SGI-USA Study Curriculum

Lectures on the Hoben and Juryo Chapters of the Lotus Sutra
by SGI President Daisaku Ikeda

The Buddha Struggles To Change People's Hearts Through Dialogue

Shari-hotsu. Go ju jo-butsu irai. Shuju innen. Shuju hiyu. Ko en gonkyo. Mu shu hoben. Indo shujo. Ryo ri shojaku.

Shariputra, ever since I attained Buddhahood I have through various causes and various similes widely expounded my teachings and have used countless expedient means to guide living beings and cause them to renounce their attachments.¹

Dialogue is the lifeline of Buddhism. The Buddha's fundamental objective is to develop wisdom equal to his own in the lives of all people.

As this implies, we tell others about Buddhism because, fundamentally, we venerate their lives. If, on the other hand, we had the attitude, "Even if I tell this person about Buddhism, it couldn't possibly do any good," then we simply would not bother talking to them.

We tell people about Buddhism because we respect them as human beings. Because we trust the person, we can conduct tenacious dialogue.

With the words, "I have... widely expounded my teachings and have used countless expedient means to guide living beings," Shakyamuni indicates that he has guided people through free and boundless dialogue. Shakyamuni and Nichiren Daishonin both spread the Law through talking and speaking out in the very midst of the people.

Josei Toda and Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, the first and second presidents of the Soka Gakkai, were also experts at dialogue and discussion. Regardless of the social standing of the person they were addressing, they always spoke with dignity and conviction. They created a history of such conversation.

The power of dialogue changes people's hearts. Sincere dialogue is the sunlight that can soften and melt hearts that are thoroughly frozen over. Clear, confident words are the fresh breeze that dispels clouds of illusion. Buddhist dialogue is the prime point for bringing change to people's lives.

Shakyamuni says here that he has conducted compassionate dialogue and spoken earnestly with a "must-win" spirit in order to help others; and that he has exercised every ounce of wisdom and ingenuity to ensure that his words might reach people's hearts. This is the significance of the "various causes and various similes" to which he refers. In other words, he continually spoke out and conducted dialogue, explaining the reason behind the unfolding of actions and events and employing examples to make his teaching easy to understand.

The 'Cause' To Dedicate One's Life to Kosen-rufu

In Japan today, the word innen ("causes") is often associated with the curses of the spirits of deceased ancestors or some such superstition. But this has nothing to do with the original meaning of the term in Buddhism. The causes of our happiness or misfortune all exist within our own lives.

In Buddhism, innen, or "causes," has a more profound meaning. It includes the ideas of "cause and effect," "origin" and "relation."²

One Buddhist scripture, for example, explains the "causes" of King Ashoka as follows. There are two young boys, Tokusho Doji and Musho Doji, who once made offerings to Shakyamuni. Tokusho Doji offers him a mud pie, while Musho Doji presses his palms together in reverence. Shakyamuni then explains to his disciple Ananda, "Tokusho Doji is sure to be reborn as a king named Ashoka." Later, according to traditional accounts, Tokusho Doji, due to the causes he formed in making an offering to the Buddha, is born as the son of King Bindusara named Ashoka.

In the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, through examples, such as these, Shakyamuni strove to help people awaken to the strict law of cause and effect operating in their lives.

When We Remember Our Mission We Can Manifest Our True Ability and Win

Still greater significance attaches to the "causes" expounded in the Lotus Sutra. These concern what might be termed the life-to-life bond between the Buddha and the people; the relationship that has existed between the Buddha and living beings since the remote past of sanzen-jintengo or gohyaku- jintengo.

In this connection, President Toda discussed the phrase "various causes" from the standpoint of the Daishonin's Buddhism as follows:

Regarding the meaning of "various causes": in the time of kuon ganjo we were followers of the original Buddha Nichiren Daishonin. Because of this "cause," now in the Latter Day of the Law, more than 600 years after the Daishonin's passing, as disciples of Nichiren Daishonin, we have appeared in Japan, a country steeped in misery, as poor people. And we demonstrate that by believing in this Gohonzon we can become wealthy. When we recall the cause we made in having promised to accomplish kosen-rufu, our poverty and other sufferings will vanish in an instant.

