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SGI-USA Study Curriculum
Selected Lectures on the Gosho by SGI President
Ikeda
The
True Object of Worship
- Kanjin no Honzon Sho -
Lecture
2 of 3 from Selected Lectures
on the Gosho, vol. 1.
To
Embrace Is to Attain
We have seen so far
that the six paramitas deal specifically with the requirements
necessary for human beings to live as "humans."
Other philosophies and religions have merely preached them
separately, but the six paramitas must be expounded as a
whole. Stressing only one or two of them will lead to an
impasse, or to partiality and dogmatism. Following only
the paramita of almsgiving or altruism, most people, since
they live in the realities of life, will give in to resignation.
The practice of keeping precepts alone will kill a progressive
spirit, lead to stagnation and spiritual distortion. The
attachment to forbearance alone will open the way to evil
and vice, and assiduity alone will lead one to trample on
others. Meditation alone will remove one from the realities
of life and might lead to self-righteousness. Similarly,
wisdom independent of the other paramitas will allow a person
to grow crafty and sly.
In order for human
beings to live as "humans," therefore, these requirements
must be fulfilled at the right time and in the right place.
In this sense, the fact that the six paramitas were given
together is truly significant; but what is vitally important
is the phrase of the Muryogi Sutra, ". . . you will
naturally receive the benefits of the six paramitas."
To paraphrase that, when you embrace the Mystic Law, you
will naturally receive the benefits of the six paramitas
in their entirety. And Myoho-renge-kyo is the entity which
harmoniously manifests all the requirements revealed in
the six paramitas.
The six paramitas
as taught in this context originally mean the practice of
bodhisattvas who aspire for Buddhahood, but more fundamentally,
they mean that the Ten Worlds and the three thousand conditions
are all contained in the single law of Myoho-renge-kyo,
and that each of them manifests itself in the right place
and time. Anyone can experience all of the Ten Worlds and
the three thousand conditions, and in order for human beings
to live in the ideal human condition, every one of them
is necessary. When the integration of the Ten Worlds breaks
down, one's existence becomes restrictive and discordant,
giving rise to sorrow and pain.
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
is the power that contains and integrates all things. A
passage of this True Object of Worship states:
The true object of
worship is described in the ceremony of the transmission
as follows: "In the air above the saha world [which
the Buddha of the essential teaching identified as the pure
and eternal land], Nam-myoho-renge-kyo appears in the center
of the Treasure Tower with Shakyamuni and Taho Buddhas seated
to the right and left, and the Four Bodhisattvas of the
Earth, led by Jogyo, flank them...."
Without Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,
every one of the Ten Worlds, which originally possesses
the Ten Worlds within itself, becomes disintegrated from
the others, causing people to suffer from pain and solitude.
As described above, however, once it is predicated on the
Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, all the workings of human life,
from Hell to Buddhahood, are oriented so they can manifest
their original qualities and naturally work for the well-being
of humanity. That is why Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is called "the
perfect and full teaching."
When you base your
life on the Gohonzon, your life will be neither frustrated
nor led into an impasse, and you will naturally receive
all the benefits which would ensue from the practice of
the six paramitas. A human life which becomes one with the
Mystic Law through chanting also simultaneously comes into
perfect harmony with the great cosmic life, and this invigorated
life will turn all obstacles into springboards for growth
and dynamically change negative situations into positive
ones.
All our behaviors
are oriented in the right direction so that they can manifest
themselves as the intrinsic workings of our essential life
--- Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. A passage of the Gosho reads: "Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
is like the roar of a lion. What sickness can therefore
be an obstacle? . . . Wherever your daughter may frolic
or play, no harm will come to her; she will be free from
fear like the lion king." This passage implies the
life-condition of the original Buddha, but even we ordinary
people will eventually be able to attain the same state
of mind if we continue to practice faith on the basis of
the Gohonzon. This is what is meant by "you will naturally
receive the benefits of the six paramitas."
The late president
Josei Toda said, "In order to help people achieve the
unrestricted state of mind that will allow them to live
as they wish in the great ocean of benefits, I will fight,
donning the robe of forbearance and wielding the sword of
compassion." I pray that you will all construct your
lives so that you can derive great benefits and deep satisfaction.
The
Teaching of Perfect Endowment
The Hoben chapter
of the Lotus Sutra says: "They wish to hear the teaching
of perfect endowment." The Nirvana Sutra states: "Sad
indicates perfect endowment." Bodhisattva Nagarjuna
comments: "Sad signifies six." The Daijo Shiron
Gengi Ki (Annotation of the Four Mahayana Theses) states:
"Sad connotes six. In India the number six implies
perfect endowment." In his annotation of the Lotus
Sutra, Chia-hsiang writes, "Sad means perfect endowment."
The Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai remarks: "Sad is a Sanskrit
word, which is translated as myo."
In this passage Nichiren
Daishonin expands on the preceding sentence quoted from
the Muryogi Sutra. Here he refers to sentences from sutras,
treatises and annotations to demonstrate how the Gohonzon,
the embodiment of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, possesses in itself
all practices and their resulting virtuous effects.
The quotation from
the Lotus Sutra refers to the question which Shariputra,
representing the audience, asked the Buddha. In answer,
the Buddha explained the purpose of a Buddha's advent in
this world --- to open and reveal the Buddha-wisdom, for
the sake of all people, and then to let them realize that
wisdom and enter the state of Buddhahood. This means precisely
to let people attain the law of the supreme vehicle. The
Lotus Sutra in its entirety reveals this law, which is Myoho-renge-kyo.
The entity of "the teaching of perfect endowment"
Shariputra asked about is, therefore, Myoho-renge-kyo.
The Daishonin devotes
the rest of the passage to the Sanskrit word sad, translated
as myo of Myoho-renge-kyo, meaning endowment and the number
six. The title of the Lotus Sutra reads Saddharma-pundarika-sutra
in Sanskrit, and Kumarajiva translated it as Myoho-renge-kyo.
