Chanting Growers Group

[Guest]

Babbabud and that is why we chant nam myoho renge kyo, To gain the wisdom to desire what we truly need in this life. That need is unique for each of us.

I always say, be careful what you chant for, you might get it!

Avid

 

[Babbabud]

nicely said Avid .... we chant to gain the wisdom to desire what we truly need in this life.


nam myoho renge kyo

 

[Hitman]

Nam myoho renge kyo to everyone! IC rocks!

 

[Babbabud]

Nice to see you drop in Hitman ... come back by soon

Nam myoho renge kyo

 

[PassTheDoobie]

Bud, Avid, Hitman!

Bud, Avid, Hitman!

Bud--Remember that not everyone is as Tao'ist at heart as you. The Wish Granting Jewel has no bounds. What you said is potentialy true, "You choose your joy you design your sorrow"; but don't think this wisdom is established in some mystical fashion removed from reality. It comes from the experiences of your daily life. Bonno Soku Bodhi dude:

earthly desires are enlightenment
[煩悩即菩提] (Jpn.: bonno-soku-bodai)

A Mahayana principle based on the view that earthly desires cannot exist independently on their own; therefore one can attain enlightenment without eliminating earthly desires. This contrasts with the Hinayana view that extinguishing earthly desires is a prerequisite for enlightenment. According to the Hinayana teachings, earthly desires and enlightenment are two independent and opposing factors, and the two cannot coexist; while the Mahayana teachings reveal that earthly desires are one with and inseparable from enlightenment. This is because all things, even earthly desires and enlightenment, are manifestations of the unchanging reality or truth-and thus are non-dual at their source.

The Universal Worthy Sutra, an epilogue to the Lotus Sutra, states, "Without either cutting off earthly desires or separating themselves from the five desires, they can purify all their senses and wipe away all their offenses." T'ien-t'ai (538-597) says in Great Concentration and Insight, "The ignorance and dust of desires are enlightenment, and the sufferings of birth and death are nirvana." In The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, Nichiren (1222-1282) states: "The idea of gradually overcoming delusions is not the ultimate meaning of the 'Life Span' chapter [of the Lotus Sutra]. You should understand that the ultimate meaning of this chapter is that ordinary mortals, just as they are in their original state of being, are Buddhas," and, "Today, when Nichiren and his followers recite the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, they are burning the firewood of earthly desires, summoning up the wisdom-fire of enlightenment."

From source: The Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism

So if you are above wanting cadilacs for your happiness that is great! But THERE IS NOTHING WRONG OR INCORRECT with wanting cadilacs if wanting a cadilac is a motivation that makes you chant. If getting the cadilac will reveal a power to you that is based on personal experience of having a desire and having it fulfilled, then CHANT FOR CADILACS.

It is all about, in the final analysis, having whatever experiences are neccessary to develop your relationship with the Gohonzon (faith), and the resulting motivation to continue and be diligent in the maintenance of your endeavor. Whatever you make it to be through your desires and prayer, it is utimately about being led to enlightenment through these desires. You have the wisdom to understand what has value and what does not, what is superficial and what is profound. The point is that no one has to tell you this, or should. Your wisdom is revealed to you through life experience and chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to fulfill your mission and promise as a Bodhisattva of the Earth.

Avid, I'm not sure what you mean by this, "PTD, understanding the difference between Provisional and Essential Teachings is most important in Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism. Nichiren encourages each of us to truly understand our own l;ife from this same persepective." Please explain.

The difference between the Provisional and Essential Teachings are the entire reason I am posting President Toda's lecture. The Essential Teachings reveal the identity of the Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Thus Come One and the perspective that he taught the Essential Teaching of the Lotus Sutra is contained in the Ongi Kuden, which I PLAN ON PRESENTING IN SERIAL FORM LATER THIS FALL.

As far as the book is concerned, I did not misunderstand. As I said then, as I say now, I have no copy to send. The most error free digital transcription that I am aware of is what I am presenting here a segment at a time. Cut and paste from these pages, if you want a copy of what I have been able to present.

Hitman! Shit I thought we lost you!!!!! SOOOOO good to hear from you! Thanks for saying hi! Weigh in on any comments you might have anytime, OK?

Peace to all,

Thomas

 

[Babbabud]

Its amazing how naturally all this fits in with what i have learned up to this time ...and how well it works for thisverymoment. Many things have transpired to bring us to thisverymoment. From the first time I read the words Nam myoho renge kyo it felt just as if I had found an old friend I had not seen in years. I look for the words each day to try to bring my friends and family face to face with this truth. It drives me to read and study and amazingly what seemed confusing a month ago seems much simpler now..... faith has always been the easy part for me as my faith has been tested many times .... amazingly the study is getting much easier and really something that i thirst for each day
Thank you PTD , Avid and all others involved directly or indirectly with this thread ... it is of great value to myself and the ppl around me thankyou
Nam myoho renge kyo !! Like the Roar of the Lion !!

 

[PassTheDoobie]

Josei Toda's Lecture on the Sutra (chap.3 conclusion)

Josei Toda's Lecture on the Sutra (chap.3 conclusion)

Sho u shu kudohu, Nyuwa shichijiki sha
Sokkai ken ga shin Zai shi ni seppo. Wakuji
i shi shu Setsu butsuju muryo. Ku nai ken
bussha I setsu butsu nan chi. Ga chiriki nyo
ze.


The gentle-minded and the meek,
Receiving all the blessings sought
Can view my presence on this earth
And hear the Law I taught.
Oft, for these I elucidate
The eternal Buddha-life.
They who greet me in each age
Marvel at their fortune great -
Thus doth work my wisdom’s power.

These quoted verses expound the benefits people can enjoy by offering prayers to the ‘Three Treasures.’

In other words, ‘Three Treasures’ exist entirely in the Dai-Gohonzon. “Sho u shu kudoku” (to practice Buddhism and obtain various benefits) indicates that we believers of Nichiren Shoshu devote ourselves to the practice of Gongyo (daily worship) every morning and evening, participate in religious activities and enjoy happy and peaceful lives.

“Nyuwa shichijiki sha” (gentle and honest people) means pure-minded believers of the True Buddhism who are honest in their faith. We must know that there are two types of honesty: that is, of the Buddhist law and worldly law. Honesty in the Buddhist law represents people who are faithful to the True Buddhism. In other words, we face the Gohonzon with gentle and honest minds, and never recite any other sutra except the Hoben and Juryo Chapters of the Hokekyo.

If we remain in such a mental state, we can realize that the True Buddha actually exists in this world and propounds the Buddhist law for all people at every moment. We can then obtain immeasurable blessings in our lives. Similarly, we also realize that the life of Nichiren Dalshonin, the True Buddha, is immeasurable, and that the life of man exists eternally.

However, it is hard for us to see the True Buddha. When we feel the immense delight of having encountered the True Buddha, we find great joy flowing from within ourselves. We should not think that we can easily worship the Gohonzon at any time.

It is not certain that we will be able to meet the Gohonzon in our next existence of life. We should be grateful for the fact that we have had the inestimable good fortune to meet the Gohonzon in this world.


Eko sho muryo, Jumyo mushu ko Ku shugo
sho toku. Nyoto u chi sha Mot-to shi sho gi
To dan ryo yo jin.


Thus wisdom’s rays illuminate -
The Buddha’s life endures
Infinite aeons of austerities
Have let him this procure.

Ye men of wisdom, banish doubt
Believe this ever more.

The verse “Eko, sho muryo” means the great blessings of the Dai-Gohonzon are eternally inexhaustible, and fill the entire universe.

