SGI-USA Study Curriculum

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

The Light of the Buddha's Character Is Inextinguishable

Sho-i sha ga. Nyorai nyojit^chiken. Sangai shi so. Mu u shoji. Nyaku tai nyaku shutsu. Yaku mu zai-se. Gyu metsu-do sha. Hi jitsu hi ko. Hi nyo hi i. Fu nyo sangai. Ken no sangai. Nyo shi shi ji. Nyorai myo ken. Mu u shaku-myo.

"Why do I do this? The Thus Come One perceives the true aspect of the threefold world exactly as it is. There is no ebb or flow of birth and death, and there is no existing in this world and later entering extinction. It is neither substantial nor empty, neither consistent nor diverse. Nor is it what those who dwell in the threefold world perceive it to be. All such things the Thus Come One sees clearly and without error." (LS-16, 226)

Wisdom Arises From Compassion

This is a time of change. With the dawn of the 21st century just ahead, the world and its individual nations are undergoing profound transformation. What is most needed at this time of great change? To give a single answer, it would have to be wisdom.

Whether individually or as a group, when people view the affairs of the age and society with a discerning eye and manifest fresh wisdom, they will not be dragged down by even the most tumultuous events. Instead, they can steer change toward development, toward victory and toward value creation.

By contrast, those who adhere to inflexible and outdated modes of thinking will be left behind. To respond to change incorrectly means defeat. The present is a time of such unforgiving strictness; we must not underestimate the challenge it represents. Therefore, for the sake of happiness and victory, the wisdom of the Thus Come One who "perceives the true aspect of the world exactly as it is" is becoming increasingly important.

Simply put, knowledge corresponds to the past; it is technology. Wisdom is the future; it is philosophy. It is people's hearts that move the age. While knowledge may provide a useful point of reference, it cannot become a force to guide the future. By contrast, wisdom captivates people's hearts and has the power to open a new age. Wisdom is the key to understanding the age and creating the "time." Faith is a treasure house of infinite wisdom. Nichiren Daishonin says that faith is "a casket containing the treasures of the.. . 'three thousand realms in a single life-moment'" (MW-6, 213). A mind that believes in the Mystic Law, in other words, is a treasure chest containing the Buddha's wisdom of the three thousand realms in a single life-moment.

Therefore, there is no need for us to be surprised or taken aback by any change or turmoil we encounter. We possess the Buddha's infinite wisdom in the treasure chest of faith in our lives. If we possess infinite wisdom, then we can calmly take appropriate measures to surmount any and all difficulties that beset us with the rhythm of turning change into victory and turmoil into growth.

The passage "The Thus Come One perceives the true aspect of the threefold world exactly as it is" describes the wisdom of the Buddha. The Buddha's wisdom is the ability to perceive "the true aspect of the threefold world," the true nature of reality, exactly as it is.

Why does the Buddha perceive the true aspect of the threefold world exactly as it is? To liberate the beings of the threefold world from suffering. The source of the Buddha's wisdom is compassion. The Buddha's wisdom arises from, and is at one with, compassion.

The Buddha's wisdom to perceive the very core of the nature of reality arises from his strong and single-minded, compassionate determination to save those suffering. The Buddha, because he possesses such single-minded compassion, can unerringly perceive in the actual world of suffering and disunion the "world of the Mystic Law" and the "world of harmony" indicated by the principle of the three thousand realms in a single life-moment.

One of the Buddha's names is Endowed with Abundant Life Span. The Buddha's abundant life span is none other than his eternal and universal wisdom. For this reason, the Buddha is also called the One Who Subsists on Wisdom.

The "Life Span of the Thus Come One" (16th) chapter of the Lotus Sutra explains that the life span of the One Who Subsists on Wisdom is infinite. The Buddha enlightened since the remote past is essentially the embodiment of the wisdom to continue taking action to lead people to enlightenment.

Accordingly, the central significance of the Buddha of the "Life Span" chapter is that of wisdom. He is also the Bliss Body Thus Come One. The bliss body, or property of wisdom, is the dignified virtue acquired by the Buddha as reward for his Buddhist practice. The core of this benefit is the Buddha's wisdom to perceive that the real world-just as it is-is the world of the Mystic Law. Through this wisdom the Buddha can, of his own accord, freely receive, employ and enjoy a sense of profound comfort and ease derived from the Mystic Law. This Buddha is also called the Buddha of Limitless Joy or the Buddha of Absolute Freedom.

