SGI-USA Study Curriculum
Lectures on the Hoben and Juryo Chapters of the Lotus Sutra
by SGI President Daisaku Ikeda
The Buddha -- A Person of Action With gaze Fixed
on Humankind
Nyo i zen hoben. I ji o shi ko. Jitsu zai ni
gon shi. Mu no sekkomo. Ga yaku i se bu. Ku sho kugen sha.
He is like a skilled physician
who uses an expedient means to cure his deranged sons.
Though in fact alive, he gives out word he is dead,
yet no one can say he speaks falsely.
I am the father of this world, saving those who suffer and
are afflicted. (LS16, 231)
The jigage, or verse section of the "Life
Span of the Thus Come One" (16th) chapter, communicates
the essence of the Buddha's eternal life through the resonance
of a beautiful poem. From a philosophical standpoint, the
"Life
Span" chapter is replete with important principles,
as distilled in the studies of T'ien-t'ai of China and others,
but rather than expounding these principles directly, Shakyamuni
sought to communicate them to people's hearts more profoundly
and abundantly by committing them to resonant verse. He
issues a cry from the heart, to the heart. Herein lies Shakyamuni's
greatness.
Coming into contact with the pulse of the jigage, which
embodies the essence of the Buddha's life state, those living
on after Shakyamuni have without a doubt felt that they
could hear his voice, the sound of his heart, across the
great remove of time and space. Herein lies a very important
part of why the Lotus Sutra has been widely loved and recited
by people over the ages.
Leaders need to study poetry and possess a poetic spirit.
Those lacking such a spirit will eventually lose touch with
the people's hearts. Such leaders cannot change people's
hearts, or truly lead others to happiness. . That is why
I have repeatedly stressed this.
We now approach the close of the jigage. In this passage
Shakyamuni vociferously reiterates the conclusion of the
parable of the excellent physician and his sick children.
To save his children who have drunk poison and lost their
right minds, the father, the excellent physician, employs
an expedient means: He has someone announce to the children
that he has died, and so causes them to drink the medicine.
But, as Shakyamuni says, "No one can say he speaks
falsely."
He continues, "I am the father of this world, / saving
those who suffer and are afflicted." In this way, Shakyamuni
loudly proclaims that he is the "father" who leads
all people to enlightenment. This is a grand declaration.
The Buddha's mission is the great task of saving all people,
on the most fundamental level, from the sufferings under
which they labor.
What does "I am the father of this world" mean
from the standpoint of the Daishonin's Buddhism? In the
"Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings,"
Nichiren Daishonin indicates that the jigage contains the
virtues of sovereign, teacher and parent of the Buddha of
the essential teaching: "This, my land, remains safe
and tranquil" attests to the virtue of the sovereign;
"constantly I have preached the Law, teaching, converting"
attests to that of the teacher; and "I am the father
of this world" attests to that of the parent.
In addition, Nichiren Daishonin declares, "Now Nichiren
and his followers who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo are the
fathers of all living beings, for we save them from the
torments of the hell of incessant suffering" (Gosho
Zenshu, p. 757-58).
In other words, Nichiren Daishonin and his disciples who
chant and propagate the Mystic Law are the "parents"
who lead all people to happiness. He says in effect: With
this awareness, you must advance kosen-rufu carrying on
my spirit. These are wonderful words-words of the greatest
encouragement.
The Daishonin's "Record of the Orally Transmitted
Teachings" clarifies that the Lotus Sutra is the great
teaching for the salvation of all people of the Latter Day
of the Law. With the "Record of the Orally Transmitted
Teachings," Buddhism for the first time truly becomes
a teaching for the happiness of the people, for all humankind.
It is easy to speak of acting in the interest of the world,
of humankind or of peace. But who will earnestly undertake
such action, even at the cost of their lives? Society is
ruled by egoism and desire. There are all too many people
with the attitude, "Ultimately, I'm the only one who
counts." Who in such a society is steadfastly working
for the happiness of all people, while enduring calumny
and persecution at the hands of those beset with illusion?
It is Shakyamuni. It is Nichiren Daishonin. And it is the
SGI members, who directly carry on the Buddha's spirit in
the modern age. The SGI is the pillar of society and the
sun itself. Many fine people in the world, while perhaps
not embracing faith in the Mystic Law, are earnestly struggling
for the good of humankind. Joining hands with such people
of conscience, let us fulfill our great mission to save
those "who suffer and are afflicted."
Incidentally, let us recall how the parable of the excellent
physician and his sick children concludes. The children,
believing their father to have died, in their sadness open
their eyes and take the good medicine he has left for them
--- and as a result are cured of the effects of the poison.
Upon hearing this, the father returns and is happily reunited
with his children. What does this closing scene signify?
It means that when people (the children) honestly believe
in and uphold (drink) Shakyamuni's teaching (the good medicine),
the Buddha (the excellent physician) appears in (returns
to) their hearts.
From our standpoint, the parable describes the great benefit
of practicing Buddhism, that if we carry through with strong
faith in the Gohonzon, the life of the Buddha is certain
to manifest within us. It is not a matter of something foreign
suddenly appearing in our lives. Rather, the life of the
Buddha that we originally possess wells forth. It is revived.
Rediscovered. We experience a renaissance of life.
In lecturing on the passage "I am the father of this
world, / saving those who suffer and are afflicted,"
President Toda said: We can take these to be the words of
the Dai-Gohonzon --- "I" is the Daishonin, the
Gohonzon --- promising to save people from all sufferings
and afflictions. We need to be deeply cognizant of this
promise when we read the jigage. The Gohonzon, beyond absolutely
any doubt, leads those experiencing various worries and
sufferings to happiness.