Nichiren Daishonin interprets Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in his
Ongi Kuden: "In Sanskrit it reads Saddharma-pundarika-sutra,
which is translated here as Myoho-renge-kyo. Sad is myo,
dharma ho, pundarika renge, and sutra kyo."
The annotation, rendered
by the Chinese Buddhist scholar Hui-chun, explains why the
same Sanskrit word sad assumes the dual meaning of "endowment"
in the Nirvana Sutra, and "six" by Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna. In ancient India the number six was considered
synonymous with perfect endowment. This was probably because
the people in ancient India used the number six as the basis
of their numerical notation. Even now many numerical systems
throughout the world are based on the senary system, including
the duodecimal demarcation of the day, the twenty-four hours
of the day, the twelve months of the year, the three hundred
and sixty degrees of the circle, the zodiac, the dozen and
so forth. The enduring prevalence of these traditions testifies
to the profound significance of the number six.
The Mystic Law is
inherent in all things because it embodies the law of life
present in all phenomena of the universe. The Gosho, On
the Mongol Emissary, reads: "The texts of non-Buddhist
philosophies and the Hinayana or provisional Mahayana scriptures
of Buddhism explain but parts of the law of life. They do
not elucidate it as does the Lotus Sutra." The Lotus
Sutra brings out "life" in its totality, while
the other sutras and non-Buddhist scriptures explain life
only in its individual aspects. All philosophies, whatever
their sources may be, are explanations of some part of the
Mystic Law, and they are therefore infused with new life
when their practice is based on the Mystic Law. The six
paramitas symbolize the causes and the beneficial effects
of Shakyamuni's Buddhism. They are incorporated into Myoho-renge-kyo,
which establishes the totality of life, of which nothing
is independent.
Boundless
Benefits of the Gohonzon
An arbitrary interpretation
of these quotations may distort their meaning, but in essence
they mean that Shakyamuni's practices and the virtues he
consequently attained are all contained within the single
phrase, Myoho-renge-kyo. If we believe in that phrase, we
shall naturally be granted the same benefits as he was.
Here the Daishonin
concludes that embracing Myoho-renge-kyo is attaining Buddhahood.
This is by far the most important part of this treatise.
He was reserved in his personal interpretation and gave
priority to sutras, treatises and annotations. This passage
tells us the ultimate truth of Buddhism, the way by which
all human beings can attain Buddhahood in this lifetime.
Thus he lets us see the vast powers and virtues of the Gohonzon
which we worship every morning and evening. That is why
Nichikan Shonin, the twenty-sixth High Priest, explains
the Gohonzon in The Exegesis of The True Object of Worship:
This Gohonzon provides
great and boundless benefits. Its mystic functions are vast
and profound. so if you take faith in this Gohonzon and
chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo even for a while, no prayer will
go unanswered, no sin will remain unforgiven, all good fortune
will be bestowed, and all righteousness proven.
President Josei Toda
quoted this passage at every opportunity to give encouragement
to those who struggled with sickness and poverty.
"An arbitrary
interpretation of these quotations may distort their meaning"
applies, more than anyone else, to me, for I am lecturing
on the treatise. If I ineptly interpret it, I might incur
the Daishonin's rebuke. I sincerely hope you will burn this
passage into your hearts and that you will repay Nichiren
Daishonin for his great compassion in embodying Myoho-renge-kyo
as the Gohonzon for us to worship.
This passage has
profound significance, but first let me explain it literally.
It means that all the virtues Shakyamuni Buddha attained
through practices in past existences and all the benefits
he acquired through his efforts to save people after attaining
Buddhahood in this life are contained in Myoho-renge-kyo.
By embracing this Mystic Law, therefore, we will naturally
receive all his virtues and benefits.
"Shakyamuni"
and "his practices and the virtues he consequently
attained" in the above-quoted passage can both be interpreted
in many ways and contain various meanings, however. Nichikan
Shonin classifies them into six categories in The Exegesis
of The True Object of Worship. "Shakyamuni" here
refers to the six types of the Buddha. Shakyamuni Buddha
revealed himself in different ways according to the depth
of his teachings, as he expounded zokyo (Hinayana teachings),
tsugyo (lower provisional Mahayana teachings), bekkyo (higher
provisional Mahayana teachings) and engyo (true Mahayana).
Engyo indicates the Lotus Sutra which consists of the theoretical
and the essential teachings. The Buddha's five appearances
in the zokyo, tsugyo, bekkyo and the two halves of the Lotus
Sutra fall under the category of Shakyamuni's Buddhism,
while Nichiren Daishonin reveals his identity as the Buddha
of the Latter Day who expounds Nam-myoho-renge-kyo- the
ultimate law of life hidden in the depths of the Juryo (sixteenth)
chapter of the Lotus Sutra. In this connection, the Daishonin
is also called "Shakyamuni," expounded in the
in-depth interpretation of the Lotus Sutra.
"Shakyamuni's
practices and the virtues he consequently attained"
in the Gosho text not only refers to the aspects of Shakyamuni
mentioned above, but also any other Buddha. That is why
Nichikan Shonin states in his Exegesis of The True Object
of Worship:
The practices of
all Buddhas and all their resultant virtues are contained
in the five characters of the Mystic Law. The benefits of
the Gohonzon are therefore vast and boundless. Its mystic
functions are vast and profound. Any mention of Shakyamuni
in the passage therefore represents all Buddhas and the
virtues they attained.
The Gohonzon, then,
is the treasure into which the practices and virtues of
all Buddhas throughout space and time are condensed. Its
mystic function envelops the universe.
How Shakyamuni Buddha
practiced Buddhism and how he attained Buddhahood is explained
in the question posed in the passage preceding the text.
