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2019 LEVEL 1 EXAM STUDY BOOK

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Contents

The Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin —Nichiren Daishonin’s Life and Teachings 4 ......

1. TheLifeofNichirenDaishonin 4.......................................................................................................

2. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo 15................................................................................................................

3. A<ainingBuddhahoodinThisLife@meandKosen-rufu 19..............................................................

The Buddhist Philosophy of Life 29 .............................................................................

4. TheTenWorlds 29............................................................................................................................

5. ThreeProofs 39.................................................................................................................................

6. Faith,Prac@ce,andStudy 40.............................................................................................................

7. FaithforOvercomingObstacles 46...................................................................................................

8. ChangingKarmaintoMission 52......................................................................................................

The Lineage and Tradition of Buddhist Humanism 56 ..................................................

9. Shakyamuni 56..................................................................................................................................

10.NichirenDaishonin—TheVotaryoftheLotusSutra 59....................................................................

11.TheSokaGakkai—BringingNichirenBuddhismtoLifeinModernTimes 60...................................

12.TheWestwardTransmissionofBuddhismandWorldwideKosen-rufu 61.......................................

13.TheThreeTreasures 62....................................................................................................................

Worldwide Kosen-rufu and the Soka Gakkai 64 ............................................................

14.TheHistoryoftheSokaGakkai 64....................................................................................................

15.SokaSpirit 83....................................................................................................................................

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The Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin —Nichiren Daishonin’s Life and Teachings

1. The Life of Nichiren Daishonin

NichirenDaishonin(1222–82)dedicatedhislifetopropaga9ngtheMys9cLaw—Nam-myoho-renge-kyo—mo9vatedbyanunwaveringcommitmentandcompassiontoeradicatesufferingandenableallpeopletorevealtheirinnateBuddhahood.Hardshipandpersecu9ondoggedhimthroughouthislifeashesoughttoaddressandputanendtotheevilsobstruc9ngpeople’shappiness.

Early Years

TheDaishoninwasbornonFebruary16,1222,inthecoastalhamletofKataumiinTojoVillageofNagasaDistrictinAwaProvince(partofpresent-dayKamogawaCityinChibaPrefecture).Hewasthesonofcommoners,hisfamilyearningitslivelihoodfromfishing.

Attheageof12,hebeganhisschoolingatanearbytemplecalledSeicho-ji.Duringthisperiod,hemadeavowtobecomethewisestpersoninJapan(see“TheTripitakaMasterShan-wu-wei,”WND-1,175).HesoughttogainthewisdomoftheBuddhistteachingsforovercomingthefundamentalsufferingsoflifeanddeath,andtherebyleadhisparentsandallpeopletogenuinehappiness.

Attheageof16,inpursuitofadeeperunderstandingoftheBuddhistteachings,heformallyenteredthepriesthoodatSeicho-ji,receivinginstruc9onfromDozen-bo,aseniorpriestthere.Itwasshortlytherea^er,theDaishoninwrites,thathea_ained“ajewelofwisdomasbrightasthemorningstar”(“TheTripitakaMasterShan-wu-wei,”WND-1,176).ThiscanbeinterpretedtomeanwisdomregardingtheMys9cLawthatistheessenceofBuddhism.

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TheDaishoninthentravelledtoKamakura,Kyoto,Nara,andothercentresofBuddhistlearning,carefullystudyingthesutrasandcommentarieshousedatleadingtemplessuchasEnryaku-jionMountHiei,theheadquartersoftheTendaischool,andfamiliarizinghimselfwiththecoredoctrinesofeachschool.HeconfirmedthattheLotusSutraistheforemostamongalltheBuddhistsutrasandthattheLawofNam-myoho-renge-kyotowhichhehadawakenedistheessenceofthesutraandprovidesthemeansforfreeingallpeoplefromsufferingonthemostfundamentallevel.HealsoawoketohismissiontospreadNam-myoho-renge-kyoastheteachingforpeopleintheLa_erDayoftheLawtoa_ainenlightenment.

[Note:TheLa,erDayoftheLawreferstotheagewhentheteachingsofShakyamuniBuddhalosetheirpowertoleadpeopletoenlightenment.ItwasgenerallyregardedtomeantheperiodtwothousandyearsaAertheBuddha’spassing.InJapan,itwasbelievedthatthisagebeganintheyear1052.]

The Declaration of the Establishment of His Teaching

ThroughhisstudiesatleadingBuddhistcentres,theDaishoninconfirmedhismissiontospreadtheMys9cLaw—Nam-myoho-renge-kyo—andthemeansbywhichtodoso.Heembarkedonhisstruggleknowingthathewouldinevitablyencountergreatopposi9onandpersecu9on.

OnApril28,1253,aroundnoonatSeicho-jitemple,herefutedtheNembutsuandotherBuddhistteachingsofhisdayaserroneousandproclaimedNam-myoho-renge-kyotobethesolecorrectBuddhistteachingforleadingallpeopleintheLa_erDayoftheLawtoenlightenment.Thisisknownasthedeclara9onoftheestablishmentofhisteaching.Hewas32yearsold.Fromaroundthis9me,headoptedthenameNichiren(literally,SunLotus).

TheDaishonin’sdenuncia9onoftheNembutsudoctrinesontheoccasionofdeclaringhisteachingenragedTojoKagenobu,whowasthelocalsteward(anofficialoftheKamakuragovernmentwhohadthepowersoflawenforcementandtaxcollec9on)andanardentNembutsubeliever.Thela_erplannedanarmeda_ackontheDaishonin,buttheDaishoninnarrowlymanagedtoescapebeforehand.

TheDaishoninthenmadehiswaytoKamakura,theseatofthemilitarygovernment.There,hetookupresidenceinasmalldwellinginNagoe(atasitethatlatercametobeknownasMatsubagayatsu)andembarkedinearnestonpropaga9nghisteaching.Whilerefu9ngtheerroroftheNembutsuandZenteachings,whichhadgainedwideinfluenceamongthepeopleofKamakura,theDaishoninspreadtheteachingofNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

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Itwasduringthisearlyperiodofpropaga9onthatsuchwell-knowndisciplesasTokiJonin,ShijoKingo(ShijoYorimoto),andIkegamiMunenakaconvertedtohisteaching.

Submitting the Treatise “On Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land” and Encountering Persecution

IntheperiodwhentheDaishoninbeganhispropaga9oneffortsinKamakura,Japanhadbeenexperiencingaseriesofnaturaldisastersandcalami9es,includingextremeweather,severeearthquakes,famine,fires,andepidemics.Inpar9cular,thedevasta9ngearthquakeoftheShokaera,whichstrucktheKamakuraregioninAugust1257,destroyedmanyhomesandimportantbuildingsinKamakura.

ThisdisasterpromptedtheDaishonintowritethetrea9se“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand”(seeWND-1,6–26)toclarifythefundamentalcauseofpeople’ssufferingandsetforththemeansbywhichpeoplecoulderadicatesuchsuffering.OnJuly16,1260,hesubmi_edthistrea9setoHojoTokiyori,there9redregentoftheKamakuramilitarygovernment,whowass9lleffec9velythecountry’smostpowerfulleader.Itwasthefirst9methattheDaishoninremonstratedwiththeauthori9es.(Thisisknownashisfirstremonstra9onwiththegovernmentauthori9es.)

Inthistrea9se,hedeclaredthatthecauseofthesuccessivecalami9eslaywithpeople’sslanderofthecorrectteachingofBuddhismandtheirrelianceonerroneousdoctrines.Themostseriousrootcause,heasserted,wastheNembutsuteachingpopularizedinJapanbythepriestHonen(1133–1212).

TheDaishoninurgedpeopletodiscon9nuetheirrelianceonsucherroneousteachingsandembracefaithinthecorrectteachingofBuddhismwithoutdelay,forthiswouldensuretherealiza9onofapeacefulandprosperousland.Con9nuedrelianceonerroneousteachings,hewarned,wouldinevitablyresultinthecountryencounteringinternalstrifeandforeigninvasion—thetwocalami9esofthe“threecalami9esandsevendisasters”yettooccur.

[Note:The“threecalamiMesandsevendisasters”aredescribedinvarioussutras,anddifferslightlydependingonthesource.ThethreecalamiMesincludehighgrainpricesorinflaMon(especiallythatcausedbyfamine),warfare,andpesMlence.Thesevendisastersincludenaturaldisasterssuchasextraordinarychangesofthestarsandplanetsandunseasonablestorms.]

However,therulingauthori9esignoredtheDaishonin’ssincereremonstra9onand,withtheirtacitapproval,NembutsufollowersbeganplojngtopersecutetheDaishonin.

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Oneeveningshortlya^ertheDaishoninsubmi_edhistrea9se“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand,”agroupofNembutsubelieversstormedhisdwellinginana_empttotakehislife.(ThisiscalledtheMatsubagayatsuPersecu9on.)However,theDaishoninescapedunharmed.A^erthisincident,hele^Kamakuraforashortperiod.

OnMay12,1261,thefollowingyear,havingreturnedtoKamakurasome9meearlier,theDaishoninwasarrestedbytheauthori9esandsentencedtoexileinItoofIzuProvince.(ThisiscalledtheIzuExile.)A^erbeingpardonedfromexileinFebruary1263,theDaishoninmadehiswaybacktoKamakura.

In1264,hereturnedtohishomeprovinceofAwatovisithisailingmother.OnNovember11ofthatyear,theDaishoninandagroupofhisfollowerswereontheirwaytotheresidenceofanotherfollowernamedKudoinAmatsu(alsoinAwaProvince).AtaplacecalledMatsubarainTojoVillage,theywereambushedbyabandofarmedmenunderthecommandofthelocalsteward,TojoKagenobu.Inthea_ack,theDaishoninsustainedaninjurytohisforeheadandabrokenle^hand.Oneofhisfollowerswaskilledatthesite.(ThisiscalledtheKomatsubaraPersecu9on.)

The Tatsunokuchi Persecution and “Casting Off the Transient and Revealing the True”

In1268,anofficialle_erarrivedinKamakurafromtheMongolempiredemandingthatJapanbecomeoneofitstributariesandthreateningmilitarya_ackshouldthedemandberejected.Withthisdevelopment,thedangerofthecalamityofforeigninvasionbefallingthena9onbecameveryreal.

ThisspurredtheDaishonintowriteelevenle_ersofremonstra9ontotopgovernmentofficials,includingtheregentHojoTokimune,andtheheadsofmajorBuddhisttemplesinKamakura.Inthele_ers,hestatedthattheimpendingdangerofaninvasionwasjustashehadpredictedinhistrea9se“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand,”andheexpressedthehopethatthepriestsofthevariousBuddhistschoolswouldmeetwithhiminanofficialpublicdebate.

NeitherthegovernmentleadersnorthereligiousestablishmentheededtheDaishonin’sappeal.Rather,viewingtheDaishonin’scommunityofbelieversasathreattotheexis9ngpowerstructure,thegovernmentbegantotakerepressivemeasuresagainstit.

Aroundthis9me,TrueWordpriestswereenjoyinggrowinginfluence,thegovernmenthavingchargedthemwiththemissionofconduc9ngprayersforthedefeatofMongolforces.Ryokan(Ninsho)ofGokuraku-jitempleinKamakura,apriestoftheTrueWordPreceptsschool,wasalsobecomingmoreinfluen9althroughhisconnec9onswithpowerfulgovernmentfigures.

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TheDaishoninfearlesslybegantorefutetheerrorsoftheestablishedBuddhistschoolsthatwereexer9nganega9veinfluenceonthepeopleandsocietyasawhole.

Inthesummerof1271,inresponsetoaprolongeddrought,thegovernmentorderedRyokantoprayforrain.Learningofthis,theDaishoninmadeaproposaltoRyokan:IfRyokanshouldsucceedinproducingrainwithinsevendays,theDaishoninwouldbecomehisdisciple;butifhefailedtodoso,thenRyokanshouldplacehisfaithintheLotusSutra.

Whenhisprayersfailedtoproduceanyraina^ersevendayshadpassed,Ryokanaskedforaseven-dayextension.Againnorainfell,butfiercegalesaroseinstead.Ryokanhadclearlylostthechallenge.

Ratherthanhonestlyacknowledgedefeat,however,Ryokangrewevenmorehos9letowardtheDaishonin.Hecontrivedtobringaccusa9onsagainsttheDaishoninbyfilingacomplaintwiththegovernmentinthenameofaNembutsupriestwhohadclose9eswithhim.HealsousedhisinfluencewithtopgovernmentofficialsaswellastheirwivestohavetheDaishoninpersecutedbytheauthori9es.

AlthoughRyokanwaswidelyrespectedamongthepopulaceasadevoutandvirtuouspriest,heenjoyedthetrappingsofpowerandprivilegeandcolludedwithgovernmentofficialstowardself-servingends.

OnSeptember10ofthesameyear(1271),theDaishoninwassummonedbythegovernmentandinterrogatedbyHeinoSaemon-no-joYoritsuna(alsoknownasTairanoYoritsuna),thedeputychiefoftheOfficeofMilitaryandPoliceAffairs(thechiefbeingtheregenthimself).TheDaishoninadmonishedhimandemphasizedtheproperajtudeforthena9on’srulersbasedonthecorrectteachingofBuddhism.

Twodayslater,onSeptember12,HeinoSaemon-no-jo,leadingagroupofarmedsoldiers,conductedaraidontheDaishonin’sdwellingandarrestedhim,trea9nghimasifhewereatraitor.Onthatoccasion,theDaishoninstronglyremonstratedwithHeinoSaemon-no-jo,warningthatifhetoppledhim,“thepillarofJapan,”thecalami9esofinternalstrifeandforeigninvasionwoulddescendontheland.(TheeventsonSeptember10and12markedhissecondremonstra9onwiththegovernmentauthori9es.)

Latethatnight,theDaishoninwassuddenlytakenbyarmedsoldierstothebeachatTatsunokuchi,ontheoutskirtsofKamakura.Thiswasatthedirec9veofHeinoSaemon-no-joandotherswhoconspiredtohavetheDaishoninsecretlybeheadedthere.Justastheexecu9onerraisedhisswordtostrike,however,abrilliantorboflightburstforthfromthedirec9onofthenearbyislandofEnoshima,shoo9ngnorthwestacrossthesky.Thesoldierswereterrified,andthea_empttokilltheDaishoninhadtobeabandoned.(ThisiscalledtheTatsunokuchiPersecu9on.)

Thispersecu9onhadextremelyimportantsignificancefortheDaishonin.IntriumphingovertheTatsunokuchiPersecu9on,hecastoffhistransientstatusasan

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ordinary,unenlightenedpersonburdenedwithkarmaandsufferingand,whileremaininganordinaryhumanbeing,revealedhisoriginal,trueiden9tyasaBuddhapossessinginfinitewisdomandcompassion(theBuddhaofbeginningless9meoreternalBuddha).Thisiscalled“cas9ngoffthetransientandrevealingthetrue.”(Amoredetailedexplana9onofthisconceptappearsinchapter4.)

Therea^er,theDaishonin’sbehaviourwasthatoftheBuddhaoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw,andhewentontoinscribetheGohonzonforallpeopletorevereandembraceasthefundamentalobjectofdevo9on.

The Sado Exile

Whilethegovernmentwasdelibera9ngonhisfatefollowingtheTatsunokuchiPersecu9on,theDaishoninwasdetainedforaboutamonthattheresidenceofHommaShigetsura(thedeputyconstableofSado)inEchi,SagamiProvince(partofpresent-dayAtsugiCity,KanagawaPrefecture).Duringthisperiod,theDaishonin’sfollowersinKamakuraweresubjectedtomanyformsofpersecu9on,includingbeingunjustlyaccusedofarson,murder,andothercrimes.

Eventually,theDaishoninwassentencedtoexileonSadoIsland(partofpresent-dayNiigataPrefecture).HedepartedfromEchionOctober10,arrivingatthegraveyardofTsukaharaonSadoonNovember1.Thedwellinghewasassignedtherewasasmall,dilapidatedshrinecalledtheSammai-do,whichhadbeenusedforfuneraryrites.Thecondi9onstheDaishoninfacedweretrulyharsh.Itwasbi_erlycoldonSado,andhelackedsufficientfoodandwarmclothing.Inaddi9on,hewassurroundedbyhos9leNembutsufollowerswhosoughttotakehislife.

TheDaishonin’sfollowersinKamakuraalsocon9nuedtosufferpersecu9on.Somewereevenimprisoned,banished,orhadtheirlandsconfiscated.Themajorityofhisremainingfollowersbegantohavedoubtsanddiscardedtheirfaithoutoffearandadesireforself-preserva9on.

OnJanuary16and17thefollowingyear,1272,severalhundredBuddhistpriestsfromSadoandnearbyprovincesonthemainlandgatheredatTsukaharawiththeintenttokilltheDaishonin.TheywerestoppedbyHommaShigetsura,whoproposedthattheyengagetheDaishonininareligiousdebateinstead.Inthedebatethatensued,theDaishoninthoroughlyrefutedtheerroneousteachingsofthevariousBuddhistschoolsofhisday.(ThisisknownastheTsukaharaDebate.)

InFebruary,afac9onoftherulingHojoclanroseupinrebellion,andfigh9ngbrokeoutinKamakuraandKyoto,theseatofthemilitarygovernmentandimperialcapital,respec9vely.(ThisisknownastheFebruaryDisturbanceortheHojoTokisukeRebellion.)TheDaishonin’spredic9onofinternalstrifehadcometruejust150daysa^erdeclaringitinhisremonstra9onwithHeinoSaemon-no-joatthe9meoftheTatsunokuchiPersecu9on.

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Inearlysummerofthatyear,theDaishoninwastransferredfromTsukaharatoIchinosawa,alsoonSado,buthislifecon9nuedtobethreatenedbyangryNembutsufollowers.

NikkoShonin,wholaterbecametheDaishonin’ssuccessor,remainedathissidethroughouthisSadoexile,faithfullyfollowingandservinghimandsharinghissufferings.TheDaishoninalsosteadilygainedfollowerswhileonSadoIsland,includingAbutsu-boandhiswife,thelaynunSennichi.

TheDaishonincomposedmanyimportantworksduringhisexileonSado.Ofspecialsignificanceare“TheOpeningoftheEyes”and“TheObjectofDevo9onforObservingtheMind.”

“TheOpeningoftheEyes,”wri_eninFebruary1272,explainsthattheDaishoninisthevotaryoftheLotusSutraoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw,whoisprac9cinginexactaccordwiththeteachingsoftheLotusSutra.Ul9mately,itrevealshisiden9tyastheBuddhaoftheLa_erDayoftheLawendowedwiththethreevirtuesofsovereign,teacher,andparenttoleadallpeopleinthela_eragetoenlightenment.(“TheOpeningoftheEyes”isreferredtoas“thewri9ngclarifyingtheobjectofdevo9onintermsofthePerson.”)

“TheObjectofDevo9onforObservingtheMind,”wri_eninApril1273,presentstheobjectofdevo9onofNam-myoho-renge-kyotobeembracedbyallpeopleintheLa_erDayoftheLawinordertoa_ainBuddhahood.(Itisreferredtoas“thewri9ngclarifyingtheobjectofdevo9onintermsoftheLaw.”)

InFebruary1274,theDaishoninwaspardoned,andinMarch,hedepartedfromSadoandreturnedtoKamakura.

Mee9ngHeinoSaemon-no-joinApril,theDaishoninstronglyremonstratedwithhim,denouncingthegovernment’sac9onsinorderingprieststoprayforthedefeatoftheMongolsbasedontheTrueWordandothererroneousBuddhistteachings.Further,respondingtoadirectques9onfromHeinoSaemon-no-jo,hepredictedthattheMongolinvasionwouldmostcertainlytakeplacebeforetheyear’send.(Thismarkedhisthirdremonstra9onwiththegovernmentauthori9es.)

JustastheDaishoninpredicted,alargeMongolfleeta_ackedKyushu,thesouthernmostofJapan’sfourmainislands,inOctober1274.(ThisisreferredtoasthefirstMongolinvasion.)

Withthisevent,thetwopredic9onshehadmadein“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand”—thoseofinternalstrifeandforeigninvasion—hadcometrue.

Thiswasthethird9methattheDaishoninhaddirectlyremonstratedwiththegovernmentauthori9esandpredictedthatdisasterswouldbefallthecountry.Affirmingthathispredic9onshadbeenfulfilled,theDaishoninwrote:“Three9mes

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nowIhavegaineddis9nc9onbyhavingsuchknowledge”(“TheSelec9onoftheTime,”WND-1,579).

Taking Up Residence at Mount Minobu

Whenthegovernmentrejectedhisfinalremonstra9on,theDaishonindecidedtoleaveKamakuraandtakeupresidenceinHakiiVillageontheslopesofMountMinobuinKaiProvince(present-dayYamanashiPrefecture).ThelocalstewardwasHakiiSanenaga,whohadbecomeafolloweroftheDaishoninthroughthepropaga9oneffortsofNikkoShonin.

TheDaishoninmovedtoMountMinobuinMay1274.Hischangeofresidence,however,wasbynomeansaretreatfromtheworld.

Hecomposedmanyofhismajorworksthere,including“TheSelec9onoftheTime”and“OnRepayingDebtsofGra9tude.”Inthesewri9ngs,heelucidatednumerousimportantteachings—inpar9cular,theThreeGreatSecretLaws(theobjectofdevo9onoftheessen9alteaching,thesanctuaryoftheessen9alteaching,andthedaimokuoftheessen9alteaching).

ThroughlecturesontheLotusSutra,hedevotedhimselftofosteringdiscipleswhowouldcarryoutkosen-rufuinthefuture.

Duringthisperiod,healsowrotemanyle_erstohislayfollowersthroughoutthecountry,pa9entlyinstruc9ngandencouragingthemsotheycouldperseverewithstrongfaith,wininlife,anda_ainthestateofBuddhahood.

The Atsuhara Persecution and the Purpose of the Daishonin’s Appearance in This World

A^ertheDaishoninmovedtoMountMinobu,NikkoShoninac9velyledpropaga9oneffortsintheFujiDistrictofSurugaProvince(present-daycentralShizuokaPrefecture),successfullyconvincingmanyTendaipriestsandfollowerstoabandontheiroldreligiousaffilia9onsandbeginprac9cingtheDaishonin’steaching.

Thispromptedharassmentandpersecu9onbylocalTendaitemples,andthreatsweredirectedatthosewhohadembracedtheDaishonin’steaching.

OnSeptember21,1279,twentyfarmerswhowerefollowersoftheDaishonininAtsuhara,avillageinSurugaProvince,werearrestedontrumped-upchargesandtakentoKamakura.AttheresidenceofHeinoSaemon-no-jo,theyweresubjectedtoharshinterroga9onequivalenttotorture.ThoughtheywerepressedtoabandontheirfaithintheLotusSutra,theyallremainedtruetotheirbeliefs.

Threeofthetwentyfollowersarrested—thebrothersJinshiro,Yagoro,andYarokuro—wereul9matelyexecuted,whiletheremainingseventeenwerebanished

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fromtheirplacesofresidence.(ThisseriesofeventsisknownastheAtsuharaPersecu9on.)

TheexampleofthesefarmerfollowersperseveringinfaithwithoutbegrudgingtheirlivesconvincedtheDaishoninthathumble,ordinarypeoplewithoutanyposi9oninsocietyhaddevelopedsufficientlystrongfaithtowithstandgreatpersecu9ons.In“OnPersecu9onsBefallingtheSage,”datedOctober1,1279,inthetwenty-seventhyeara^erproclaiminghisteaching,hereferstothepurposeofhisappearanceinthisworld(seeWND-1,996).　