“Jumyo mushu ko” stands for the eternity of Buddha’s life. “Ku shugo sho toku” (what the Buddha attained through long practice) means the true aspect of life - that which Shakyamuni attained by practicing True Buddhism. This is equal to the passage, “Ga hon gyo bosatsu do” (Once I also practiced the Bodhisattva austerities). In a word, it means that Shakyamuni practiced the Buddhist austerities in a former life. “Ku shugo sho toku” represents the ‘cause’ for Buddhahood, and “Eko sho muryo” (the light of wisdom illuminates infinitely), the ‘effect’ of Buddhahood.

Shakyamuni Buddha some time before Gohyaku-jintengo practiced Daimoku just as the Juryo Chapter states:

“Ga hon gyo bosatsu do”. However, Nichiren Daishonin is the eternal Buddha and He did not practice the austerities for as long a time as Shakyamuni did, but only chanted Daimoku – Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Therefore, a person of wisdom should not have any doubt about this, but should chant Daimoku to the Gohonzon.


Butsugo jip-puko. Nyo i zen hoben, I ji
Oshi ko, Jitsu zai ni gon shi, Mu no sek-komo.


The Buddha word is true, not false:
A doctor with skilful method says
He dies, though he may live,
Yet no one blames for his lie –
For his deluded sons new life he gives.

The Buddha never lies. Needless to say, the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin, the True Buddha of Mappo, are not false in any way. He merely takes various means for the salvation of all mankind. For example, it is also a means for saving people that the Buddha reveals the phenomenon of death in this world, just as taught in the parable of the ‘excellent physician’, in which the physician sent a messenger to announce, “Your father has passed away” to make his deranged sons yearn for him (Buddha).

To tell the truth, our life never perishes from the universe. ‘Death’ is a passing phenomenon. Therefore, it is untrue that the Buddha passed away. It is a means of the Mystic Law.

Let me cite a story from a famous Chinese history book called ‘Shiki’ (Shi Chi) or ‘Records of History’. Shibasen (Ssu Ma Chien) who wrote the ‘Shiki’ was executed on a false charge. He was a well-known Chinese historian whose work ‘Shiki’ is widely read among scholars of Chinese. Without reading his great work, no scholar is considered to have studied Chinese literature.

Two men named Hakui (Po I) and Shukusei (Shu Chi) appear in this book. The book also states that it was the respectworthy Taikobo (Tai Kong Wang) who assumed command of the entire force in the battle in which Bu-o (Wu Wang), the king of Shu (Chou) Dynasty, destroyed Chu-o (Chou Wang), the king of the In (Yin) Dynasty. Taikobo was fond of fishing, but always fished with a straight hook so that no fish could be caught. Asked why he was doing such a useless thing, he answered, “Because it takes a great deal of trouble to unhook the fish.”

When this eccentric person became a staff officer of the forces of Shu, both Hakui and Shukusei warned him, saying, “Never start a revolution.” In spite of their earnest advice, Bu-o commenced a campaign against the In Dynasty, and eventually reigned over the whole country after winning. For having had their sincere desires ignored, the two sages went up to Mt. Suyo (Shou Yang Shan) saying, “We will not eat any millet of Shu,” and starved themselves to death.

Although the leader of bandits who killed 3,000 honest persons enjoyed abundant wine and meat throughout his entire life, the two saints, Hakui and Shukusei, were obliged to starve to death.

Even Shibasen, the great Chinese historian, questioned this: “What does this fact mean and why this difference?” Even this scholar could not explain why such a contradiction should exist in this world. It could not be clarified in Chinese classics or by Confucianism, but is exactly the problem of our past existence to be expounded in Buddhism.

I think we should chant as many Daimoku as possible while in this world. We can carry over to our next existence of life the good fortune we have accumulated in this world through Daimoku-chanting, although we cannot do the same with money. Moreover, we can take our benefits derived from our practice of faith, and we find them appear as good fortune in our next existence.


Ga yaku i se bu, Ku sho kugen sha. I bonbu
tendo, Jitsu zai ni gon metsu. I


I too am father of this world
To save man from his myriad woes.
Since common men are perverse in heart
My death I teach, though I truly live.

“Ga yaku i se bu, Ku sho kugen sha” (I am the father of the world, and can save people from distress or worry.) - Nichiren Daishonin puts special emphasis on these verses. “Ga yaku i se bu” means that Nichiren Daishonin is the father of the world, and saves us from all kinds of distress and worry. “Ga” (I) of “Ga yaku i se bu” means Nichiren Daishonin, that is, the Dai-Gohonzon. As the True Buddha promises us to save all from all kinds of distress and worry, we should be convinced of the validity of His promise when we recite the Jiga-ge portion of the Juryo Chapter every morning and evening. It is correct for us to believe that the Gohonzon can surely save all mankind from any worry or distress.

“I bonbu tendo, Jitsu zai ni gon metsu” (Because common mortals lose reason, the Buddha says that he will die, although his life is eternal.) Despite the Daishonin’s promise, it is man who takes the world in reverse and doubts the Gohonzon from the standpoint of worldly law, not the Buddhist law. Such people think that our life is perishable despite the law of eternity of life.

However, the writings of the Daishonin do not contain such contradictions. That is why the Daishonin’s Buddhism is extremely intelligible. The Daishonin says to a widow, “Your husband died in order to reveal the law of ‘life and death’.”


I Jo ken ga ko, Ni sho kyoshi shin, Hoitsu
Jaku goyoku, Da o akudo chu. Ga jo chi
shujo Gyo do fu gyo do. Zui o sho ka do, I
ses-shuju ho.


If they see me here alway,
Their selfish hearts are filled with pride
Hold five base desires, and disobey,
The path of evil down they stride.

Always knowing if mankind
Follows Buddha or does not
I expound the various laws
Most fit for their salvation.

If the Buddha were to exist eternally in this world, as mentioned earlier, man would not devote himself to the practice of Buddhism and cling to his Five Base Desires (Goyoku), thereby sinking into the pit of hell.

Five Base Desires mean those of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin. Indulging ourselves in the Five Base Desires, we are liable to fall into the pit of hell. We may take delight in satisfying those desires, but should not cling to them.

“Gyo do fu gyo do, Zui o sho ka do, I ses-shuju ho” clarifies the great power of the Gohonzon. “Gyo do” (to practice Buddhism) means that we take firm faith in the Gohonzon and are assiduous in various activities, and “fu gyo do” means the reverse. The Gohonzon, knowing all gives us great benefit or punishment so as to save each, according to his state of faith. The Gohonzon does not despise those who do not yet have the faith, but saves them from distress by awakening them to the faith. The True Buddha knows precisely whether or not a person is practicing True Buddhism.

For example, I once asked a sick believer during a question-and-answer session, “When did you join Nichiren Shoshu?” He replied, “I have been a Nichiren Shoshu believer for four years, but I am still ill.”

I say positively that his attitude toward faith was wrong, or “fu gyo do” There is never such an absurd thing in the benefits of the Gohonzon.

If we practice True Buddhism sincerely, we can doubtless enjoy the great blessings of the Gohonzon. What counts is our faith itself.


Mai ji sa ze nen, I ga ryo shujo Toku nyu
mujo do, Soku joju busshin.


I am always pondering Law
To open for them the perfect way
And with what means enable them
To reach enlightenment without delay.

“Mai ji sa ze nen” means that the Gohonzon is always mindful of how the Gohonzon can lead all people to the ‘supreme road’ (mujo do), or can make them find the life of Buddha within themselves. Here, the ‘supreme road’ means Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the highest teaching of Buddhism.

This is the conclusion of the Jiga-ge portion. The Gohonzon always wishes to make all people attain Buddhahood with the power of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Let us attain Buddhahood as soon as possible by chanting many Daimoku and being assiduous in the practice of Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism.

