SGI-USA Study Curriculum
Lectures on the Hoben and Juryo Chapters of the Lotus Sutra
by SGI President Daisaku Ikeda
The 'Jigage' Is a Song in Praise
of the 'Greater Self'
The morning sun of the new century has arisen in the sky
above the world, and in the great sky of our hearts.
The SGI is the sun of the world. Each of us, therefore,
is a sun-like existence. The brilliance of our lives illuminates
our homes, our communities and society at large.
The sun burns on its own. It is a scorching ball of fire.
Nichiren Daishonin says, "In the breast of the Buddha
is a great fire" (The Major Writings of Nichiren Daishonin,
vol. 7, p. 98). It is the fire of great compassion that
impels the Buddha to go into the midst of those laboring
under suffering and thoroughly burn away their misery. It
is the light of the Buddha's great wisdom to lead all people
to enlightenment.
The fire of the Buddha continues to burn eternally. It
definitely never goes out. The Daishonin says that even
if the entire world were underwater and about to be washed
away, still this huge fire could not be extinguished (MW-7,
98).
The Buddha continues to illuminate people's lives eternally
throughout the future. The source of this light is the "Life
Span of the Thus Come One" (16th) chapter of the Lotus
Sutra. And the jigage section that concludes the chapter
contains the inextinguishable flame of the Buddha's immense
compassion and the light of the Buddha's great wisdom.
We will now at last commence our study of the jigage section.
What Is the 'Jigage'?
In the first place, what does ge in jigage mean? It is
a transliteration of the Sanskrit term gatha, which is also
sometimes rendered as keta or kada. In short, it means "verse."
To put it another way, a text that relates the Buddha's
teaching or that praises the virtues of the Buddha and bodhisattvas
through verse is termed ge. And ge are Buddhist scriptures
that are easily recited and memorized. Since this ge begins
with the words ji ga toku burrai, it is called the jigage.
The English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822) remarked,
"A great poem is a fountain forever overflowing with
the waters of wisdom and delight."1
The jigage is truly an inexhaustible wellspring of wisdom
and delight. It is a true paean to freedom.
The benefit that accrues to those who read and recite the
jigage is vast and immeasurable.
Nichiren Daishonin says that the jigage "represents
the soul of the twenty-eight chapters of the Lotus Sutra"
(MW-7, 111). He also states:
The Buddhas throughout the ten directions looked up to the
Jigage as their teacher and attained Buddhahood. The Jigage
is like a father and a mother to the persons of the world.
A person who embraces the Juryo chapter of the Lotus
Sutra is sustaining the life of the Buddhas. (MW-7, 111-12)
He teaches that the lives of all Buddhas of the past, present
and future, as well as in the ten directions, flow inexhaustibly
through each of our lives. Accordingly, he indicates, to
become the enemy of one who embraces the jigage is tantamount
to becoming an enemy of all Buddhas over the three existence's
of past, present and future.
Just what is the life of the Buddha contained in the jigage
that the Daishonin praises so highly?
The prose section of the "Life Span" chapter
that we studied last time [Jan. 26 World Tribune] concludes
with the words, "At that time the World-Honored One,
wishing to state his meaning once more, spoke in verse form,
saying..." (LS 16, 229).
The teaching that the Buddha expounds in the prose section
of the "Life Span" chapter is indeed repeated
in the jigage. It might be said that the jigage was born
of the Buddha's determined spirit to somehow convey, and
enable all people to understand, this teaching.
But the jigage does not only repeat the teaching
of the chapter's prose section. The jigage is still more
clearly intended for the future and more strongly imbued
with the Buddha's compassion.
The 'Jigage' Is Directed Toward
the Future, Toward Humankind
The prose section of the "Life Span" chapter
reveals Shakyamuni's eternal life. It clarifies that he
attained the way long ago, in the remote past, and reveals
that he has ceaselessly continued to instruct people in
this saha world during the interval since his enlightenment.
And for the benefit of future generations, it explains that
the Buddha's life span is such that he has "constantly
abided here without ever entering extinction" (LS16,
227).