Whiles9llli_lemorethanachild,theDaishoninhadvowedtobecomeapersonofwisdomwhounderstoodtheessenceofBuddhismandtofreeallpeoplefromsufferingatthemostfundamentallevel.Thefulfillmentofthatvowwashislife’sguidingpurpose.ExpoundingtheteachingofNam-myoho-renge-kyo,thefundamentalLawfortheenlightenmentofallpeople,andrevealingtheThreeGreatSecretLaws—thatis,theobjectofdevo9onoftheessen9alteaching,thesanctuaryoftheessen9alteaching,andthedaimokuoftheessen9alteaching—heestablishedthefounda9onforkosen-rufuthatwouldendureforall9me.

DuringtheAtsuharaPersecu9on,ordinarypeoplewhoembracedfaithinNam-myoho-renge-kyothatencompassestheThreeGreatSecretLaws,dedicatedthemselvestokosen-rufuwithoutbegrudgingtheirlives.TheirappearancedemonstratedthattheBuddhismofNichirenDaishoninwasateachingthatwouldbechampionedbyordinarypeople,ateachingfortheenlightenmentofallhumanity.

TheDaishoninthusfulfilledthepurposeofhisappearanceinthisworld.WhatcametobecalledtheGohonzonofthesecondyearoftheKoanera(1279)wasalsoinscribedduringthisperiod.

Atthe9meoftheAtsuharaPersecu9on,theDaishonin’sfollowersstroveinfaithwiththeunitedspiritof“manyinbody,oneinmind.”HisyouthfuldiscipleNanjoTokimitsu,stewardofavillageneighboringAtsuhara,worked9relesslytoprotecthisfellowbelievers.

The Daishonin’s Death and Nikko Shonin’s Succession

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OnSeptember8,1282,theDaishonin,whowasindeclininghealth,le^Minobu,wherehehadresidedfornineyears.Hedepartedwiththestatedintentofvisi9ngthetherapeu9chotspringsinHitachiProvince(partofpresent-dayIbarakiandFukushimaprefectures)attherecommenda9onofhisdisciples.WhenhearrivedattheresidenceofhisfollowerIkegamiMunenaka(theelderoftheIkegamibrothers)inIkegamiinMusashiProvince(present-dayOtaWard,Tokyo),hebegantomakearrangementsfora^erhisdeath.

OnSeptember25,inspiteofbeinggravelyill,heissaidtohavegivenalecturetohisfollowersonhistrea9se“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand.”

TheDaishoninpassedawayatIkegamiMunenaka’sresidenceonOctober13,1282,attheageof61,bringingtoaclosehisnoblelifeasthevotaryoftheLotusSutra.

A^ertheDaishonin’sdeath,onlyNikkoShonincarriedonhismentor’sfearlessspiritandac9onsforkosen-rufu.BasedonhisawarenessastheDaishonin’ssuccessor,NikkoShonincon9nuedtospeakoutagainstslanderoftheLawandtoremonstratewiththegovernmentauthori9es.HetreasuredeveryoneoftheDaishonin’swri9ngs,referringtothembythehonorificnameGosho(honorablewri9ngs),andencouragedalldisciplestoreadandstudythemasthesacredscripturefortheLa_erDayoftheLaw.HealsofosteredmanyoutstandingdiscipleswhoexertedthemselvesinBuddhistprac9ceandstudy.

ATimelineofNichirenDaishonin’sLife

1222 February16:BorninKataumi,TojoVillage,NagasaDistrict,AwaProvince(today,partofChibaPrefecture)(Age1)—atthatEmeinJapan,assoonasachildwasborn,heorshewasconsideredtobe1yearold)

1253 (Age32)April28:DeclarestheestablishmentofhisteachingatSeicho-ji,atempleinAwaProvince

1260 (Age39)July16:Submits“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand”toreEredregentHojoTokiyori—hisfirstofficialremonstraEonwiththesovereign.SoonaTer,aUackedbyNembutsubelieverswhotriedtotakehislife(knownasMatsubagayatsuPersecuEon).

1261 (Age40)May12:ExiledtoIzuPeninsula

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1264 (Age43)November11:KomatsubaraPersecuEon

1268 (Age47)May12:SendselevenleUersofremonstraEontokeyfiguresinKamakura

1271 (Age50)September12:TatsunokuchiPersecuEon.ThereaTerbeginsinscribingtheGohonzonforhisdisciplesOctober10:SadoExilebegins

1272 (Age51)January16–17:TsukaharaDebateFebruary:RevoltbreaksoutinKyotoandKamakura;writes“TheOpeningoftheEyes”

1273 (Age52)April25:Writes“TheObjectofDevoEonforObservingtheMind”

1274 (Age53)March26:ReturnstoKamakurafromSadoApril8:MeetsHeinoSaemon;predictsMongolswillaUackJapanwithintheyearMay17:TakesupresidenceatMountMinobuOctober:MongolforcesinvadethesouthernislandofKyushu

1279 (Age58)September21:Twentyfarmersarrestedfortheirbeliefs

1281 (Age60)May:MongolsinvadeKyushuasecondEme

1282 (Age61)October13:DiesattheresidenceofIkegamiMunenakaatIkegamiinMusashiProvince

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2. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo

Nam-myoho-renge-kyoistheessenceofBuddhismandthefundamentalLawperceivedbyNichirenDaishoninforresolvingthesufferingofallhumanity.Here,wewillexamineafewoftheimportantaspectsofNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

The Fundamental Law That Pervades the Universe and Life

Nam-myoho-renge-kyoisthefundamentalLawthatpervadestheen9reuniverseandalllife.

Shakyamuni,thefounderofBuddhism,viewedthesufferingsofallpeopleashisownandsearchedforawaytoresolvethosesufferings.Intheprocess,heawakenedtothetruththattheeternal,all-pervading,fundamentalLawoftheuniverseandlifeexistedwithinhisownbeing.Thisrealiza9onledtohisbeingknownastheBuddha,or“AwakenedOne.”Then,withwisdomandcompassion,heexpoundednumerousteachings,whichlaterwerecompiledasBuddhistsutras.Amongthem,theLotusSutrateachesthetrueessenceoftheBuddha’senlightenment.

NichirenDaishoniniden9fiedthisLawtowhichShakyamuniawakened—theLawthatcanresolvehumansufferingonafundamentallevelandopenthewaytogenuinehappiness—asNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

The Essential Law for Attaining Buddhahood

BuddhasarethosewhohaveembodiedtheLawintheirownlives,overcomeallsuffering,andestablishedanunshakableinnerstateofabsolutehappiness.

TheLawofNam-myoho-renge-kyoistheessen9alprinciple,ormeans,fora_ainingBuddhahood.

The Eternal Law Inherent in All People’s Lives

Buddhas are awakened to the truth that the Law exists not only within their own lives, but also within the lives of all people. They realize that this all-pervasive Law transcends the bounds of life and death and can never be lost or destroyed.

The Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is universal, inherent in all people; it is also eternal, persisting throughout the three existences of past, present, and future.

The Profound Meaning Reflected in the Name, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo

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The profound meaning of the fundamental Law is reflected in its name, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

Myoho-renge-kyo is the full title of the Lotus Sutra in Japanese and literally translates as “The Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful (Mystic) Law.”

Because the Law expounded in the Lotus Sutra is difficult to fathom and comprehend, it is called the Mystic Law (myoho).

The lotus (renge) is used as a metaphor to describe the distinctive characteristics of the Mystic Law.

Though it grows in muddy water, the lotus remains unsullied by its environment, producing pure and fragrant blooms. This conjures images of those who have faith in and practice the Mystic Law. Though they live in the real world that is rife with suffering, they remain pure in thought and action, teaching others and guiding them to enlightenment.

In addition, the lotus, unlike other plants, contains a seed pod (the lotus fruit) within its buds, and the flower and fruit grow and appear at the same time. The flower (the cause) and the fruit (the effect) exist together, simultaneously. This is also used to illustrate that the state of Buddhahood, though indiscernible, exists even in the lives of ordinary people who have not yet manifested that state of life, and further that even after one becomes a Buddha, one does not lose the life states that characterize an ordinary person.

Kyo, meaning “sutra,” indicates that the Lotus Sutra (Myoho-renge-kyo) contains the eternal truth—the Mystic Law—and that people should venerate and place their faith in it.

Nam, or namu, is the phonetic rendering in Chinese characters of the Sanskrit word namas, meaning “bow” or “reverence.” This term was also translated using the Chinese characters meaning “to dedicate one’s life” (kimyo). To dedicate one’s life, in this sense, means to devote oneself body and mind to the Law and strive to practice and embody it with one’s entire being.

Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the very heart and essence of the Buddha, which is expressed in wise and compassionate action to lead all people to enlightenment.

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Nichiren Daishonin’s Enlightened State of Life

Although the Lotus Sutra teaches the fundamental Law of the universe and life, it does not reveal the exact nature or name of the Law.

Nichiren Daishonin awakened to the truth that the Law expounded in the Lotus Sutra existed in his own life, and he revealed that Law to be Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

In other words, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is not simply “Myoho-renge-kyo,” the title of the Lotus Sutra, prefaced by the word “nam,” but the name of the Law itself.

By revealing the Law to be Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the Daishonin opened the way in real terms for fundamentally freeing people from suffering and delusion, which arise from ignorance of the true nature of their lives, and helping them build unshakable happiness.

That is why we revere Nichiren Daishonin as the Buddha of the Latter Day of the Law, an age filled with confusion and suffering.

Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the enlightened life state of Buddhahood, or true identity, of Nichiren Daishonin, who embodied in his being the Law that pervades the universe and all existence.

Ordinary People Are Themselves the Mystic Law

The life state of Buddhahood is also inherent in the lives of unenlightened ordinary people—in every person. All people are inherently and originally Nam-myoho-renge-kyo itself.

However, while ignorant of this truth, ordinary people are unable to demonstrate the power and functions of the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo that exist within them. To be awakened to this truth is the life state of a Buddha; to doubt or be unaware of this truth is the life state of one who is unenlightened. When we have faith in and actually practice Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the power and functions of the Mystic Law are activated and expressed in our lives, and in this way we manifest the life state of Buddhahood.

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The Object of Devotion for Practice, Revealed in the Form of a Mandala

Nichiren Daishonin depicted his own Buddhahood, or enlightened life state, in the form of a mandala. He made this the object of devotion (Gohonzon) for our Buddhist practice, so that we ordinary people can manifest Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in our lives and attain Buddhahood, just as he did.

The Daishonin wrote: “Never seek this Gohonzon [object of devotion] outside yourself. The Gohonzon exists only within the mortal flesh of us ordinary people who embrace the Lotus Sutra and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” (“The Real Aspect of the Gohonzon,” WND-1, 832).

It is important that we revere Nam-myoho-renge-kyo—the fundamental Law and the life state of Buddhahood embodied in the Gohonzon—believing and accepting that it is inherent in our own lives. By doing so, we can tap the Mystic Law that resides within us and manifest our inherent Buddhahood.

In The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, the Daishonin says: “Great joy [is what] one experiences when one understands for the first time that one’s mind from the very beginning has been a Buddha. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the greatest of all joys” (OTT, 211–12).

When we realize that we are inherently Buddhas and Nam-myoho-renge-kyo itself, we can bring forth in our lives wonderful benefit and good fortune without measure. There is no greater joy in life.

When we triumph over hardships through our practice of the Mystic Law, we will lead lives of unsurpassed joy while developing a state of eternally indestructible happiness.

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3. Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime and Kosen-rufu

Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime

ThefundamentalpurposeofourBuddhistfaithandprac9ceistoa_ainthelifestateofBuddhahood.

ByembracingfaithintheGohonzonandstrivingsincerelyinBuddhistprac9ceforoneselfandothers,anyonecanrealizethestateofBuddhahoodinthisexistence.Thisistheprincipleof“a_ainingBuddhahoodinthislife9me.”

“Prac9ceforoneself”meanstocarryoutBuddhistprac9ceforone’sownbenefit.“Prac9ceforothers”meanstoteachandguideotherstoBuddhistprac9cesothatthey,too,cana_ainbenefit.Specifically,“prac9ceforoneselfandothers”indicatesdoinggongyoandchan9ngdaimoku,Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,whilealsoreachingouttotalkwithothersaboutBuddhism,teachingandguidingthem,andtherebypropaga9ngtheMys9cLaw.(Amoredetailedexplana9onappearsinchapter3.)

NichirenDaishoninwrote:“IfvotariesoftheLotusSutracarryoutreligiousprac9ceasthesutradirects,theneveryoneofthemwithoutexcep9onwillsurelya_ainBuddhahoodwithinhisorherpresentlife9me.Tociteananalogy,ifoneplantsthefieldsinspringandsummer,then,whetheritbeearlyorlate,oneiscertaintoreapaharvestwithintheyear”(“TheDoctrinesofThreeThousandRealmsinaSingleMomentofLife,”WND-2,88).

A_ainingBuddhahood,orbecomingaBuddha,doesnotmeanbecomingsomekindofspecialhumanbeing,completelydifferentfromwhowearenow,nordoesitmeanbeingreborninapurelandfarremovedfromthisworldinournextlife9me.

TheDaishoninexplainsthe“a_ain”ofa_ainingBuddhahoodasfollows:“‘A_ain’meanstoopenorreveal”(OTT,126).A_ainingBuddhahood,therefore,simplymeansrevealingourinnateBuddhahood.

Asordinarypeople,wecanrevealthisenlightenedstateoflife,justasweare.ThisisexpressedintheBuddhistconceptsof“thea_ainmentofBuddhahoodbyordinarypeople”and“a_ainingBuddhahoodinone’spresentform.”

A_ainingBuddhahooddoesnotmeangoingtosomeotherworld.Rather,itmeansestablishingastateofabsoluteandindestruc9blehappinesshereintherealworld.

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TheDaishoninsaysthat“onecomestorealizeandseethateachthing—thecherry,theplum,thepeach,thedamson—initsownen9ty,withoutundergoinganychange,possessestheeternallyendowedthreebodies[oftheBuddha]” (OTT,200).1

Asthispassagesuggests,a_ainingBuddhahoodmeanslivinginawayinwhichwemakethemostofouruniqueinherentquali9esanddevelopourpoten9altothefullest.

Inotherwords,ina_ainingBuddhahood,ourlivesarepurified,allowingustogivefullexpressiontotheirinherentworkings;wegainastronginnerstatethatisnotswayedbyanyhardship.

A_ainingBuddhahoodisnottheachievementofafinalgoal.ThestateofBuddhahoodischaracterizedbyanunremijngstrugglebasedonfaithintheMys9cLawtoeliminateevilandgenerategood.Thosewhostrive9relesslyforkosen-rufuareBuddhas.

“The Attainment of Buddhahood by Ordinary People” and “Attaining Buddhahood in One’s Present Form”

Theterms“ordinaryperson”or“commonmortal”appearfrequentlyinBuddhistsutrasandtexts,indica9nganunenlightenedperson.TheLotusSutrateachesthatordinarypeopleinherentlypossessthelifestateofBuddhahoodandthattheycanrevealthatstateoflife.Thatis,itispossibleforustomanifestwithinusthatnoblelifestateasordinarypeople.ThisisexpressedinsuchBuddhisttermsas“ordinarypeopleareiden9calwiththehighestlevelofbeing”(OTT,22)and“anordinarypersonisaBuddha”(“TheIzuExile,”WND-1,36).

A_ainingBuddhahoodisaprocessofmanifes9ngthelifestateofaBuddha,whichisoriginallypresentwithinallpeople(theinherentworldofBuddhahood).ABuddha,therefore,isnotaspecialbeingseparatefromorsuperiortohumanbeings.TheDaishonintaughtthata_ainingBuddhahoodisrevealingthehighesthumanity—thatis,Buddhahood—inourlivesasordinarypeople.

Thisiscalled“a_ainingBuddhahoodinone’spresentform.”ThismeansthatpeoplecanrealizethelifestateofaBuddhajustastheyare,withouthavingtoberebornandchangingtheirpresentformasanordinaryperson.

ThethreebodiesoftheBuddharefertotheDharmabody,therewardbody,andthemanifestedbody.The1

Dharmabodyisthefundamentaltruth,orLaw,towhichaBuddhaisenlightened.TherewardbodyisthewisdomtoperceivetheLaw.AndthemanifestedbodyisthecompassionateacEonstheBuddhacarriesouttoleadpeopletohappiness.

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ThoughMahayanasutrasotherthantheLotusSutrateachthea_ainmentofBuddhahood,theyallrequireatleasttwocondi9ons.

Thefirstisthatonenotbelongtoanyofthefollowinggroups,whichweredeemedincapableofa_ainingBuddhahood:prac99onersofthetwovehicles(voice-hearersandcause-awakenedones),evilpeople,andwomen.

Prac99onersofthetwovehiclesbelievedthatitwasimpossibleforthemtoa_aintheelevatedlifestateoftheBuddha,andsocontentedthemselveswithseekingtogainthestageofarhat—thehigheststageofawakeningintheteachingsforthevoice-hearers.Theseprac99onersaimedfortheannihila9onofbodyandmindinarrivingatthisstage,inwhichallearthlydesireswerecompletelyex9nguished,endingthecycleofrebirthintothisworld.ManyMahayanasutrasharshlycondemnedsuchprac99onersasbeingunabletoa_ainBuddhahood.

Thesesutrasalsotaughtthatevilpeoplehadtofirstberebornasgoodpeople,andwomenberebornasmen,beforetheycoulda_ainBuddhahood.Neitherevilpeoplenorwomenwereconsideredabletoa_ainBuddhahoodastheywere.Thoughthesesutrastaughtthepossibilityofa_ainingBuddhahood,onlyalimitednumberofpeoplecouldmeettherequirementstoactuallydoso.

Thesecondcondi9onfora_ainingBuddhahoodinMahayanasutrasotherthantheLotusSutrawasthatonehadtoengageinBuddhistprac9ceoverrepeatedcyclesofbirthanddeath(knownas“countlesskalpasofprac9ce”)inordertofreeoneselffromthelifestateofanunenlightened,ordinarypersonandachievethelifestateofaBuddha.

Attaining Buddhahood as an Ordinary Person in This Lifetime

Incontrast,theLotusSutrateachesthata_ainingBuddhahoodisnotama_erofbecomingsomesortofexcep9onalorextraordinarybeing,butthateachpersoncanrevealthelifestateofBuddhahoodwithinthem,justastheyare.

NichirenDaishoninfurtherclarifiedthatthefundamentalLawbywhichallBuddhasa_ainenlightenmentisNam-myoho-renge-kyo.HealsomanifestedhisenlightenedstateoflifethatisonewiththatLawintheformoftheGohonzon—theobjectofdevo9onofNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

ByembracingfaithintheGohonzonofNam-myoho-renge-kyo,anyonecanrevealtheBuddhahoodinherentinhisorherlife.

Nichikanwrote:“Ifweacceptandbelieveinthisobjectofdevo9onandchantNam-myoho-renge-kyotoit,thenourlivesarethemselvestheobjectofdevo9onof

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threethousandrealmsinasinglemomentoflife;wearethefounder,NichirenDaishonin”(“TheCommentariesofNichikan”).

BybelievingintheGohonzonandcon9nuingtoexertourselvesinfaithandprac9ceforthesakeofkosen-rufu,wecanmanifestinourlivesasordinarypeoplethesamelifestateofBuddhahoodasNichirenDaishonin.

Thisisalsoexpressedastheprinciplesof“a_ainingBuddhahoodinone’spresentform”and“a_ainingBuddhahoodinthislife9me.”

[Note:Nichikan(1665–1726)wasascholarpriestwholivedduringtheEdoperiod(1603–1868)ofJapan.HesystemaMzedandplacedfreshemphasisontheBuddhistprinciplesofNichirenDaishoninasinheritedandtransmi,edbyhisdirectdiscipleandsuccessor,NikkoShonin.]

“Earthly Desires Are Enlightenment” and “The Sufferings of Birth and Death Are Nirvana”

Theideaof“a_ainingBuddhahoodinone’spresentform”canbeexpressedfromanotherdis9nctperspec9veastheprinciplesthat“earthlydesiresareenlightenment”and“thesufferingsofbirthanddeatharenirvana.”

Thevarioussutrasandscripturestradi9onallycategorizedasHinayanateachingsintheDaishonin’sdaytaughtthatthecauseofsufferingliesinone’searthlydesiresordeludedimpulses,andthatthereisnowaytoeliminatesufferingotherthantoex9nguishsuchdesiresorimpulses.Theaimoftheseteachingswasemancipa9on(awakeningthatbringsaboutreleasefromsuffering)throughupholdingnumerousprecepts(rulesofdiscipline)andaccumula9ngtheresultsofprolongedandintensiveprac9ceandtraining.

However,tryingtoachieveastateu_erlydevoidofearthlydesiresledpeopletoseektoannihilateboththephysicalandspiritualselfandtherebyescapethecycleofbirthanddeath,nevertobereborninthisworldagain.Thisul9matelyamountstoacompletedenialorrejec9onoflife.

IntheMahayanasutrasotherthantheLotusSutra,personsofthetwovehicleswhoprac9cetheHinayanateachings,evilpeople,andwomenaredeniedthepossibilityofa_ainingBuddhahood.

Thisrepresentsawayofthinkingthatisessen9allyquitesimilartotheHinayanadoctrines,crea9ngagapordividebetweenordinarypeopleandtheBuddhathatisdifficulttobridge.

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Thesesutrasalsopresentfic99ousBuddhas—asinthecaseofAmidaBuddhaorMahavairochanaBuddha—whofartranscendhumanbeingsintheira_ributesanddwellinseparaterealmsfarremovedfromtherealworld.

ThesesutrasteachthatforordinarypeopletobecomeBuddhas,theymustlearn,prac9ce,andacquireaspectsoftheBuddha’senlightenmentali_leata9meoverthecourseofmanysuccessivelife9mes.

Also,thebeliefthatonecouldnotthroughone’sowneffortsorpoweralonebecomeaBuddhagaverisetoanemphasisonseekingsalva9onthroughtheabsolutepowerofaBuddha.　

Incontrast,theLotusSutrarevealsthatallhumanbeingsinherentlypossesstheworldofBuddhahood,alifestateofcompassionandwisdom,andthatitispossibletotapandbringforththisinnerBuddhahood.

Evenordinarypeoplewhoselivesaredominatedbyearthlydesires,burdenedbynega9vekarma,andafflictedbysuffering,can,byawakeningtotherealitythatBuddhahoodexistswithintheirownlives,manifestthewisdomoftheBuddha’senlightenment,liberatethemselvesfromsuffering,andrealizeastateofcompletefreedom.

Alifetormentedbyearthlydesiresandsufferingcanbecomealifeoflimitlessfreedomthatshineswithenlightenedwisdom,justasitis.Thisisthemeaningoftheprinciplethat“earthlydesiresareenlightenment.”

NichirenDaishoninteachesthattheworldofBuddhahoodwithinusisNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

WhenwebelieveintheGohonzonofNam-myoho-renge-kyo,chantdaimoku,andawakentoourtrue,nobleselves,thewisdomtoliveoutourlives,thecourageandconfidencetofacethechallengesofadversityandovercomethem,andthecompassiontocareforthewelfareofotherswillwellforthinourlives.

“Thesufferingsofbirthanddeatharenirvana”meansthat,thoughwemaybeinastateofsufferingcausedbythepainfulreali9esofbirthanddeath,whenwebelieveintheGohonzonandchantNam-myoho-renge-kyo,wecanmanifestinourlivesthetranquillifestateoftheBuddha’senlightenment(nirvana).

Theprinciplesof“earthlydesiresareenlightenment”and“thesufferingsofbirthanddeatharenirvana”teachusthatwhenwebaseourselvesonfaithintheMys9cLaw,wecanleadposi9ve,proac9velives,transformingeveryproblemandsufferingwehaveintoacauseforgrowthandhappiness.

Relative Happiness and Absolute Happiness

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SecondSokaGakkaiPresidentJoseiToda(1900–58)taughtthattherearetwokindsofhappiness:rela9vehappinessandabsolutehappiness.Rela9vehappinessdescribesacondi9oninwhichourmaterialneedsarefulfilledandourpersonaldesiressa9sfied.Butdesiresknownolimits;evenifwemayenjoyasenseofthosedesiresbeingfulfilledfora9me,itisnotlas9ng.Sincethiskindofhappinessisdependentonexternalcircumstances,ifthosecircumstancesshouldchangeordisappear,thensowillourhappiness.Suchhappinessiscalledrela9vebecauseitexistsonlyinrela9ontoexternalfactors.