Though Shakyamuni is thought to have attained enlightenment
in India at the age of thirty, his practice of Buddhism
spanned the period of sanzen-jintengo, during which he practiced
Buddhism as Prince Nose, Bodhisattva Judo, King Shibi and
Prince Satta, and made offerings to many other Buddhas.
The joy he felt after he attained enlightenment under the
Bodhi tree defies description.
In the essential
teaching of the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha said that his enlightenment
occurred during the time of gohyaku-jintengo, proving that
he practiced the bodhisattva austerities before that time.
The virtues he attained are incomparably greater than those
he enjoyed after attaining Buddhahood in his life in India,
as he describes: "Appearing in the worlds throughout
space, I expounded all of the sacred teachings and enlightened
myriad's of people." Even in the capacity of the Buddha
who attained Buddhahood in this life, his past practices
were extremely severe, as are shown in the examples of Sessen
Doji and Gyobo Bonji.
I would like to say
something about Makasatta (Prince Satta), who is mentioned
elsewhere in this Gosho. An unimaginably long time ago there
lived a king named Makarada, who had three princes, Makahanara,
Makadaiba and Makasatta. One day the king took them to the
countryside, and while walking in a great bamboo grove they
met an injured tigress. She seemed seriously hurt and unable
to hunt, though famished. Seven baby tigers, about a week
old, surrounded her. Makahanara said, "The tigress
bore seven babies and is now so hungry that she will probably
even devour her babies before long." Whereupon Makadaiba
grew sad, saying, "The poor tigress will die. I wonder
if we could do anything to save her." Listening to
his elders, Makasatta thought, "My flesh and blood
is destined to perish, even though it is reborn a hundred
and thousand times. It will simply perish without benefiting
anything. Therefore I will discard my life this moment."
After his father
and elder brothers left, he took off his clothes and threw
himself before the famished tigress. Undoubtedly frightened
by his bold attitude, the tigress did nothing but growl.
Then, he climbed up to the top of a nearby cliff and again
he threw himself down before the tigress. But the tigress
was too emaciated to prey upon him. Finally he used his
last ounce of energy to stab a decayed bamboo stalk into
his carotid artery. Sucking the fresh blood which gushed
out, the famished tigress quickly regained her vitality
and devoured the prince, leaving nothing but his bones.
Telling the story
to his disciple Ananda, Shakyamuni Buddha identified the
prince as himself in a past existence dedicated to the Buddhist
practice of almsgiving. The story is known as "Discarding
Life for the Tiger." The Konkomyo Sutra describes the
scene as the prince gave up his life at that moment:
All of a sudden the
earth jolted in six different ways, rising and falling like
waters fanned by a gale; the sun lost its brilliance as
if in a total eclipse; the heaven showered all kinds of
flowers and fragrances, which, falling in mixture filled
the forest, and the heavenly beings all extolled him in
chorus.
This is one of the
stories which testify to the extreme severity of practice
Shakyamuni carried out before he attained enlightenment.
All these practices, however, constitute only a part of
the vast and boundless benefit of the Mystic Law.
The benefit Shakyamuni
attained through his practices shows clearly the working
of the law of cause and effect expounded in his Buddhism,
and how the present effect is always the result of a past
cause. President Toda often drew an analogy to the Johari
Mirror when he talked about this subject. The mirror hung
in the palace of King Enma, and was also called the Mirror
of Karma. When King Enma interviewed the deceased he said,
"You have done this much wrong while you were alive,
haven't you?" But the deceased tried to deny it, "I
have done nothing of the sort, I can assure you, sir."
The king retorted, saying, "Take a look in the Mirror
of Karma over there!" Much to his surprise, the deceased
could see all the evils he committed when he was alive in
the mirror.
This story is not
a mere moral; by drawing an analogy it teaches us that the
law of cause and effect which governs life is totally immutable.
The last president said: "In this saha world it is
our physical existences and situations which constitute
the Mirror of Karma. The karma we created in our past existences
causes us to feel karmic retribution, both physically and
spiritually, in this world."
This is the real
nature of human life, from which no one can escape. Any
attempt to avoid it is fruitless. That is why Shakyamuni
Buddha preached the importance of dedicating ourselves to
Buddhist practice, lifetime after lifetime, in order to
expiate all the sins and vices we committed.
So far, our discussion
has been focused on the literal meaning of the passage of
the Gosho text. Let us take the same passage and apply it
to Nichiren Daishonin. We know from The One Hundred and
Six Comparisons that he is the eternal Buddha who originally
possesses boundless benefits including all the virtues which
result from the practices of all Buddhas as "the master
of the True Cause and True Effect." When Nichikan Shonin
explains that Shakyamuni, as he appears in the Gosho text,
stands for all Buddhas and the virtues they attained, he
is telling us that Nichiren Daishonin possesses the endowments
of all Buddhas. The Daishonin combined all the benefits
of his virtuous deeds into the Gohonzon of the Three Great
Secret Laws. He declares in the Gosho, "I, Nichiren,
have inscribed my life in sumi, so believe in the Gohonzon
with your whole heart. The Buddha's will is the Lotus Sutra,
but the soul of Nichiren is nothing other than Nam-myoho-renge-kyo."
The declaration substantiates the Gohonzon, identifying
it with his life itself. As he ushered in the rising sun
of a new Buddhism, the moonlight of Shakyamuni's Buddhism
faded, giving way to an epoch-making event in both the history
of Buddhism and the history of mankind.
I would like to talk
about the law of causality working within life, in terms
of the True Cause and the True Effect, which, as I pointed
out in my lecture on The One Hundred and Six Comparisons,
provides a valuable vantage point from which to expand on
the profound significance of the Gohonzon. I will not go
into the original meaning of the True Cause and the True
Effect now, but elaborate on them as two different ways
to view human life.