Three Mystic Principles

In the Juryo Chapter, the combined theory of the three mystic principles known as Sanmyo-Goron is expounded. The ‘three mystic principles’ are Hon’nin-myo (the mystic principle of true cause), Honga-myo (the mystic principle of true effect) and Honkokudo-myo (the mystic principle of true land).

In Shakyamuni’s Buddhism, the sentence beginning with “Ga jitsu jobutsu ira-i” (since I attained enlightenment) signifies the ‘effect’. The pre-Hokekyo sutras and doctrines state that the Buddha exists only in a pure and peaceful land, and not in this world of Shaba - dirty and troublesome. However, the Juryo Chapter clarifies the ‘land’ of Shaba. This indicates that the Buddha exists in this world together with common mortals and Bodhisattvas, and that all the Ten Worlds including Shomon and Engaku (Learning and Absorption), Chikusho and Gaki (Animality and Hunger) exist in this world. This mystic phenomenon of living together is indicative of the ‘mystic’ of ‘the mystic principle of true land’. In other words, it indicates that the ‘true land’ of the Buddha is the World of Shaba.

The attainment of enlightenment requires the ‘true cause’ which is expounded in the sentence starting with “Ga hon gyo bosatsudo” (Once I practiced the austerities of Bodhisattva for attaining enlightenment).

“Ga jitsu jobutsu irai” is indicative of Shakyamuni Buddha.

The passage literally means that since Shakyamuni attained enlightenment, it has been many hundred thousand myriads of kotis of aeons. “Go hyaku sen man - noku nayuta asogi san zen dai sen sekai ke shi u nin matchi mijin, ka o tobo go hyaku sen man noku nayuta asogi koku, nai ge ichijin, nyo ze to gyo, jin ze mijin” means, “Suppose there be one who, reducing five hundred thousand myriads of kotis of worlds into particles of dust, goes eastward, traversing another five hundred thousand myriads of kotis of worlds, drops one particle. Suppose that he continues to repeat this process until he exhausts the entire mass.” As this parable teaches us, it has been an immeasurably long time since Shakyamuni attained Buddhahood.

However, from the viewpoint of the True Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin, the sentence starting with “Ga jitsujo butsu irai” is construed to mean that the life of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is included in the Great Universe.

The True Buddha does not exist in any other land except in the world of Shaba. The Buddha who does not live in the world of Shaba is only a provisional or a transient Buddha. Only the Buddha who exists in this world deserves to be called the True Buddha.

All the Buddhas practice Bodhisattva’s austerities in order to attain enlightenment. This is the meaning of “Ga hon gyo bosatsudo.”

From the standpoint of Shakyamuni’s Buddhism, “Ga jitsu jobutsu ira-i” means the Buddha himself, as earlier mentioned, and therefore, it clarifies the Buddhism of Honga-myo. Shakyamuni himself who appeared in the form of the Buddha is the Buddha of Honga-myo.

On the contrary, Nichiren Daishonin made His advent as a common mortal instead of as the Buddha. The Daishonin expounded the true cause for attaining enlightenment, and put it into practice himself. Therefore, He is called the Buddha of Hon’nin-myo. If He had appeared as the Buddha, there could not have been any austerities of the Bodhisattva or what the sutra calls Bosatsudo in Mappo. Bosatsudo means the practice of Buddhism which leads one to enlightenment. This the Daishonin carried out himself to instruct people.

The Daishonin appeared as a common mortal, but since He is actually the True Buddha, He never stated that He would attain Buddhahood.

In the light of True Buddhism, Nichiren Daishonin is the True Buddha. However, as a means of instructing the people, He carried out the practice of the Bodhisattva. Analyzing the practice, we can see from the viewpoint of the True Buddhism that the practice of Nam-myohorenge-kyo is revealed in the 11th of the 52 stages of Bodhisattva austerities. We will be able to attain Buddhahood by believing in the Buddha of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo (Nichiren Daishonin) and by practicing His teachings. Thus the Daishonin reveals the cause (practice) for attaining enlightenment. Hence the Buddhism of Hon’nin-myo as against Shakyamuni’s Buddhism of Honga-myo.

Therefore, Nichiren Daishonin is called the Buddha of Hon’nin, and Shakyamuni the Buddha of Honga. Herein lies the distinction between Honga-myo and Hon’nin-myo.

 

[PassTheDoobie]

So there you go! That concludes President Toda’s lecture pertaining to the sutras. The balance of the text deals with the five prayers that accompany Gongyo, and since that has changed somewhat in the last fifty years, I am going to save that for another time and present it in a paraphrased manner.

If you read carefully, you find there is no significant difference in anything that President Toda said, and anything said in Daisaku Ikeda’s lecture presented previously. However, unquestionably, their manners of presentation differ. Please consider them from the perspective of an analogy to General Electric:

This is just my opinion, but I view the two individuals from the perspective of President Toda, being the entrepreneur founder and president of a graced and full fortuned private company, who fulfills his obligation and promise to mentor those around him to take his efforts and multiply them exponentially. President Ikeda took the efforts and foundation created under the leadership of President Toda in Japan and spread the Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin worldwide, like the CEO of a successful publicly traded corporation.

I think of Daisaku Ikeda in the light of a Jack Welch, but President Toda as a Thomas Alva Edison.

The time is different, and the audience has changed. So the manner in which to best convey the message must be in keeping with these realities. But the message is always the same: Develop pure faith, and all things that you seek in life and seek to know will be bestowed upon you!

My deepest respect to you all,

T

 

[PassTheDoobie]

On Rebuking Slander of the Law and Eradicating Sins (pg.447, WND)

On Rebuking Slander of the Law and Eradicating Sins (pg.447, WND)

I HAVE read your letter carefully. In the past as well, when I was exiled to the province of Izu on account of the Lotus Sutra, I rejoiced at heart, though, when I say so, I suppose people will think that I am speaking immodestly.

If, since the beginningless past, I had ever incurred blame for the sake of the Lotus Sutra, whether I was sincerely devoted to it or not, would I then have been born in this lifetime as a mere ordinary mortal? [Therefore, when I was condemned to exile,] though I felt downcast for a while, seeing that it was for the sake of the Lotus Sutra, I was also delighted, for I thought that I might thereby eradicate to some small extent the offenses of my previous existences. However, the various grave sins of the ten evil acts, the four major offenses, the six major offenses, the eight major offenses, the ten major offenses, (1) the five sins that condemn one to the hell of incessant suffering, the slander of the correct teaching, and the sin of incorrigible disbelief accumulated since the beginningless past must stand taller than a huge mountain, run deeper than the great sea.

When it comes to the five cardinal sins, the commission of even one of them will condemn one to the hell of incessant suffering for the space of an entire kalpa. A kalpa is the length of time it takes for the life span of human beings to decrease from eighty thousand years to ten years, decreasing at the rate of one year every hundred years, and then to increase again to (2) eighty thousand years at the same rate. One who murders one's parent will fall into the hell of incessant suffering and undergo its terrible pain without a moment's respite for such a period of time.

As for the person who slanders the Lotus Sutra, though he may not be serious at heart, if he so much as manifests the outward appearance of animosity, disparages the sutra even in jest, or makes light, not of the sutra itself, but of those who act in its name, then, the sutra says, he will fall into the hell of incessant suffering for countless kalpas of the kind described above.

The people who cursed and struck Bodhisattva Never Disparaging at first behaved with such animosity, but later they took faith in him and became his followers, looking up to him and treating him with great respect, honoring him as the heavenly deities would the lord Shakra and standing in awe of him as we do the sun and moon. Despite this, the great offense of their initial slander was difficult to extinguish, so they were condemned to the great Avichi hell for a thousand kalpas and abandoned by the three treasures for two hundred million kalpas.