Incontrast,absolutehappinessisastateoflifeinwhichbeingaliveitselfisasourceofhappinessandjoy,noma_erwhereweareorwhatourcircumstances.Itdescribesalifecondi9oninwhichhappinesswellsforthfromwithinus.Becauseitisnotinfluencedbyexternalcondi9ons,itiscalledabsolutehappiness.A_ainingBuddhahoodmeansestablishingthisstateofabsolutehappiness.

Livingamidthereali9esofthisworld,itisinevitablethatwewillmeetwithvariousproblemsanddifficul9es.Butinthesamewaythatsomeonewhoisstrongandphysicallyfitcaneasilyclimbamountain,evenwhencarryingaheavyload,thosewhohaveestablishedaninnerstateofabsolutehappinesscanuseanychallengetheyencounterasanimpetusforbringingforthpowerfullifeforceandcalmlyovercomeadversity.Forstrongmountainclimbers,thesteeperandmoredemandingtheascent,thegreaterenjoymenttheyfeelinovercomingeachchallengeonthepathtothesummit.Similarly,forthosewho,throughBuddhistprac9ce,haveacquiredthelifeforceandwisdomtoovercomehardships,therealworldwithallitstroublesandchallengesisaplaceforcrea9ngvalue,richinsa9sfac9onandfulfilment.

Inaddi9on,whilerela9vehappiness,whichdependsonexternalfactors,disappearswithdeath,theabsolutehappinessofthelifestateofBuddhahoodpersistseternally.AstheDaishoninwrites:“Passingthroughtheroundofbirthsanddeaths,onemakesone’swayonthelandoftheDharmanature,orenlightenment,thatisinherentwithinoneself”(OTT,52).

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“Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land” and Kosen-rufu

Thepurposeofprac9cingNichirenBuddhism,inaddi9ontoa_ainingBuddhahoodinthislife9meonanindividuallevel,istosecurehappinessforbothoneselfandothers.Asguidelinesforprac9ceinordertosecurehappinessforoneselfandothersamidthereali9esofsociety,NichirenDaishoninstressedtheimportanceof“establishingthecorrectteachingforthepeaceoftheland”andkosen-rufu.

“Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land”

NichirenBuddhismisateachingthatenablespeopletotransformtheirlifecondi9onanddevelopastateofabsolutehappinessinthecourseofthislife9me.Inaddi9on,throughsuchaprofoundinnertransforma9onineachindividual,itaimstoachievepeaceforsocietyasawhole.

NichirenDaishoninsetsforththeprincipleforrealizingpeaceinhistrea9se“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand.”

“Establishingthecorrectteaching”meanspromo9ngfaithinandacceptanceofthecorrectteachingofBuddhismasthefounda9onforpeople’slivesandmakingtheBuddhistteachingofrespectforthedignityoflifethefundamentalmo9va9ngprincipleofsociety.“Forthepeaceoftheland”meansrealizingpeaceandprosperityinsocietyaswellassafetyandsecurityforallindividualsintheirdailylives.

Inaddi9ontoindica9ngthena9onasapoli9calins9tu9oncenteringontherulingauthori9es,the“land”in“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand”refers,onadeeperlevel,tothebasisofpeople’sdailylivesandsustenance.Inthatsense,itrefersnotonlytothesocialstructureformedbyhumanbeings,butalsothelanditself—thenaturalenvironment.

NichirenDaishonin’sbeliefthatthepeoplearethecentralpresenceinthelandmayperhapsalsobediscernedinhisfrequentusage,intheoriginalmanuscriptof“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand,”oftheChinesecharacterfor“land”(also,“country”or“na9on”)wri_enwiththeelementfor“people”insidearectangularenclosure,ratherthanthecharactersusingtheelementfor“king,”orthatsugges9ngamilitarydomain,insidearectangularenclosure,whichweremorecommonlyused.

TheDaishoninalsowrote,“Akingseeshispeopleashisparents”(“OfferingsintheSnow,”WND-2,809),asser9ngthatthoseinpowershouldmakethepeopletheirfounda9on.Hefurtherwarnedthatrulerswho“failtoheedorunderstandthe

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afflic9onsofthepopulace”willfallintotheevilpaths(see“OntheProtec9onoftheNa9on,”WND-2,92).

While“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand”waswri_entorealizepeaceinJapanatthat9me,itsunderlyingspiritistoachievepeaceandsecurityforthepeopleand,further,toactualizepeacefortheen9reworldandhappinessforallhumanityintothedistantfuture.

TheDaishoninwrotethistrea9seandremonstratedwiththerulingauthori9esoutofhiswishtoputanendtothesufferingsofthepeopleofhisday.Hewasshowing,throughhisownexample,thatprac99onersofBuddhismmustnotcontentthemselveswithaBuddhistprac9cethatconsistssolelyofprayingfortheirownenlightenment.Rather,basingthemselvesontheprinciplesandspiritofBuddhism,theymustac9velyengageinseekingsolu9onstotheproblemsandissuesfacingsociety.

In“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand,”NichirenDaishoninwrote:“Ifyoucareanythingaboutyourpersonalsecurity,youshouldfirstofallprayfororderandtranquillitythroughoutthefourquartersoftheland,shouldyounot?”(WND-1,24).

Theself-centeredajtudeexemplifiedbyaver9ngone’sgazefromsociety’sproblemsandwithdrawingintoarealmofreligiousfaithaloneissternlyrepudiatedinMahayanaBuddhism.

TheSokaGakkaitodayisengagedineffortstoresolveglobalissuesintheareasofpeace,culture,educa9on,andhumanrights,basedontheprinciplesandidealsofNichirenBuddhism.Theseefforts,too,directlyaccordwiththeprincipleandspiritof“establishingthecorrectteachingforthepeaceoftheland”ar9culatedbytheDaishonin.

Kosen-rufu

TheaimofBuddhismistoshareandspreadthecorrectteachingthatembodiestheBuddha’senlightenment,andguideallpeopletowarda_ainingthelifestateofBuddhahoodandrealizepeaceandprosperityforallhumanity.

Forthatreason,ShakyamuniBuddhastatesintheLotusSutra:“A^erIhavepassedintoex9nc9on,inthelastfive-hundred-yearperiodyoumustspreadit[thisteaching]abroadwidelythroughoutJambudvipa[theen9reworld]andneverallowittobecutoff,normustyouallow[nega9veforcessuchas]evildevils,thedevils’people,heavenlybeings,dragons,yakshas,kumbhandademons,orotherstoseize

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theadvantage!”(“FormerAffairsoftheBodhisa_vaMedicineKing,”chap.23,LSOC,330).

Thispassagestatesthatinthe“lastfive-hundred-yearperiod”—meaningthispresentperiodoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw—theMys9cLawshouldbe“spreadabroadwidely”throughouttheen9reworld.(“Spreadabroadwidely”hereisatransla9onoftheChinesecharacterspronouncedkosen-rufuinJapanese.)

IntheLotusSutra,theBuddhaalsoentruststhemissionofwidespreadpropaga9on,orkosen-rufu,intheLa_erDayoftheLawtotheBodhisa_vasoftheEarthwho,ashisdisciplesfromtheunimaginablyremotepast,arethebodhisa_vaswhohavethoroughlyforgedthemselves.

DuringthepreachingoftheLotusSutra,countlessmul9tudesofsuchbodhisa_vasemergefromtheearth.LedbyBodhisa_vaSuperiorPrac9ces,theyvowtopropagatetheMys9cLaw,theessenceoftheLotusSutra,a^erShakyamuni’spassing.

Shakyamuniinturnpredictsthata^erhisdeaththeseBodhisa_vasoftheEarthwillappearinthissuffering-filledworldand,likethesunandthemoon,illuminatethedarknessofpeople’slivesandleadthemtoenlightenment.

Kosen-rufu is the Fundamental Spirit of Nichiren Daishonin

Inexactaccordwiththeaforemen9onedpassageoftheLotusSutra,NichirenDaishoninstrovetospreadthegreatLawofNam-myoho-renge-kyointheevilageoftheLa_erDay,whileenduringnumerouslife-threateningpersecu9ons.

TheDaishoninreferstothewidespreadpropaga9onoftheMys9cLaw,orkosen-rufu,asfollows:

The“greatvow”referstothepropaga9onoftheLotusSutra[Nam-myoho-renge-kyo].(OTT,82)

IfNichiren’scompassionistrulygreatandencompassing,Nam-myoho-renge-kyowillspreadfortenthousandyearsandmore,foralleternity,forithasthebeneficialpowertoopentheblindeyesofeverylivingbeinginthecountryofJapan,anditblocksofftheroadthatleadstothehellofincessantsuffering.(“OnRepayingDebtsofGra9tude,”WND-1,736)

WhenI,Nichiren,firsttookfaithintheLotusSutra,Iwaslikeasingledropofwaterorasinglepar9cleofdustinallthecountryofJapan.Butlater,when

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twopeople,threepeople,tenpeople,andeventuallyahundred,athousand,tenthousand,andamillionpeoplecometorecitetheLotusSutra[chantNam-myoho-renge-kyo]andtransmitittoothers,thentheywillformaMountSumeruofperfectenlightenment,anoceanofgreatnirvana.Seeknootherpathbywhichtoa_ainBuddhahood!(“TheSelec9onoftheTime,”WND-1,580)

Fromthesepassages,wecanclearlyseethatachievingkosen-rufu,thewidespreadpropaga9onoftheMys9cLaw,isthefundamentalspiritofNichirenDaishonin.

TheDaishoninalsorepeatedlyurgedhisfollowerstodedicatetheirlivestokosen-rufu,a_ainBuddhahood,andactualizetheprincipleof“establishingthecorrectteachingforthepeaceoftheland.”

The Soka Gakkai—Making Kosen-rufu a Reality

TheSokaGakkaiisaharmoniousgatheringofBuddhistprac99onerswhohaveinheritedandcarryontheDaishonin’sspirit,spreadingtheMys9cLawjustashetaughtinhiswri9ngs.

TheDaishoninwrote:“IfyouareofthesamemindasNichiren,youmustbeaBodhisa_vaoftheEarth”(“TheTrueAspectofAllPhenomena,”WND-1,385).TheSokaGakkai,whichhasspreadtheMys9cLawinthesamespiritastheDaishonin,istheorganiza9onofBodhisa_vasoftheEarthfulfillingthemissionofkosen-rufu.

Un9ltheappearanceoftheSokaGakkaisevenhundredyearsa^ertheDaishonin’sdeath,noonehadbeenabletowidelyspreadtheMys9cLaw.ItistheSokaGakkaithathasmadethepredic9onsofShakyamuniandNichirenDaishoninareality.ThisisproofthattheSokaGakkaiistheorganiza9onthathasemergedtocarryoutthemissionofkosen-rufu,ac9nginaccordwiththeBuddha’sintent.

TheSokaGakkaiismakingkosen-rufuareality,spreadingtheMys9cLawthroughouttheen9reworld,justastheLotusSutrateaches.

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The Buddhist Philosophy of Life

ThischapterwilldiscusstheprincipleknownastheTenWorlds,andclarifythatthefundamentalaimoffaithinNichirenBuddhismistorevealinourlivesthestateofBuddhahoodthatisinherentwithinus.

4. The Ten Worlds

TheTenWorldsisaclassifica9onoftendis9nctstatesoflife,andformsthefounda9onfortheBuddhistviewoflife.ThroughexaminingtheTenWorlds,wecancometounderstandthenatureofourownstateoflifeandgaininsightsintohowwecantransformit.

TheTenWorldsare:(1)theworldofhell,(2)theworldofhungryspirits,(3)theworldofanimals,(4)theworldofasuras,(5)theworldofhumanbeings,(6)theworldofheavenlybeings,(7)theworldofvoice-hearers,(8)theworldofcause-awakenedones,(9)theworldofbodhisa_vas,and(10)theworldofBuddhas.

Thefirstsixworlds—thoseofhell,hungryspirits,animals,asuras,humanbeings,andheavenlybeings—areknownasthesixpaths.Theremainingfour—thoseofvoice-hearers,cause-awakenedones,bodhisa_vas,andBuddhas—areknownasthefournobleworlds.

AccordingtotheancientIndianworldview,thesixpathsrefertothesixrealmsofexistenceamongwhichlifetransmigratesintheunendingcycleofbirthanddeath.Buddhismadoptedthisconcept.Thefournobleworldsarelifestatesthatarea_ainedthroughBuddhistprac9ce.

InBuddhistsutrasotherthantheLotusSutra,theTenWorldsareregardedastenseparate,fixedrealmsofexistence.TheLotusSutra,however,fundamentallyrejectsthatpointofview,teachingthattheTenWorldsaretenstatesoflifeinherentwithineachlivingbeing.Itrevealsthatlivingbeingsofthenineworldsfromhell

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throughtheworldofbodhisa_vaspossesswithinthemtheworldofBuddhas,andthatBuddhasalsopossessalltheothernineworlds.

Therefore,abeingpresentlymanifes9ngoneoftheTenWorldsinfactpossesseswithinitselfalloftheTenWorldsandcansubsequentlymanifestanyotheroftheTenWorldsinresponsetoexternalinfluences.ThisteachingthatalloftheTenWorldsareinherentwithinoneanotheriscalledthemutualpossessionoftheTenWorlds.(Amoredetailedexplana9onofthisconceptappearsinchapter5.)

NichirenDaishoninwrites:“Neitherthepurelandnorhellexistsoutsideoneself;bothlieonlywithinone’sownheart.Awakenedtothis,oneiscalledaBuddha;deludedaboutit,oneiscalledanordinaryperson”(WND-1,456).

AsinglelifepossessesalltheTenWorlds.Thismeansthat,evenifrightnowwemaybeexperiencingthepainfullifestateofhell,wecantransformitintothesupremelyjoyouslifestateofBuddhahood.TheprincipleoftheTenWorldsbasedontheLotusSutraopensthewayforsuchdynamicinnertransforma9on.

LetusnowexaminethenatureofeachoftheTenWorlds.Firstofall,withregardtothelowestsixworlds,orthesixpaths,theDaishoninwritesin“TheObjectofDevo9onforObservingtheMind”:

Whenwelookfrom9meto9meataperson’sface,wefindhimorhersome9mesjoyful,some9mesenraged,andsome9mescalm.At9mesgreedappearsintheperson’sface,at9mesfoolishness,andat9mesperversity.Rageistheworldofhell,greedisthatofhungryspirits,foolishnessisthatofanimals,perversityisthatofasuras,joyisthatofheaven,andcalmnessisthatofhumanbeings.(WND-1,358)

Basedonthispassage,letuslookateachofthesixpathsinturn.

[1]The World of Hell

TheJapanesewordforhell,jigoku(Skt.naraka),literallymeans“undergroundprison.”Buddhistscripturesdescribemanyhells,suchastheeighthothells,theeightcoldhells,andnumerousothers.

Theworldofhellistheloweststateoflife,astateinwhichoneisimprisonedbysufferingandcompletelylackinginfreedom.

TheDaishoninwrites:“Hellisadreadfuldwellingoffire”(WND-1,1026).Hellisalifestateinwhichweexperiencetheworldaroundusasaplacethatinflictssufferinguponusasintenseasifwewerebeingburnedbyflames.

In“TheObjectofDevo9onforObservingtheMind,”theDaishoninsays:“Rageistheworldofhell”(WND-1,358).Thisragearisesfrombi_erfrustra9onanddiscontentwithourselvesfornotbeingorachievingwhatwedesire,ortowardthe

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worldaroundusthatinflictssuchsufferingonus.Itisthetormentedexpressionofalifehopelesslytrappedinarealmofsuffering.

Hellisthestateofbeinginwhichlivingisitselfextremelypainfulandeverythingweseeiscoloredbyourunhappinessandmisery.

[2]The World of Hungry Spirits

Theworldofhungryspirits,orthelifestateofhunger,ischaracterizedbyrelentlesscravingandthesufferingarisingfromsuchcravinggoingunsa9sfied.

InancientIndianmythology,“hungryspirits”(Skt.preta)originallyreferredtothedeceasedorspiritsofthedead,whowerebelievedtobeconstantlystarving.Asaresult,alifestatewhereoneisspirituallyandphysicallytormentedbyintense,unremijngcravingcametobeknownastheworldofhungryspirits.

TheDaishoninwrites:“Greedis[theworld]ofhungryspirits”(WND-1,358);and“Therealmofhungryspiritsisapi9fulplacewhere,drivenbystarva9on,theydevourtheirownchildren”(WND-1,1026).Hungersostrongthatitdrivesthoseinitsgriptodevourtheirownchildrendescribesalifestateofsufferinginwhichone’sheartandmindareruledbyinsa9abledesires.

Ofcourse,wantsanddesireshavebothgoodandbadaspects.Humanbeingscouldnotsurvivewithouttheurgetoeat.Desirescanalsobethemo9va9ngforceforhumanprogressandself-improvement.Butthelifestateofhungerisoneofsufferinginwhichoneisenslavedbydesiresandunabletousethemforconstruc9ve,crea9vepurposes.

[3]The World of Animals

Theworldofanimals,orthelifestateofanimality,ischaracterizedbyfoolishnessinthesenseofbeingmovedbyimpulseratherthanreasonandbeingconcernedonlywithimmediatebenefitandgra9fica9on.

TheDaishoninwrites:“Foolishnessis[theworld]ofanimals”(WND-1,358).Thisdescribesalifestateofac9ngimpulsivelyforshort-termbenefit,withnounderstandingofthelawofcauseandeffectandnoabilitytojudgebetweenrightandwrong,goodandevil.

TheDaishoninalsowritesoftheworldofanimals:“Itisthenatureofbeaststothreatentheweakandfearthestrong”(WND-1,302);and“[Therealmof]animalsistokillorbekilled”(WND-1,1026).Hedescribesthelifestateofanimalityasoneruledbythelawofthejungle,astruggleforsurvivalinwhichoneiswillingtoharmotherstostayalive,withnosenseofreasonorconscience.Becauseitisacondi9onoffoolishness,inwhichoneisfixatedonimmediaterewardandcannotgivethought

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tofutureconsequences,thosedominatedbythislifestatearetheengineersoftheirownsufferingandself-destruc9on.

[Note:Theuseoftheterm“animals”isbasedonancientIndianbeliefs.Naturally,thereareexamplesofanimals,suchasservicedogs,thatdevotedlyassistothers,anditisalsotruethatsomeofthebehaviorofhumanbeings—forexample,warsandgenocide—iso^enmuchmorecruelandbrutalthanthatofnon-humananimals.]

Becausetheworldsofhell,hungryspirits,andanimalsallrepresentcondi9onsofsuffering,theyarecollec9velyknownasthethreeevilpaths.

[4]The World of Asuras

Asurasareconten9ousdemonsfoundinancientIndianmythology.

Acharacteris9coftheworldofasuras,orthelifestateofanger,isanobsessionwithpersonalsuperiorityorself-importance,atendencytoalwayscompareoneselfwithothersandwanttobebe_erthanthem.

Whenthoseinthislifestateencounterpeopletheyconsiderinferiortothemselves,theybecomearrogantandlookdownonthem.Evenwhentheyrecognizethatothersaresuperiortotheminsomeway,theyareunabletorespectthem.Andwhentheymeetsomeonewhoistrulymorepowerfulthantheyare,theybecomecowardlyandfawning.

Thoseintheworldofasuraso^enputonanappearanceofbeingpeopleofvirtueandfinecharacter,evenpretendingtobehumbleinordertoimpressothers.Inside,however,theyarefilledwithjealousyandresentmenttowardthosetheyperceivetobebe_erthanthem.Thisgapbetweenoutwardappearanceandinnerrealityleadstohypocrisyandself-decep9on,whicharealsocharacteris9csofthislifestate.

ThisiswhytheDaishoninwrites:“Perversityis[theworld]ofasuras”(WND-1,358).Here,“perversity”meansconcealingone’struefeelingsinordertoingra9ateoneselfwithothers.Therearetwoaspectstothisperversity—tofawnanddeceive,andtodistortreason.

Unlikethoseinthethreeevilpaths—theworldsofhell,hungryspirits,andanimals—whoaredominatedbythethreepoisonsofgreed,anger,andfoolishness ,2

Threepoisonsofgreed,anger,andfoolishness:Thefundamentalevilsinherentinlifethatgiverisetohuman2

suffering.IntherenownedMahayanascholarNagarjuna’sTrea%seontheGreatPerfec%onofWisdom,thethreepoisonsareregardedasthesourceofallillusionsandearthlydesires.Thethreepoisonsaresocalledbecausetheypollutepeople’slivesandworktopreventthemfromturningtheirheartsandmindstogoodness.

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thoseintheworldofasurasactoftheirownvoli9on.Inthissense,theworldofasurascanbeconsideredahigherstatethanthethreeevilpaths.Nevertheless,becauseitisessen9allyarealmfilledwithsuffering,itisgroupedtogetherwiththethreeevilpathstoform“thefourevilpaths.”

[5]The World of Human Beings

Theworldofhumanbeings,orthelifestateofhumanity,isacalm,composedstateinwhichpeoplemaintaintheircharacteris9chumanquali9es.TheDaishoninsays:“Calmnessis[theworld]ofhumanbeings”(WND-1,358).

Thoseinthelifestateofhumanityunderstandtheprincipleofcauseandeffectandarera9onalenoughtoknowthedifferencebetweengoodandevil.

TheDaishoninwrites:“Thewisemaybecalledhuman,butthethoughtlessarenomorethananimals”(WND-1,852).Thoseinthelifestateofhumanityhavethecapacitytodis9nguishrightfromwrongandtoexerciseself-control.

Thelifestateofhumanitycannotbesustainedwithouteffort.Intherealityofsociety,whichisfilledwithmanynega9veinfluences,itisindeeddifficultforpeopletoliveinahumaneway.Itisimpossiblewithoutaconstanteffortatself-improvementandpersonaldevelopment.Theworldofhumanityisthefirststeptowardalifestateofwinningoveroneself.

Thoseintheworldofhumanityarealsoseenas“thecorrectvesselfora_ainingthenoblepaths.” Whiletheyarevulnerabletofallingintotheevilpaths3

throughnega9veinfluences,theyalsohavethepoten9altoadvancetothefournobleworlds,orenlightenedstatesoflife,throughBuddhistprac9ce.

[6]The World of Heavenly Beings

InancientIndiancosmology,heavenreferredbothtogodspossessingsupernaturalpowersandtotherealmwheretheylived.InancientIndia,itwasbelievedthatthosewhoperformedgoodactsintheirpresentlifewouldberebornasdei9esintheheavenlyrealm.

InBuddhism,theworldofheavenlybeings,orthelifestateofheaven,isregardedasacondi9onofjoyexperiencedwhenwefulfillourdesiresthrougheffort.TheDaishoninwrites:“Joyis[theworld]ofheaven”(WND-1,358).

Thereareallkindsofdesires—ins9nc9vedesiressuchasforfoodandsleep,materialdesiresforthingslikeanewcarorhouse,socialdesiressuchasthewishforstatusandhonors,andintellectualandspiritualdesiressuchastheaspira9onto

CorrectvesselforaUainingthenoblepaths:ApassagefoundinTheTrea%seontheRiseoftheWorldstaEng3

thathumanbeingsrepresentthemostappropriatevessel,orformoflife,foraUainingtheBuddhaway.� 33

knowaboutyet-to-be-discoveredworldsorcreatenewworksofart.Thestateofblissfuljoyoneexperiencesuponfulfillingthesevariouskindsofdesiresistheworldofheavenlybeings.