Life exists in a
moment. The moment flashes by like an arrow and becomes
the past. The future becomes the present in the same moment.
Thus, life exists only in succession of moments, and even
eternity is no more than the continuation of moments. In
any given moment we can feel happiness, misery, hope or
despair.
The law of cause
and effect governs life at each moment, and the karma created
by all deeds up to the present is the total accumulation
of the past; it defines the present which is manifested
in a single moment. The workings of life in that moment
form a cause for the future effect. Neither past nor future
can exist apart from the present.
Past-oriented
Attitude
Life at present contains
life which has continued since time without beginning. It
also defines life which continues from the present moment
on to eternity. The major difference between the Buddhism
of the True Cause and that of the True Effect hinges upon
the interpretation of the true nature of the moment, which,
endlessly succeeding itself, is the manifestation of what
we call life. Buddhism of the True Effect refers to the
past-oriented attitude which defines the present only as
the result of the past, adhering to the results, whereas
Buddhism of the True Cause is the belief that the present
changes into a cause for the future.
The law of cause
and effect governs life, and one's present existence is
always the effect of the past. Nichiren Daishonin says in
the Letter
from Sado:
One who climbs a
high mountain must eventually descend. One who slights another
will in turn be despised. One who deprecates those of handsome
appearance will be born ugly. One who robs another of food
and clothing is sure to fall into the world of Hunger. One
who mocks noble men or anyone who observes the precepts
will be born to a poor family. One who slanders a family
that embraces the True Law will be born to a heretical family.
One who laughs at those who cherish the precepts will be
born a commoner and meet with persecution from his sovereign.
This is the general law of cause and effect.
The original passage
quoted appears in the Hatsunaion Sutra, but the Daishonin
expressed it in his own words to exemplify the continual
transmigration of cause and effect. As he says, "the
general law of cause and effect" is always actually
working in the realities of life. That is why we must live
now, embodying karmic retribution both physically and spiritually.
As long as we remain chained by this cycle of cause and
effect, we have only a slim possibility of rechanneling
our present karma-bound life into a bright new path.
Think of someone
in the world of Hunger. Even if he traces the cause of his
present agony to his past life and discovers that he robbed
others of clothing and food, he can only feel a deep sense
of regret. He will not know why he did such a thing, nor
will he be able to recover his past life to change the cause.
To fulfill his dream for a happy life in the future he must
sever the chains of his karma one by one in this life, and
the next, and the next. Even though he tries to make good
causes, he will find it very difficult to do so because
his past is such a heavy burden. Out of despair some people
live a life of self-abandonment or even commit suicide in
despair.
To illustrate the
past-oriented attitude, let me quote from a famous Japanese
novel written by Soseki Natsume (1867 - 1916). Entitled
Kokoro (Heart), the story centers around a man called "Sensei"
who struggles with egoism as he regrets what he has done
to his friend K when they were both university students
in the same boarding house. Quietly, Sensei came to love
the pretty girl in the family. Much to his surprise, his
friend K suddenly confides his own agonized love for the
girl. Sensei is startled, since K seemed to have been completely
immersed in study, and to have no time for love. From that
time on Sensei has mixed emotions, but he deceives his friend
and continues to court the girl until he secures informal
consent for marriage. When K learns of this development
he is so desperate that he commits suicide. All he leaves
behind is a simple note to Sensei saying that he was too
weak a person to have any hope for the future, and there
was no other way out.
Soseki describes
how Sensei felt that night when he discovered that his friend
K had committed suicide:
I experienced almost
the same sensation then as I did when K first told me of
his love for Ojosan (the daughter). I stood still, transfixed
by the scene I beheld. My eyes stared unbelievingly, as
though they were made of glass. But the initial shock was
like a sudden gust of wind, and was gone in a moment. My
first thought was, "It's too late !" It was then
that the great shadow that would for ever darken the course
of my life spread before my mind's eye. And from somewhere
in the shadow a voice seemed to be whispering: "It's
too late. . . It's too late . . ." My whole body began
to tremble. [Soseki Natsume, Kokoro (Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle
Company, Inc., 1969), p. 229.]
From that moment
on Sensei's mind became slave to guilt. Shortly after graduation
Sensei married the daughter, but even in their newly married
life he could not drive "the dark shadow" away
from him. His attempt to mitigate his guilt with liquor
failed and the shadow loomed larger than ever. Finally,
Sensei decided to live as if he were dead. He described
his state of mind as follows:
Though I had resolved
to live as if I were dead, my heart would at times respond
to the activity of the outside world, and seem almost to
dance with pent-up energy. But as soon as I tried to break
my way through the cloud that surrounded me, a frighteningly
powerful force would rush upon me from I know not where,
and grip my heart tight, until I could not move. A voice
would say to me: "You have no right to do anything.
stay where you are." Whatever desire I might have had
for action would suddenly leave me. After a moment, the
desire would come back, and I would once more try to break
through. Again, I would be restrained. In fury and grief
I would cry out: "Why do you stop me?" With a
cruel laugh, the voice would answer: "You know very
well why." Then I would bow in hopeless surrender.*
[Ibid., p. 243]
Sensei finally takes
his own life, leaving his wife to live on alone. The story
vividly depicts how heavy a burden it is for a human being
to go on living with a sense of sinfulness. Though Soseki
makes no mention of Buddhism in the story, the life Sensei
had to live is reminiscent of the life of True Effect. In
his case, however, he was bound by the chain of causality
which he himself could clearly perceive. Even causality
in this life is grave enough to drive man into death. The
burden of karma we have accumulated from time without beginning
is heavy beyond imagination. If people have to obliterate
such karmic retributions one by one, they will mostly be
driven into despair.