If one were to liken [the retribution for] the five cardinal sins and slander of the Law to illness, then the five cardinal sins would be comparable to sunstroke, the effects of which appear suddenly. Slander of the Law, on the other hand, is like white leprosy, which seems minor at first but bit-by-bit becomes very serious indeed. Those who commit slander of the Law are in most cases reborn in the hell of incessant suffering or, in a few cases, in one of the six lower paths. If they are reborn in the realm of human beings, then, the sutra tells us, they will suffer from poverty, low status, white leprosy, and so forth.

When I hold up the bright mirror of the Lotus Sutra before me, all is crystal-clear; there can be no doubt that in my previous existences I was guilty of slandering the Law. If in my present existence I do not wipe out that offense, then in the future how can I escape the pains of hell?

How could I gather together all the grave offenses that I have accumulated in age after age since the far distant past and eradicate them all in my present lifetime, so that I may be spared great pain in the future? When I pondered this question, it occurred to me that now, in the present age, slanderers of the Law fill every province of the nation. What is more, the ruler of the nation is himself the foremost perpetrator of such slander. If in such a time I do not expunge these heavy sins, then at what time can I expect to do so?

Now if I, Nichiren, insignificant person that I am, were to go here and there throughout the country of Japan denouncing these slanders, then innumerable persons among the four categories of Buddhists who follow erroneous doctrines would in one instant join their innumerable voices in reviling me. At that time the ruler of the nation, allying himself with those priests who slander the Law, would come to hate me and try to have me beheaded or order me into exile. And if this sort of thing were to occur again and again, then the grave offenses that I have accumulated over countless kalpas would be wiped out within the space of a single lifetime. Such, then, was the great plan that I conceived, and it is now proceeding without the slightest deviation. So, when I find myself thus sentenced to exile, I can only feel that my wishes are being fulfilled.

Nevertheless, being no more than an ordinary person, I have at times been apt to regret having taken such a course. And if even I am troubled by such feelings, then how much more so in the case of a woman such as your wife, who is unaware of all the circumstances surrounding the matter. Persons like you and her do not have full knowledge of the Buddhist teachings, and it pains me to think how greatly you must regret that you ever chose to follow Nichiren. And yet, contrary to what might be expected, I hear that you two are even firmer and more dedicated in your faith than I myself, which is indeed no ordinary matter. I wonder if Shakyamuni Buddha himself may have entered your hearts, and it moves me so that I can barely restrain my tears.

The Great Teacher Miao-lo says in his commentary (The Annotations on "The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra," volume seven), "Therefore we know it is because of seeds planted in previous existences that in the latter age one is able to hear the Law even for an instant, and having heard it, take faith in it." He also says (The Annotations on "Great Concentration and Insight," volume two), "Having been born at the end of the Middle Day of the Law, I have been able to behold these true words of the sutra. Unless one has planted the mystic cause in a previous existence, they are truly difficult to encounter."

During his first forty and more years of teaching, Shakyamuni Buddha kept secret the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo. Not only that, he still remained silent concerning them when he preached the first fourteen chapters of the Lotus Sutra, which comprise the theoretical teaching. It was only with the "Life Span" chapter that he spoke openly regarding the two characters of renge, which [represent the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo and] indicate the true effect and the true cause. (3) The Buddha did not entrust these five characters to Manjushri, Universal Worthy, Maitreya, Medicine King, or the others of their group. Instead he summoned forth the bodhisattvas Superior Practices, Boundless Practices, Pure Practices, and Firmly Established Practices and their followers from the great earth of Tranquil Light and transferred the five characters to them.

What took place then was no ordinary ceremony. The Thus Come One Many Treasures, who lives in the World of Treasure Purity, made his appearance, seated in a tower that emerged from the earth and was adorned with seven kinds of treasures. Shakyamuni purified four hundred ten thousand million nayutas of worlds in addition to this major world system, planted them with rows of jeweled trees measuring five hundred yojanas high at intervals of an arrow-shot length, placed a lion seat five yojanas in height beneath each jeweled tree, and seated on these seats all the Buddhas from the ten directions, who were his emanations.

Thereupon the Thus Come One Shakyamuni removed his soiled robe, opened the treasure tower, and took a seat beside the Thus Come One Many Treasures. It was as though the sun and moon had appeared side by side in the blue sky, or as though the heavenly king Shakra and the king Born from (4) the Crown of the Head had been able to sit together in the Hall of the Good Law. Manjushri and the other bodhisattvas of this world, and Perceiver of the World's Sounds and the other bodhisattvas of the other worlds were gathered together in open space throughout the ten directions like so many stars filling the sky.

At this time in this place the great bodhisattvas, such as Dharma Wisdom, Forest of Merits, Diamond Banner, and Diamond Storehouse, equal in number to the dust particles of the worlds of the ten directions, who had gathered at the seven places and eight assemblies (5) of the Flower Garland Sutra and were disciples of Vairochana Buddha, who sits on the lotus pedestal of the worlds of the ten directions; the Buddhas and bodhisattvas who had gathered like clouds at the Great Treasure Chamber when the sutras of the Correct and Equal period were preached; Subhuti, Shakra, and the thousand Buddhas who had gathered to hear the Wisdom sutras; the four Buddhas and four bodhisattvas (6), included among the nine honored ones on the eight-petaled lotus of the Mahavairochana Sutra; the thirty-seven (7) honored ones of the Diamond Crown Sutra; and the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the realm of phenomena in the ten directions who are to gather at the city of Kushinagara to listen to the Nirvana Sutra - all these assembled. All these figures were recognized by Manjushri, Maitreya, and the others of their group, who talked together with them, so it appeared that the great bodhisattvas, such as Manjushri and Maitreya, were quite accustomed to their being in attendance.

It was under such circumstances that the four bodhisattvas emerged from the earth. When Bodhisattva Manjushri, whose teaching the Thus Come One Shakyamuni was the ninth to inherit (8) and who is the mother of the (9) Buddhas of the three existences, and Bodhisattva Maitreya, who will succeed Shakyamuni Buddha after his next rebirth, stood beside these four bodhisattvas, they seemed to be of no significance whatsoever. They were like humble mountain folk mingling in the company of nobles and high ministers, or like apes and monkeys seating themselves beside lions.

Having summoned the four bodhisattvas, Shakyamuni Buddha entrusted them with the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo. And this entrustment, too, was no ordinary affair, for the Buddha first manifested ten supernatural powers. When he extended his long broad tongue upward as far as the limit of the world of form, all the other Buddhas did likewise, so that the tongues of the Buddhas extended up into the air above the four hundred ten thousand million nayutas of worlds like a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand, or a million red rainbows filling the sky. Marvelous indeed was the sight!

In this manner the Buddha displayed the wonders of his ten supernatural powers, and in what is termed the transfer of the essence of the sutra, he extracted the core of the Lotus Sutra and transferred it to the four bodhisattvas. He fervently enjoined them to bestow it after his passing upon all living beings of the ten directions. After that, he again manifested yet another (10) supernatural power and entrusted this sutra and the other sacred teachings preached during his lifetime to Manjushri and the other bodhisattvas of this and other worlds, to the people of the two vehicles, and to the heavenly and human beings, dragon deities, and others.