Butthejoyoftheworldofheavenlybeingsisnotlas9ng.Itfadesanddisappearswiththepassageof9me.Inthatsense,theworldofheavenlybeingsisnotthestateofgenuinehappinessthatshouldbeourul9mateaim.

From the Six Paths to the Four Noble Worlds

Theworldsfromhelltoheavenlybeingsdiscussedabove,togetherreferredtoasthesixpaths,areeasilyinfluencedbyexternalcircumstances.

Whenone’sdesiresarefulfilled,oneexperiencestheblissoftheworldofheavenlybeings,andwhenone’sexternalenvironmentiscalmandstable,oneenjoysthetranquillityoftheworldofhumanbeings.Butshouldthoseexternalcondi9onschange,onecanquicklytumbleintostatesofintensesuffering,suchastheworldsofhellandhungryspirits.

Inthesensethattheyaregovernedbyexternalcircumstances,thelifestatesofthesixpathsarenottrulyfreeorautonomous.

TheaimofBuddhistprac9ceistotranscendthesixpathsanddevelopaself-determinedstateofhappinessthatisnotcontrolledbyexternalcircumstances.TheawakenedstatesoflifeapersoncandevelopthroughBuddhistprac9ceareknownasthefournobleworlds—theworldsofvoice-hearers,cause-awakenedones,bodhisa_vas,andBuddhas.

[7 & 8]The Worlds of Voice-Hearers and Cause-Awakened Ones

Tradi9onally,theworldsofvoice-hearersandcause-awakenedoneswerelifestatesa_ainedthroughprac9cingtheso-calledHinayanateachings.

Personsinthesetwoworlds,whicharealsoknownasthelifestatesoflearningandrealiza9on,aretogetherreferredtoasthe“personsofthetwovehicles.”

Theworldofvoice-hearersisthelifestatea_ainedbythosewhogainapar9alawakeningthroughhearingtheBuddha’steaching.

Theworldofcause-awakenedonesreferstothelifestatea_ainedbythosewhogainapar9alawakeningthroughtheirownobserva9onsandeffort.Itisalsocalledtherealmofself-awakenedones.

Thepar9alawakeningofthepersonsofthetwovehiclesisanawakeningtotheimpermanenceofallphenomena—therealitythatallthingsareconstantlychanging,comingintoandgoingoutofexistence.Thoseintheworldsofvoice-

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hearersandcause-awakenedones,byobjec9velyobservingthemselvesandtheworldaroundthem,perceivethetruththatallthingsariseinresponsetocausesandcondi9ons,changewiththepassageof9me,andeventuallyceasetoexist.Andtheystrivetoovercometheira_achmenttotransientthingsandphenomena.

Thereare9mesinourdailyliveswhenwehaveastrongpercep9onoftheimpermanenceofallthings,includingourselves.TheDaishoninnotes:“Thefactthatallthingsinthisworldaretransientisperfectlycleartous.Isthisnotbecausetheworldsofthetwovehiclesarepresentinthehumanworld?”(WND-1,358).Heissayingthattheworldofhumanbeingsalsopossessesthesepercep9veworldsofvoice-hearersandcause-awakenedones.

Thosewhosoughttoa_ainthelifestatesofthetwovehiclesiden9fiedthecauseofsufferingasa_achmenttoimpermanent,transientthingsandphenomena,andtheyendeavouredtoeradicatesucha_achmentandotherearthlydesires.Becauseofthat,however,theystrayedintothemistakenpathofseekingtoex9nguishtheirownbodiesandmindsen9rely(theteachingof“reducingthebodytoashesandannihila9ngconsciousness”). 4

Fromtheperspec9veoftheenlightenmentoftheBuddha,theawakeninggainedbythoseintheworldsofvoice-hearersandcause-awakenedonesisimperfectandpar9al.ButthoseintheseworldscontentthemselveswiththislesserdegreeofenlightenmentanddonotseekthefullenlightenmentoftheBuddha.ThoughtheyacknowledgethesuperiorenlightenmentoftheBuddha,theirteacher,theydonotthinkthemselvesabletoa_ainitandremainatalowerlevelofenlightenment.

Addi9onally,thoseintheworldsofvoice-hearersandcause-awakenedonesareinclinedtoself-absorp9on,seekingonlytheirownenlightenmentandmakingnoefforttohelpothersdothesame.Thisself-centerednessisthelimita9onofthesetwoworlds.

ReducingthebodytoashesandannihilaEngconsciousness:AreferencetotheHinayanadoctrineasserEng4

thatonecanaUainnirvana,escapingfromthesufferingsofendlesscycleofbirthanddeath,onlyuponexEnguishingone’sbodyandmind,whicharedeemedtobethesourcesofearthlydesires,illusions,andsufferings.

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[9]The World of Bodhisattvas

Bodhisa_vameansalivingbeing(sa_va)whostrivescon9nuouslytoa_aintheenlightenment(bodhi)oftheBuddha.AlthoughthepersonsofthetwovehiclesaccepttheBuddhaastheirteacher,theydonotbelievethemselvescapableofa_ainingthesamelifestateastheBuddha.Incontrast,bodhisa_vasnotonlyregardtheBuddhaastheirteacher,butstrivetoobtainthesameenlightenedstate.Inaddi9on,theyalsotrytoleadotherstoenlightenmentbycommunica9ngandspreadingtheBuddha’steachings.

Whatdis9nguishesthoseoftheworldofbodhisa_vas,orthelifestateofbodhisa_va,istheirseekingspirittoa_ainthehighestlifestateofBuddhahoodandtheiraltruis9ceffortstosharethebenefitstheyhaveobtainedthroughBuddhistprac9ce.

Thebodhisa_vaspiritistoempathizewiththepainandsorrowofothersandworktorelievethatsufferingandimpartjoyoutofawishforthehappinessofoneselfandothers.

Whereasthepersonsofthetwovehicles,focusedsolelyontheirownwelfare,contentthemselveswithalesserawakening,thoseintheworldofbodhisa_vasactwithasenseofmissionforthesakeofpeopleandtheLaw.

Theessenceoftheworldofbodhisa_vasiscompassion.TheSanskrittermforcompassion,karuna(Jpn.jihi),issome9mestranslatedas“lovingkindness”or“mercy.”In“TheObjectofDevo9onforObservingtheMind,”theDaishoninwrites:“Evenaheartlessvillainloveshiswifeandchildren.Hetoohasapor9onofthebodhisa_vaworldwithinhim”(WND-1,358).Justaseventhemostheartlessvillains9llcaresforhisownwifeandchildren,aspiritofcompassionforothersisinherentinalllife.Thoseinthelifestateofbodhisa_vadirectthisspiritofcompassiontoallpeopleandmakeitthefounda9onfortheirlives.

[10]The World of Buddhas

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TheworldofBuddhas,orthelifestateofBuddhahood,isthesupremelynoblelifestatemanifestedbyaBuddha.

Buddhameans“awakenedone”—onewhohasawakenedtotheMys9cLaw,thefundamentalLawthatpervadestheen9reuniverseandalllife.Specifically,itreferstoShakyamuni,wholivedinIndia.TheBuddhistsutrasdescribevariousotherBuddhassuchasAmidaBuddha,buttheseareallfic99ousbeingssymbolizinganaspectofthegreatnessoftheenlightenedlifestateofBuddhahood.

NichirenDaishoninistheBuddhaoftheLa_erDayoftheLawwho,asanordinaryhumanbeing,revealedtheinfinitelyrespectworthylifestateofBuddhahoodinhisownlifeandestablishedthepathbywhichallpeoplecana_ainenlightenment.

Buddhahoodisanexpansivelifestateoverflowingwithgoodfortuneandbenefit,a_ainedthroughawakeningtothefactthattheMys9cLawisthefounda9onofone’sbeing.Havinga_ainedthisstateoflife,theBuddhaisabletomanifestunsurpassedwisdomandcompassion,employingthemunceasinglytoenableallpeopletoa_ainthesamelifestateofenlightenmentthatheenjoys.

ThelifestateofBuddhahoodisoriginallyinherentinourownbeings.Itisdifficulttomanifestit,however,inourdailylives,whicharefilledwithunendingproblemsandchallenges.Forthisreason,theDaishonininscribedtheGohonzon,orobjectofdevo9on,asameansforallpeopletobringforthfromwithinthemthelifestateofBuddhahood.

TheGohonzonembodiestheenlightenedlifestateofNichirenDaishonin,theBuddhaoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw,theessenceofwhichisNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

WhenwebelieveintheGohonzonandchantNam-myoho-renge-kyoforthehappinessofourselvesandothers,wecantapthelifestateofBuddhahoodwithinus.

Inthe“TheObjectofDevo9onforObservingtheMind,”theDaishoniniden9fiestheprofoundconnec9onbetweenthelifestateofBuddhahoodandfaithintheMys9cLaw,saying:“Thatordinarypeopleborninthela_eragecanbelieveintheLotusSutraisduetothefactthattheworldofBuddhahoodispresentinthehumanworld”(WND-1,358).

TheLotusSutrarevealsthatallpeopleareinherentlyBuddhas;wehumanbeingscanbelieveinthatteachingpreciselybecauseourlivesfundamentallypossessthestateofBuddhahood.

Nichikan,an18th-centuryscholaroftheDaishonin’steachings,wrote:“StrongfaithintheLotusSutraiscalledtheworldofBuddhahood.” “LotusSutra”here5

meanstheGohonzonthatembodiesNam-myoho-renge-kyo—theLotusSutraoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw.Therefore,having“strongfaith”tobaseourlivesontheGohonzonisnothingotherthanthelifestateofBuddhahood.

Nichikan,“TheThreefoldSecretTeaching.”5

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ThislifestateofBuddhahooda_ainedthroughfaithintheMys9cLawcanbedescribedincontemporarytermsasastateofabsolutehappinessthatnothingcandestroy.SecondSokaGakkaipresidentJoseiTodadescribeditasastateoflifeinwhichbeingaliveisitselfhappiness.

ThelifestateofBuddhahoodisalsoo^enlikenedtothespiritofalionking—astateofcompleteeaseandconfidenceinwhich,likethelionking,onefearsnothing.

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5. Three Proofs

Thethreeproofsarethreecriteriafordeterminingthecorrectteachingforleadingpeopletoabsolutehappiness.TheydemonstratethattheBuddhismofNichirenDaishoninistheteachingthatmakesitpossibleforallpeopleintheLa_erDayoftheLawtoa_ainBuddhahoodinthislife9me.

Thethreeproofsaredocumentaryproof,theore9calproof,andactualproof.

Documentaryproofmeansthatareligion’sdoctrinesarebaseduponorinaccordwithitsfounda9onalscriptures.

NichirenDaishoninwrites:“Oneshouldacceptwhatisclearlystatedinthetextofthesutras,butdiscardanythingthatcannotbesupportedbythetext”(WND-1,109).Doctrinesnotsupportedbydocumentaryproofamounttonomorethanarbitraryinterpreta9onsoropinions.InthecaseofBuddhism,alldoctrinesmustbesupportedbythesutras,ortheteachingsexpoundedbyShakyamuni.IntheSokaGakkai,thewri9ngsofNichirenDaishonin,whoprac9cedandembodiedtheessenceoftheLotusSutra,serveasdocumentaryproof.

Theore8calproof,orproofofreason,meansthatareligion’sdoctrinesandasser9onsarecompa9blewithreasonandlogic.TheDaishoninwrites:“Buddhismisreason”(WND-1,839).Buddhismrespectsandvaluesreason.Oneshouldnot,therefore,acceptirra9onalargumentsorinterpreta9ons.

Actualproofmeansthatbeliefandprac9ceofareligion’sdoctrinesproduceposi9veresultsinone’slifeanddailyaffairsandinsociety.

Religionisnotjustanabstrac9on;itexertsapowerfulinfluenceonpeople’slives.Wecanjudgethemeritsofareligionbyexaminingthisactualimpact.

TheDaishoninwrites:“Injudgingtherela9vemeritofBuddhistdoctrines,I,Nichiren,believethatthebeststandardsarethoseofreasonanddocumentaryproof.Andevenmorevaluablethanreasonanddocumentaryproofistheproofofactualfact”(WND-1,599).Asisclearfromthisstatement,theDaishoninvaluedactualproofaboveallotherformsofproof.ThisisbecausetheoriginalaimofBuddhismistohelppeoplebecomehappy.

Areligionisnottrulycredibleifitlacksanyofthesethreeformsofproof.Touseananalogy,tobedeemedsafeandeffec9ve,anymedicinemusthavealistofingredientsandtheireffects(documentaryproof),asoundtheore9calbasisforbeingeffec9ve(theore9calproof),and,whentaken,showrealresultsinrelievingtheailmentitisintendedtotreat(actualproof).

NichirenBuddhismhasabasisthatisobjec9veanduniversallyacceptableintermsofboththeoryandprac9calresults.

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6. Faith, Practice, and Study

ThepurposeofNichirenBuddhismistoenableustotransformourlives.Therearethreebasicelementsinapplyingitsteachings:faith,prac9ce,andstudy.

FaithmeansbeliefintheBuddhismofNichirenDaishonin—thecorrectteachingoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw—andintheGohonzon,itsul9mateexpression.ThecentralingredientofBuddhistprac9ceisfaith.

Prac8cereferstoconcreteeffortstotransformanddevelopourlives.

StudymeanslearningandinquiringintotheteachingsofNichirenBuddhism.Itprovidesuswithguidingprinciplesforproperfaithandprac9cehelpingusstrengthenourprac9ceanddeepenourfaith.

Correctprac9ceofNichirenBuddhismmustincludeallthreeoftheseelements.

In“TheTrueAspectofAllPhenomena,”theDaishoninsays:

BelieveintheGohonzon,thesupremeobjectofdevo9oninallofJambudvipa[theen9reworld].Besuretostrengthenyourfaith,andreceivetheprotec9onofShakyamuni,ManyTreasures,andtheBuddhasofthetendirec9ons.Exertyourselfinthetwowaysofprac9ceandstudy.Withoutprac9ceandstudy,therecanbenoBuddhism.Youmustnotonlypersevereyourself;youmustalsoteachothers.Bothprac9ceandstudyarisefromfaith.Teachotherstothebestofyourability,evenifitisonlyasinglesentenceorphrase.(WND-1,386)

Faith

Faithisbeliefandacceptance—believinginandaccep9ngtheBuddha’steaching.Suchfaithisthefounda9onfora_ainingthelifestateofBuddhahood.

IntheLotusSutra,itistaughtthatevenShariputra,whowasknownasforemostinwisdomamongShakyamuni’sdisciples,couldonlygrasptheessenceofthesutra’steachingthroughfaith.Inthe“SimileandParable”(3rd)chapteroftheLotusSutra,wefindthepassage:“Evenyou,Shariputra,inthecaseofthissutrawereabletogainentrancethroughfaithalone”(LSOC3,109–10).Thisistheprincipleof“gainingentrancethroughfaithalone.”

Onlythroughfaithcanwea_ainthesamegreatwisdomandlifestateastheBuddha.WhenwebelieveinandaccepttheBuddha’steaching,wecanunderstandforthefirst9methecorrectnessoftheBuddhistphilosophyoflife.

NichirenDaishonin,theBuddhaoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw,inscribedNam-myoho-renge-kyo,thefundamentallawoftheuniversetowhichhehadawakened,intheformoftheGohonzon.Inotherwords,intheGohonzon,herevealedhis

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enlightenedlifestateofBuddhahoodforthesakeofallpeopleintheLa_erDayoftheLaw.

Therefore,themostimportantthinginprac9cingNichirenBuddhismishavingdeepfaithintheGohonzonastheobjectofdevo9onfora_ainingthelifestateofBuddhahood.WhenwehavefaithintheGohonzonandchantNam-myoho-renge-kyo,wecantapthepoweroftheMys9cLawinourlivesandfirmlyestablishthelifestateofBuddhahoodwithinus.

Practice

Prac9ceistheconcreteac9onsweengageinbasedonfaithintheGohonzon.

NichirenBuddhismteachesthatBuddhahood,alifestateofboundlesswisdomandcompassion,isinherentwithinourownlives.

ThepurposeofourBuddhistprac9ceistomanifestourinnateBuddhahoodanda_ainastateofabsolutehappiness.Totapthislatentpoten9alandbringittofunc9oninourlives,concreteeffortstotransformanddevelopourselvesareessen9al.IfwearetorevealourBuddhahood,weneedtocon9nuemakingeffortsthataccordwithreasonandcorrectBuddhistprinciples.Thisiswhatisreferredtoasprac9ce.

Prac9cehastwoaspects—prac9ceforourselvesandprac9ceforothers.Thesearecomparedtothetwowheelsofacart:ourprac9cemusthavebothoftheseaspectstoadvanceproperly.

Prac9ceforourselvesmeansstrivingtogainpersonalbenefitfromprac9cingNichirenBuddhism.Prac9ceforothersisteachingothersaboutBuddhismsothattheymayalsoreceivebenefit.

TheDaishoninstates:“Now,however,wehaveenteredtheLa_erDayoftheLaw,andthedaimokuthatI,Nichiren,chantisdifferentfromthatofearlierages.ThisNam-myoho-renge-kyoencompassesbothprac9ceforoneselfandtheteachingofothers”(WND-2,986).

IntheLa_erDayoftheLaw,bothourprac9ceforourselves—seekingpersonalenlightenment—andourprac9ceforothers—sharingBuddhismwithotherssothattheymayalsoa_ainenlightenment—arebasedonprac9cingthefundamentalteachingfora_ainingBuddhahood,Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

Therefore,correctprac9ceinNichirenBuddhismencompassesboththeseformsofprac9ce.Itconsistsofchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyowithfaithintheGohonzon,whilealsoteachingothersaboutthebenefitoffaithintheGohonzonandencouragingthemtoprac9ceaswell.

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Specifically,prac9ceforourselvesmeansdoinggongyo(reci9ngexcerptsoftheLotusSutraandchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyo),andprac9ceforothersmeanssharingandspreadingtheteachingsofBuddhism.Inaddi9on,thevariousac9vi9eswecarryoutasSGImembersforthesakeofkosen-rufualsocons9tuteprac9ceforothers.

The Daily Practice of Gongyo and Efforts to Spread the Teachings

Gongyoreferstoreci9ngpor9onsoftheLotusSutraandchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyobeforetheGohonzon.Thisisthefirstofthetwoaspectsoftheprac9cefortransformingourlives.

Comparingtheprac9ceofgongyotopolishingamirror,theDaishoninwrites:

Thisissimilartoatarnishedmirrorthatwillshinelikeajewelwhenpolished.Amindnowcloudedbytheillusionsoftheinnatedarknessoflifeislikeatarnishedmirror,butwhenpolished,itissuretobecomelikeaclearmirror,reflec9ngtheessen9alnatureofphenomenaandthetrueaspectofreality.Arousedeepfaith,anddiligentlypolishyourmirrordayandnight.Howshouldyoupolishit?Onlybychan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyo.(WND-1,4)

Asthismetaphorindicates,themirroritselfdoesn’tchange,butwhenitispolished,thewaythatitfunc9onschanges.Similarly,throughourcon9nuousdailyprac9ceofgongyo,wecanpolishandstrengthenourlivesandposi9velytransformthewaytheyfunc9on.

ReferringtotheimportanceofspreadingthecorrectteachingofBuddhism,theDaishoninstatesin“TheTrueAspectofAllPhenomena”:“Youmustnotonlypersevereyourself;youmustalsoteachothers....Teachotherstothebestofyourability,evenifitisonlyasinglesentenceorphrase”(WND-1,386).Andin“Le_ertoJakunichi-bo,”hesays:“ThosewhobecomeNichiren’sdisciplesandlaybelieversshouldrealizetheprofoundkarmicrela9onshiptheysharewithhimandspreadtheLotusSutraashedoes”(WND-1,994).

Itisimportantthatwenotonlyseektotransformourownstateoflifethroughourdailyprac9ceofgongyo,buttosharetheteachingsofBuddhismwithothers,evenifonlyasingleword,aimingforthehappinessofbothourselvesandothers.

Sucheffortshelpdeepenourownfaithandprac9ceaswellasac9vatethealtruis9clifestatesofBodhisa_vaandBuddhahoodwithinus—mo9va9ngustoworkforthehappinessandwell-beingofothers.TheyenableustobecomegenuinedisciplesofNichirenDaishonin.Alongwithdoinggongyo,effortstospreadtheteachingsofBuddhismarealsoapowerfulforcefortransformingourlives.

TheLotusSutrastates:

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Ifoneofthesegoodmenorgoodwomeninthe9mea^erIhavepassedintoex9nc9onisabletosecretlyexpoundtheLotusSutratooneperson,evenonephraseofit,thenyoushouldknowthatheorsheistheenvoyoftheThusComeOne[theBuddha].HehasbeendispatchedbytheThusComeOneandcarriesouttheThusComeOne’swork.(LSOC10,200–201)

Basedonthispassage,theDaishonindeclares:“OnewhorecitesevenonewordorphraseoftheLotusSutraandwhospeaksaboutittoanotherpersonistheemissaryofShakyamuniBuddha,lordoftheteachings”(WND-1,331).

Inotherwords,theeffortswemakeinourprac9ceforothers’happinessaretrulynoble:theycons9tutethebehaviourandprac9ceoftheBuddha,whichwecarryoutastheBuddha’semissaries.

Primary Practice and Supporting Practice

Ourmorningandeveningprac9ceofgongyoisacentralpillarofoureffortstotransformourlives.

Ingongyo,wechantNam-myoho-renge-kyowithfaithintheGohonzonandreciteexcerptsfromthe“ExpedientMeans”(2nd)chapteroftheLotusSutraandtheversesec9onofthe“LifeSpan”(16th)chapteroftheLotusSutra.

Chan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyowithfaithintheGohonzonisfundamental;itisthereforecalledthe“primaryprac9ce.”

Reci9ngthe“ExpedientMeans”and“LifeSpan”chaptershelpsbringforththebenefitoftheprimaryprac9ce;itisthereforecalledthe“suppor9ngprac9ce.”

Thereasonwerecitethe“ExpedientMeans”and“LifeSpan”chaptersisthatthesearethetwomostimportantchaptersoftheLotusSutra,whichopensthewaytoenlightenmentforallpeople.The“ExpedientMeans”(2nd)chapterexplainsthetrueaspectofallphenomena,thecentraldoctrineofthetheore9calteaching(first14chapters)oftheLotusSutra.The“LifeSpan”(16th)chapterrevealstheBuddha’sa_ainmentofenlightenmentintheremotepast,thecentraldoctrineoftheessen9alteaching(la_er14chapters)ofthesutra.TheDaishoninwrites:“Ifyourecitethe‘LifeSpan’and‘ExpedientMeans’chapters,thentheremainingchapterswillnaturallybeincludedeventhoughyoudonotrecitethem”(WND-1,71).

Explainingtherela9onshipbetweentheprimaryprac9ceandsuppor9ngprac9ce,Nichikan,an18th-centuryscholaroftheDaishonin’steachings,comparedthemtofoodandseasoning,respec9vely.Hecomparedittohow,whenea9ngriceornoodles,the“primary”sourceofnourishment,seasoningssuchassaltorvinegarareusedtoenhance,or“supplement,”theflavour.Insimilarfashion,reci9ngthe“ExpedientMeans”and“LifeSpan”chapters,hesaid,helpsbringforththeprofound

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benefitoftheprimaryprac9ceofchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyo,whichiswhyitiscalledthesuppor9ngprac9ce.‑ 6

Inreci9ngthe“ExpedientMeans”and“LifeSpan”chapters,then,wepraiseandenhancethebeneficialpoweroftheGohonzon,theembodimentofNam-myoho-renge-kyo.

Study

StudyisthestudyoftheBuddhistteachings,primarilyreadingthewri9ngsofNichirenDaishoninandstudyingthecorrectprinciplesanddoctrinesofNichirenBuddhism.Throughsuchstudy,wecandevelopadeeper,moresolidfaith,andalsoensurethatweprac9cecorrectly.