This type of action,
centering on True Effect, underlies the teachings of Shakyamuni
Buddha. The law of cause and effect in this case defines
the present life-condition only as the result of the past
karmic cause. Naturally, belief based on that kind of Buddhism
fails to inspire hope and joy for the future. Though Shakyamuni's
Buddhism gives ideas on how life has transmigrated so far
and how it continues on into the future, it never clarifies
the source of power for developing life in the future. In
other words, it preaches what will become of life but never
defines the self-motivating, positive force capable of reforming
life. That is why Shakyamuni's Buddhism is called the Buddhism
of the True Effect.
Breaking
the Chain of Karma
Only through the
Buddhism of the True Cause, which probes the depths of the
momentary existence of life and discovers the Mystic Law
there --- the origin of everything --- can people find the
means of lightening their troubled lives. This is because
the Buddhism of the True Cause is rooted in the depths of
life, whereas the Buddhism of the True Effect is based on
the ever-changing phenomena of life. The difference between
the two is directly stated in the following quote referring
to the law of cause and effect from the same Letter from
Sado: "Nichiren's sufferings, however, are not ascribable
to this causal law."
Nichiren Daishonin
breaks through the realm of immediate cause and effect and
enters into the depths of the life-moment, the entity of
the fundamental causality which penetrates eternity. This
entity is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo which has neither beginning
nor end. It is the entity of life which flows on, interweaving
with the causality of the Ten Worlds, and it is also the
fundamental force that governs the entire universe. That
is what "Shakyamuni's practices and the virtues he
consequently attained" means according to Buddhism
of the seed inherent in the Juryo chapter of the Lotus Sutra.
Putting his own life
as the Buddha who embodies Nam-myoho-renge-kyo into the
inscription of the Mystic Law, he endows it upon the people
of the Latter Day, just as he said in the Gosho: "If
we believe in that phrase, we shall naturally be granted
the same benefits as he was." I can see unequaled compassion
in his words "be granted." Life without beginning
is more than ordinary people can fathom because it is the
ultimate state of life, most difficult to believe and most
difficult to understand. Even then, the advent of Nichiren
Daishonin seven centuries ago made it possible for us to
perceive it. He himself assumed the appearance of an ordinary
person as he said in the Gosho, "Nichiren, who in this
life was born poor and lowly to a chandala*
family," and through his behavior showed us the meaning
of "Shakyamuni's practices and the virtues." What
is more, he has left us the great power and boundless benefits
in the form of the Gohonzon so that all future generations
can prosper.
*The
lowest class, lower than the caste system, in India, comprised
of those whose profession required them to kill living
creatures. The Daishonin was born to a family of fishermen.
President Toda said
about the Gohonzon's beneficial power in his lecture, "The
Causality throughout Three Existences":
Devoting oneself
to the Gohonzon and chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the
way to change one's destiny for the better. All the causes
and effects in between disappear, and a common mortal since
time without beginning emerges.
These words convey
his profound insight. Awe-inspiring as it may sound, the
life of Nichiren Daishonin, who is the absolutely free,
eternal Buddha, dwells within our strong spirit to dedicate
ourselves to the Gohonzon. When we sit upright facing the
Gohonzon, a common mortal since time without beginning and
the Buddha since time without beginning sit facing one another.
That moment of relation provides a sublime seat where you
join your palms together to become one with the true entity
of all phenomena. It contains the overflowing power to embrace,
integrate and motivate all existences. This is what is meant
by "all the causes and effects in between disappear,
and a common mortal since time without beginning emerges."
The emergence of the common mortal in itself forms the cause
to produce the effect of benefits for all eternity.
Shakyamuni Buddha
preached concepts of unimaginably long spans of time ---
sanzen-jintengo and gokyaku-jintengo. In contrast, Nichiren
Daishonin expounds the most profound concept of time called
kuon ganjo, with neither beginning nor end. He has established
the original law of the universe which breaks all the chains
of causality in Shakyamuni's Buddhism, probing into life
so deeply as to identify man with the universe. "All
the causes and effects in between disappear" is like
the stars and the moon illuminating in the heavens which
disappear once the sun rises. But the heavenly bodies have
not actually disappeared; they are simply outshone by the
radiant beams of the sun. In like manner, the Buddhism of
the True Cause, which embraces all the lights of the Buddhas
throughout space and time, including Shakyamuni, casts its
glorious light universally. The advent of true Buddhism
lets people think of Shakyamuni's Buddhism in a totally
new perspective.
"A common mortal
since time without beginning emerges" is a monumental
idea in the life philosophy --- the present moment is all
that counts. If we try to interpret Shakyamuni's Buddhism
in terms of the Daishonin's Buddhism, we may be able to
redefine it as the culmination of wisdom great enough to
approach the original law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. At the
very moment we chant to the Gohonzon, however, we manifest
the original law, and by so doing we manifest the power
of Myoho-renge-kyo in society, embodying it both physically
and spiritually in ourselves. Shakyamuni's Buddhism exhorts
us to strenuous practices to reach the Mystic Law, just
as hundreds and thousands of leaves and branches are traced
to one root. In contrast, Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism
reveals the Mystic Law itself, which enables one who embraces
it to expand it through our activities onto hundreds and
thousands of leaves and branches of society. The bright
light of the Mystic Law has now begun to illuminate the
world.
All kinds of institutions,
ideologies and religions tower before us as an inevitable
result, and they continue to bind people tight with their
chains. Mankind is forced into subservience to heavy pressures
he himself has created, suffocating under their weight.
The Buddhism of the True Cause corrects the distorted relation
between master and subject and gives direction to what it
should be. This philosophy sends its hopeful light into
the century to come as it restores supremacy to the dignity
of life --- the idea that a single life-entity is heavier
than the earth. Our movement for fundamental reformation
will encounter hardships, and rough waves are certain to
rise against it. No matter what may happen to you in the
course of your life and on the way to worldwide propagation,
I ask all of you to endure the trials and proudly live up
to the words of the Daishonin: "Indubitably, as the
three obstacles and four devils* arise, the wise will rejoice,
yet the foolish will cower."