These five characters Myoho-renge-kyo were not entrusted even to Mahakashyapa, Shariputra, or the other disciples, though these men had from the outset attended the Buddha as closely as a shadow follows the body. But, even setting that aside, why did the Buddha refuse to entrust them to the bodhisattvas such as Manjushri and Maitreya? Even though they may have been lacking in capability, it would seem unlikely that he should reject them. There are in truth many puzzling aspects about the matter. But the fact was that the bodhisattvas from other worlds were rejected because their connection with this world was slight; or in other cases, although the bodhisattvas were of this saha world, they had only recently established connections with this world; or in still other cases, some were rejected because, although they were disciples of the Buddha, they had not been among his disciples when he first aroused the aspiration for and attained enlightenment in the remote past. Thus, among those who had been his disciples during the forty and more years preceding the preaching of the Lotus Sutra or during the preaching of the theoretical teaching, the first fourteen chapters of the Lotus Sutra, there was not one who could be called an original disciple. We see from the sutra that only these four bodhisattvas had been the disciples of Shakyamuni, the lord of teachings, since numberless major world system dust particle kalpas in the past; from the time he had first aroused the aspiration for and attained enlightenment, they had never followed any other Buddha, nor had they required the instruction of the theoretical and essential teachings.

Thus T'ien-t'ai says, "The great assembly witnessed the Bodhisattvas of (11) the Earth alone making this pledge." He also states, "[The Buddha said of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth,] 'These are my disciples, destined to propagate (12) my Law.'" Miao-lo says, "The children (13) propagate the Law of the father." And Tao-hsien states, "The Law embodied therein [in the Lotus Sutra] is the Law that was realized countless kalpas in the past, and therefore it was entrusted to persons who had been the Buddha's disciples from countless kalpasin the past." Thus these five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo were entrusted to these four bodhisattvas.

Nevertheless, after the Buddha's passing, during the thousand years of the Former Day of the Law, the thousand years of the Middle Day of the Law, and the two hundred and twenty or more years that have elapsed since the beginning of the Latter Day of the Law, nowhere in India, China, Japan, or any other place throughout Jambudvipa have these four bodhisattvas so much as once made their appearance. Why is that?

Bodhisattva Manjushri, though he was not specifically entrusted with the teaching of Myoho-renge-kyo, remained in this world for four hundred and fifty years following the passing of the Buddha to spread the Mahayana sutras, and even in the ages thereafter he from time to time descended from Mount Fragrant or Mount Clear and Cool, assuming the form of an eminent monk in order to propagate the Buddhist (15) teachings. Bodhisattva Medicine King took on the form of the Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai, Bodhisattva Perceiver of the World's Sounds became the (16) Great Teacher Nan-yüeh, and Bodhisattva Maitreya (17) became Fu Ta-shih. Moreover, Mahakashyapa and Ananda worked to spread the teachings of the Buddha after his passing for twenty and forty years, respectively. And yet in all this time, the Buddha's legitimate heirs, to whom the teaching of Myoho-renge-kyo had been entrusted, failed to make their appearance.

During this period of twenty-two hundred and more years, worthy rulers and sage rulers have honored painted images or wooden images of Shakyamuni, the lord of teachings, as their principal object of devotion. But although they have made depictions of the Buddhas of the Hinayana and the Mahayana teachings; of the Flower Garland, Nirvana, and Meditation sutras; of the theoretical teaching of the Lotus Sutra and of the Universal Worthy Sutra; of the Mahavairochana and the other True Word sutras; and of the Buddhas Shakyamuni and Many Treasures of the "Treasure Tower" chapter, the Shakyamuni Buddha of the "Life Span" chapter has never been depicted in any mountain temple or monastery anywhere. It is very difficult to fathom why this should be.

The Thus Come One Shakyamuni made specific reference to the last five-hundred-year period and never designated the two thousand years of the Former and Middle Days of the Law as the time for propagating the Lotus Sutra. The Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai said, "In the last five-hundred-year period, the mystic way will spread and benefit (18) humankind far into the future," indicating that its propagation should be left to the future. The Great Teacher Dengyo wrote, "The Former and Middle Days are almost over, and the Latter (19) Day is near at hand." In this way, he rejected the end of the Middle Day of the Law as not being the time to propagate the Lotus Sutra.

Are we to assume, then, that the great bodhisattvas as numerous as the dust particles of a thousand worlds who sprang up from the earth intend to remain silent and unmoving and to go back on the promise that they made when the teaching was entrusted to them by Shakyamuni, Many Treasures, and the Buddhas of the ten directions?

Yet even the worthy men described in the non-Buddhist scriptures know that one must await the right time. The cuckoo always waits until the fourth or fifth month to sing its song. Similarly, we read in the sutra that these great bodhisattvas must likewise wait until the Latter Day of the Law to appear.

Why do I say this? Both the Buddhist and non-Buddhist writings make clear that omens will always appear before a certain destined event actually occurs. Thus, when the spider spins its web, it means that some happy event will take place, and when the magpie calls, it means that a visitor will arrive. Even such minor occurrences have their portents. How much more so do major events! Thus the six auspicious happenings described in the "Introduction" chapter of the Lotus Sutra are great omens exceeding in magnitude any other major signs appearing in the entire life of Shakyamuni Buddha. And the omens described in the "Emerging from the Earth (20)" chapter are immeasurably greater in magnitude than these.

Therefore, T'ien-t'ai says, "By observing the fury of the rain, we can tell the greatness of the dragon that caused it, and by observing the flourishing of the lotus flowers, we can tell the depth (21) of the pond they grow in." And Miao-lo states, "Wise men can perceive the cause of things, as snakes know the way (22) of snakes."

Now I, too, in discerning the significance of omens, will be included among the wise. The great earthquake that struck in the first year of the Shoka era (1257), with the cyclical sign hinoto-mi, on the twenty-third day of the eighth month, at the time when the hour of the dog gives way to the hour of the boar (around 9:00 PM), and also the great comet that appeared in the first year of the Bun'ei era (1264), with the cyclical sign kinoe-ne, on the fourth day of the seventh (23) month - these are major portents such as have never before occurred during the more than twenty-two hundred years since the Buddha's passing. I wonder if they are not major signs indicating that those great bodhisattvas are now about to make their appearance in this world, bearing the great Law.

Ten-foot-high waves do not rise up in a foot-wide pond, and the braying of a donkey cannot cause the winds toblow. Though the government of Japan today is in chaos and the common people cry out in distress, such conditions alone could scarcely cause the appearance of such major omens. No one else understands that these are great signs foretelling that though the Lotus Sutra has perished it is in fact (24) eternal.

During the more than two thousand years [since the Buddha's passing], there have been evil rulers who were cursed by their subjects and traitorous persons who were hated by all. But Nichiren, though guilty of no fault, has without respite for the past twenty years and more been cursed and abused, assaulted with swords and staves, and pelted with rocks and tiles by people both high and low. This is no ordinary occurrence.

Mine is like the case of Bodhisattva Never Disparaging, who, toward the end of the Law of the Buddha Awe-some Sound King, was cursed and reviled over a period of many years. Moreover, Shakyamuni Buddha cited the example of this bodhisattva and predicted that, after his own passing, in the Latter Day of the Law, events would unfold in the same manner as in Never Disparaging's time. And yet, whether here close at hand in Japan or in the distant land of China, such a thing has never been known to happen on account of the Lotus Sutra.

Because people hate me, no one mentions the significance of these things. If I mention it myself, it may seem to be self-praise. If I fail to mention it, however, I will commit the offense of making lies of the Buddha's words. I speak of it because to hold one's own life lightly but to value the Law is the way of a worthy person.

I, Nichiren, resemble Bodhisattva Never Disparaging. Whether the ruler of a nation murders his parents, or a lowly subject does away with his father and mother, though the murderers differ greatly in social position, becausethe cause is identical, both will fall into the hell of incessant suffering. Similarly, though Bodhisattva Never Disparaging and I stand on different levels, we perform the same action. Therefore, if Bodhisattva Never Disparaging is destined to attain Buddhahood, can there be any doubt that I will gain the fruit of Buddhahood as well?