In order to prove the power of benefit of the Mystic Law, we need to experience various worries and struggles in our present existence. Having promised in the primal moment of kuon ganjo to accomplish the widespread propagation of the Mystic Law, we have now been born to carry out this mission.

It is impossible that a Bodhisattva of the Earth could remain submerged in suffering or be defeated by hardships. Once we realize the cause --- namely, that we were born in our circumstances in accordance with our own wishes in order to prove the validity of Buddhism --- we can definitely win.

One Person's Victory Provides an Illustration for All

Next, "various similes" in this passage refers to the allegories and parables Shakyamuni expounded in the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings. Using natural reason and examples from immediate life experience to explain difficult Buddhist principles makes them easy to understand. This is Shakyamuni's purpose in employing similes.

The use of similes, therefore, arises from compassion for others. Precisely because the Buddha's spirit of compassion is so strong, he expounds skillful similes in hopes of making his teachings as easy as possible to understand.

The Buddha, adapting his preaching to the people's capacity, draws comparisons with a wide variety of natural phenomena and common observations. For example, in the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings he variously compares earthly desires to a fierce current that carries people along, to a shade that conceals the light of the Buddha nature, to flames that consume one's body and mind, to poison that harms one greatly, and to a dense forest where those who become lost can never find their way out. In this way, he taught people the fearfulness of, and tried to cause them to renounce, earthly desires.

Simply renouncing earthly desires, however, does not amount to attaining the enlightenment of the Buddha. The similes of the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings explain the Buddha's wisdom from one angle only. In fact, there is the danger that if we become overly preoccupied with these similes, it will actually increase the difficulty of attaining Buddhahood.

By contrast, the similes of the Lotus Sutra are at one with the Buddha's wisdom. That's because they reveal and express the Buddha's enlightenment and wisdom just as it is.

Composing Various Similes of Actual Proof

Moreover, viewed from the standpoint of the fundamental law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, it might be said that all sutras, including the twenty-eight-chapter Lotus Sutra, are grand similes to help people understand the Gohonzon of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

From the standpoint of the Daishonin's Buddhism, instances of actual proof of faith manifesting in our daily lives are also similes explaining the Gohonzon's power of benefit. These similes of actual proof in daily life are in fact eloquent testimony to the truth of the Gohonzon.

Regarding "various similes," President Toda explained that the life-or-death struggles to propagate the Law undertaken by followers who were the Daishonin's contemporaries and the abundant benefit they received, serve as similes for us in modern times.

The outstanding activities of the Daishonin's followers in his day provide an example for those of later ages. There is Shijo Kingo, who overcame hardships in his place of work; the Ikegami brothers, who brought their father --- who had opposed their teaching --- to convert to the Daishonin's teaching; Nanjo Tokimitsu, who defeated the devil of illness and dedicated his life to the mission of a successor; Myoichi-ama, who struggled in the cause of faith for herself and on behalf of her deceased husband; and the list goes on and on. The actual proof of each follower of the Daishonin who overcame difficult circumstances is a source of great encouragement for us as we face similar problems in our own lives.

This same basic principle applies to our discussion of our own experiences. One person's victorious experience can provide courage, hope and heartfelt understanding to many others.

Our victories become splendid illustrations of how many others can win. Our triumphs over hardships provide many others with the confidence: "If that's the case, then I can win, too. That person can win, too. Everyone can be victorious"

When talking about the power of the Mystic Law, people may discuss your victory as a "simile," saying, "Just look at him, for example," or "Look at the human revolution she is carrying out."

In this sense, let us compose many dramas of human revolution for the sake of others. Let us adorn our lives with many "various causes" and "various similes."