Every person has
his own troubles and dreams for the future. The sick wish
to be in good health; one who has no house to live in wants
to have a home and peaceful family life; one tries desperately
to subdue the instinctive urge toward anger and greed which
can take over and dominate, both physically and spiritually.
Having hopes but knowing no way or means to attain them,
people often end up in frustration. Once he embraces the
Buddhism of the True Cause, however, any individual can
create a bright future, for the very moment the individual's
desire becomes one with his eternal being, the desire is
simultaneously achieved in the depths of his life. At that
very moment karma changes and an immeasurable eternal treasure
gathers to become manifest in the future, just as a totally
dark room is illuminated the moment you turn on the light.
This is solely because
the Gohonzon contains the practices of all Buddhas throughout
space and time and their resulting virtues, and because
the power of the Buddha and the power of the Law within
the Gohonzon are vast and boundless. Then you no longer
have to continue your practice lifetime after lifetime to
eliminate your past evil karma, as is thought in the Buddhism
of the True Effect. Even if you have accumulated little
good fortune in the past, all the Buddha's practices are
contained in devoted faith in the Gohonzon and the resulting
virtues flow naturally into a bright course for the future.
That is why the Daishonin
said on Sado Island where he was an exile: "At this
moment I, Nichiren, am the richest man in all of Japan,"
and "I feel immeasurable delight even though I am now
an exile."
All in all, the inscription
of the Gohonzon gives all people in the Latter Day a direct
link with the life of the original Buddha and a way to become
one with it. The purpose of the original Buddha, Nichiren
Daishonin, was to allow all people to become as exalted
as the Buddha of the "beginningless time." He
said in his oral teachings, the Ongi Kuden, "The Juryo
chapter states that we common mortals are endowed with the
three enlightened properties of the Buddha. This indicates
Nichiren and his disciples who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo."
Elsewhere in the same Gosho he also said, "The Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
I, Nichiren, now chant enables people to attain Buddhahood
for as long as the ten thousand years of the Latter Day.
This is what is meant by 'I have now fulfilled the pledge
I made in the past.' "
Indisputably, what
matters is faith in the Gohonzon. What is more, the key
to enlightenment is how long you will continue your faith
and how much you will deepen your faith. As the Daishonin
says, "To accept is easy; to continue is difficult.
But continuing faith will lead to Buddhahood." He also
urges us to sustain our faith, saying, "Arouse deep
faith and polish your mirror night and day. How should you
polish it? Only by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo." I
ask you to do gongyo in the morning and evening regularly
so that you can carry your faith onward like the never ending
flow of a stream.
Supreme
Jewel beyond Imagination
With full understanding
of Shakyamuni's teachings, the four great men of Learning
said: "We have gained the supreme cluster of jewels
when we least expected it." They represent the world
of Learning that is within ourselves.
The sentence quoted
occurs in the fourth chapter of the Lotus Sutra. Here four
great men of Learning --- Mahakashyapa, Katyayana, Subhuti
and Maudgalyayana --- express their joy at having understood
the Buddha's intent after hearing the Parable of the Three
Carts and the Burning House. They have gained something
they least expected --- the all-embracing Mystic Law, the
core of the Buddha's teachings that contains all the deeds
and resulting virtues of Shakyamuni Buddha. Here they are
thanking the Buddha for preaching the Mystic Law to them.
Usually one attains the Law only when he sincerely seeks
it. The Buddha's profound compassion, however, enabled the
men of Learning to attain the Law without seeking it. That
is why they rejoiced with such profound gratitude.
It was not that these
disciples of Learning did not seek after anything. As the
Parable of the Three Carts and the Burning House explains,
they had been seeking something. The parable goes like this.
There was once a millionaire who had dozens of children.
They had always wanted three kinds of carts: carts pulled
by sheep, by deer and by oxen. One day the millionaire's
mansion caught fire, and he desperately shouted for his
children to come out of the house, but to no avail. Then,
remembering their wish, he called to them, saying that the
carts they wanted so badly were right outside the gate.
The children raced out of the house to get the carts. When
they ran out of the mansion, however, the millionaire instead
gave each of them a huge cart pulled by a magnificent white
ox, which was far better than the carts they had desired.
The three carts indicate
the teachings of the three vehicles --- Learning, Realization
and Bodhisattva --- and the children's desire for them was
so strong that they immediately came out of the house. The
white ox cart the father actually gave his children means
the supreme vehicle of the Mystic Law.
The teaching of the
supreme vehicle concerns the state of Buddhahood, a state
too lofty for the disciples of Learning to imagine. It is
therefore no wonder that they did not actively seek it.
The disciples pursued far less valuable jewels --- the teachings
of the three vehicles. But the Buddha gave them the supreme
treasure of the Mystic Law by finally preaching the Lotus
Sutra, something far greater than they had ever expected
to obtain.
The parable can also
be applied to those who believe in the Gohonzon now, in
the Latter Day of the Law. The immediate motives which led
us to receive the Gohonzon were, in most cases, probably
minor, trifling desires arising out of daily life. There
are very few of us who took faith in the Gohonzon because
we envisioned and yearned for the ideal state of Buddhahood.
But as we take faith in the Gohonzon and study Buddhism
more and more deeply, we come to understand that a Buddha
means an entity of human life filled with wisdom, good fortune
and vital force. Further we finally realize that the Gohonzon
is not something merely to fulfill our trifling desires,
but that it embodies the life of the Buddha. It is a priceless
treasure that enables common individuals to become as noble
as the Buddha. The jubilant life force the four great men
of Learning manifested when they gained the supreme vehicle
also dwells within the lives of us who embrace the Gohonzon.