Bodhisattva Never Disparaging was cursed by arrogant monks who observed all the two hundred and fifty precepts. I, Nichiren, am slandered and reviled by Ryokan, who is known as the foremost observer of the precepts. The monks who cursed Never Disparaging, though they followed him in the end, still had to suffer in the Avichi hell for one thousand kalpas. But Ryokan has yet to seek my teachings. Hence I do not know what will become of him. He may be destined to suffer in hell for countless kalpas. How truly pitiful!

Question: With regard to the great earthquake of the Shoka era, in your remonstrative letter On Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land, which you entrusted to the lay priest Yadoya for submission to His Lordship, the late lay priest of Saimyo-ji, on the sixteenth day of the seventh month in the first year of the Bunno era (1260), with the cyclical sign kanoe-saru, you stated your opinion that heaven and earth had become angered because the people of Japan were destroying Buddhism by their reliance on Honen's Nembutsu Chosen above All, and that this error would bring about rebellion within the country and invasion from countries abroad. But now you say that the earthquake was an auspicious omen of the propagation of the Lotus Sutra. How do you explain the discrepancy between these two views?

Answer: That is a very good question. The fourth volume of the Lotus Sutra says, "Since hatred and jealousy toward this sutra abound even when the Thus Come One is in the world, how much more will this be so after (25) his passing?" And in the seventh volume, referring again to the time "after his passing" when things will be much worse, the Buddha says, "After I have passed into extinction, in the last five-hundred-year period you must spread it abroad widely throughout Jambu-Dvipa (26)." So we see that the hatred that abounds after the passing of the Buddha will come about in the last five-hundred-year period when Myoho-renge-kyo will spread. And immediately following the above passage, the Buddha warns of dangers from "evil devils, the devils' people, heavenly beings, dragons, yakshas, and kumbhanda demons."

When the chief priest Hsing-man laid eyes on the Great Teacher Dengyo, he exclaimed, "The sacred words will not become extinct. Now I have encountered this man! All the doctrines that I have learned I will transfer to this acharya from the country of Japan (27)." And the situation today is just the same. Now, in the beginning of the Latter Day of the Law, the time has come to propagate the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo so that all people throughout the country of Japan may receive the seeds of Buddhahood.

When a maidservant becomes pregnant with the ruler's child, the other women grow resentful. And when a person of humble birth is presented with a jewel from the king's crown, then great troubles are bound to arise. Thus the sutra says, "It will face much hostility in the world and be difficult to (28) believe."

The Nirvana Sutra declares, "If troubles are inflicted upon a sage, then the country where he dwells will be attacked by other countries." And the Benevolent Kings Sutra states essentially the same thing. If I, Nichiren, am attacked, then from heaven and earth and the four directions, great calamities will pour down like rain, jet up like fountains, or come surging forward like waves. If the many priests, those hordes of locusts who afflict the nation, and the ministers in power in the government persist in their ever-increasing slanders and accusations against me, then great disasters will occur in growing magnitude.

When an asura demon tried to shoot at the god Shakra, his arrow rebounded and pierced him in the eye. And when the garuda birds attempted to attack the dragon king Anavatapta, flames erupted from their own bodies and consumed them. Is the votary who upholds the Lotus Sutra inferior to Shakra or the dragon king Anavatapta?

The Great Teacher Chang-an says, "One who destroys or brings confusion to the Buddha's teachings is betraying them. If one befriends another person but lacks the mercy to correct him, (29) one is in fact his enemy." He also says, "One who rids the offender of evil is (30) acting as his parent."

All the people throughout Japan have been led astray by the wild assertions of Honen, who tells them to "discard, close, ignore, and abandon" [the Lotus Sutra], or of the Zen school, which declares its teaching to be "a separate transmission outside the sutras," so that there is not a single one who is not destined to fall into the great citadel of the hell of incessant suffering. So believing, over the past more than twenty years I have never ceased to cry out in a loud voice against these errors, fearing neither the ruler of the nation nor the common people. I am in no way inferior to the outspoken ministers Kuan Lung-feng and Pi Kan of old. I am like the thousand-armed Perceiver of the World's Sounds, the bodhisattva of great compassion, who strives to rescue at once all the beings confined to the hell of incessant suffering.

When several children are caught in a fire, though the parents wish to save them all at the same time, having only two arms, they must decide which child to save first and which to leave until after. The Lotus Sutra is a parent with a thousand arms, ten thousand arms, or a million arms. The sutras preached before the Lotus Sutra have only one or two arms, as it were. But the Lotus Sutra, through which the Buddha has "converted all living beings and caused them all to enter the Buddha way (31)," is a bodhisattva with innumerable arms.

If we go by the Lotus Sutra and the commentary of Chang-an, then Nichiren is a compassionate father and mother to all the people of Japan. Heaven may be lofty, but it has keen ears with which to hear. Earth may be thick, but it has sharp eyes with which to observe. Heaven and earth by now know [how the situation stands]. And yet I, who am father and mother to all people, am cursed and reviled and sent into exile. The abuses of government that have taken place in this country in the past two or three years are such as have never been heard of in former ages, and exceed all bounds of reason.

In your letter you mentioned your filial devotion to your deceased mother. Reading it, I was so moved that I could barely hold back my tears.

Long ago in China there were five young men, one of whom was Yüan-chung (32).
They had originally been strangers from different districts and had different surnames, but they took a vow to be brothers and never turned against one another, and in time they amassed three thousand treasures.

All the young men were orphans, and, grieved over this fact, when they met an old woman along the road, they decided to honor her as their mother. They did so for twenty-four years, never going against her wishes in the slightest.

Then the mother suddenly fell ill and was unable to speak. The five sons gazed up at the sky and said: "Our efforts to care for our mother have not been appreciated, and she has been seized by an illness that prevents her from speaking. If heaven will grant our filial feelings any recognition, we pray that it will restore to her the power of speech."

At that time the mother spoke, saying to her five sons: "In past times I was the daughter of a man named Yang Meng of the district of T'ai-yüan. I was married to Chang Wen-chien of the same district, who has since died. We had a son named Wu-i. When he was seven, rebellion broke out in the area, and I do not know what became of him. You, my five sons, have taken care of me for twenty-four years, but I have never told you of this. My son Wu-i had markings like the seven stars of the Big Dipper on his chest, and on the sole of his right foot he had a black mole." When she had finished saying this, she died.

As the five sons were accompanying her body to the burial ground, they encountered the magistrate of the district along the road. The magistrate had happened to drop a bag containing important documents, and the five young men were accused of stealing it, arrested, and bound. When the magistrate confronted them, he demanded, "Who are you?" whereupon the five young men told him all they had learned from their mother.

When he heard this, the magistrate almost toppled from his seat, gazing up at the heavens, then bowing to the earth in tears. He freed the five men from their bonds, led them to his seat, and said, "I am Wu-i, and it was my mother you cared for! For these past twenty-four years I have known many pleasures, but because I could never stop thinking about my beloved mother, they were never real pleasures to me." In time he presented the five men to the ruler of the country, and each was appointed to be the head of a prefecture.

In this way, even strangers were rewarded when they came together and treated someone as a parent. How much more so will be the case with actual brothers and sisters when they kindly take care of their own father and mother! How could heaven possibly fail to approve?

Pure Storehouse and Pure Eye used the Lotus Sutra to lead their father, who held erroneous views, to enlightenment. Devadatta was an enemy of the Buddha and was condemned by the sutras preached during the first forty and more years of the Buddha's teach-ing life. The moment of his death was terrifying: the earth split open, and he fell into the hell of incessant suffering. But in the Lotus Sutra he was summoned back and received the prediction that he would become the Thus Come One Heavenly King. King Ajatashatru killed his father, but just before the Buddha entered nirvana, he heard the teachings of the Lotus Sutra and was able to escape the great sufferings of the Avichi hell.