In this sense, T'ien-t'ai designates the Buddha of the "Life Span" chapter as the "three enlightened properties viewed in terms of the property of wisdom." He says, in other words, that the "Life Span" chapter explains the three enlightened properties of the Dharma body (property of the Law), the bliss body (property of wisdom) and the manifested body (property of action), all from the standpoint of the Buddha's property of wisdom.

The Dharrna Body Thus Come One signifies the Mystic Law, the central unchanging truth. The Buddha's wisdom is first and foremost the wisdom to perceive the Mystic Law. From the standpoint of the Buddha's enlightenment, wisdom and the Mystic Law are inseparable; apart from the Mystic Law, there is no wisdom. The Buddha embodying the Mystic Law, who is thus at one with wisdom, is called the Dharma Body Thus Come One.

From a temporal standpoint, the Mystic Law is eternal; from a spatial standpoint, it is boundless. As the rhythm of the universe, it continues to operate regardless of whether the Buddha is manifest in the world or not.

This is what is indicated by the passage "There is no ebb or flow of birth and death...." There is neither birth nor death. There is neither substance nor void, as the terms are commonly used. Nor can it be said that there is either consistency or diversity among things. In short, the world of the Mystic Law cannot be wholly grasped with the ordinary wisdom of beings of the threefold world.

The Mystic Law is the very wellspring of the cosmic life that encompasses all phenomena, including birth and death. The Buddha who perceives the Mystic Law exactly as it is and who possesses it as his own life-who possesses the universe itself as his own life-is the Dharma Body Thus Come One.

However, unless the Buddha uses his wisdom to expound the Mystic Law, others cannot freely employ the power of the Mystic Law. In actuality, therefore, the Mystic Law is at work only when the Buddha appears in the world and exercises his wisdom to expound the Mystic Law. When people seek the Buddha, the Buddha's wisdom arises. The Buddha senses people's seeking spirit and appears in response.

The Buddha who appears in response to people's minds and their capacity is the Manifested Body Thus Come One. The Buddha's wisdom concretely manifests in the form of Buddhas and bodhisattvas and teaches and guides people. In the "Life Span" chapter, these various forms are indicated by the passage "Sometimes I speak of myself, sometimes of others...," describing the "six modes of preaching," which we studied in Part 24 (Oct. 27 World Tribune).

The Buddha appears in a form people can most easily accept, conducts himself in a way that puts people's minds most at ease and guides people. Behind such appearance and action, the Buddha's wisdom is at work; behind such appearance and action, there breathes the Bliss Body Thus Come One.

The wisdom arising from the Buddha's compassion to help others become happy is the underlying power that causes the Buddha to appear.

In this way, the "Life Span" chapter explains the nature of the Buddha enlightened since the remote past from the standpoint of the Bliss Body, and clarifies that this Buddha is an entity endowed with the three enlightened properties. T'ien-t'ai says, "A single Buddha possesses all three enlightened properties and the three properties are all found within a single Buddha." The Buddha who, as the unity of the three bodies eternally dwells in the world, i.e., the Buddha of the "Life Span" chapter, eternally illuminates people's lives with the light of compassion and wisdom arising from his profound state of life. The profound light of the Buddha's character-that is, his power to guide people-is inextinguishable.

The Ultimate Buddha Body

In terms of the implicit meaning of the sutra, the Buddha who possesses all three enlightened properties and within whom the three properties all exist is the Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Thus Come One, or Nichiren Daishonin. From the standpoint of the sutra's literal meaning, the Buddha who attained enlightenment in the remote past possesses the three bodies in the one bliss body he acquired as the result of his practice.

By contrast, from the standpoint of the Daishonin's teaching, this means that the one body of ordinary people is originally endowed with the three bodies. This is termed "the Buddha originally endowed with the three enlightened properties." These bodies are said to be originally endowed because the universe is inherently endowed with the virtues of the three bodies, and so there is no need for them to be created anew in each person. Accordingly, we can attain this Buddha body without changing our form as ordinary people.

