SGI-USA Study Curriculum
Lectures on the Hoben and Juryo Chapters of the Lotus Sutra
by SGI President Daisaku Ikeda
How To Manifest the Life of 'Kuon Ganjo'
Issai seken. Tennin gyu. Ashura. Kai i kon shaka-muni-butsu.
Shus^shaku-shi gu. Ko gayajo fu on. Za o dojo. Toku a-noku-ta-ra
san-myaku sanbodai. Nen zen-nanshi. Ga jitsu jo-butsu irai.
Muryo muhen. Hyaku sen man noku. Nayuta ko.
"In all the worlds the heavenly and human beings
and ashuras all believe that the present Shakyamuni Buddha,
after leaving the palace of the Shakyas, seated himself
in the place of practice not far from the city of Gaya and
there attained anuttara-samyak-sambodhi [the supreme perfect
enlightenment]. But good men, it has been immeasurable,
boundless hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, millions of
nayutas of kalpas since I in fact attained Buddhahood."
(LS, 225)1
Ga jitsu jo-butsu irai. Muryo muhen. Hyaku sen man noku.
Nayuta ko.
It has been immeasurable, boundless hundreds, thousands,
ten thousands, millions of nayutas of kalpas since I in
fact attained Buddhahood.
The sanctity of life is something known to everyone. At
the same time, there is universal confusion about the essential
meaning of life's sanctity.
If the sanctity of life can become a solid touchstone of
wisdom for all people, then humankind's destiny to repeatedly
experience war and misery can be greatly transformed. It
is toward this end that we are struggling.
From the 20th century, a century of war, to a century of
life --- the crucial moment for this great transformation
has now arrived. This is the "time of the essential
teaching," the moment for "casting off the transient
and revealing the true."
In any instance of great transition, there is always an
individual who stands up in response to the exigencies of
the time. As long as there is one such outstanding person,
then two or three will follow. This is the principle of
kosen-rufu.
Let us now begin a dynamic march toward the 75th anniversary
of the Soka Gakkai's founding in the year 2005.
The Lotus Sutra is the teaching that can enable all people
to unfailingly perceive life's sanctity and establish a
dignified way of life.
The lesson of the Lotus Sutra's theoretical teaching is
that all people can uncover the wisdom of the Buddha inherent
in their lives.
By contrast, the "Life Span of the Thus Come One"
chapter of the essential teaching reveals that Shakyamuni
did not attain the wisdom of the Buddha for the first time
in his present lifetime. Its lesson is that the eternal
activities of life are fundamentally endowed with the wisdom
of the Buddha and that Shakyamuni is the entity of that
eternal life.
By casting off his transient status and revealing his true
identity, Shakyamuni clarifies that each person is an entity
of eternal life. This substantiates the Lotus Sutra's teaching
that all people can gain access to the wisdom of the Buddha
and develop their state of life.
Nichiren Daishonin's 'Casting Off the Transient
and Revealing the True'
Nichiren Daishonin actualized the principle of "casting
off the transient and revealing the true" at the time
of the Tatsunokuchi Persecution, which took place on the
12th day of the ninth month of 1271.
In "The Opening of the Eyes," he says: "On
the twelfth day of the ninth month of last year, between
the hours of the rat and the ox [11:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m.],
this person named Nichiren was beheaded. It is his soul
that has come to this island of Sado..." (MW-2 [2nd
ed.], 153).
Nichikan Shonin says regarding this passage:
The fundamental meaning of this passage is as follows:
the founder and great sage Nichiren speaks of the entity
of the life of an ordinary person at the [initial] stage
of myoji-soku2 becoming
the Buddha of limitless joy of kuon ganjo, and attaining
his true identity. He thus clearly indicates himself to
be the original Buddha of the Buddhism of sowing [who
makes his advent] in the Latter Day of the Law.
In other words, the Daishonin manifested the life of the
Buddha of limitless joy of kuon ganjo in the life of an
ordinary person. This is how the Daishonin actualized the
principle of "casting off the transient and revealing
the true."