This province of Sado is like a realm of beasts. Moreover, it is filled with Honen's disciples, who hate me a hundred, thousand, ten thousand, million times more than did the people of Kamakura. I am never certain whether I am going to survive the day. But thanks to the warm support of both of you, I have managed to sustain my life thus far. When I consider this, I suppose that, since Shakyamuni, Many Treasures, and the Buddhas and great bodhisattvas of the ten directions all make offerings and pay reverence to the Lotus Sutra, these Buddhas and bodhisattvas must be informing your parents each hour of the night and day that you are assisting me. And the fact that you now enjoy your lord's favor must also be due to your parents' merciful protection.

Do not think of your siblings as siblings. Just think of them as your own children. It is true that among children there are those like the young of the owl, which are said to eat their own mother, or like the offspring of the hakei beast, which watch for a chance to devour their own father. Though (33) your own son, Shiro, takes care of his parents, if he is a bad person, perhaps there is nothing to be done. However, even a stranger, if you open up your heart to him, may be willing to lay down his life for you. So, if you treat your younger brothers as though they were your own sons, they may become your allies for life, and of course it will make a favorable impression on others as well. And if you likewise think of your younger sisters as daughters, then why would they not respond with filial devotion?

When I was exiled to this place, I assumed that no one would come to visit me. But I have no fewer than seven or eight persons with me here, and if it were not for your consideration, I do not know how we could manage to keep the whole group in provisions. I am certain that this is all because the characters of the Lotus Sutra have entered into your bodies in order to give us aid. I am praying that, no matter how troubled the times may become, the Lotus Sutra and the ten demon daughters will protect all of you, praying as earnestly as though to produce fire from damp wood, or to obtain water from parched ground. There are many other matters to discuss, but I will close here.

Nichiren

Reply to Shijo Kingo

Background

Nichiren Daishonin wrote this letter on Sado Island in 1273 to his devoted follower Shijo Kingo, who lived in Kamakura. Though in exile, the Daishonin says in this letter that his over-riding emotion is one of joy. He has been banished precisely because he denounced the errors of those who slander the Lotus Sutra. Because he has met this great trial for the sutra's sake, the Daishonin explains, he is certain to thereby eradicate in this lifetime his evil karma accumulated since the distant past. This is the principle of "rebuking slander of the Law and eradicating sins" referred to in the letter's title.

The Daishonin goes on to explain that when Shakyamuni Buddha preached the Lotus Sutra he transferred the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo, the essence of his teaching, only to the Bodhisattvas of the Earth. Though the Daishonin does not state so here directly, he implies that he is the very one carrying out the task of these Bodhisattvas of the Earth in propagating the essence of the Lotus Sutra.

The Daishonin subsequently likens himself to Never Disparaging, a bodhisattva appearing in the Lotus Sutra who revered all people as future Buddhas and met with abuse as a result. The fact that the Daishonin meets persecution just as Bodhisattva Never Disparaging did for the sake of the Lotus Sutra indicates that he is the sutra's votary in the Latter Day of the Law.

The text then raises a question: In On Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land, the Daishonin interpreted the disasters befalling the country as the effect of widespread belief in misleading teachings. Now heinterprets them as omens of the spread of the Lotus Sutra. How are these two views to be reconciled? The Daishonin makes clear that no fundamental contradiction exists. On the one hand, when the time comes for the propagation of the Lotus Sutra, disasters arise when people persist in clinging to pro-visional teachings that no longer suit the times. On the other hand, when the votary of the Lotus Sutra who is to propagate its teaching points out such errors and is persecuted as a con-sequence, great calamities are sure to result. The Daishonin adds that in denouncing the errors of other schools he has acted solely out of the bodhisattva spirit of compassion, as expressed by Chang-an: "One who rids the offender of evil is acting as his parent."

In the final part of the letter, the Daishonin praises Shijo Kingo's devotion to his deceased mother, and explains that such filial conduct will never fail to be rewarded. He concludes with expressions of gratitude to Shijo Kingo and his family, whose offerings have helped the Daishonin and his companions survive under the harsh conditions of banishment on Sado.

Notes

1. The five cardinal sins: killing one's father, killing one's mother, killing an arhat, injuring a Buddha, and causing disunity in the Buddhist Order.
2. According to ancient Indian cosmology, the human life span undergoes repeated cyclic periods of increase and decrease. The calculation here brings the length of a kalpa to 15,998,000 years.
3. The true effect refers to the enlightenment attained by the Buddha in the remote past, and the true cause, the cause of that enlightenment. "True effect" and "true cause" also indicate, respectively, the world of Buddhahood (effect) and the nine worlds (cause), which are both eternally inherent in life. Myoho-renge-kyo is the Law that simultaneously contains both cause and effect.
4. Born from the Crown of the Head, or Murdhagata in Sanskrit, appears in several sutras. He is said to have been born from the top of King Uposatha's head and grew up to become a gold-wheel-turning king. He ruled the four continents surrounding Mount Sumeru and finally ascended to the heaven of the thirty-three gods on the summit of Mount Sumeru. According to the Nirvana Sutra, he was welcomed there by the god Shakra, who seated him by his side in the Hall of the Good Law, a hall located in the southwest outside Shakra's palace Joyful to See in the heaven of the thirty-three gods.
5. The preaching of the Flower Garland Sutra is described as occurring in eight successive assemblies in seven different locations, beginning at the place of Shakyamuni Buddha's enlightenment and then shifting to various heavens.
6. Buddhas and bodhisattvas who are pictured in the court of the eight-petaled lotus appearing in the center of the Womb Realm mandala. In this mandala, Mahavairochana Buddha sits in the center of the lotus.
7. Five Buddhas, centering around Mahavairochana, and thirty-two bodhisattvas described in the Diamond Crown Sutra.
8. This story appears in the "Introduction" chapter of the Lotus Sutra. In the distant past, Manjushri appeared as Bodhisattva Wonderfully Bright, a disciple of Sun
Moon Bright Buddha. After the Buddha's demise, Wonderfully Bright continued to embrace the Lotus Sutra that his teacher had expounded. The Buddha had fathered eight sons before renouncing the world. Bodhisattva Wonderfully Bright led these sons to enlightenment. The last of them to attain Buddhahood was called Burning
Torch Buddha, under whom Shakyamuni practiced the sutra for enlightenment in a previous existence. In this sense, Shakyamuni was "the ninth to inherit" Manjushri's teachings.
9. The Contemplation on the Mind-Ground and other sutras refer to Manjushri as the mother of all Buddhas. He is so called because he represents the supreme wisdom essential to attaining enlightenment.
10. At the beginning of the "Entrustment" chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha pats with his right hand the heads of the immeasurable bodhisattvas present and then transfers the Lotus Sutra to all of them.
11. The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra.
12. Ibid.
13. The Annotations on "The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra."
14. The Supplement to "The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra."
15. According to the Nirvana of Manjushri Sutra, 450 years following the Buddha's passing, Bodhisattva Manjushri went to the Snow Mountains, where he expounded the Buddhist teachings for five hundred hermits. Thereafter, he assumed the form of a monk and, descending from the mountains, led many people to salvation. He later lived in a stupa on Mount Fragrant (Skt Gandha-madana), said to lie to the north of the Snow Mountains. According to the Flower Garland Sutra, Manjushri lives on Mount Clear and Cool (Chin Ch'ing-liang) in the east, which later came to be identified with Mount Wu-t'ai in China.
16. The reappearance of Medicine King and Perceiver of the World's Sounds as T'ien-t'ai and Nan-yüeh, respectively, is mentioned in The Lotus Sutra and Its Traditions.
17. Fu Ta-shih (497-569) was a lay Buddhist in China. Fu Ta-shih's biography states that he descended from the Tushita heaven, which is the abode of Bodhisattva Maitreya, to expound the teaching of supreme enlightenment.
18. Words and Phrases.
19. An Essay on the Protection of the Nation.
20. This refers to the ground splitting open and the countless bodhisattvas emerging from the earth.
21. Words and Phrases.
22. On "The Words and Phrases."
23. This comet first appeared on the twenty-sixth day of the sixth month, began to shine with renewed brilliance on the fourth day of the seventh month, and continued to shine into the eighth month.
24. This indicates that in the Latter Day of the Law, although the Lotus Sutra has become ineffectual, the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo implied in the depths of the sutra's "Life Span" chapter will spread to benefit all people.
25. Lotus Sutra, chap. 10.
26. Ibid., chap. 23.
27. The Biography of the Great Teacher of Mount Hiei.
28. Lotus Sutra, chap. 14.
29. The Annotations on the Nirvana Sutra.
30. Ibid.
31. Lotus Sutra, chap. 2.
32. Yüan-chung was a person from the state of Wei during the Chou dynasty (c. 1100-256 BCE), China. The story of these five persons appears in Miao-lo's Annotations on "Great Concentration and Insight."
33. Details are unknown about Shiro. No other of the Daishonin's letters indicates that Shijo Kingo had a son. One of his younger brothers was named Shiro, but it is not certain if this is the person to whom the Daishonin was referring.

