we’re looking at a family portrait, a reunion picture or even a photo with a boyfriend or girlfriend. Mana-shiki always prioritizes the self, unconsciously.
Alaya-shiki is psychologically deeper than Mana-shiki, so we are unable to sense this realm at all. Because this realm stores information on various experiences and rebirths, it is called the “storehouse-consciousness.” All the information on what we see, hear, speak, think and how we act throughout our life is planted and recorded into this Alaya-shiki. In other words, all behavior carried out by the body, mouth and mind are planted into the Alaya-shiki as data which is used to generate spiritual energy for the future, or karma. This information includes things such as previous lives, memory of rebirth and human birth information too, which we are not consciously able to remember. This information is not erased when we are reborn.
Summer WritingsEarly Critics of Tendai Original Enlightenment Thought
While the perspective of original enlightenment dominated the medieval Tendai tradition, it was not universally accepted. An important critic was Hōchi-bō Shōshin (fl. 12th cent.), a scrupulous exegete who was the author of voluminous commentaries on the major works of Chih-i. Shōshin framed his criticism in response to “many among those who study shingon,” hinting at the esoteric roots of Tendai original enlightenment thought. Original enlightenment, he said, was to be understood in terms of the Awakening of Faith, as a potential within deluded worldlings to be realized by the practice of acquired enlightenment. In particular, Shōshin criticized the claim that the ordinary worldling is “originally the Buddha of self-awakening” (honrai jikakubutsu), a position he denounced as a denial of the causality of practice and attainment and “the same as heterodox teachings” (gedō-setsu). Shōshin also opposed definitions of Śākyamuni of the “Fathoming the Lifespan” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra as an originally inherent Buddha, which, he said, clearly went against the sūtra’s statement that Śākyamuni had practiced the bodhisattva way and attained Buddhahood in the remote past. Shōshin’s criticisms form an important external reference point for gauging how far original enlightenment thought had developed by the late Heian period. For convenience’ sake, this book will use the term “medieval Tendai thought” to refer to the tradition’s hongaku-dominated mainstream, but with the understanding that not all medieval Tendai thinkers accepted contemporary notions of original enlightenment. (Page 38-39)
Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese BuddhismThe Path of Vision
Sui-hsin-hsing Wei (Position of the practice following faith) is the first of the Seven Saintly Positions. The name of this position Sui-hsin-hsing (Skt., śraddhānusārin) is derived from the person with dull faculties (Ch., Tun-ken; Skt., mṛdvindriya). He enters the Path of Vision (Ch., Ju Chien-tao; Skt., niyāmāvakramapa) by his belief in what he is told by others, but not by his own intellect.
Sui-fa-hsing Wei (Position of the practice following the Dharma) is the second of the Seven Saintly Positions. In opposite to the above one, the person with relatively sharp faculties (Ch., Li-ken; Skt., t̄kyṣṇēndriya) achieves this position Sui-fa-hsing (Skt., dharmānusārin), because he enters the Path through his own contemplation of the Four Noble Truths. The first and this second position are at the initial stage of religious path and are referred to as the “Path of Vision” (Ch., Chien-tao; Skt., darśanamārga) (which entails no practice). (Vol. 2, Page 202-203)
The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra: Tien-tai Philosophy of BuddhismFour Kinds of Unhindered Eloquence
The four kinds of unhindered eloquence are dharma, meaning, words, and joy. When one has these four they are able to teach the dharma without difficulty. You could say they will be confident in their ability to teach the Buddha’s teachings to others. Knowing the meaning and words of the Dharma goes beyond an intellectual understanding or accumulation of information and knowledge. It is about the ability to express the teachings contained in the Dharma in such a way that the listener will be able to understand, and relate to their own lives. … If we are able to relate our own joy as well as cause the listener joy in hearing and understanding then we have been able to accomplish unhindered eloquence. It isn’t about fancy words. It isn’t about sharing information. It is about a deep person-to-person life-to-life communication of the profound nature of the Dharma, which actually transcends words.
Lecture on the Lotus SutraThe Possibility of Buddhahood for Ordinary Worldlings
We have already seen that Saichō saw the Lotus Sūtra as the “direct path” or “great direct path,” over and against the Hossō view of enlightenment as requiring three incalculable aeons to achieve. He was not optimistic about most people actually realizing Buddhahood with this very body, a possibility he saw as open only to those who had reached the stage of partial realization, the fifth of the six stages of identity, which corresponds to the first abode or bhūmi in the fifty-seven stages of bodhisattva practice of the perfect teaching. The fifth stage of identity and the first abode both denote the point of transition from the level of an ordinary worldling (Prthag-jana, bonbu) bound by defilements to that of the sage (ārya-sattva, shō), who has eliminated all defilements except ignorance (mumyō-waku) and begun to experience true insight. Where the birth and death of the ordinary worldling is determined by karma (bundan shōji), that of the sage is chosen in accordance with his aspiration for enlightenment and intent to benefit others (hennyaku shōji). “Realizing Buddhahood with this very body” for Saichō thus referred to the partial enlightenment of those who had already made the transition from ordinary worldling to sage. However, he also maintained that, even in the case of deluded worldlings, through the power of the Lotus Sūtra the process of enlightenment could be vastly accelerated, being fulfilled in the next lifetime or at latest the lifetime after that. This concern, even on a theoretical level, with the possibility of Buddhahood for ordinary worldlings would eventually emerge as a major characteristic of Japanese Buddhism as a whole. (Page 32)
Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese BuddhismThe Ultimate Purpose
By his systematized elaboration of [the] four categories, different divisions of Buddhist doctrines and practices become a coherent whole, and can coexist without confusion and contradiction. While confirming the diversity of the Buddha’s teaching, Chih-i conveys the real intention of the Buddha that lies in his teachings, which is for the sake of leading all sentient beings to attain Buddhahood. This ultimate purpose of attaining Buddhahood becomes more transparent in Chih-i’s system of positions: regardless of whether one’s position is inferior or superior, all practitioners of various positions can eventually reach the goal of Buddhahood. Chih-i’s justification for the disclosure of the “Subtlety of Positions” can be detected from the following paragraph:
“Since truth as principle is merged, knowledge is perfect without any interval; [when] practice is guided [by knowledge], it becomes subtle. [Upon] a manifestation of these three meanings (i.e., truth, knowledge, and practice), the substance, gist, and function [of the Lotus Sūtra] are complete. Furthermore, the Subtlety of Positions should be exposed.”
This implies that related to truth that is perfect, knowledge is perfect as well. The perfect knowledge can guide practice to its completion. When all these three categories, truth, knowledge, and practice are realized, the level of attainment arises. (Vol. 2, Page 196)