The Daishonin's true identity is that of the Buddha of
limitless joy (Jpn jijuyushin) of kuon ganjo. Limitless
joy means "the self that freely receives and employs"
(Gosho Zenshu, p. 759). It indicates the state of life of
one who attains awareness that the entire universe is his
own life, and who freely receives and employs the power
of the Mystic Law that is the fundamental wellspring of
the cosmic life.
'You Should Be Delighted at This Great Fortune'
To Shijo Kingo who tearfully remarked when Nichiren Daishonin
was about to be beheaded at Tatsunokuchi, "These are
your last moments," the Daishonin said, "You should
be delighted at this great fortune" (MW-1, 181).
Seen from the vast state of life of one who freely receives
and employs the power of the world of Buddhahood pervading
the universe, the schemes of Hei no Saemon and Ryokan of
Gokuraku-ji temple to do the Daishonin in must have seemed
of very little consequence indeed. "I had long expected
it to come to this" (MW-1, 175), the Daishonin says,
dispassionately reflecting on the situation.
Even while in exile on the island of Sado, he reveals his
immense state of life: "I feel immeasurable delight
even though I am now an exile" (MW-1, 94). Despite
the severity of the conditions under which he lived, while
there he composed "The Opening of the Eyes" and
"The True Object of Worship," which clarify the
teaching that can lead all people to enlightenment during
the ten thousand years of the Latter Day of the Law. And
it was there that he first began to inscribe Gohonzon.
What a vast and boundless state of life the Daishonin possessed!
No persecution, no matter how severe, could destroy his
spirit.
President Toda used to remark: "There are those who
say that the Daishonin was great because he endured such
great persecutions. That may be so, but what makes him greater
still is that, even while enduring all manner of great persecution,
he continued struggling with immense compassion to lead
all people to enlightenment."
The Daishonin's "casting off the transient and revealing
the true" should not be seen as putting him on a plane
inaccessible to ordinary people. What the Daishonin in fact
revealed at Tatsunokuchi is the supreme path of human conduct.
Through his own example, the Daishonin revealed the greatness
and dignity of the individual human being. He certainly
did not cease to he a human being. Rather, he manifested
the vast state of life within him in order to raise up the
lives of all people.
The essence of Buddhism lies in the principle of ordinary
people in their present form manifesting the supremely noble
state of Buddhahood. The life of kuon ganjo can be manifested
in the entity of the life of a common mortal. This is what
the Daishonin taught by his own example through "casting
off the transient and revealing the true."
Advance With a Great Awareness of Your Mission
While on a different level, we should each strive to manifest
our true identity through our faith and our practice for
kosen-rufu.
"Revealing the true" means to stand up based
on the most profound awareness. By translating this awareness
into action, we reveal our true identity.
President Toda said: "In terms of the surface meaning
of the sutras, or in terms of our external function, we
are Bodhisattvas of the Earth. But from the standpoint of
faith, we are followers and later disciples of Nichiren
Daishonin." This conviction, he went on to say, is
the "central idea of the Soka Gakkai."
When all members stand up with the realization that they
are children of the Buddha who have a direct connection
with Nichiren Daishonin, the SGI will, as an organization,
actualize the principle of "casting off the transient
and revealing the true."
We Each Possess an Important Mission for
Kosen-rufu
The day of "casting off the transient and revealing
the true" for the Soka Gakkai was May 3, 1951, when
Josei Toda became the second Soka Gakkai president.
At that time, President Toda made his great declaration
vowing to achieve a membership of 750,000 households. In
response to his impassioned call, the entire membership
of the Soka Gakkai became filled with the great awareness:
"We are Bodhisattvas of the Earth!" "We are
the true followers of the original Buddha!"
Around that day, President Toda said many times: "Looking
back, from around the spring of 1943, President Makiguchi
was always saying that the Soka Gakkai 'has to cast off
the transient and reveal the true.' Unless we actualized
the principle of 'casting off the transient and revealing
the true,' he said, something was wrong with us. Everyone
just stood around perplexed, not knowing what to do."