 

[Guest]

Dear Thomas

Dear Thomas

Since adding your conclusion to your posts of Pres Toda's, I feel it safe to say what I feel to you about your recent posts. Absolute gratitude. Since I first started chanting and was introduced to SGI, I was always more connected to Pres Toda than to Pres Ikeda. I read everything about him that I could find which was more history at the time than guidance. I have the utmost respect for Pres Ikeda and was with yu when I experienced his great life force, however, I have always had problems understanding him as tho reading french. On an important day in my practice, one of my senior Japanese leaders gave me a "Scarf" (sure there is a proper Japanese word for this) which had the characters in Japanese of the phrase Slow Constant but Steady Growth. Pres Toda had given it to her mother in post war Japan at the time that home meetings were established. I have treasured it and kept it with my Gongyo book and beads always. I printed off every word you wrote, (which came to 74 pages by the way) and have spent two days outside reading it and rereading it. I was so excited because for the first time, I was able to understand things that I have never been able to understand. Finally! I wish I could have been in his presence and learned from him for I love his approach and way of saying of things. I have INSISTED that Gordy P read these papers and have found myself reading it to him.
So Thank You for the contribution. These last three pages have meant more to me than you can imagine. Also, to add, I still do Gongyo the way that you and others taught me. I feel like Im cheating to do the VERY short version. Not trying to be rebellious to the new movement, just don't feel that I'm doing it correctly by trying to do the NEW way. Thanks again and love to you and yours, Southern Girl

 

[Babbabud]

SouthernGirl so great to see you stop by . Your heartfelt post had me almost in tears. So great to hear of your understanding. Glad to hear things are going great for you and Gordy .. dont be stranger

nam myoho renge kyo

 

[Guest]

PTD, thank-you for that presentation from President Toda. I enjoyed reading Josei toda's version as well as President Ikeda's version. I appreciate both as each is different and experienced life differently.

I have always felt my connection with President Ikeda as he overcame a serious illness in his youth, something I had to do as well. In studying President Ikeda, I leanred that he saw himself as only a student to Both President's Makuguchi and Toda. That was a humblying feeling to gain from my teacher in life.

In reading this presentation of both President's understanding of how to live a life as a follower of Nichiren Daishonin's teachings reinvigorates my life to face the truly difficult situations in my own life with a renewed attitude to, "Win no matter what!"

SG. I am happy for your new opportunities. I used to feel the way you do about gongyo. One day, I decided to try it the new way. WOW! I had so much more time to chant. Now I can chant for hours easily, and do gongyo twice daily without any time constraints too. I know change is difficult. I remember hearing once, "Be the change that is neccessary" or somethng like that. Nichiren's Buddhism is about adapting to changes, just as life changes from moment to moment.

I just wanted to share with you SG how I felt about the new gongyo. I finally decided to become the change I wanted to see and everytime the SGI has a new idea or a change, I am the first one to suport it or sometimes it is MY idea. I can appreciate your feelings about gongyo.

Perhaps you might try it both ways two days in a row to compare how you feel. I use the extra time to chant abundant daimoku with deep appreciation. Just my thoughts and offering happiness to you and GordyP and Family.

Babbabud, have a nice day. smile.

Avid

 

[PassTheDoobie]

SG:

I have INSISTED that Gordy P read these papers and have found myself reading it to him.

It's about time. But if you had to insist, then the little fucker didn't listen to a word I said to him via PM, so tell him I said:

"Be careful or someone is going to whack his pee pee!"*



*(childhood private joke)

 

[Babbabud]

heheh guess ya had to be there

 

[PassTheDoobie]

(dude, it's from cheech and chong)

 

[Guest]

Your Welcome Thomas

Your Welcome Thomas

Wasn't exactly the response I expected but I'll take it. And you have no idea how much discussion nor the challenges that mount. I hope those words of wisdom I am to pass are productive.

Love to you Babbabud and Avid Lerner Southern Girl

 

[GordyP]

Bless your hearts

 

[Babbabud]

Cool Gordy , great to see you stop in . Dont be such a stranger . Drop in and say high more often.
Nam myoho renge kyo

 

[Guest]

Something to Think About

Something to Think About

There was a discussion early with Babbabud discussing chanting and cadilacs. Oddly enough it brings up a point that I would like to express and PTD please correct me or support me with proper sutra.
When we first start chanting, generally our prayers are meanial because so is our faith. Once chanting NamMyoHoRengeKyo, requesting actual proof with a sincere ichinen, our prayers is answered. Maybe you got that cadilac, relationship or job. Wow! What a great benefit. But yet in our beginnings we negate the power, put it up to conincidence etc., rest back on our laurels and forget where that benefit came from. So now the question is...You chanted for what you desired, you received it, How much daimoku have you continued to chant to have enough fortune to keep that which came to you. Daily? None? How long will it be or how far to you need to fall to remember that which brought it to you? There are differences in the occurrences that is a "cleaning out" and just no fortune to carry you.
You cannot be intimidated in learning Gongyo because it is foreign or in the chanting of daimoku. The fact that you have a sincere and seeking heart will take you where you need to be. I can butcher the English Language and am sure that I do the same to Sanskrit, but I try very hard and feel that since my return last July after a 4 year sebatical, my heart is sincere each and every time, full of appreciation, and ask for assistance in being correct. I find myself doing Gongyo in my head subconsciously at work or home with chores. I have yet to be protected, money manifesting from places I can't even imagine. The point is, my gongyo is not up to par but my benefits continue. My challenges get bigger, but then so does my faith. I have found that I have become softer, more wounded with words but worry little about the daily stuff anymore.
If this makes any sense at all, Please take your learning and past benefits seriously. Awakened yourself everyday with Appreciation and Gratitute in front of the Gohonzon or not for those who do not have one. Just as the parable from Pres Toda. The gentleman who had the robe and the gem was sewn in it all through his suffering and he never knew it to be there. Know that you have the gem but you have to acknowledge having it.
Something that I felt I needed to say. Love to all, southern girl

 

[sunnyside]

CALL TO ALL CHANTERS!!!!

I am interested in learning more about this whole chanting thing...but I really don't want to run through 70 pages!!! so if someone could hit me up with a pm i would appreciate the help.