These words represent the solemn promise of the original
Buddha. Therefore, whatever happens, it is enough that we
merely continue advancing straight ahead with "gentle,
peaceful, honest and upright" faith.
Then, our lives are certain to overflow with boundless
life force, and we will develop the greater self --- a life
state of complete and total fulfillment. With this confidence,
together let us continue to joyfully advance.
The 'Way' Is the Lotus Sutra
I bonbu tendo. Jitsu zai ni gon metsu. I joken
ga ko. Ni sho kyoshi shin. Ho-itsu jaku go-yoku. Da o aku-do
chu. Ga jo chi shujo. Gyo do fu gyo do. Zui o sho ka do.
I sesshuju ho.
Because of the befuddlement of ordinary people,
though I live, I give out word I have entered extinction.
For if they see me constantly, arrogance and selfishness
arise in their minds.
Abandoning restraint,
they give themselves up to the five desires and fall into
the evil paths of existence.
Always I am aware of which living beings practice the way,
and which do not,
and in response to their needs for salvation
I preach various doctrines for them. (LS16, 231-32)
The point here regarding "befuddlement of ordinary
people" is the same as that in previous sections. Namely,
if people think that the Buddha is always present, they
may come to be arrogant or grow dependent on him, and ultimately
fall into the evil paths of existence owing to attachment
to the five desires. In that scenario, they cannot possibly
attain Buddhahood.
Therefore, as an expedient means, the Buddha explains that
he will enter extinction. Out of his immense compassion,
the Buddha always preaches the Law in such a way that enables
people to grow and develop self-reliance.
"The befuddlement of ordinary people" are words
that truly hit the mark in describing the subtleties of
human psychology. In this we see the greatness of Kumarajiva's
translation.
Although yearning to see the Buddha and attain salvation
through the Buddha's teaching, people may become dependent
on the Buddha and gradually be consumed and destroyed by
their own inner weaknesses. As a result, they neglect their
Buddhist practice and finally fall into the evil paths of
existence. While fortunate enough to have met the Law existing
eternally over past, present and future, blinded by immediate
interests and desires they vacillate between believing and
doubting.
President Toda said: "Those who doubt the Gohonzon
because of a preoccupation with the mores of society have
an upside-down view of the affairs of the world. Their view
of life is similarly distorted; although life is eternal,
they see only that there is death."
One can imagine how the Buddha, seeing deep into the highly
unstable nature of the human heart, must have struggled
to somehow raise people up to his enlightened life state.
The Daishonin writes to the Ikegami brothers and their
wives: "Among those who believed at first, many later
discarded their faith, fearing society's rejection. Among
these are some who oppose me more furiously than those who
slandered from the beginning" (The Major Writings of
Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 147).
He says that people who have succumbed to disbelief and
abandoned their faith slander him even more vehemently than
those who attacked him from the outset. This is a pattern
typical of the befuddled.
To Shijo Kingo the Daishonin says, "Never let life's
hardships disturb you" (MW-1, 161). The important thing
is to advance cheerfully along the direct path to attaining
Buddhahood, without being disturbed each time there is frivolous
slander or name-calling; to construct a solid and unshakable
self.
President Toda said, "Return to the common mortal
of kuon ganjo." And he proudly referred to himself
as a "fine common mortal." Let us always be "common
mortals of the Mystic Law," magnanimous champions of
humanity.
Next the passage says, "Always I am aware of which
living beings / practice the way, and which do not, / and
in response to their needs for salvation / I preach various
doctrines for them." The Buddha always knows whether
people are striving to excel in Buddhist practice, and expounds
the Law freely employing appropriate means of leading them
to enlightenment.
Regarding "which living beings / practice the way,
and which do not," the "Record of the Orally Transmitted
Teachings" reads, "Now Nichiren and his followers
who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo are those who 'practice the
way,' while those who do not chant are those who 'do not
[practice the way] "' (Gosho Zenshu, p. 758). In the
same place, he explains that the "way" indicates
the Lotus Sutra.
President Toda interpreted this sutra passage as explaining
the immense power of the Gohonzon:
Practicing the way means believing in and propagating faith
i n the Gohonzon . Not practicing the way means not doing
so. The Gohonzon knows what people are doing and considers
how best to save them, producing punishment or reward according
to their stance. The Gohonzon does not frown upon people
simply because they do not have faith, but contrives to
lead them to happiness on that basis. This passage is saying
that the Buddha definitely knows whether or not one is practicing
the way.
Who is fighting hard? Who is slacking off? The Gohonzon
knows everything about us, down to the very core of our
being. We need simply continue advancing straight ahead,
fully confident that the Gohonzon is watching over us.
This is the "way." We are advancing along the
way called the Mystic Law. And the way of kosen-rufu, which
lies in spreading faith in the Mystic Law throughout the
world, is the unsurpassed way. It is the great way of happiness.
The resonant strains of the "Song of the Open Road"
by the poet of the people, Walt Whitman, again come to mind.
Whitman is our comrade in spirit:
Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road,...
Henceforth I ask not good fortune, I myself am good fortune,...
Done with indoor complaints, libraries, querulous criticisms,
Strong and content I travel the open road.1
Whitman blasts "complaints, libraries, querulous criticisms."
A poet knows well the nature of the world of human beings.
He urges that we laugh off such low-level distractions.
Happiness does not lie somewhere else. "I myself am
good fortune," he says. With this spirit, let us advance
straight ahead along the great path of contributing to the
well-being of humankind, jubilantly whistling songs of joy
and friendship.
Notes:
- Walt Whitman, "Song of the Open Road," Leaves
of Grass (New York: Everyman's Library, 1968), p. 1 25.
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