The Buddha originally endowed with the three enlightened properties is the ultimate Buddha body. The true intention of the "Life Span" chapter is to lead all people after Shakyamuni's passing to enlightenment. To make this universal salvation possible, Shakyamuni concealed the ultimate Buddha originally endowed with the three enlightened properties in the chapter's depths.

Therefore, Nichiren Daishonin, in clarifying exactly what the "Life Span" chapter teaches, says: "Common mortals like ourselves, who have been submerged in the sufferings of birth and death since time without beginning and who never so much as dreamed of reaching the shore of enlightenment, are in essence Buddhas originally endowed with the three enlightened properties. That is, he [Shakyamuni] taught the ultimate doctrine of ichinen sanzen." (MW-4, 124).

When we perceive the universe exactly as it is, we find it inherently endowed with the virtues of the three enlightened properties. This is the true aspect of the world of living beings steeped in the sufferings of birth and death. The universe, after producing material substance and the stars and mountains, rivers and oceans on the face of the earth, eventually produced life. And after producing a wide array of life forms over the course of several hundred million years, it finally produced humankind. It can be said that this is all the function of the Buddha originally endowed with the three enlightened properties.

The second Soka Gakkai president, Josei Toda, used to say that life and phenomena at each moment are the Thus Come One. Also, he discerned that the function to produce and nurture life is the "work of compassion" with which the universe is inherently endowed.

He taught that the universe, which is continually seeking to carry forward this work of compassion, causes the latent world of Buddhahood to become manifest in response to the time. This is the mechanism whereby a Buddha appears.

What, then, can we do to perceive in our own lives the three enlightened properties with which we are originally endowed? The Daishonin says, "The originally endowed three enlightened properties mentioned here are attained through a single word. And that word is faith" (Gosho Zenshu, p. 753). And, "If we exert a hundred million eons of effort in a single moment of life, then in instant after instant there will arise in us the three enlightened properties with which our lives are originally endowed" (Gosho Zenshu, p. 790).

The three enlightened properties with which our lives are inherently endowed become manifest through faith. The supremely noble Mystic Law, the Buddha's immeasurable wisdom, and the function of compassion to lead all people to enlightenment are all contained in faith. Therefore, wisdom cannot fail to manifest in the lives of those who exert themselves in faith.

President Toda said: "When we chant daimoku with faith in the Dai-Gohonzon, faith becomes the cause and our voice chanting becomes the effect. This faith and practice together form the simultaneity of cause and effect, and we instantly gain the effect of Buddhahood; the life of the Thus Come One of kuon ganjo, endowed with the three enlightened properties, begins to flow abundantly in our being." He also said: "All benefits of the Gohonzon become manifest in the daily lives of us common mortals. Only through believing wholeheartedly in the great spirit of compassion and the great power of wisdom of the original Buddha can we ordinary people, as followers of the original Buddha, attain enlightenment in our present form. There absolutely are no other Buddhas."

Such is the greatness of the Gohonzon. Such is the great condition of happiness of those who thoroughly dedicate themselves to faith.

This state of life is something with which we are originally endowed. We can develop the state of life of the Buddha with total composure and in a manner true to ourselves, never needing to put on airs or make adjustments. The important thing is to devote ourselves to faith.

The Buddha originally endowed with the three enlightened properties is another name for those champions of faith who, while leading ordinary lives, attain greatness.

1. Three enlightened properties or three bodies: three integral aspects of the Buddha. The three bodies are (1 ) the Dharma body or property of the Law, the fundamental truth or Law to which the Buddha is enlightened, (2) the bliss body or property of wisdom, the spiritual property of the Buddha's life that enables the Buddha to perceive the truth; and (3) the manifested body or property of action, the physical property of the Buddha's life.
   
   The three bodies are described by certain passages of the "Life Span" chapter as follows. The Dharma body: "There is no ebb or flow of birth and death, and there is no existing in this world and later entering extinction. It is neither substantial nor empty, neither consistent nor diverse. Nor is it what those who dwell in the threefold world perceive it to be." The bliss body: "The Thus Come One perceives the true aspect of the threefold world exactly as it is." The manifested body: "Sometimes I speak of myself, sometimes of others; sometimes I present myself, sometimes others; sometimes I show my own actions, sometimes those of others."

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