And let us deck out our communities like flower gardens filled with the "various similes" of many and varied dramas of human revolution, with one person after another realizing victory and becoming happy.

The Wisdom to Discern the True Nature of Attachments

Shakyamuni says that he tried to free people from various desires and illusions by employing various causes and similes.

The fundamental cause of people's unhappiness lies in their tendency to develop attachments of various kinds. An attachment, just as it sounds, is a fetter on one's heart; it indicates earthly desires, cravings and the like. In the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, Shakyamuni taught the people of the nine worlds whose lives were steeped in misery the path for freeing themselves from such attachments. That is, as he says in the above passage, he "caused them to renounce their attachments."

The spirit of the Lotus Sutra, however, is not to eradicate earthly desires. When we base ourselves on the Mystic Law, we can transform earthly desires --- just as they are --- into enlightenment. This is the principle of "earthly desires are enlightenment."

Regarding the passage in the "Former Affairs of the Bodhisattva Medicine King," the 23rd chapter, "[The Lotus Sutra] can cause living beings to cast off all ... pain," (LS-23, 286) Nichiren Daishonin says in the "Ongi Kuden" (Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings) that "cast off" should be interpreted as meaning "become enlightened concerning" (Gosho Zenshu, p. 773).

In terms of the Daishonin's Buddhism, therefore, the phrase "cause them to renounce their attachments" should be interpreted as meaning "cause them to become enlightened concerning their attachments." It's not a matter of eradicating attachments but of seeing them clearly. In other words, rather than causing us to abandon our earthly desires and attachments, our Buddhist practice enables us to discern their true nature and utilize them as the driving force to become happy.

The truth is that we could not in fact eradicate our attachments even if we so wished. And if, for the sake of argument, it were feasible, doing so would make it impossible to live in the real world.

What is important is that we make full use of our attachments rather than allow them to control us. Toward that end, it is necessary that we clearly recognize them for what they are.

Make Full Use of Your Attachments

President Toda said:

The Gohonzon enables us to perceive our attachments just as they are. I believe that each of you has attachments. 1, too, have attachments. Because we have attachments, we can lead interesting and significant lives. For example, to succeed in business or to do a lot of shakubuku, we must have attachment to such activities. Our faith enables us to maintain these attachments in such a way that they do not cause us suffering. Rather than being controlled by our attachments, we need to fully utilize of our attachments in order to become happy.

The essence of Mahayana Buddhism lies in developing the state of life to clearly discern and thoroughly utilize our attachments, and in leading lives made interesting and significant by cultivating strong attachments.

In short, we should cause the firewood of earthly desires to burn high and, to that same extent, chant sincere daimoku and take action. In so doing, our earthly desires become a springboard to propel us toward our attainment of Buddhahood.

Faith means creating a "mountain" for ourselves and then climbing it; and then starting out again. In this process, we develop from a state of life in which we are caught up with our own small worries, to one in which we can challenge progressively greater worries --- for the sake of a friend, for many others, for all humankind.

Toward that end, it is important that we always consider the purpose of our actions. When we clearly establish our fundamental objective in life, we can utilize our attachments most fully and profitably. We can turn them into tailwinds to propel us toward happiness.

This principle offers an extremely valuable gauge for living in modern society, where people are constantly swept along by various wants and cravings.

Notes:

1. Ed. note: All quotations from the Lotus Sutra are from The Lotus Sutra, trans. Burton Watson (New York: Columbia University Press, 1993). For purposes of convenience, all citations from this work will be given in the text and abbreviated as follows: LS followed by the chapter number and then the page number.
2. Innen (Skt hetu-pratyaya): This term is a compound of the two units in and en. In terms of the ten factors of life expounded in the "Expedient Means" chapter, in (or nyo ze in) means internal cause, and en (nyo ze en) means external cause or relation. According to Buddhist doctrine, everything happens as a result of the interplay of in and en, or internal and external causes.

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