Let me expand on
jitoku (self attained). The verse portion of the Juryo chapter
begins with ji ga toku butsu rai (since I attained Buddhahood),
which refers to Shakyamuni's attainment of Buddhahood at
gohyaku-jintengo. According to the Daishonin's Buddhism,
there is an even deeper meaning here. The Daishonin explains
that Buddhahood is not attained at a certain point in time,
like gokyaku-jintengo, but is indwelling for all eternity.
According to the Daishonin's Buddhism, the sentence quoted
above is shown to mean, "Obtaining ga butsu rai by
oneself." Nichiren Daishonin explains this in the Ongi
Kuden: "Ga (self) indicates the property of the Law,
butsu (the Buddha) the property of wisdom, and rai (becoming)
means the property of action. These three properties of
the Buddha, who has neither beginning nor end, become one's
own. From this, consider the meaning of gaining the supreme
cluster of jewels without seeking it."
Ga is the Buddha's
life existing throughout past, present and future, which
is the enlightened property of the Law. Butsu signifies
the wisdom that develops out of the great life force of
the original Buddha, and enables one to fathom past, present
and future existences, and to expound Buddhism freely among
all people to save them and to create value at every moment.
This is the function of the enlightened property of wisdom.
Rai indicates the totally unrestricted activities of the
original Buddha to save troubled people. It is therefore
the enlightened property of action. Nichiren Daishonin is
the original Buddha who holds all three enlightened properties
of life, and the Gohonzon embodies his life. Ji ga toku
butsu rai means that the three enlightened properties are
obtained from oneself; they are not given by anyone or anything
else.
The ultimate teaching
of Shakyamuni's Buddhism was the revelation of the unimaginably
long span of the Buddha's life, called gohyaku-jintengo.
But even that is not infinite. It has a particular referent
in the past. As long as the concept of Buddhahood remains
within a finite, temporal framework, it is something to
be attained, and that leads to a fundamental distinction
between the Buddha and people. Actually, Shakyamuni himself
attained Buddhahood in gohyaku-jintengo only after he had
practiced bodhisattva austerities in an even more distant
past.
In Nichiren Daishonin's
Buddhism, however, kuon --- which is often interpreted to
mean the infinite past --- actually does not mean the past
at all. It means eternity, or the aggregate of every single
moment of time. Once you realize that kuon exists in every
moment, it is no longer correct to say that one becomes
a Buddha, but that one awakens to the fact of being a Buddha
to begin with. Because it means to manifest what is inherent
in human life, it is called jitoku or "self-attained."
Nichiren Daishonin is the completely unrestricted, original
Buddha with the three enlightened properties of life. In
general, however, believers in the Mystic Law also naturally
possess the three enlightened properties of life. "Obtaining
the supreme cluster of jewels without seeking it" applies
not only to the men of Learning but to everyone else as
well. That is why Nichiren Daishonin said in the Ongi Kuden:
"Nichiren and his disciples who now chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
are the votaries of self attained Buddhahood."
Treasure
Too Close to See
The quote says, "We
have gained the supreme cluster of jewels when we least
expected it." Let us think about the idea of "something
coming into one's possession unsought" in context of
our daily life. "Unsought" means that ordinary
people can hardly know something as sublime as the Mystic
Law. We possess the Gohonzon before we know that it is the
supreme cluster of jewels. Some people receive the Gohonzon
without prior knowledge of faith, and others accept faith
in the Gohonzon at the encouragement of their friends or
upon being awakened by their bad karma, even though they
may have scorned religious faith. Once you embrace the Gohonzon,
however, you honestly realize that it is the very thing
you have been most wanting to find. Many priceless things
exist around us, but they are usually hard to recognize.
The air around us, for example, goes unnoticed; it is often
used as a metaphor for amorphousness or insignificance,
as in the phrase, "vanishing into thin air." Though
we rarely think about it, when traveling in a spaceship
or submarine nothing is more vital than air.
In the same way,
we are so accustomed to life and living that we rarely contemplate
its deep meaning. Since one can live without ever having
to think about it, he may get lost in daily routine. Nichiren
Daishonin's Buddhism, however, teaches us that an incomparably
valuable jewel is hidden in our daily life. We are shown
the supreme value in human life --- something which we are
in intimate contact with every day. Therefore, when people
come to know true Buddhism, they finally understand how
far they neglected this supreme jewel, and they find invaluable
joy in their discovery.
Let me go over jitoku
once again. It means to realize something in oneself, by
oneself and to do so according to one's own will. The great
life force of Buddhahood becomes manifest only in the strenuous,
dedicated efforts to fuse oneself with the Gohonzon, and
therefore jitoku, in a word, means faith. Ga butsu rai means
the Buddha of the three enlightened properties of life or
the Gohonzon, whereas jitoku equals kanjin (to observe one's
own mind and find the three enlightened properties in it).
Ji ga toku butsu rai as a unified concept means that to
embrace the Gohonzon is to attain enlightenment. The Gohonzon
is an absolute objective reality, without which there can
be neither enlightenment nor human revolution. Simultaneously,
the Gohonzon's power does not become manifest unless one
carries out the assiduous practice of one's faith.
Since the jewel one
seeks is the Buddhahood within one's life, it is impossible
to manifest it without achieving oneness with the Gohonzon.
Were Buddhahood a jewel existing outside oneself, one could
simply receive it from someone. But because Buddhahood exists
within oneself, only the courageous practice of faith can
call it forth. Essentially, man acquires power through his
own training. Machines, facilities and advice from others
are all only external aids, which help him develop his potential.
A world record in sports is made with the help of excellent
facilities, scientific research and well-trained, experienced
coaches. But the athlete himself has to achieve the record.
This is much more true in faith. One can never gain the
great life force of Buddhahood from the outside, and science
and technology are no help at all. In this sense Buddhism
teaches the strictness of a cause-and-effect relationship
and lets us understand the three thousand conditions in
every entity of life.