WithoutBuddhiststudy,weareatriskoflapsingintoourownpersonalinterpreta9onsofBuddhism,andmayeasilybedeceivedbythosepresen9ngerroneousteachings.

AstheDaishoninaffirmswhenhewrites,“Bothprac9ceandstudyarisefromfaith”(WND-1,386),faithisthefounda9onofstudy.

PresidentTodasaid:“Faithseeksunderstanding,andunderstandingdeepensfaith.”‑ ThepurposeofstudyinganddeepeningourunderstandingofBuddhism,as7henotes,istodeepenourfaith.

TheDaishoninurgeshisdisciplestostudyhiswri9ngsoverandover.Hewrites,forinstance:“Havehimreadthisle_eragainandagain,andlistena_en9vely”(WND-1,1031).Inaddi9on,hepraisestheseekingspiritofdiscipleswhoaskedhimques9onsabouttheBuddhistteachings.

NikkoShonin,theDaishonin’sdirectdiscipleandsuccessor,stated:“Followersofthisschoolshouldengravethewri9ngsoftheDaishoninintheirlives”(GZ,1618)‑ ;8and“ThoseofinsufficientBuddhistlearningwhoarebentonobtainingfameandfortunearenotqualifiedtocallthemselvesmyfollowers”(GZ,1618).‑ Inthisway,he9encouragesustostudytheDaishonin’swri9ngs.

! Nichikan,“ThePracEcesofThisSchool,”TheSix-VolumeWri%ngs.6

! TranslatedfromJapanese.JoseiToda,TodaJoseiZenshu(CollectedWriEngsofJoseiToda),(Tokyo:Seikyo7Shimbunsha,1989),vol.4,p.18.

! ArEcle11of“TheTwenty-sixAdmoniEonsofNikko.”8

! ArEcle8of“TheTwenty-sixAdmoniEonsofNikko.”9� 44

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7. Faith for Overcoming Obstacles

Lifeisinvariablyaccompaniedbydifficul9es.Andinourstrugglesforkosen-rufu,wearesuretoencounterhardshipsandobstacles.Inthissec9on,weexplorethevariouskindsofobstaclesandhindrancesthatwillariseintheprocessofcarryingoutourBuddhistprac9ce,andaffirmthesignificanceof“faithforovercomingobstacles.”

Becauseouraimistoa_ainBuddhahoodinthislife9me,itisimportantthatwemaintainourBuddhistfaithandprac9cethroughoutourlives.However,Buddhismteachesthataswecon9nuetopersevereinourprac9ce,obstaclesanddifficul9eswillarisewithoutfailtoobstructus.Itiscrucial,then,thatwebepreparedforthese,andstrivetoestablishfaiththatcannotbecompromisedbyanyproblemoradversity.

Whyisit,then,thatapersonwhoupholdsthecorrectteachingencountersobstacles?

First,itisbecausetobelieveinandprac9cethecorrectteachingwiththeaimofdevelopingthelifestateofBuddhahoodmeanstransformingone’slifeatthedeepestlevel.Andwhileanychangeorreforma9onwillbemetwithsomeresistance,Buddhistprac9ceinpar9culararousesstrongopposi9ontochangefromwithinourownlivesorourrela9onshipswithothers.Thismaybecomparedtothewaytheresistanceofthewateronthehullofamovingboatproduceswaves.

Thehindrancesthatariseasweprac9ceBuddhismforthepurposeofa_ainingenlightenmentareo^encategorizedasthe“threeobstaclesandfourdevils.”Inaddi9ontothese,theLotusSutrateachesthata“votaryoftheLotusSutra,”apersonwhocorrectlyprac9cesandendeavorstospreaditsteachingintheevilandimpureageoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw,willencounteropposi9onbyforcesknownasthe“threepowerfulenemies.”

Theserepresentthepersecu9onsthatoccurwherevertherearethosewho,intheevilagea^erthepassingofShakyamuniBuddha,ac9velyprac9cetheLotusSutraandworktospreaditwidelywiththewishofenablingallpeopletoa_ainBuddhahood.Persecu9onbythethreepowerfulenemiescanbeproofthatoneisagenuinevotaryorprac99oneroftheLotusSutra.

1) The Three Obstacles and Four Devils

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Inhiswork“Le_ertotheBrothers,”NichirenDaishoninwrites:

Onepassagefromthesamevolume[thefi^hvolumeofT’ien-t’ai’sGreatConcentraMonandInsight]reads:“Asprac9ceprogressesandunderstandinggrows,thethreeobstaclesandfourdevilsemergeinconfusingform,vyingwithoneanothertointerfere...Oneshouldbeneitherinfluencednorfrightenedbythem.Ifonefallsundertheirinfluence,onewillbeledintothepathsofevil.Ifoneisfrightenedbythem,onewillbepreventedfromprac9cingthecorrectteaching.”Thisstatementnotonlyappliestome,butalsoisaguideformyfollowers.Reverentlymakethisteachingyourown,andtransmititasanaxiomoffaithforfuturegenera9ons.(WND-1,501)

Asthispassageteaches,whenwebelieveinandprac9cethecorrectBuddhistteaching,andadvanceinourBuddhistprac9cewhiledeepeningourfaith,func9onswillarisetoobstructourprogress.Theseareknownasthethreeobstaclesandfourdevils.

Inthesamework,theDaishoninexplainstheelementsofthethreeobstaclesandfourdevilsinsomedetailasfollows:

Thethreeobstaclesinthispassagearetheobstacleofearthlydesires,theobstacleofkarma,andtheobstacleofretribu9on.Theobstacleofearthlydesiresistheimpedimentstoone’sprac9cethatarisefromgreed,anger,foolishness,andthelike;theobstacleofkarmaisthehindrancespresentedbyone’swifeorchildren;andtheobstacleofretribu9onisthehindrancescausedbyone’ssovereignorparents.Ofthefourdevils,theworkingsofthedevilkingofthesixthheavenareofthislastkind.(WND-1,501)

The Three Obstacles

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First,inthe“threeobstacles,”thewordobstaclesindicatesfunc9onsthathinderusinourfaithandprac9ce.Thesearecategorizedastheobstacleofearthlydesires,theobstacleofkarma,andtheobstacleofretribu9on.

Theobstacleofearthlydesiresindicateswhenearthlydesires,orimpulsesandafflic9ons,suchasgreed,anger,andfoolishness(calledthe“threepoisons”),preventusfromprogressinginBuddhistfaithandprac9ce.

Theobstacleofkarmareferstohindrancestoourfaithandprac9cethatresultfromourevilactsinthislife.Inthispassagefrom“Le_ertotheBrothers,”opposi9onfromthoseclosetoone,suchasone’sspouseorchildren,iscitedasaspecificexample.

Theobstacleofretribu9ondescribesimpedimentstoourBuddhistprac9cethatareduetothedifficultcircumstancesintowhichwearebornorhavecometolive.Theseareconsideredadverserewardsorreckoningthatstemfrombadkarmaformedinpastlife9mes.In“Le_ertotheBrothers,”theDaishoninassociatesthesewithopposi9oncomingfrompeoplewhosewishesoneisboundtofollow,suchasthesovereignofone’sna9onandone’sparents.

The Four Devils

Next,theworddevilofthe“fourdevils”referstoworkingswithintheheartsandmindsofthosewhobelieveinandprac9ceBuddhism.Theseworkingshinderortakeawaythebrillianceoftheirlives,whichareinthemselvesembodimentsoftheMys9cLaw.Thefourdevilsare(1)thehindranceofthefivecomponents, (2)thehindrance10

ofearthlydesires,(3)thehindranceofdeath,and(4)thehindranceofthedevilking.

Thehindranceofthefivecomponentsarisesfromdisharmonyamongtheworkingsofthebodyandmind,orthefivecomponents,ofthosewhocarryoutfaithandprac9ce.

Thehindranceofearthlydesiresmeanstheemergencewithinone’slifeofafflic9onssuchasgreed,anger,andfoolishnessthatfunc9ontodestroyone’sfaith.

Thehindranceofdeathcomeswhenaperson’sBuddhistprac9ceiscutshortduetohisorherdeath.Also,itcanbesaidthatonehasbeendefeatedbythe

The five components: The constituent elements of form, perception, conception, volition, and 10

consciousness that unite temporarily to form an individual living being. � 48

hindranceordevilofdeathwhenthedeathofanotherprac99oner,orofanyoneclose,causesonetodoubtone’sBuddhistfaith.

Finally,thereisthehindranceofthedevilking.“Devilking”isanabbrevia9onoftheDevilKingoftheHeavenofFreelyEnjoyingThingsConjuredbyOthers—thekingwhomakesfreeuseofthefruitsofothers’effortsforhisownpleasure.Alsoknownasthedevilkingofthesixthheaven,thisisthemostfundamentalkindofdevilishfunc9ondescribedinBuddhism.

NichirenDaishoninsaysthat“thefundamentaldarknessmanifestsitselfasthedevilkingofthesixthheaven”(WND-1,1113).Hemeansthatthisdevilishfunc9onissomethingthatemergesfromthefundamentaldelusioninnateinlifeitself.Itrevealsitselfindifferentformsandu9lizesvariousmeanstopersecuteandoppressthosewhoareprac9cingBuddhismcorrectly.Mosttypically,itappearsinthelivesofthoseinpowerorwhohavestronginfluenceoverprac99oners.

The Wise Will Rejoice While the Foolish Will Retreat

Itisclear,then,thatasweendeavourtocarryoutourBuddhistprac9ce,obstaclesandhardshipswillemergetohinderourprogress.However,itisimportanttobeawarethatearthlydesiressuchasgreed,anger,andfoolishness,spousesandpartners,children,parents,ourownbodyandmind,orevendeathdonotinthemselvescons9tuteobstaclesanddevils.Rather,whatcausesthemtofunc9onasthethreeobstaclesandfourdevilsistheweaknessofourownlifeforcethatallowsustobeinfluencednega9velybythem.

EvenShakyamuniBuddhawasabletoa_ainenlightenmentthroughclearlyrecognizingthatthevariousillusionsarisingwithinhisownmindweredevilishfunc9onstryingtopreventhimfromachievinghisgoal.Forus,thekeytodefea9ngdevilishfunc9onsistodevelopfaiththatisstrongenoughtoremainunshakenbyanything.

Inthisregard,NichirenDaishoninstates:

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Thereisdefinitelysomethingextraordinaryintheebbandflowofthe9de,therisingandsejngofthemoon,andthewayinwhichsummer,autumn,winter,andspringgivewaytoeachother.Somethinguncommonalsooccurswhenanordinarypersona_ainsBuddhahood.Atsucha9me,thethreeobstaclesandfourdevilswillinvariablyappear,andthewisewillrejoicewhilethefoolishwillretreat.(WND-1,637)

Whenthethreeobstaclesandfourdevilsappear,itiscrucialtohavetheconvic9onthatthisisthevery9meforustomakegreatprogresstowarda_ainingBuddhahoodand,aswisepeoplewhorejoiceatsuchchallenges,persevereinourfaithandovercomethem.

2) The Three Powerful Enemies

The“EncouragingDevo9on”(13th)chapteroftheLotusSutradescribesinitstwenty-lineversesec9onthethreekindsofpowerfulopponentswhowillpersecutethosewhostrivetospreadthesutra’steachingsintheLa_erDayoftheLaw.Knownasthe“threepowerfulenemies,”theyaredefinedas(1)arrogantlaypeople,(2)arrogantmonks,and(3)arrogantfalsesages.

Allaredescribedasarrogantbecausetheydisplayvariouskindsofhaugh9nessandconceit,believingthemselvessuperiortoorgreaterthanotherpeople.

(1)“Arrogantlaypeople”arethoseignorantofBuddhismwhopersecuteprac99onersoftheLotusSutra.Thesutraexplainsthattheywillsubjectthesutra’sprac99onerstoslander,cursingandspeakingillofthem,orevena_ackingthemwithweaponssuchasswordsandstaves.

(2)“Arrogantmonks”areBuddhistclergywhoslandertheLotusSutra’sprac99oners.Becausetheirunderstandingisflawedandtheirheartscrooked,theyfailtounderstandthetruthoftheBuddhistteachings.Andyet,a_achedtotheirownwaysofthinkingandbelievingthemselvessuperiortoothers,theyharassandpersecutethosewhoupholdthecorrectteaching.

(3)“Arrogantfalsesages”areseeminglyrespectworthymonksorpriestswhompeopleregardassages.Typically,theyresideinplacesremovedfromsociety.Consumedwithgreedandthedesireforprofit,theyharbourillwillandcontriveto

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undermineordeceiveprac99onersoftheLotusSutra.Theirusualtac9cistoapproachtheruler,seniorofficials,orothersinauthorityandmakefalseclaimsabouttheprac99oners,suchasdeclaringthemtobepersonsofmistakenviews,inana_empttomo9vatethoseinpowertooppressthem.

TheLotusSutradescribesthecondi9oninwhichaperson’sheartormindfallsundertheinfluenceofsuchevilwiththestatement“Evildemonswilltakepossessionofothers”(LSOC13,233).Itteachesthat,intheLa_erDayoftheLaw,thosewhoprac9cethesutrawillberepeatedlyassailedanddrivenoffbythosewhohavesuccumbedtoevilimpulses.

Ofthesethreepowerfulenemies,itissaidthat,thoughonemaybeabletoendurethefirstandthesecond,thethirdisthemostformidableandpernicious.Thereasonisthatitisquitedifficulttoperceiveandrecognizethetruenatureofsuchesteemedreligiousfiguresofhighstatus—arrogantfalsesages.

IntheLa_erDayoftheLaw,whenevertherearethosewhospreadtheteachingsoftheLotusSutra,thesethreepowerfulenemieswillappearanda_empttointerfereandobstructsuchefforts.BecauseofhiseffortstospreadtheLotusSutra,NichirenDaishoninfacedpersecu9onsbroughtaboutbythesethreepowerfulenemiesjustasthesutrapredicts,thusprovingthathewasthevotaryoftheLotusSutraintheLa_erDay.

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8. Changing Karma into Mission

Noonecanavoiddifficul9esorproblems.Buddhismencouragesustobuildhappinessinthemidstofthisreality,togrow,improveandbecomestrongerwhilefacinglife’schallenges.NichirenBuddhismenablesustochangeeveryaspectofourlivesforthebe_er,permanently.Theprocesscalled“changingkarma”entailssecuringunwaveringhappinessbyrevolu9onizingourlivesattheverycore.AndseenfromtheBuddhistperspec9veoflifeanddeath,thishappinesspersistseternally,countlesslife9mesintothefuture.HereweexaminetheprincipleofchangingkarmaandtheBuddhistprac9ceforchangingkarmaintomission.

What Is Karma?

Someofourproblemsandsufferingsarecausedbyac9onsanddecisionswehavemadeinthislife.Butforsomewecanfindnoapparentcause.Thesemaymakeusthink,I’vedonenothingwrong,sowhyisthishappeningtome?

Buddhismteachestheprincipleofkarma—thatmanyeventsandcondi9onsweexperienceinthislife9meresultfromac9onswehavemadeinpreviouslives.KarmaisaSanskritwordthatmeans“ac9on.”Itexplainstheworkingsofcauseandeffectthatspantheboundariesoflifeanddeath.Ourac9onsofthought,speechandbehaviourarelikeseedsthatbecomeimplantedinourlives.Thesecausescanremaindormantas“latenteffects”inthecurrentandfuturelife9mes.Atcertain9mesundercertaincondi9ons,however,theserevealthemselvesas“manifesteffects”—results,orkarmicrewards,weexperienceinatangibleway.Karma,then,istheaccumula9onofac9onsfrompreviousexistencesthatremaindormantwithinusun9ltheyappearaseffectsinthislife9me.Thiskarmacanbeeithergoodorbad,thoughpeopletendtoview“karma”asbadresultsstemmingfrombadac9onsinthepast.

Buddhismteachesthatlifeisnotjustama_erofthepresent,butacon9nuumofpast,presentandfuturelives—the“threeexistences”oflife.Ourac9onsatanymomentbecomepartofthecon9nuumofcauseandeffectthatspansthesethreeexistences.Badcausesinpastlivesorthepresent,suchasdisparagingorhur9ngothers,stealingorlyingandsoon,expressthemselvesinpresentorfuturelivesasbadeffects,bringingussufferingandproblems.ThisistheprincipleofcauseandeffectthatBuddhismandmostEasternphilosophiesgenerallyteach.NichirenDaishonincallsthisthe“generallawofcauseandeffect.”Andwhilethisprincipleisimportanttounderstand,beingawareofitaloneisnotenoughtochangeourlives.

Adop9ngthisviewwouldrequirethat,inordertoridourselvesofbadkarma,wenegateeverybadcausewehaveevermadebymakingagoodcauseinitsplace,oneata9me,overcountlesslife9mes.Ofcoursewewouldhavetorefrainfrommakinganymorebadcausesaswell.Therewouldbenowaytotransformoursufferingsarisingfromkarmadirectlyorquicklyinthislife9me.Boundbythisbelief,manyBuddhistsutrastaughtpriortotheLotusSutraholdthatchangingone’skarma

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requirescountlesseonsofaustereprac9ces.Thisheavyviewofkarmaul9matelyinspiresnohope.

Fortunately,Nichirendoesnotemphasizethisgeneralviewofkarmaorcauseandeffect.Insteadhefocusesontheprincipleandprac9ceofchangingkarma

In“Le_erfromSado,”hemakesarevolu9onarypronouncementinsta9ng:“Mysufferings,however,arenotascribabletothiscausallaw”(TheWri9ngsofNichirenDaishonin,vol.1,p.305).Here,heexpressesthatthegreatpersecu9onsheisfacingcannotbeexplainedbythegeneralviewofcausality.Rather,hecon9nues,thesesufferingsarisefromhisslanderoftheLotusSutrainthepresentandpastexistences.By“LotusSutra”hedoesnotsimplymeanaBuddhistscripture,butthedeepestLaworprinciplethesutraembodies.Thiscons9tutesthecorrectteachingthatallpeoplecanrevealtheirBuddhahood,theprincipleofrespectforthevalueanddignityofthehumanbeingandthestandardofstrivingforone’sownhappinessaswellasthehappinessofothers.ToslandertheLotusSutrameanstofailtorecognizeortobeli_lethesevaluesintrinsictolifeitself;itmeanstodenythatone’slifeandthelivesofallothersarepreciousembodimentsoftheMys9cLaw,whichisthesourceoftheseideals.Thisadverserela9onshiptotheMys9cLawcons9tutesadeep-seatednega9vecausethatgivesrisetovariousformsofbadkarma.

Tochangekarmaarisingfromrejec9ngorslanderingthisfundamentalLaw,weneedtomakethemostfundamentalgoodcause,whichistoprotectandspreadthatLawforthesakeofpeople’shappiness.ThismeanstobelieveinthecorrectteachingoftheMys9cLaw,toprac9ceitcorrectly,upholdandprotectandteachittomanypeople.Inthisway,wecanimmediatelychangethedirec9onofourlives,fromoneboundforsufferingtooneofincreasingpowerandjoyderivingfromthelawoflife.ThisistheprocessofchangingkarmainNichirenBuddhism.

Thesourceofthistransforma9onistheprac9ceofchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyo.Whenwedoso,“thenthehostofsins,likefrostordew,canbewipedoutbythesunofwisdom”(TheLotusSutraandItsOpeningandClosingSutras,p.390).ReferringtothispassagefromtheUniversalWorthySutra,Nichirencomparesourpastnega9vekarmatofrostordewthathasbuiltupinone’slife.WhenwebelieveintheGohonzonandapplyourselvestochan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyobothforourselvesandforothers,theworldofBuddhahoodemergeswithinourliveslikethesun,dispellingourkarmicimpedimentsjustasthewarmmorningsunlightevaporatesfrostordew. 11

Lessening Karmic Retribution

Forexample,in“LeUertoNiike,”Nichirenwrites:“Ourworldlymisdeedsandevilkarmamayhavepiledupas11

highasMountSumeru,butwhenwetakefaithinthissutra,theywillvanishlikefrostordewunderthesunoftheLotusSutra”(WND-1,1026).

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Inthecourseofprac9cingBuddhismandworkingforkosen-rufu,wewillinevitablyfaceobstacles,nega9veinfluencesandfunc9onsthata_empttoblockourwayorinterferewithourefforts.

NichirenDaishonintaughtthattoencountersuchopposi9onisinfactabenefit.Thatisbecausebymee9ngandwinningoverdifficul9es,wenaturallycarryouttheprocessof“lesseningourkarmicretribu9on.”ThecharactersfortheJapanesephrasetenjukyoju,o^entranslatedas“lesseningone’skarmicretribu9on,”canliterallyberead“transformingtheheavyandreceivingitlightly.”Le^alone,thebadcauseswehaveaccumulatedovermanylife9mesrevealthemselvesasmiserableresultsinthisandfuturelife9mes.Butthroughthebenefitofdevo9ngourselvesandleadingotherstotheMys9cLaw,theheavyconsequencesofourkarmacanquicklybelightened.Thatis,wecaneffec9velyridourselvesofallournega9vekarmainthislife9mebyexperiencingitsresultsinmuchlightenedformasobstaclesandtroubleswechallengeforthesakeofkosen-rufu.Forthisreason,NichirenDaishoninsaysthatthroughthebenefitoflesseningkarmicretribu9on,“Thesufferingsofhellwillvanishinstantly”(“LesseningOne’sKarmicRetribu9on,”WND-1,199).Difficul9es,then,areimportantopportuni9esforriddingourselvesofbadkarmaanddevelopingandstrengtheningourselves.

Nichirenalsosays:“Iron,whenheatedintheflamesandpounded,becomesafinesword.Worthiesandsagesaretestedbyabuse.Mypresentexileisnotbecauseofanysecularcrime.ItissolelysothatImayexpiateinthislife9memypastgraveoffensesandbefreedinthenextfromthethreeevilpaths”(“Le_erfromSado,”WND-1,303).

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Voluntarily Assuming the Appropriate Karma

Byperseveringinfaithdespitehardshipsandtherebychangingourkarma,wefinddeepermeaninginliving.Inits“TeacheroftheLaw”chapter,theLotusSutraintroducestheideaof“voluntarilyassumingtheappropriatekarma.” Itexplainsthat12

bodhisa_vasvoluntarilygiveupthegoodkarmicrewardsduethemasaresultoftheirpureac9onsinpastlives.Outofcompassion,theychooseinsteadtobeborninanevilagesothattheycanteachpeopletheprinciplesoftheLotusSutraandsavethemfromsuffering.

Suchbodhisa_vasexperiencesufferingjustasthosewhodosobecauseofbadkarmatheyformedinthepast.Viewingourselvesashavingmadethischoice—ofvoluntarilymee9ngandovercomingdifficul9esthroughfaithoutofcompassionforothers—givesusanewperspec9veonproblemsandsuffering.Wecanseefacingproblemsassomethingwedotofulfilourvowasabodhisa_vatosavesuffering

people.

Onlybydealingwithhardshipsinlifecanwecometounderstandandempathizewithpeople’ssuffering.WitheveryproblemweovercomethroughBuddhistfaithandprac9ce,wecreateamodelforwinninginlife,agenuineexperiencethroughwhichwecanencouragemanyothers.

SGIPresidentIkedaexpressesthisprocessas“changingkarmaintomission,”andexplains:“Weallhaveourownkarmaordes9ny,butwhenwelookitsquareinthefaceandgraspitstruesignificance,thenanyhardshipcanservetohelpusleadricherandmoreprofoundlives.Ourac9onsinchallengingourdes9nybecomeexamplesandinspira9onsforcountlessothers.

“Inotherwords,whenwechangeourkarmaintomission,wetransformourdes9nyfromplayinganega9veroletoaposi9veone.Thosewhochangetheirkarmaintotheirmissionhave‘voluntarilyassumedtheappropriatekarma.’Therefore,thosewhokeepadvancing,whileregardingeverythingaspartoftheirmission,proceedtowardthegoaloftransformingtheirdes9ny”(August2003LivingBuddhism,p.50).