In the end, Mr. Toda carried out President Makiguchi's
spirit. The bond of mentor and disciple is the key to "casting
off the transient and revealing the true."
We are all children of the original Buddha. There is not
one of us who does not have an important mission to fulfill.
There are no members of the SGI who do not possess the true
identity of a Bodhisattva of the Earth.
In his novel Ningen Kakumei (The Human Revolution),3
President Toda describes his attainment of enlightenment
while in prison. The character representing him in the novel,
Gan, is an ordinary man who lives in a tenement. Why did
he depict a scene of enlightenment with a totally unexceptional
person as the protagonist?
President Toda explained: "This is to make it clear
that anyone at all can equally share in the mission to accomplish
kosen-rufu."
"True identity" means true self. The life of
the Buddha wells forth powerfully in those who awaken to
their original mission; whatever their personal or social
situation, such people can realize victory in life with
total composure. They can follow a joyful and meaningful
path in life. Therefore, those who base themselves on the
theme "kosen-rufu and my life" will never become
deadlocked.
The life of Nichiren Daishonin and the power of the Gohonzon
are as vast and boundless as the universe itself. Our own
lives also contain infinite potential. Whether we can actualize
that potential depends entirely on the strength and depth
of our determination in faith.
Rise With the Buddha Every Morning, Rest
With the Buddha Every Night
Whenever we find ourselves in a deadlock, we need to challenge
ourselves to offer sincere prayer and summon forth great
power of faith to resolve the situation. According to President
Toda, this is what "casting off the transient and revealing
the true" means for us. Faith means to struggle against
deadlock. Faith is a struggle between the devil and the
Buddha. In Buddhism, victory or defeat is the prime concern.
Every morning we start out from the prime point of life.
Every morning the sun of kuon ganjo rises in our hearts.
"Morning after morning we rise with the Buddha, evening
after evening with the Buddha we rest. Moment by moment
we attain the Way, moment by moment we reveal the true"
(Gosho Zenshu, p. 737).
He says, "moment by moment we reveal the true."
When we exert ourselves in chanting daimoku and carrying
out activities for kosen-rufu, our true self --- the Buddha
of limitless joy --- appears in our lives; our wisdom is
activated; courage wells forth; and we can enjoy a state
of life of total freedom. This is what "casting off
the transient and revealing the true" means for us.
In the "Ongi Kuden" (Record of the Orally Transmitted
Teachings), the Daishonin explains the implicit meaning
of the passage, "it has been immeasurable, boundless...kalpas
since I in fact attained Buddhahood," as follows: "The
passage is thus saying that the Buddhahood that 'I in fact
attained' is immeasurable and boundless in both the past
and the future" (Gosho Zenshu, p. 753).
When through faith we realize, "Fundamentally, I am
a Buddha," our true self in the present moment, which
contains our life over both the eternal past and the eternal
future, becomes manifest. Then, the Daishonin teaches, we
can freely engage ourselves on the great stage of eternal
life. The "Life Span" chapter reveals the cosmic
life force we each originally possess.
Notes:
- All quotations from the Lotus Sutra are from: The
Lotus Sutra, trans. Burton Watson (New York: Columbia
University Press, 1993). All citations from this work
are abbreviated as follows: Lotus Sutra, followed by the
page number.
- Myoji-soku is the second of the six stages of practice
set forth by T'ien-t'ai in the Maka Shikan (Great Concentration
and Insight). This is the stage at which one hears the
name (myo) of the ultimate reality and/or reads the words
(ji) of the Buddhist teachings and thereby understands
theoretically that one inherently possesses the Buddha
nature and that all phenomena are manifestations of the
Mystic Law.
- The novel Ningen Kakumei by Josei Toda and The Human
Revolution by President Ikeda are two separate works.
Ningen Kakumei is a biographical account of Toda and his
relationship with Tsunesaburo Makiguchi in the early days
of the Soka Gakkai. It has not been published in English.
President Ikeda's novel begins with Toda's release from
prison in 1945.
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