However, the jigage expands further upon these words directed
to the future, and lauds still more highly the Buddha's
inextinguishable life. This is the interpretation of the
Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai of China (Hokke Mongu [Words and
Phrases of the Lotus Sutra], vol. 10)
The jigage explains that whenever people seek the Buddha,
the Buddha appears in the world, and the land where the
Buddha appears becomes a Buddha land of peace and tranquillity.
But if the Buddha constantly abides in this world, without
ever entering extinction, then why cannot people see him?
And what can they do to become able to see him? This, too,
is explained in the jigage. It might be said that the jigage
reveals the key to the formation of the profound bond between
the Buddha and disciples of seeking mind, the eternal bond
of mentor and disciple existing over the three existence's
of life. As I mentioned before (Sept. 8, 1995, World Tribune),
Shakyamuni starts preaching the "Life Span" chapter
in response to a question put to him by Bodhisattva Maitreya.
But the "Life Span" chapter taken as a whole was
not expounded merely for the benefit of Maitreya and the
others assembled there. Rather, it is a teaching clearly
intended for the people of later ages, for us.
Accordingly, the true audience of the "Life Span"
chapter is composed of all people in the world after Shakyamuni's
passing and, in particular, those of the Latter Day of the
Law. The jigage is in truth a message for future generations
of humankind.
Also, as you know, the final line of the jigage explains
the Buddha's constant wish: "How can I cause living
beings to gain entry into the unsurpassed way and quickly
acquire the body of a Buddha?" (LS 16, 232). The jigage
in its entirety exudes the Buddha's compassionate desire
to somehow enable all people to establish in their hearts
a state of true happiness.
Each word of the jigage is imbued with the Buddha's compassion
to enable all people to become Buddhas. From the standpoint
of Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism, everyone is an entity
of the Mystic Law; all people are Buddhas. And the jigage
praises the benefit we attain when we open our eyes to this
truth.
The jigage section of the sutra profoundly calls out to
each of us to advance along the path of truth and of genuine
happiness --- as clarified in the prose section of the chapter
--- that is open to all people.
The Daishonin says that each character of the Lotus Sutra
is a "golden Shakyamuni" (MW-5, 164). And he explains
that when we read or recite the jigage, whose golden characters
number 510, each of these characters become a sun and a
Buddha, illuminating all worlds and the entire universe,
and leading all people to happiness (MW-7, 113).
The jigage illuminates the lives of all people. Every day
in the morning and evening we recite this scripture, the
ultimate treasure of humankind. Therefore our benefit is
great beyond measure.
Not only do we recite the jigage, but we also practice
it and prove its truth. We are communicating and spreading
the benefit of the jigage to all people. Nichiren Daishonin
and all Buddhas of the three existence's and the 10 directions
no doubt praise our efforts. How wonderful! How truly fortunate
we are!
The 'Jigage' Represents Oneself
What it means to say that each character is a Buddha is
that the jigage expresses the life of the Buddha in its
totality.
In the "Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings,"
Nichiren Daishonin says:
The ji (self) of ji ga toku burrai (since I attained Buddhahood)
represents the beginning, while shin (body) of soku joju
busshin (quickly acquire the body of a Buddha) represents
the end.
In other words, the jigage from beginning to end elucidates
the self [because ji plus shin form the word oneself]. (Gosho
Zenshu, p. 759)
In other words, the Daishonin teaches that the jigage from
beginning to end explains the Buddha's self or life.
Nichiren Daishonin indicates that the body of the jigage
in its entirety, coming between the words ji and shin, signifies
the actions and conduct of oneself. Thus the "Record
of the Orally Transmitted Teachings" says, "The
jigage section represents the 'body that freely receives
and employs,' or the 'body of limitless joy"' (Gosho
Zenshu, p. 759).
The body or self that "freely receives and employs"
represents realizing that the entire universe is in fact
oneself and freely receiving and employing the power of
the Mystic Law that is the wellspring of universal life.