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“TeacheroftheLaw,”the10thchapteroftheLotusSutra,states,“MedicineKing,youshouldunderstandthat12

thesepeoplevoluntarilyrelinquishtherewardduethemfortheirpuredeedsand,intheEmeaTerIhavepassedintoexEncEon,becausetheypitylivingbeings,theyareborninthisevilworldsotheymaybroadlyexpoundthissutra”(LSOC,200).

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The Lineage and Tradition of Buddhist Humanism 13

TheSokaGakkaiisareligiousorganiza9onthatprac9cesBuddhistteachingsorigina9ngfromShakyamuniBuddhainIndiaandcarriedonanddevelopedbytheIndianBuddhistscholarsNagarjunaandVasubandhu,whowerereveredasbodhisa_vas;theGreatTeachersT’ien-t’ai(Chih-i)andMiao-lo(Chan-jan)ofChina;theGreatTeacherDengyo(Saicho)ofJapan;andNichirenDaishonin.Itmaintainstheorthodoxlineageandtradi9onofBuddhisthumanismthatbeganwithShakyamuni,whichaffirmsrespectforlifeandforallhumanbeings.

TheSokaGakkaibasesitselfontheLotusSutra,acentralscriptureofMahayanaBuddhism,andengagesinBuddhistprac9ceandac9vi9esadaptedtomodern9mes.ItcarriesonthefundamentalspiritoftheLotusSutraastaughtandexemplifiedbyNichirenDaishoninthroughhislifeandac9ons.

9. Shakyamuni

ShakyamuniwasbornaprinceinancientIndia.(Hisbirthplace,Lumbini,islocatedinwhatistodayNepal.)

Inhisyouth,Shakyamuniwitnessedtheunavoidablesufferingsofexistence—birth,aging,sickness,anddeath.Thoughs9llyoungandingoodhealth,herealizedthathe,too,wouldsomedayexperiencethem.Hedecidedtoleavehishomeandembarkonaspiritualquesttofindasolu9ontothesefundamentalsufferings.

Asaprince,Shakyamuniledalifeofgreatcomfortandeasesuchthatmostpeoplewouldenvy.Butwhenhebecameawarethattherichesandluxuriespeoplesoughtinlifewereul9matelyflee9ngandempty,hecouldfindinthemnorealpleasure.Thisledhimtosearchforaphilosophyorteachingthatwouldclarifythetruemeaningofhumanexistence.

ThisenEresecEon(9to13)isforaddiEonalstudy/referencepurposesonlywillnotnecessarilyappearinthe13

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Buddha—The Awakened One

Shakyamuniwasnotsa9sfiedwitheitherthetradi9onalspiritualteachingsofIndiaorthenewschoolsofthoughtandbeliefthathadbecomeprevalentatthat9me.Hesoughtinstead,throughtheprac9ceofmedita9on,todiscoverthefundamentalcausesandsolu9onstolife’ssufferings.Inthisway,heawakenedtotheeternalanduniversalDharma,orLaw,thatpervadesalllifeandtheuniverse.

ThenameShakyamuniisanhonorific9tlemeaning“sageoftheShakyas”—Shakyaisthenameoftheclantowhichhebelongedandmunimeans“sage.”The9tleBuddha,bywhichhecametobeuniversallyknown,means“awakenedone.”

TheLawtowhichShakyamuniawakenedbecamethecoreoftheBuddhistteachings.

The Wisdom to Realize the Inherent Dignity of Life

Shakyamunideclaredthatpeople’signoranceoftheinherentdignityoftheirownlivesresultsintheirbeingruledbyegoism.Thiscausesthemtobeconsumedbyimmediate,selfishdesiresanddriventoseektheirownhappinessattheexpenseofothers.Hetaught,therefore,thatthenoblestandmostadmirablewayforpeopletolivewithtruedignityistoawakentotheeternalanduniversalLawwithinthemandreturntotheiroriginalpurestateoflifethatisfreeoffundamentalignoranceordarkness.

TheBuddha’steachinginthisregardamountedtowhatmightbecalleda“restora9onofthevalueofthehumanbeing.”Itstressedhowimportantitisforpeopletoregainthesupremedignityoftheirlivesandrealizetheirinfinitepoten9albybringingforththeirinherentwisdom.

The Compassion to Respect All People

Byawakeningpeopletothevalueanddignityoftheirownlives,Shakyamunitaughtthemtounderstandandrespectthevalueanddignityofothers’livesaswell.ThisisthebasicspiritofBuddhistcompassion.

Shakyamunionceexplainedtoacertainkingthatallindividualsholdthemselvesmostdear,andthat,therefore,thosewholovethemselvesshouldnotharmothers.

CompassionastaughtinBuddhismmeanstounderstandthatothersareasimportantandpreciousasweareand,assuch,weshouldtreasurethemaswewouldtreasureourselves.Itisateachingofmutualunderstandingandrespect.

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The Lotus Sutra—The Essence of Mahayana Buddhism

Shakyamuniexpoundedhisteachingsforsome50years,anda^erhisdeath,hisdisciplescompiledrecordsofhiswordsandac9ons.ThosecontainingtheBuddha’smaindoctrinalteachingscametobeknownas“sutras.”Amongallhisteachings,thosepertainingtocompassionandwisdomarethefocusoftheMahayanasutras.AndpreeminentamongtheseistheLotusSutra,whichhasbeenextolledas“thekingofsutras.”

IntheLotusSutra,theBuddhasaysthat,byexpoundingit,hehasfulfilledthewishhehasheldsincetheremotepasttoelevateallpeopletothesamelifestateashisown.Further,herepeatedlycallsuponcountlessdisciplestoinheritandsharethateternalwish,orvow,andcarryouttheprac9ceofcompassioninordertofulfilit.

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10.Nichiren Daishonin—The Votary of the Lotus Sutra

NichirenDaishoninregardedthesufferingofallpeopleashisownand,ina9meofgreatsocialturmoil,soughttofindawaytorelievethatsuffering.Hevowedtoiden9fyandcarryontheBuddhistteachingscapableofrealizinggenuinehappinessanddignityforallpeople.Hestudiedthecommentariesandwri9ngsofearlierBuddhistscholars,whilealsocarefullyreadingandexaminingonhisownthemanyBuddhistsutras.Asaresultofhisstudies,hefoundtheanswerhehadbeensearchingforintheLotusSutra,whichteachesthewayforallpeopletogiveexpressiontotheirunlimitedpoten9alandbringittolifeinhumansociety.

BasedontheseprinciplesoftheLotusSutra,theDaishoninstronglyresolvedtohelpallpeoplerealizetruehappinessanddignity,andtoactualizepeaceandsecurityinsociety.Heencounteredlife-threateningpersecu9onbytheauthori9esandfierceopposi9onfromamongthepopulace,owingtotheirlackofunderstandingofthecorrectteachingofBuddhismandtheirmistakena_achmenttooldwaysofthinking.However,noneofthisdeterredhimintheleast.Hecon9nuedtotakeac9oninexactaccordwiththeteachingsoftheLotusSutra,encouragingandrevitalizingthepeople,evenattheriskofhislife.

NichirenDaishoninestablishedtheprac9ceofchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyo,andheinscribedtheGohonzonastheobjectoffaith,ordevo9on.Byiden9fying,revealing,andestablishingtheteachingthatistheessenceoftheLotusSutra,heopenedthewayforallpeopletoa_ainBuddhahood.

Inhistrea9se“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand,”theDaishoninassertsthatpeaceandsocialprosperityareindispensabletobuildingindividualhappiness.Hewrites:

Ifthena9onisdestroyedandpeople’shomesarewipedout,thenwherecanonefleeforsafety?Ifyoucareanythingaboutyourpersonalsecurity,youshouldfirstofallprayfororderandtranquillitythroughoutthefourquartersoftheland,shouldyounot?(WND-1,24)

ThefocusoftheDaishonin’slifelongeffortswasestablishingthecorrectteachingforthepeaceoftheland—thatis,establishingthephilosophyofrespectforthedignityoflifeassociety’sguidingprincipleandbuildingaworldwherepeoplecanliveinpeaceandsecurity.

Thisaccordswitheffortsthatprac99onersofBuddhismhavemadesincethe9meofShakyamuni,toovercomethedestruc9venatureofegoismthatinflictssomuchharmandsufferingonpeopleandsociety.Itmarkedanewhumanis9capproachbasedonthefundamentalspiritofBuddhismtoenablepeopletorealize

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happinessforthemselvesandforothers—onethatsoughttofostertrust,valuecrea9on,andharmony.

Thekeytothisprocesswasdialoguegroundedinreasonandhumanity.

11.The Soka Gakkai—Bringing Nichiren Buddhism to Life in Modern Times

Throughtheirselflessefforts,theSokaGakkai’sthreefoundingpresidents—TsunesaburoMakiguchi,JoseiToda,andDaisakuIkeda—revivedthephilosophyandprac9ceofNichirenDaishonininmodern9mes.

SokaGakkaimembersengageinavarietyofac9vi9esbasedontheguidanceofthethreefoundingpresidents.

Onapersonallevel,whilechallengingthemselvesinallareasoflife,theyusetheprac9ceofchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyotoreflectdeeplyontheirlivesandbringforththehopeandcouragetodealwithproblemstheyencounter.Inaddi9on,theystrivetodeveloprichcharacterbasedonasolidcommitmenttohumanis9cvalues.Thisistheprac9ceofhumanrevolu9on.

Througheverydayconversa9onswithfellowmembersanda_endingSokaGakkaimee9ngs,membersalsodeepentheirunderstandingofNichirenDaishonin’swri9ngsandSGIPresidentIkeda’sguidance,shareexperiencesinfaith,andencourageandsupportoneanother.

Inaddi9on,theytalkwithfriendsandacquaintancesabouttheprinciplesandidealsofBuddhismandhowtheirBuddhistprac9cehasenrichedtheirlives.Inthisway,theyspreadunderstandingandsupportforthelife-affirmingphilosophyofNichirenBuddhismandthehumanis9cac9vi9esoftheSokaGakkai,whileexpandingthenetworkofthosewhoembracefaithintheMys9cLaw.

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12.The Westward Transmission of Buddhism and Worldwide Kosen-rufu

Theprac9ceofNichirenBuddhismaimstoenablepeopletorealizehappinessbothforthemselvesandforothers.Italsoplacesimportanceonindividualscontribu9ngtotheircommuni9esasgoodci9zensandbecomingindispensablepeoplewhomotherscantrustandcountonbyfulfillingtheirrolesathome,atwork,andinsociety.

TheSokaGakkaiisalsoac9velyengagedinaddressingtheglobalissuesfacinghumanitytoday.Throughitsinterna9onalan9nuclearweaponsexhibi9onsandini9a9vesinsupportofrefugees,ithighlightstheimportanceofpeace,respectforthedignityoflife,andhumanrights.Also,throughexhibi9onsonenvironmentalthemes,itaimstopromoteawarenessoftheneedforeffortstoprotecttheglobalenvironment.

TheSokaGakkairediscoveredthetradi9onofhumanis9cphilosophyandprac9ceorigina9ngwithShakyamuniandinheritedbyNichirenDaishonin,recognizingandtreasuringitastheveryquintessenceofBuddhism.Inaddi9on,theSokaGakkaiiscarryingonthistradi9onandspiritintoday’ssocietyand,throughitsac9vi9esandini9a9ves,workingtopassthemontofuturegenera9ons.

Throughdialogueaimedatdeepeningunderstandingandprovidinginspira9on,weoftheSokaGakkaistrivecon9nuallytocul9vateandempowermanyableindividualswhocan,intheirrespec9verolesandfields,exemplifyBuddhisthumanism.Thismovement,whichaimstorealizethehappinessofhumanityaswellasworldpeace,iscalledkosen-rufu.

Buddhism,whichbeganinIndia,travelledeastwardtoJapan.Now,itisbeingtransmi_edbackwestward,spreadingnotonlytothecountriesofAsiaandIndiabutthroughouttheen9reworld.Thisisreferredtoasthe“westwardtransmission”or“westwardreturn”ofBuddhism.Today,ourhumanis9cBuddhistmovementhasspreadto192countriesandterritoriesaroundtheglobe.

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13.The Three Treasures

TheSokaGakkaiistheorganiza9onthat,inmodern9mes,hasinheritedthetruespiritandlineageofBuddhismpassedonfromShakyamuni.

ItisabasicpremiseforallBuddhiststorespectandtreasuretheBuddha,theLaw(theBuddha’steachings),andtheprac99onersoftheLaw.Therefore,thesethreeareregardedrespec9velyasthetreasureoftheBuddha,thetreasureoftheLaw,andthetreasureoftheBuddhistOrder(communityofbelievers).Together,theyareknownasthethreetreasures.ThetreasureoftheBuddhaistheBuddhawhoexpoundstheteaching,whilethetreasureoftheLawistheteachingtheBuddhaexpounds,andthetreasureoftheBuddhistOrderisthegatheringofpeoplewhobelieveinandprac9cethatteaching.

InSanskrit,thethreetreasures(triratna)arecalledBuddha,Dharma,andSamgha.Thewordsamghaoriginallymeant“acollec9vebody”or“anassembly.”ReferringtotheBuddhistOrder,itwasrenderedphone9callyintoChineseandthenintoJapanesewithtwocharacters,pronouncedinJapaneseassogya.Thiswassubsequentlycontractedtoonlythefirstcharacter,so,whichalsocametobeusedtorefertoBuddhistpriests.Later,thetermsamghawasalsorenderedintoChineseandJapaneseusingtwoorthreecharactersliterallymeaning“aharmoniousgathering,”pronouncedinJapaneseaswagoorwago-so.

OverthelonghistoryofBuddhism,variousteachingsemergedtoguidepeopleaccordingtotheirneedsandcapaci9es,the9mes,andchangesthattookplaceinsociety.

Thespecificdescrip9onofthethreetreasuresdifferssomewhatwithineachteaching.InEastAsia,thetreasureoftheBuddhistOrder,orSamgha,cametoreferexclusivelytomaleBuddhistpriests,notthecommunityofbelieversasawhole.

InNichirenDaishonin’sBuddhismofsowing(thatis,sowingtheseedsofenlightenment,namely,Nam-myoho-renge-kyo),wereverethethreetreasuresfromtheperspec9veof9mewithoutbeginning,thefundamentaldimensionofexistence.“Timewithoutbeginning”hereisusedtodescribethatwhichhasalwaysbeenpresentsincetheremotestpastandwillremainpresentintotheeternalfuture.IntermsofBuddhistprac9ce,itreferstotheoriginalmomentofa_ainingBuddhahood,whenordinarypeoplerevealandmanifesttheeternalMys9cLawthathasalwaysbeenpresentwithin.MembersoftheSokaGakkaieternallyreverethesethreetreasuresinordertoa_ainBuddhahood.　

ThetreasureoftheBuddhafromtheperspec9veof9mewithoutbeginningisNichirenDaishonin,theBuddhaofbeginningless9me,oreternalBuddha,whorevealedinhisownlifeasanordinarypersonthefundamentalLawfora_ainingBuddhahood.

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ThetreasureoftheLawfromtheperspec9veof9mewithoutbeginningistheGohonzon,orobjectofdevo9on,ofNam-myoho-renge-kyo,whichNichirenDaishoninrevealedastheLawforuniversalenlightenment.

ThetreasureoftheBuddhistOrderfromtheperspec9veof9mewithoutbeginningisNikkoShonin(NichirenDaishonin’sdirectdiscipleandsuccessor),whoprotectedandcorrectlytransmi_edthetreasureoftheBuddhaandthetreasureoftheLaw.

ThesearethethreetreasurestobereveredinNichirenDaishonin’sBuddhismofsowing.

Whenwerevere(nam)thesethreetreasures,wereceivethebenefitofsowingtheseedsofenlightenment[Nam-myoho-renge-kyo]andaretherebyabletoa_ainBuddhahood.

ThewordnamderivesfromtheSanskritwordnamas(meaning“bow”or“reverence”),andwastranslatedintoChineseas“todevoteone’slife,”meaningtobaseoneselfonsomethingandfollowitinbodyandmind,tobelieveinitandmakeitone’sfounda9on.

Moreover,thetreasureoftheBuddhistOrderinabroadsensereferstothegatheringofpeoplewhocorrectlyprotect,transmit,andspreadthethreetreasuresasobjectsofrespectandreverence.Today,theSokaGakkaiisthetreasureoftheBuddhistOrder,foritistheorganiza9onthatiscarryingonthespiritandconductofNichirenDaishoninandadvancingworldwidekosen-rufu.

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Worldwide Kosen-rufu and the Soka Gakkai

14.The History of the Soka Gakkai

Inthischapter,wewillexaminethehistoryoftheSokaGakkaibylearningabouttheaccomplishmentsofitsthreefoundingpresidents,whodedicatedtheirlivestokosen-rufu,andthespiritofmentoranddiscipletheyshared.

TheLotusSutraisthescripturethatmakesclearShakyamuniBuddha’sintent,therealpurposeofhisteachings.TheintentoftheBuddhaisthatallpeoplebringforththewisdomofBuddhahoodthathasalwaysbeeninherentwithinthemandestablishunshakablehappinessforthemselvesandforothers,crea9ngthebasisforpeacethroughouttheworld.

TheLotusSutradescribesthosewhostrivetoactualizethisintentoftheBuddhaasbodhisa_vasofthetrueMahayanateaching.Theydosobystrugglingagainstallkindsofobstaclestoachieveaprofoundtransforma9onintheirownlivesandthelivesofothers.Suchbodhisa_vas,thesutrateaches,appearintheagecalledtheLa_erDayoftheLaw,a^erthepassingofShakyamuniBuddha.TheyworktospreadtheLotusSutrathroughouttheen9reworldandtherebyrealizetheBuddha’spurpose,aprocesswecallkosen-rufu,thewidespreadpropaga9onofthesutra’steaching.Thebodhisa_vaswhoshoulderthismissionarecalledtheBodhisa_vasoftheEarth.

TheleaderoftheBodhisa_vasoftheEarthwhoappearintheLotusSutraisnamedBodhisa_vaSuperiorPrac9ces.NichirenDaishoninawakenedtohismissiontofulfilltheroleofSuperiorPrac9cesintheLa_erDay,takingashisownthegreatdesireandvowforkosen-rufudescribedinthesutra―theBuddha’swillandmandate.Hestooduptoactualizethatwillandestablishedthefundamental

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teachingandprac9ceforfreeingallpeopleandallofsocietyfromsufferingthroughouttheLa_erDay.Forthisreason,theDaishoninisknownastheBuddhaoftheLa_erDayoftheLaw.

Andtoday,itistheSokaGakkaithathasinheritedandiscarryingontheDaishonin’sspirit,deeplyresolvedtoaccomplishitsmissionofworldwidekosen-rufuandearnestlypreservinginitseffortstoactualizethatgoal.Theleaderswhohavefirmlyestablishedtheprac9ce,awareness,andresolveforachievingkosen-rufuinmodern9mesaretheSokaGakkai’sfirstthreepresidents:itsfirstpresident,TsunesaburoMakiguchi,itssecondpresident,JoseiToda,anditsthirdpresident,DaisakuIkeda(currentlyitshonorarypresidentandthepresidentoftheSGI).TogethertheyarerespectedastheSokaGakkai’sthreefoundingpresidents.

Herea^erwewillrefertothesethreefoundingpresidentswiththehonorific9tleSensei,whichfollowsthefamilyname.

The Time of the First President, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

WecanfindtheoriginsoftheSokaGakkaiintherela9onshipofmentoranddisciplethatexistedbetweenthefirstpresident,TsunesaburoMakiguchi,andthesecondpresident,JoseiToda.Bothwereeducators.

TsunesaburoMakiguchiwasbornonJune6,1871,inthevillageofArahamaintoday’sKashiwazakiCity,NiigataPrefecture(ontheJapanSeacoast).Whileinhisearlyteens,hemovedtoHokkaido,thenorthernmostofJapan’sfourmainislands,wherehelivedunderthecareofarela9ve.Thereheexertedhimselfinhisstudieswhileworking,andeventuallyenteredtheHokkaidoNormalSchool(today,HokkaidoUniversityofEduca9on).Upongradua9ng,hebecameaschoolteacher,andin1901hemovedtoTokyowiththemanuscriptsforhisfirstwork,JinseiChirigaku(TheGeographyofHumanLife),whichwaspublishedin1903.HelaterheldthepostofprincipalatseveralelementaryschoolsinTokyo.

JoseiTodawasbornonFebruary11,1900,inavillagecalledShioyainpresent-dayKagaCity,IshikawaPrefecture(alsoontheJapanSeacoast).Inaround1902,hisfamilymovedtothevillageofAtsutaintoday’sAtsutaWardinIshikariCity,Hokkaido.A^ergradua9ngfromanordinaryandhigherelementaryschool(roughlyequivalenttofinishingtoday’sjuniorhighschool)in1914,hestudiedonhisownwhileworking.Eventually,hereceivedhisteachingcer9ficateandbeganhiscareerasateacherintheHokkaidotownofYubari.

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Mentor and Disciple Meet

TodaSenseifromthat9meonhadbeenseekingamentorinlife,anduponvisi9ngTokyo,hemetMakiguchiSensei,whowasbythentheprincipalofanelementaryschool.Thetworeadilytooktoeachother.Theformerwas48yearsoldatthe9me,andthela_er,19.Beforelong,TodaSenseibegantoteachattheschool,regardingMakiguchiSenseiashismentorinlifeandsuppor9nghimineverypossibleway.

[Note:AAermovingtoTokyo,Toda,whileworking,studiedatthenightschoolofKaiseiMiddleSchoolandnightclassesatChuoUniversity.]

The Establishment of the Soka Kyoiku Gakkai

Asaneducatorengagedfirst-handinprimaryschooleduca9on,MakiguchiSensei’shopeandvowwastoenableeverychildtosucceedincrea9ngpersonalhappinessasaself-sufficientmemberofsociety.Heappliedhimselftodevelopinganapproachtoeduca9onthatwouldmakethispossible.

MakiguchiSenseidelveddeeplyintoresearchandformulatedatheoryofvaluethatcouldserveasafounda9onfortheuniquepedagogyhewouldlatersystema9ze.Intheprocess,heencounteredtheBuddhismofNichirenDaishonin,whichherealizedclarifiedtheprinciplesandfundamentalprac9ceforenablingthekindoflifetransforma9onthatwouldgiverisetovaluecrea9oninhumansociety.Andin1928,hetookfaithinNichirenBuddhismasamemberofNichirenShoshu—aBuddhistschoolthatderiveditsteachingsfromthelineageofNikkoShonin,theDaishonin’sdirectdiscipleandsuccessor.Hewas57yearsoldatthe9me.

MakiguchiSenseirecountshisstateofmindimmediatelya^ertakingfaithinNichirenBuddhism,wri9ng,“Withanindescribablejoy,IcompletelychangedthewayIhadlivedforalmost60years.” Asthisstatementsuggests,hetookthe14

Daishonin’steachingasaprincipleforlivinganddevotedhimselftoit.Heregardeditasasourceofpowerandenergyforcrea9ngvalueandachievingactualposi9veresultsinthemidstofsocietyandindailylife.

TranslatedfromJapanese.TsunesaburoMakiguchi,SokaKyoikugakuRonshu(WriEngsonValue-CreaEng14

EducaEon),inMakiguchiTsunesaburoZenshu(TheCollectedWorksofTsunesaburoMakiguchi)(Tokyo:Daisanbunmei-sha,1984),vol.8,p.406.

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Regardinghismo9va9onfortakingfaith,MakiguchiSenseirecalls,“EncounteringtheLotusSutra,Irealizedtheteachingsofthesutrainnowaycontradicttheprinciplesofphilosophyandsciencethatformthebasisofourdailylives.” 15

Thatsameyear,TodaSenseifollowedhismentorintakingfaithinNichirenBuddhism.