Conversely, when
one develops his life from within, he opens up a brand-new
world. Unless we lay the foundation by developing our life,
any castle we make will be built upon sand. If a tree has
shallow roots, it will topple over in a gale. The treasure
tower of life rooted in the ground of eternity stands in
all its nobility, unperturbed by the winds and waves of
life. An environment, no matter how nice, can only grow
worse unless it is built with one's own strenuous efforts.
Even people in the world of Rapture are subject to the five
types of decay.* On the other hand, the world we construct
with our own efforts to achieve our human revolution is
indestructible. Living in this way, we can perceive a vast,
promising future stretching before us.
*The five signs of
decline which appear when the life of a heavenly being comes
to an end. (1) His clothes become dirty. (2) The flowers
on his head wither. (This implies that he gradually loses
his mental faculties.) (3) His body becomes dirty. (4) He
sweats under the arms. (This implies that he worries, fears
or suffers.) (5) He cannot feel happy anywhere. (This means
that he loses his conviction.) These five indicate that
pleasure in the state of Rapture fades away very easily.
When we establish
a firm inner self by courageously challenging ourselves
and changing our earthly desires into the great wish to
save mankind, we can develop a truly humanistic civilization
and usher in the "century of life." Incidentally,
shomon (men of Learning) can literally be translated as
"those who hear," i.e., those with seeking minds
to hear the Buddha's teachings, for a seeking mind always
pushes on to development and growth, and never allows satisfaction
with the present situation. Only when you actively strive
to grow and progress can you truly comprehend the greatness
of Buddhism.
Strive
among the People
Concerning the people
of Learning, the fourth chapter of the Lotus Sutra reads,
"We have gained the supreme cluster of jewels when
we least expected it." The shomon, understanding what
the Buddha meant, changed themselves into true shomon by
breaking through their inherent egoism. The chapter describes
the scene: "We now are true shomon, listening to the
voice of the Buddha's Way and causing all to hear it. We
now are true arhats, and are entitled to receive offerings
from the heavens, men, demons, and deities in every world."
The men of Learning,
who had listened to Shakyamuni Buddha only for their own
enlightenment, changed radically into people who led others
to listen to the Buddha's teachings. In other words, shomon
here means not only to hear the (Buddha's) voice, but to
let all others hear it. Yet these people, who so reformed
their lives, are the same who were refuted by the Buddha
in the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, as the Daishonin describes
in The Opening of the Eyes: "The men of Learning and
Realization, who thought that they had understood Buddhism
and attained Buddhahood . . . were instead ingrates since
they guided their fathers and mothers to a path which would
never lead to Buddhahood."
Trapped in a world
of solitude and encrusted with arrogance and egocentricity,
the men of Learning were not only severely refuted by the
Buddha in the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, they were even
despised by the commoners they themselves had looked down
on. The Buddha rebuked the shomon with the intention of
training them as the true disciples who would propagate
Buddhism unrestrictedly, and in order to propagate Buddhism
they could not be arrogant and egocentric. In the Lotus
Sutra, however, they unexpectedly gained the supreme jewel
of Buddhahood, and from then on struck out bravely among
the common people to let them hear the Buddha's teachings.
That is why they were finally able to attain Buddhahood.
The men of Learning
had endured the Buddha's rebukes for a long period, so they
were more than overjoyed when they heard the Lotus Sutra
which allowed them to attain Buddhahood, and they pledged
to devote themselves to its propagation. The fourth chapter
describes how they "danced for joy !" The true
mission of the men of Learning was revealed for the first
time, and without it, their aeons long austerities would
have been to no avail. Indeed, their attainment of Buddhahood
in the Lotus Sutra is the supreme principle. Talking about
those who became true shomon, Nichiren Daishonin said, "They
represent the world of Learning that is within ourselves."
He urges us also to develop the same benevolence so that
we can lead others to listen to the Buddha's teachings,
just as they did.
In the Ongi Kuden,
Nichiren Daishonin amplifies the above-quoted chapter of
the Lotus Sutra, "... listening to the voice of the
Buddha's Way and causing all to hear it":
Thus, Shariputra
expressed his understanding of the Law by saying in this
[third] chapter, "listening to this voice." "Listening"
means to take faith in the Lotus Sutra, and "the voice"
indicates the voice and sound (i.e., the rhythm) of all
phenomena, which signifies the Mystic Law.... Regarding
this voice, the fourth chapter says, "listening to
the voice of the Buddha's way and causing all to hear it."
"All" means human beings living in the phenomenal
world, and "the voice" means Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
"The voice of
the Buddha's Way," therefore, means Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,
and "all" indicates all human beings. The Mystic
Law is the force which causes Buddhahood to become manifest
from within the lives of all people. Elsewhere in the Ongi
Kuden Nichiren Daishonin says, ". . . voices do the
Buddha's work." Indeed, the voice derived from the
Mystic Law penetrates human hearts.
You become true disciples
and men of Learning when, while you yourself listen to Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
and live it, you cause people wandering through the three
evil paths or the six lower worlds to hear Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
The Bodhisattvas of the Earth who devotedly propagate the
Mystic Law as common mortals in this polluted world are
the true men of Learning.
A Japanese scholar
once made a profound statement: "Voice is life. It
is emitted from the depths of life. It resonates throughout
the universe." The sonorous voice we utter while doing
gongyo and chanting daimoku is just such a voice, and it
causes the universe and the life within it to resonate more
profoundly than any great music. Sent with a spirit of altruism
to all fields of human endeavor, the voice of profound sincerity
can break through the shells of greed, anger and stupidity
that smother human hearts. That is the meaning of the statement
of the Nirvana Sutra, "If he takes the slanderer severely
to task, drives him off or punishes him, then he is my disciple
and one who truly understands my teachings."
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