In other words, the Daishonin here indicates that the jigage
expresses the state of life of absolute freedom of the original
Buddha himself.
The jigage elucidates the vast and eternal state of life
of indestructible happiness that is free of all hindrance
and, moreover, exists forever, freely and joyously acting
throughout the universe.
The "body that freely receives and employs" also
refers to the ordinary outward appearance of the Buddha.
It indicates the form of ordinary people as distinguished
from that of a Buddha assuming august attributes.
The second Soka Gakkai president, Josei Toda, said that
the jigage "is the scripture of the Buddha himself,
and the scripture of us ourselves." It might be said
that the jigage is a poem that praises the "greater
self" and sings of the totally free state of life of
this self.
The Daishonin says, "The example of one person represents
the impartial truth inherent in all human beings" (Gosho
Zenshu, p. 564). The jigage celebrates the self of the original
Buddha of kuon ganjo and at the same time praises our own
selves.
"One's-self I sing."2
With these words, Walt Whitman, poet of the American people,
begins his paean to humankind, Leaves of Grass.
Whitman, his words full of strength and conviction, sings:
In all people I see myself none more and not one a barley-corn
less....
I know I am solid and sound....
I know I am deathless....
I know I am august....
I exist as I am, that is enough.3
Whitman, too, perceived a holy and most noble light within
the human being, within the self. His spirit truly resonates
with that of the jigage. Buddhism teaches the path whereby
all people can become aware of this original greater self.
Shortly after he began his journey of propagation, Shakyamuni
called out to a youth whom he met in the forest: "Seek
out your self!"
"Seek out your self!" "Know your true self!"
"Start digging right at your feet!" Herein lies
the spring of happiness and the path of hope.
Therefore, President Toda always encouraged people to "live
your own life," to "live true to yourself":
Whether you suffer from poverty or failure in business,
or you are miserable because of marital discord, or you
get injured falling over a charcoal brazier, ultimately
all such sufferings are your own life. They are manifestations
of the living phenomenon that is your self. When we view
things in this way, we see that all occurrences in our daily
existence are changes in our lives. The important thing,
therefore, is to try to cause more positive changes and
ceaselessly make efforts to secure happiness.
So the key is to live true to yourself.... You have to
realize that living true to yourself is the only way. To
live based on other people or circumstances, always thinking,
"Things would be fine if that person would only do
such-and-such," or "If the world were only like
this then I could be happy," is a mistake, is it not?
No matter where we go, we can never escape from our self.
Happiness and misery, everything in life, is contained in
the single word oneself. Ultimately, victory or defeat in
life comes down to a matter of disciplining and dignifying
this inescapable thing that is the self.
A Joyous and Cheerful Year of Great
Victory
One must not have a weak self that is blown this way and
that depending on the direction of the wind. A person who
can profoundly distinguish between true and false and who
possesses a solid self will not be swayed by trivial rumors
and hearsay.
We have to develop a towering self. The jigage praises
the wonder and greatness of the true self, of the self that
basks in the realization: "I am originally a Buddha!"
Last year when I visited Nepal, I spoke with some children
of a local village near Katmandu on a hill commanding a
fine view of the Himalayas.
They were all intelligent and charming. Their faces were
radiant and their eyes shone. I said to them: "The
Buddha was raised in view of the great Himalayas. He strove
to become as great as these mountains. He cultivated himself
to become a person of victory and towering majesty."
"Construct a self that is as majestic as the Himalayas!"
This is the spirit of Buddhism. We can all definitely develop
a self that is crowned with such victory.
This year, while joyously singing a song, while cheerfully
humming the poem of life, let's advance with composure and
dignity --- for the betterment of our own lives, for the
happiness of others, and for world peace.
Our conduct is a great poem in praise of the self that
shines eternally over the three existences.
Notes:
- Percy Bysshe Shelley, Shelley's Defence of Poetry, ed.
H.F.B. Brett-Smith (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1923), p.
48.
- Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass (London: Everyman's Library,
1947), p. 1.
- Ibid., p. 41.
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