OnNovember18,1930,MakiguchiSenseipublishedthefirstvolumeofhisSokaKyoikugakuTaikei(TheSystemofValue-Crea9ngPedagogy).Thisworksystemizedhisviewsandideasoneduca9on,andwasintendedasthefirstoftwelvevolumes(ofwhichfourwereeventuallypublished).

Hisdisciple,TodaSensei,personallyhelpedfundthepublishingproject,andcollaboratedineveryaspectofitsproduc9on,includingorganizingandedi9ngMakiguchiSensei’snotesintoamanuscriptanddividingthecontentintochapters.

Thepublisher’simprintlistedTsunesaburoMakiguchiastheauthor,JoseiTodaasthepublisherandprinter,andtheSokaKyoikuGakkai(Value-Crea9ngEduca9onSociety,thepredecessoroftheSokaGakkai)asthepublishinghouse.Thiswasthefirst9methenameSokaKyoikuGakkaihadappearedinpublic,andforthisreasonthedayofthework’spublica9on,November18,iscelebratedasthedayoftheSokaGakkai’sfounding.

[Editor’sNote:AAerthesocietywasvirtuallydestroyedbythemilitaristgovernment,aswillbeexplainedbelow,TodarestoredandrenamedittheSokaGakkai.]

Sokameans“crea9onofvalue.”Thepurposeofeduca9onandthepurposeoflifearethepursuitofhappiness,andthenameSokaexpressesMakiguchiSensei’sthinkingthatthecrea9onofvalueisintegraltobuildinghappiness.

Theconcep9onofthewordSokaitselfcameaboutinthecourseofadiscussionbetweenthetwoinnova9veeducators.WecouldsaythatthebirthoftheSokaGakkai,then,wasitselfacrystalliza9onoftheunitedspiritofmentoranddisciple.

Ibid.,p.405.15

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Buddhist Practice Directly Connected to Nichiren Daishonin

Inthisway,theSokaKyoikuGakkaiitselfwasbornoutofthebondofmentoranddisciple.Gradually,itsorganiza9onalstructurebecamemoredefinedanditbegantogrow.

Whileoriginallyanassocia9onofeducatorsinterestedintheprinciplesofvalue-crea9ngeduca9on,non-educatorseventuallybegantojoinaswell,andtheSokaKyoikuGakkaibecameagroupfortheprac9ceofNichirenBuddhism,thepowersourceforvaluecrea9on.

Thoughasocietyoflayprac99onersoftheNichirenShoshuschoolofBuddhism,theSokaKyoikuGakkaiconducteditsaffairsinacompletelydifferentmannerthanpreviouslyestablishedNichirenShoshulaysocie9es.Thesegroupsoflaybelieverseachwereaffiliatedwithaspecificlocaltemple,andoperatedundertheguidanceofthechiefpriestofthattemple.

TheSokaKyoikuGakkai,however,operatedindependently,undertheleadershipofPresidentMakiguchiandGeneralDirectorToda.Itdidnotrelyonpriestsforitsmanagementoropera9onorforprovidingguidancepertainingtofaith.

NorwastheformofBuddhistprac9ceitencouragedconstrainedtovisi9ngtemplesorpar9cipa9nginceremoniessuchasfuneralandmemorialservices,aswasthecasewithmostBuddhistschoolsinJapan,includingNichirenShoshu.Rather,ittaughtaprac9cethatwasopentoeveryone,whichaimedtoenableeachpersontoactualizehappinessinthemidstoflife’srealchallengesandtocontributetothepeaceandprosperityofsociety.

Throughholdingdiscussionmee9ngs,anditsleaderstravelingtovariousregionstoofferguidanceandencouragementinfaith,theSokaKyoikuGakkaigrewsteadily,reachingamembershipofaroundthreethousand.

Challenging Japan’s Militarism

Themilitaristgovernment,initsrecklessrushtoexpanditswarfoo9ngwithStateShinto asitsspiritualpillar,endeavoredtocoerceuniformityofthoughtamong16

Japan’spopulace.ItplacedSokaKyoikuGakkaidiscussionmee9ngsandother

StateShinto:AnaEonalreligionestablishedandpromotedbythegovernmentaTertheMeijiRestoraEonin16

1868undertheemperorsystemofJapan.Themilitaristgovernmentuseditasameanstoputthepeopleunderitsthoughtcontrol.WorshipoftheSunGoddesswasitstenet.

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ac9vi9esundersurveillancebytheSpecialHigherPolice,whichwasresponsibleforinves9ga9ngso-calledthoughtcrimes.

Atthe9me,thegovernmentwaspressuringci9zenstovisitandofferprayersatShintoshrinesandtoenshrineandworshiptalismanstotheSunGoddess,themythicalprogenitoroftheimperiallineage.InJune1943,thepriestsofNichirenShoshu,infearofgovernmentrepression,deliveredtotheSokaKyoikuGakkaithefollowingrequest:“Whydon’tyouaccepttheShintotalisman?”ThiswasmadetoMakiguchiSenseiinthepresenceofthehighpriest.

ThepostureofNichirenShoshuinaccep9ngthegovernment’sdemandtoenshrinethetalismantotheSunGoddesscons9tutedcomplicityinslanderoftheLaw(slanderofthecorrectBuddhistteaching).Itwasaviola9onoftheteachingsofNichirenDaishoninandhissuccessorNikkoShonin,fromwhomNichirenShoshuclaimedlineage.MakiguchiSenseiadamantlyrefusedtoaccepttheShintotalisman,andtheSokaKyoikuGakkaithuspersistedinupholdingtheDaishonin’steachingandexampleofstrictlyadmonishingslanderoftheLaw.

OnJuly6,MakiguchiSensei,whilevisi9ngShimodainIzu,ShizuokaPrefecture,andonthesamedayTodaSensei,inTokyo,weretakenintocustodybydetec9vesoftheSpecialHigherPolice.Ul9mately,21leadersoftheSokaKyoikuGakkaiwerearrestedonsuspicionofcommijnglesemajesty(thecrimeofviola9ngthedignityoftheEmperor)andviola9ngthePeacePreserva9onLaw. 17

Allthosearrestedweresubjectedtocoerciveinterroga9on,andmostofthemabandonedtheirfaith.Intheend,onlyMakiguchiSenseiandhistrusteddiscipleTodaSenseiresisted,persis9ngintheirfaith.MakiguchiSenseievenexplainedtotheprosecutorsandjudgeswhoques9onedhimtheteachingsofNichirenBuddhism.BothrefusedtobuckleunderthepressureofauthorityandperseveredinupholdingtherightandjustprinciplesofBuddhism.

OnNovember18,1944,attheageof73,MakiguchiSenseipassedawayattheTokyoDeten9onCenterduetomalnutri9onandtheweaknessofage.Coincidentally,thedayofhisdeathwastheanniversaryoftheSokaGakkai’sfounding.

Throughouthislife,hehadlivedandprac9cedastheDaishonintaughtinhiswri9ngs,neverhesitanttoriskhislifetodoso.Helivedasanoblepioneerwhorevivedinmodern9mestheDaishonin’sspiritofpropaga9ngtheMys9cLawtoleadthepeoplefromsufferingtohappiness.

Toda Sensei’s Awakening in Prison

PeacePreservaEonLaw:Enactedin1925andcompletelyrevisedin1941,thislawwasusedtosuppress17

thoughtinthenameofprotecEngtheJapanese“naEonalpolity”andpreservingpeace.ThelawprovidedforharshpunishmentofpersonsfoundtobeinviolaEon,includingthedeathpenalty.

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Whileinprison,TodaSensei,inaddi9ontoexer9nghimselfinchan9ngdaimoku,fromearly1944begantoreadtheLotusSutraandponderitdeeply.Intheprocess,heachievedanawakening—arealiza9onthat“theBuddhaislifeitself.”

Ashecon9nuedtochantandengageinprofoundcontempla9on,TodaSenseialsobecameawarethathehimselfwasaBodhisa_vaoftheEarthwhohadbeenpresentattheCeremonyintheAirdescribedintheLotusSutraandwhowasentrustedwiththewidespreadpropaga9onofthesutra’steachingintheagea^erShakyamuniBuddha.Thus,inNovember1944,heawakenedtothedeepconvic9onthat“I,Toda,amaBodhisa_vaoftheEarth,”whosemissionitwastoaccomplishkosen-rufu.

Throughtheprofoundawakeningheexperiencedinprison,TodaSenseidevelopedanimmovableconvic9onintheteachingsofNichirenBuddhism,andresolvedthatitwashispersonalmissiontoensuretheirpropaga9onworldwide.TheawakeningthatTodaSenseihadexperiencedwhileinprisonbecametheprimaryinspira9onbehindtherevivalofBuddhisminthemodernageandthepowerfulprogressoftheSokaGakkaiasareligiousgroupdedicatedtotheaccomplishmentofkosen-rufu.

AtamemorialserviceforMakiguchiSenseia^erthewar,TodaSenseiaddressedhisdepartedmentor:

Inyourvastandboundlesscompassion,youletmeaccompanyyoueventoprison.Asaresult,Icouldreadwithmyen9rebeingthepassagefromtheLotusSutra:“ThosepersonswhohadheardtheLawdwelledhereandthereinvariousbuddhalands,constantlyrebornincompanywiththeirteachers”(LSOC7,178).ThebenefitofthiswascomingtoknowmyformerexistenceasaBodhisa_vaoftheEarthandtoabsorbwithmyverylifeevenasmalldegreeofthesutra’smeaning.Couldtherebeanygreaterhappinessthanthis? 18

Thispassagefrom“TheParableofthePhantomCity”(7th)chapteroftheLotusSutrateachesthatthebondbetweenmentoranddiscipleissuchthattheywill

TranslatedfromJapanese.JoseiToda,“MakiguchiSenseiSankaikini”(OnPresidentMakiguchi’sThird18

Memorial)inTodaJoseiZenshu(TheCollectedWorksofJoseiToda)(Tokyo:SeikyoShimbun-sha,1983),vol.3,p.386.

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alwaysbeborntogetherinaBuddhaland,inaplacewheretheywillstrivetogethertosavepeoplefromsuffering.

Whilemostofthosepersecutedbytheauthori9esdiscardedtheirfaith,TodaSensei’swordsexpresshissincereapprecia9onandresolvetorepayhisdebtofgra9tudetohismentorunderanycircumstances.Inthem,wecatchaglimpseofthestrengthofthisbondofmentoranddisciple.

The Time of Second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda

OnJuly3,1945,JoseiTodaemergedfromprison,havingenduredtwoyearsoflifeinconfinement,andstoodupalonetocarryonthewillofhismentor,TsunesaburoMakiguchi,fortheaccomplishmentofkosen-rufu.AsgeneraldirectoroftheSokaGakkai,hebeganimmediatelytoundertakethereconstruc9onoftheorganiza9on,whichwasinastateofruin.

ThepeopleofJapanatthe9mewereinthepitofdespair,reelingfromthedestruc9onbroughtonbythewarandtheturmoilofitsa^ermath.StateShinto,whichhadbeenforceduponthepopulace,wasnowbeingrepudiated,alongwithotherbeliefsandvaluesespousedbythemilitaristgovernment.Yetnonewsourceofhopewastobefound.

TodaSenseiwasconvincedthatNichirenBuddhismalonecons9tutedaspiritualprinciplepowerfulenoughtoleadthepeopleawayfromsufferingandconfusion,andhestoodupwithagreatwishandvowtospreaditsteachingswidely.Theorganiza9on’sgoalwouldbenotonlytocarryouteduca9onalreform,buttoaccomplishkosen-rufu,thatis,peacethroughouttheworldandhappinessforallpeople.Inlinewiththatpurpose,heamendeditsnamefromSokaKyoikuGakkai(Value-Crea9ngEduca9onSociety)toSokaGakkai(Value-Crea9ngSociety),andbeganagaintoholddiscussionmee9ngsandtraveltooutlyingregionstoofferguidanceinfaith.

Encounter between Mentor and Disciple—Toda Sensei and Ikeda Sensei Meet

In1947,TodaSenseimetyoungDaisakuIkeda,whowouldlaterbecomethethirdPresidentoftheSokaGakkai(todayPresidentoftheSokaGakkaiInterna9onal).

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IkedawasborninthedistrictofOmori,inTokyo’sOtaward,onJanuary2,1928.

Hegrewupata9mewhenJapanwasplungingintowar:HewasnineyearsoldatthestartoftheSecondSino-JapaneseWar(1937), andthirteenattheoutbreak19

ofthewarwiththeUnitedStatesinthePacifictheaterofWorldWarII(1941).Asthewarintensified,hisfourolderbrothers,allintheprimeoftheirlives,weredra^edintothemilitaryandsentintoba_le.Tohelpsupporthisfamily,Ikedaworkedatamuni9onsfactory.Sufferingfromtuberculosis,however,hespenthisearlyyouthinphysicaldistress,thinkingdeeplyabouttheques9onsoflifeanddeath.

Whenhiseldestbrother,Kiichi,hadreturnedhometemporarilyfromtheba_lefield,hedescribedhowmuchmiserythewarwascausingthepeopleofAsia.Inaddi9on,hisfamilyhadbeenforcedfromtheirhome,whichburnedintheairraids.Throughtheseaccountsandexperiences,hehadbecomebi_erlyawareofwar’sinjus9ceandtragiccruelty.

A^erthewar,thefamilylearnedthattheeldestbrother,whohadbeensentbacktotheba_lefront,hadbeenkilledincombatinBurma(todayMyanmar).Witnessinghismother’sdeepsadnessonlearningofherson’sdeath,youngIkeda’ssensethatwarwasevil,acrimeagainsthumanity,strengthenedanddeepened.Searchingforclearanswerstotheques9onofhowtolive,hedelvedintoworksofliteratureandphilosophy.

Itwasinthemidstofthisquestthat,onAugust14,1947,hea_endedhisfirstSokaGakkaidiscussionmee9ng.Thereheencounteredthemanwhowouldbecomehislifelongmentor,JoseiToda.

Atthemee9ngthatevening,TodaSenseiwasdeliveringalectureonNichirenDaishonin’swri9ng“OnEstablishingtheCorrectTeachingforthePeaceoftheLand.”WhenTodahadfinishedlecturing,Ikedaaskedhimaseriesofques9ons,including“Whatisthecorrectwaytolive?”;“Whatisatruepatriot?”;“WhatisthemeaningofNam-myoho-renge-kyo?”;and“WhatdoyouthinkabouttheEmperor?”

Toda’sanswerswereclearandwell-reasoned,andinfusedwiththedeepconvic9onhehadgainedthroughhisstrugglesagainstJapan’smilitaristgovernmentandduringtwoyearsofunjustimprisonment.Ashelistened,theyouthwasstruckwiththesensethathecouldtrusteverythingthismanhadsaid.

Tendayslater,onAugust24,Ikedabeganhisprac9ceofNichirenBuddhism.Atthe9me,hewas19yearsold,andTodaSensei,47.

Thewarthatbeganin1937asaJapaneseinvasionofChinaandendedwiththeWorldWarIIdefeatofJapan19

in1945.� 72

InAprilthefollowingyear,theyouthenrolledinnightclassesatTaiseiGakuin(later,TokyoFujiUniversity).InSeptember,hebegantoa_endToda’slectureseriesontheLotusSutra.TakingTodaSenseiashismentor,hedeepenedhisstudyandunderstandingofBuddhismandvowedtolivehislifeforthesakeofkosen-rufu.

AndinJanuary1949,hestartedtoworkatToda’spublishingcompanyastheeditorofamagazineforboys.

The Shared Struggle of Mentor and Disciple to Rebuild the Soka Gakkai

InJuly1949,theSokaGakkailaunchedpublica9onofitsmonthlymagazine,theDaibyakurenge.TheinauguralissuecarriedanessayTodaSenseihadwri_en,9tled“ThePhilosophyofLife.”Later,Toda’sbusinesses,whichhadbeenstrugglingamidtheeffectsofJapan’schao9cpost-wareconomy,faceddirefinancialsetbacks,andonAugust24,1950,heannouncedhisinten9ontostepdownfromhisposi9onasSokaGakkaigeneraldirector.

Onthatoccasion,youngIkedaaskedhim,“Whowillbemymentorfromhereon?”towhichTodaSenseireplied,“ThoughI’vecausedyounothingbuttrouble,Iamyourmentor,”affirmingtheunbreakablebondofmentoranddisciple.

Thediscipleexertedhimselffullytose_leToda’sbusinessaffairs,solvingthefinancialcrisis.HeresolveddeeplyinhishearttomakeitpossibleforTodaSenseitotakefullleadershipaspresidentoftheSokaGakkai.

Ikedahaddecidedtostopa_endingnightschoolsothathecouldfullysupporthismentor.Butinresponse,TodaSenseitoldhimthathewouldpersonallyinstructhimandprovidehimwithabroadeduca9onsurpassinganyhecouldobtainfromauniversity.Thisprivateinstruc9on,knownas“TodaUniversity,”con9nuedfornearlyadecade,un9ltheyearbeforeToda’sdeath.

Amidthisintensivestruggle,TodaSenseidiscussedwithhismosttrusteddisciplehisvisionforthefuture.Thisincludedtheestablishmentoftheorganiza9on’snewspaper,SeikyoShimbun,towageaba_leofthewri_enwordforthesakeofkosen-rufu,andthefoundingofSokaUniversity.Bothoftheseins9tu9onscameintobeingasaresultofsuchdialoguesbetweenmentoranddisciple.

Inauguration of the Second President

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Havingovercomehisbusinesstroubles,TodaSenseiagreed,inresponsetorequestsfrommanymembers,totakeontheposi9onofSokaGakkaipresident.Hisinaugura9onastheorganiza9on’ssecondpresidenttookplaceonMay3,1951,andonthatoccasionhedeclaredhisvowtoachieveamembershipof750,000households. Therewereonlyabout3,000membersatthe9me,andnoonecould20

believeitwaspossibletoachievethegoalTodahadstated.

Beforehisinaugura9onaspresident,TodaSenseiimplementedarestructuringoftheSokaGakkaiorganiza9on.Heins9tutedachapter-basedsystemasafounda9onforfuturedevelopmentandrefreshedtheorganiza9on’spreparednesstotakeonthechallengeofkosen-rufu.

Priortohisbecomingpresident,theSeikyoShimbunnewspapercommencedpublica9ononApril20.ItsinauguralissuecarriedthefirstinstallmentofTodaSensei’sserializednovelTheHumanRevoluMon,whichheauthoredunderthepennameMyoGoku. 21

“Humanrevolu9on”referstotheprocessbywhich,throughtheprac9ceofNichirenBuddhism,eachindividualachievesatransforma9onoftheirstateoflife,eventuallyleadingtoatransforma9oninthedes9nyofallhumankind.Upholdingtheprincipleofhumanrevolu9onbasedonhisphilosophyoflife,PresidentTodaendeavoredtospreadNichirenBuddhismasateachingaccessibleandapplicabletoallpeopletoday.

Also,immediatelya^erhisinaugura9on,PresidentTodaestablishedinsuccessionthewomen’sdivision,theyoungmen’sdivision,andtheyoungwomen’sdivision.

Atthesame9me,inthebeginningof1952,onTodaSensei’sinstruc9on,IkedabecamechapteradvisortotheSokaGakkai’sKamataChapterinTokyo,andledaneffortthatresultedin201newhouseholdsjoiningduringthemonthofFebruary.Thisrepresentedabreakthrough,farsurpassingthemonthlymembershipincreasesachievedbyanychapterun9lthen,andbecameknownasthehistoricFebruaryCampaign.Itmarkedaturningpoint,a^erwhichtheSokaGakkai’sprogresstowardachievingitsmembershipgoalof750,000householdsacceleratedrapidly.

InthosedaystheSokaGakkai’smembershipwasindicatedbythenumberofhouseholds.20

ThenameMyoGokuderivesfromToda’sprisonexperience,duringwhichhehadawakened(go)tothe21

essenceofBuddhism,themysEctruth(myo)ofnonsubstanEality(ku).� 74

TodaSenseihadbeenplanningtopublishacollec9onofNichirenDaishonin’swri9ngs.HeknewthiswouldbeindispensabletothecorrectstudyandunderstandingoftheDaishonin’steachingsand,therefore,progresstowardkosen-rufu,thewidespreadpropaga9onofNichirenBuddhism.

TodaSenseiaskedtheaccomplishedNichirenscholarNichikoHori(1867–1957)totakechargeofthecompila9onandedi9ng.InApril1952,markingthe700thobserva9onoftheDaishonin’sestablishmentofhisteaching,theNichirenDaishoninGoshoZenshu(CollectedWri9ngsofNichirenDaishonin)waspublished.Fromthat9meon,everySokaGakkaimemberusedthisbooktoearnestlystudyNichirenDaishonin’steachings,andthespirittobaseeverythingontheDaishonin’swri9ngswasestablishedthroughouttheen9reSokaGakkai.

Battle against the Devilish Tendencies of Power

InApril1955,theSokaGakkairanitsfirstcandidatesinlocalassemblyelec9ons.Ittookthisstepbasedonthespiritof“establishingthecorrectteachingforthepeaceoftheland,”whichtheDaishoninespousedinthecourseofhisstruggleforthepeople’shappinessandapeacefulsociety.

In1956inKansai,Ikedainspiredaremarkableincreaseinpropaga9on,andinMaytheOsakaChapterachievedanunprecedentedmembershipincreaseof11,111householdsinjustonemonth.IntheHouseofCouncillorselec9onheldinJulythatyear,acandidaterunningintheOsakadistrict,whosecampaignIkedahadled,waselected,defyingallpredic9onstothecontrary.

ItwasanoutcomesoastonishingthatamajordailynewspaperinJapanreporteditundertheheadline,“Whatwasthoughtimpossiblehasbeenachieved!”

ThreecandidatesendorsedbytheSokaGakkaihadbeenelectedtotheHouseofCouncillors,andfromthenontheorganiza9onbecameafocusofa_en9onasagroupwithgrowingsocialinfluence.Atthesame9me,vestedpowersandinterestsbegantoa_emptunjustlytoimpedetheorganiza9on.

Inresponsetothesea_acks,IkedafoughtresolutelytoprotecttheSokaGakkaimembers.InJune1957,whentheYubariCoalMinersUnioninthecityofYubari,Hokkaido,actedunjustlytosuppressSokaGakkaimembers’religiousfreedom,hewentthereimmediatelytoaddresstheissue.DeclaringthattheSokaGakkaiwouldadamantlyopposetheseabuses,hestrovediligentlytoachieveasolu9on.(ThisbecameknownastheYubariCoalMinersUnionIncident.)

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OnJuly3,immediatelya^erleavingYubari,IkedawasunjustlyarrestedbytheOsakaPrefecturalPolice(inwhatbecameknownastheOsakaIncident).InAprilthatyear(1957),theSokaGakkaihadrunacandidateinaby-elec9ontofillavacantHouseofCouncillorsseatintheOsakaelectoraldistrict,andsomemembersinvolvedinthecampaignhadbeenchargedwithviola9ngelec9onlaws.Ikeda,asthepersonresponsiblefortheelec9oncampaign,wasbaselesslyaccusedoforchestra9ngtheillegalac9vi9es.

July3isthesamedateonwhich,in1945,TodaSenseiwasreleasedfromprison.Yearslater,IkedaSenseireferredtothisinahaikupoem,wri9ng,“Onthisdayofreleaseandofimprisonment[July3]arefoundthebondsofmentoranddisciple.”

For15days,Ikedawassubjectedtoharshinterroga9on,duringwhichtheprosecutorthreatened:“Ifyoudon’tconfessyourguilt,wewillarrestPresidentToda.”Toda’shealthhadbythat9mebecomeveryfrail,andgoingtojailwouldhavesurelyledtohisdeath.

Toprotecthismentor’slife,Ikedaconfessedtothechargesforthe9mebeing,resolvedtoprovehisowninnocencelaterincourt.OnJuly17,hewasreleasedfromtheOsakaDeten9onCenter.

Forthenextfour-and-a-halfyears,IkedaSenseiwagedanongoingcourtba_le,andfinally,onJanuary25,1962,hewaspronouncednotguiltyonallcharges.Theprosecutoraffirmedthecourt’sdecision,decliningtheop9ontoappeal.

Entrusting Kosen-rufu to Successors

OnSeptember8,1957,TodaSenseideliveredhis“Declara9onfortheAboli9onofNuclearWeapons,” whichwouldbecomethestartandkeynoteoftheSokaGakkai’s22

peacemovement.

Init,basedontheBuddhistprincipleofthesanc9tyanddignityoflife,heiden9fiednuclearweaponsasadevilishcrea9onthatthreatenstousurphumanity’sinviolablerighttolive,callinguseofsuchweaponsanactofabsoluteevil.

InDecember1957,theSokaGakkaireacheditsmembershipgoalof750,000households,whichTodaSenseihadvowedtoachieve.AndinMarchthefollowingyear,itcompletedanddonatedtheedificecalledtheGrandLectureHallattheNichirenShoshuheadtemple,Taiseki-ji.There,onMarch16,sixthousandyouthfrom

“NuclearWeapons”intheEtlecanmoreliterallybetranslatedas“AtomicandHydrogenBombs,”forthis22

wasthecommontermfornuclearweaponsinJapanatthatEme.� 76

aroundJapan,ledbyIkeda,gatheredforaceremonyinwhichTodaSenseientrustedthemwitheveryaspectofkosen-rufu.Onthatoccasion,PresidentTodadeclared,“TheSokaGakkaiisthekingofthereligiousworld!”

Thisday,March16,onwhichtheseyoungsuccessorswereentrustedwiththegreatwishandvowforkosen-rufu,cametobecalled“Kosen-rufuDay”intheSokaGakkaiandtheSGI.

OnApril2,1958,TodaSenseipassedaway,havingcompletedallhehadsetouttoaccomplish.Hewas58.Basinghimselfontheawakeningheachievedwhileinprison,hehadrebuilttheSokaGakkaiandconstructedanimmovablefounda9onforthefutureofkosen-rufu.

The Time of Daisaku Ikeda, Third Soka Gakkai President and SGI President

A^erJoseiToda’sdeath,DaisakuIkeda,inthenewlyestablishedposi9onofgeneraladministrator(sinceJune1958),tookfullresponsibilityforthemanagementandleadershipoftheSokaGakkai,andonMay3,1960,wasinauguratedastheorganiza9on’sthirdpresident.

Inhisspeechonthatoccasion,hesaid,“ThoughIamyoung,fromthisdayIwilltakeleadershipasarepresenta9veofPresidentToda’sdisciplesandadvancewithyouanothersteptowardthesubstan9verealiza9onofkosen-rufu.” Withthis,his23

first“lion’sroar”aspresident—madeonthesamedatethatTodaSenseihadbeeninauguratedaspresidentin1951—anewperiodofgreatdevelopmentfortheSokaGakkaibegan.

OnOctober2thatyear,PresidentIkedale^JapanforNorthandSouthAmerica,thefirststepinajourneytospreadtheteachingsofNichirenBuddhismaroundtheworld.InJanuary1961,hevisitedHongKong,India,andotherdes9na9onsinAsia,andthatOctoberhetraveledtoEurope,ini9a9ngasurgeofprogresstowardworldwidekosen-rufu.

Inthisway,IkedaSenseiopenedasubstan9vepathtowardachievingthe“westwardtransmissionofBuddhism”andthespreadoftheMys9cLawthroughouttheen9reworld,whichNichirenDaishoninhadpredicted.

DaisakuIkeda,TheHumanRevolu%on(SantaMonica,CA:WorldTribunePress,2004),23

Book2,p.1971.� 77

In1965,underthepennameHoGoku, hebeganwri9ngthenovelTheHuman24

RevoluMon,whichwouldbeserializedintheSeikyoShimbunnewspaperandwouldeventuallyextendto12volumes.HispurposeindoingsowastocorrectlytransmitthehistoryandspiritoftheSokaGakkaitofuturegenera9ons.

Intheprefacetothenovel,heconveysitsmaintheme:“Agreathumanrevolu9oninjustasingleindividualwillhelpachieveachangeinthedes9nyofana9onandfurther,willenableachangeinthedes9nyofallhumankind.” The25

HumanRevoluMonportraystheeffortsandstrugglesofthethreefoundingpresidentsoftheSokaGakkaiastheystrovetobuildafounda9onforthehappinessandpeaceofhumankind.

IkedaSenseihascon9nuedtochronicletheSokaGakkai’shistoryinTheNewHumanRevoluMon,a30-volumenovelalsoserializedintheSeikyoShimbun.

A Movement for Peace, Culture, and Education

TheSokaGakkaiisanorganiza9onthatfostersyouthwhowillcontributeposi9velytosociety.

TodaSenseisaidthatwhenkosen-rufuadvances,numerouscapableindividualswillemerge,playingimportantrolesinvariousfieldsofsociety.HefurtherexpectedthattheSokaGakkaiwouldonedaybecomeanimportantmainstayfortheflourishingofpeaceandcultureforallhumankind.Tothatend,heinsistedthatitmustbecomeanoutstandingeduca9onalmovement,onethatcanraisepeoplecapableoffulfillingtheirmission.

Inordertoactualizethatvision,theSokaGakkaiundertheleadershipofIkedaSenseihaspromotedagrowingmovementforpeace,culture,andeduca9ongroundedinBuddhistprinciples,therebymakinggreatcontribu9onstosociety.

Inresponsetohisproposals,theSokaGakkaihascreatedanumberofspecializedgroupsordivisions,includingthoseforeducators,scien9stsandacademics,ar9sts,writersandauthors,andmemberswithinterna9onalexperience

InTheNewHumanRevolu%on,IkedareflectsonhischoiceofHoGokuaspennameasfollows:“Mr.Toda24

usedthepennameMyoGoku;IwilluseHoGoku.Combiningthefirstpartofeachnamecreatesmyoho,orMysEcLaw.Gokumeanstoawakentothetruthofnon-substanEality.ThemyoofmyohoreferstotheworldofBuddhahood,andhoreferstotheothernineworlds.Myoisalsoawakeningorenlightenment,whilehoisfundamentaldarknessordelusion.Basedonthisprinciplewecansaythatmyocorrespondstomentorandhotodisciple”(Vol.9,p.13).

DaisakuIkeda,TheHumanRevolu%on,Book1,p.viii.25

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andinterests,aswellasphysiciansandmedicalprofessionals.Astheorganiza9onhasdevelopedawiderrangeofac9vi9es,ithasestablishedgroupsforbusinessprofessionals,thoseinvolvedinagricultureandfishing,residentsofremoteislands,andthoseinvolvedincommunityac9vi9esandsupport.Ithasalsofoundedins9tu9onsdedicatedtoscholarshipandtheartssuchastheIns9tuteofOrientalPhilosophy,theMin-OnConcertAssocia9on,andtheTokyoFujiArtMuseum.

Toestablishapoli9calmovementdevotedtoservingordinarypeopleandsocietyinJapan,anindependentpoli9calpartyknownasKomeitowasestablishedin1964withthesupportofSokaGakkaimembers.

IkedaSenseialsoestablishedasystemofeduca9onalins9tu9onstoactualizeMr.MakiguchiandMr.Toda’sphilosophyofvalue-crea9ngpedagogy,orSokaEduca9on.Itincludeskindergartens;elementary,junior,andseniorhighschools;ajuniorcollege,universi9es,andgraduateschools.AmongtheseareTokyoSokaJuniorandSeniorHighSchool(openedin1968)inKodaira,Tokyo;SokaUniversity(1971)inHachioji,Tokyo;andKansaiSokaJuniorandSeniorHighSchool(1973,asSokaGirls’JuniorandSeniorHighSchool)inKatano,Osaka.In2001,SokaUniversityofAmericaopenedinOrangeCounty,California.

Atthesame9me,IkedaSenseiwasbroadeninghiseffortstoconductdialoguesfocusedonpeace,culture,andeduca9ononaglobalscale.

OnSeptember8,1968,heannouncedaproposalforthenormaliza9onofrela9onsbetweenJapanandChina. AndbeginninginMay1972,heengagedin26

dialogueswiththerenownedBri9shhistorianArnoldJ.Toynbee(1889–1975).Theirconversa9onsspanned40hoursoveratwo-yearperiod.Thismarkedthestartofaseriesofdialoguesandexchangeswithinfluen9alleadersandthinkers.

In1974and1975,attheheightoftheColdWarbetweentheEastandWestandwithChinaandtheSovietUnionalsoinconflict,PresidentIkedaini9atedsuccessivevisitstoChina,theSovietUnion,andtheUnitedStates,engagingintalkswiththeirtopleadersinordertoopenpathstopeaceandfriendship.

OnJanuary26,1975,SokaGakkaimembersrepresen9ng51countriesandterritoriesgatheredonthePacificislandofGuamfortheestablishmentoftheSokaGakkaiInterna9onal(SGI),appoin9ngIkedaSenseiasitspresident.

AttheEme,therewerenoofficialdiplomaEcrelaEonsbetweenthePeople’sRepublicofChinaandJapan,so26

technicallythetwocountriesweresEllinastateofwar,andanE-ChinaandanEcommunistsenEmentwaswidespreadinJapan.Ikeda’scallfornormalizaEonofrelaEonswasbasedonhisbeliefthatpeacewithChinawasfundamentaltothestabilityoftheAsianregionandthatthereintegraEonofChinaintotheinternaEonalcommunitywasessenEaltoworldpeace.HisproposalhelpedestablishthegroundworkfornegoEaEonsleadingtothenormalizaEonofdiplomaEcrelaEonsin1972andaTreatyofPeaceandFriendshipin1978.

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Star9ngfromaround1977,astheSokaGakkaiwasmakinggreatstridestowardworldwidekosen-rufu,priestsatbranchtemplesofNichirenShoshubeganrepeatedlymakingunfoundedaccusa9onsagainsttheorganiza9on.Thiscametobeknownasthefirstpriesthoodissue.BehindthiswasanallianceformedofpriestsandformerleaderswhohadbetrayedtheSokaGakkai.Theyplo_edtogethertoseverthebondofmentoranddisciple—thatis,betweenIkedaSensei,theleaderofthemovementforkosen-rufu,andthemembers—withthegoalofcontrollingtheSokaGakkaifortheirownaims.

IkedaSenseistrovetofindasolu9ontotheprobleminordertoprotectthemembersfromthesea_acksandinhopesofrestoringharmonybetweenthepriesthoodandlaity.HefoundtheonlyfeasiblewaytodosowasforhimtostepdownasSokaGakkaipresident.InApril1979,IkedaSenseididso,takingthe9tle“honorarypresident.”

A Succession of Awards and Honors

Beginningin1983,IkedaSenseihasissueda“PeaceProposal”everyyearonJanuary26,incommemora9onofSGIDay,theanniversaryoftheSGI’sestablishment.Theseproposalsarevaluedhighlybymanyaroundtheworld.

Hehasalsodeliveredmorethan30lecturesatuniversi9esandacademicins9tu9onsaroundtheglobe,whilethenumberofdialogueshehasconductedwithleadingworldthinkers,headsofstate,culturalfigures,anduniversitydeansandpresidentsexceeds1,600.Morethan70ofthesedialogueshavebeenpublishedinbookform.Amongthem,thedialoguewithProfessorToynbeehasbeenissuedinsome30languages,gainingwidepraiseasa“guidepostforglobalculture”and“atextbookforhumanity.”

Thesedialogues,whichconnectdifferentculturesandfaiths,havehelpeddeepenexchangesamongpeoplesandbuildmutualunderstandingandsolidbondsamongthosededicatedtogood.

In1995,theSGICharterwasadopted,makingcleartheprinciplesofhumanismtheSGIstandsfor;andin1996,theTodaPeaceIns9tute(formerlyTodaIns9tuteforGlobalPeaceandPolicyResearch)wasfounded,focusingonthelegacyoftheteachingsandprinciplesofJoseiToda.

InresponsetotheSGI’seffortsforworldpeaceandac9vi9esforcultureandeduca9on,publicparksandstreetsbearingthenamesofPresidentsMakiguchi,Toda,andIkedahaveappearedinlocali9esthroughouttheworld.IkedaSenseihas

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con9nuedtohavehonorsandawardsconferreduponhimbyna9ons,municipali9es,andeduca9onalins9tu9ons.Theseincludena9onalmedals,honorarydoctoratesandprofessorships,andhonoraryci9zenshipsfromnumerousci9esandcoun9es.

The New Era of Worldwide Kosen-rufu

Inthemidstofthisglobalprogress,in1991theNichirenShoshupriesthoodtooktheextrememeasureofexcommunica9ngthemillionsofmembersoftheSokaGakkaithroughouttheworld.(Thisandrelatedeventsareknownasthesecondpriesthoodissue.)TheSokaGakkaistrictlyadmonishedthisactperpetratedbyacorruptpriesthood,whichamountedtoagraveslanderofNichirenDaishonin’steachingsandbetrayalofhisintent.

Havingtriumphedovertheschemesofthepriesthood,theSokaGakkaihasusheredinanewerainthehistoryofworldwidekosen-rufu.Itsmembersareprac9cingNichirenBuddhismin192countriesandterritories,wheretheyhavegarneredwidespreadtrustandpraisefortheirsteadyeffortstocontributetosocietybasedonthespiritofBuddhisthumanism.

InNovember2013,anewedifice,theHalloftheGreatVowforKosen-rufu,wascompletedinShinanomachi,Tokyo,aspartoftheSokaGakkaiHeadquarterscomplex.

Inhisdedica9ononthemonumentdisplayedintheentrancelobbyoftheHalloftheGreatVow,IkedaSenseiwrote:“Kosen-rufuisthepathtoa_aininguniversalpeaceandprosperity.Itisourgreatvowfrom9mewithoutbeginningfortheenlightenmentofallpeople.”

MembersfromacrossJapanandaroundtheworldgatherattheHalloftheGreatVowtodogongyoandchantdaimoku.Unitedintheirvowtoachievekosen-rufu,theypraytotheSokaGakkaiKosen-rufuGohonzon,whichbearstheinscrip9on“FortheFulfillmentoftheGreatVowforKosen-rufuthroughtheCompassionatePropaga9onoftheGreatLaw,”andstartanewwithfreshdetermina9on.

ThroughtheeffortsoftheSokaGakkai,NichirenBuddhismnowshinesasagreatsourceofhopethroughouttheworld,likeasunillumina9ngallhumankind.

*

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Commemorative Dates of the Soka Gakkai

Date Events

Jan.26 1975.TheSokaGakkaiInterna9onal(SGI)isfoundedinGuam.DaisakuIkedaisappointeditspresident.

Mar.16 1958.JoseiTodaentruststhefulfilmentofthegreatvowtoachievekosen-rufutohissuccessors,theyouth,andtoIkedainpar9cular.

May3 1951.Todaisinauguratedassecondpresident.

1960.Ikedaisinauguratedasthirdpresident.

Jul.3 1945.Todaisreleasedfromprisona^erenduringtwoyearsinconfinement.Heembarksonthereconstruc9onoftheSokaGakkai.

1957.IkedaisunjustlyarrestedbytheOsakaPrefecturalPolice(knownastheOsakaIncident).

Oct.2 1960.IkedadepartsJapanforNorthandSouthAmerica,takingthefirststeptowardworldwidekosen-rufu.

Nov.18 1930.TsunesaburoMakiguchi’sworkSokaKyoikugakuTaikei(TheSystemofValue-Crea9ngPedagogy)ispublished,aneventregardedastheSokaGakkai’sfounding.

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15.Soka Spirit

Three Key Errors of the Nichiren Shoshu Priesthood

TsunesaburoMakiguchiandJoseiToda,thefirsttwopresidentsoftheSokaGakkai,begantheirBuddhistprac9ceaslaymembersofNichirenShoshu.Thatwasthe20th-centurynameoftheBuddhistorderfoundedinthe13thcenturybyNikkoShonin,NichirenDaishonin’sclosestdiscipleandimmediatesuccessor.

OriginallyknownastheFujischool,NichirenShoshuhadunfortunatelydwindledtobecomeoneofJapan’ssmallerandimpoverishedBuddhistschools,havinglongsincelostitsfoundingspirittoaccomplishkosen-rufu—towidelypropagatetheLawofNam-myoho-renge-kyothatNichirentaught.Nevertheless,Makiguchi,aneducatordevotedtoscholas9creform,deeplystudiedNichiren’swri9ngs,andtherebyawoketotheprofoundpowerofNichiren’steachingstorevitalizethelivesofordinarypeopleandsociety.Heawakenedinhimselfapersonalvowtoaccomplishkosen-rufuasadiscipleofNichirenDaishonin,avowthatMakiguchi’sdisciple,JoseiToda,shared.

Basedonthestaunchfaithandsenseofmissionofthefoundingpresidents,theSokaGakkaiquicklygrewintoadynamic,progressiveandsociallyengagedlayBuddhistmovement.Fordecades,theSokaGakkaigavewholeheartedsupporttotheNichirenShoshupriesthood,buildinghundredsofnewtemplesandcompletelyrestoringitsheadtemple,Taiseki-ji.Atthesame9me,theSokaGakkaistruggledtomaintainaharmoniousrela9onshipwiththepriesthood,whichhadbecomeoverwhelminglyauthoritarianandritualis9c.

Fromthebeginning,thetwohadconflic9ngpriori9es.ThepriestsofNichirenShoshuwerefocusedonmaintainingtheirorderanditstradi9ons.TheSokaGakkaiwasfocusedonrealizingNichiren’svowtoaccomplishkosen-rufu,thewidespreadpropaga9onofhisteachingsforthepeaceandhappinessofhumankind.

PriortotheSokaGakkai,aswithmostBuddhistdenomina9onsinJapan,mostlaybelieversofNichirenShoshudidnotcarryoutadailyBuddhistprac9ce.Priestswereexpectedtorecitethesutraandconductritessuchasfuneralsandmemorialsonthelaity’sbehalf.

PresidentMakiguchiwasthefirsttoproposeaformatforchan9ngNam-myoho-renge-kyotogetherwithreci9ngtheLotusSutraaspartofthedailyprac9ceoflaybelievers.Theappearanceofaproac9velaitythatembracedthemissiontoaccomplishkosen-rufuwasamajordeparturefromthepassiveapproachNichirenShoshubelievershadlongtaken.

Bythe1970sand1980s,NichirenShoshuhadbecomewealthythroughthegenerousdona9onsandsupportoftheSokaGakkaimembers.TheSokaGakkaianditsinterna9onalmovement,theSGI,con9nuedtogrow.Buttheopen,engagedand

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dynamicmovementtriggeredgrowingresentmentamongcertainpriestsofNichirenShoshu.TheirworldviewwasrootedincenturiesofJapaneseBuddhisthistoryinwhichlaybelieverswereseenaspassivepar9cipants,whoseroleitwassimplytovenerateandmakedona9onstothepriests.Ofcourse,thiswasnottheviewofNichirenDaishonin,whotreasuredandfullyempoweredhislayfollowers.Buttothepriesthood,thedynamicSGI,inwhichlaitytooktheini9a9veinanatmosphereofmutualencouragement,representedathreat.

Afewoftheseniorpriests,includingapriestcalledNikken,whowouldbecomethe67thhighpriest,becameintenselyjealousandvindic9vetowardtheSokaGakkaianditspresident,DaisakuIkeda,whohadconsistentlybeendedicatedtosuppor9ngthepriesthoodandenhancingitsprosperity.ThisjealouslybecamewhatBuddhismdescribesasadevilishfunc9on,turningpriestswhoshouldhavebeencelebra9ngandsuppor9ngthegreatprogressofkosen-rufuintothosebentondestroyingit.

Inearly1991,underthedirec9onofitshighpriest,Nikken,thepriesthoodlaunchedaseriesofmeasurestodisbandtheSokaGakkai.Finally,inNovember1991,theyissuedanorderexcommunica9ngtheorganiza9on,aimingtopromptalargepercentageofSokaGakkaimemberstoleavetheorganiza9onanddirectlyjointheirtemples.

Thatdidn’thappen.

Thecruxofthepriesthood’smo9veslayinitsviewthatpriestsarenecessaryintermediariesbetweenlaybelieversandthepowerandteachingsofNichirenBuddhism.EmphasizingritualandformalitynotfoundinNichirenDaishonin’swri9ngs,thepriestssoughttomakevenera9onandobediencetothemselvesandtheirhighpriest,inpar9cular,themostimportantaspectofaprac99oner’sfaith.

Incontrast,theSokaGakkaibasesitselfdirectlyonthespiritandintentofNichirenDaishoninassetforthinhiswri9ngsandproveninprac9cebytheorganiza9on’sfoundingpresidents.ThefactthattheSGIhasflourishedallthemoresincethe9meofitsexcommunica9onisevidenceofitscorrectinterpreta9onandprac9ceofNichiren’steachings.SGImembersin192countriesandterritorieshaveconsistentlyproventhepowerofcorrectfaithandprac9ceofNichirenBuddhismintheirlivesandintheircommuni9es.

ThefollowingthreepointssummarizetherootsoftheerrorsoftheNichirenShoshupriesthood.

Error 1: The Absolute Power of the High Priest

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“Faithinthehighpriest”haserroneouslybecomethecentraldoctrineofNichirenShoshu,whichhasincorrectlyelevatedtheposi9onofthechiefpriestoftheirheadtempletothatoftheobjectofworship.Thepriesthoodupholdstheviewthat,withoutvenera9ngandobedientlyfollowingthehighpriest,prac99onerscannota_ainenlightenment—aviewthatunderminestheself-empoweringproper9esofNichirenBuddhismandcontradictsthewri9ngsofNichirenDaishonin.

Accordingtothepriesthood,thehighpriestalonehasthepowertodeterminewhoa_ainsBuddhahoodandwhodoesnot.Theywrite,“Themastergiveshissanc9ontoadisciple’senlightenment....Theveryestablishmentoftheobjectofworshipaccordingtothesanc9onoftheHighPriest,whoistheonlypersontobebequeathedtheDaishonin’s

Buddhism,iswhatmakesthea_ainmentofBuddhahoodpossible.” 27

Theideaofthehighpriest“sanc9oning”adisciple’senlightenmentisfoundnowhereintheteachingsofNichirenDaishonin.NordoestheconceptofthehighpriestbeingabsoluteandinfallibleoriginateinNichiren’steachings.Rather,theseconceptsappearedcenturiesa^erNichireninordertobolsterthestatusoftheofficeofhighpriestoftheFujischoolat9meswhenthoseholdingtheofficelackedtherespectandsupportoftheotherpriests.

Nichiren’ssuccessor,NikkoShonin,statesinhis“Twenty-sixAdmoni9ons,”“DonotfolloweventhehighpriestifhegoesagainsttheBuddha’sLawandpropoundshisownviews”(Goshozenshu,p.1618). ItisobviousthatNikkodidnotconsider28

thosewhowouldholdtheofficeofhighpriesttobebeyondthepossibilityoferrororcorrup9on.HavingabsolutefaithinwhoeverholdstheofficeofthehighpriestisanerroneousteachingcompletelycontrarytowhatNichirentaught.

ARefutaEonoftheSokaGakkai’s“CounterfeitObjectofWorship”:100QuesEonsandAnswers(LosAngeles:27

NichirenShoshuTemple,1996),p.8.

SeeTheUntoldHistoryoftheFujiSchool(SantaMonica,California:WorldTribunePress,2000),p.21.28

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Error 2: The High Priest Receives Exclusive Transmission of the Law

Tojus9fytheno9onthatthehighpriestisabsolute,thepriesthoodpropoundsthemysteriousideaofthe“heritageoftheLawbeingentrustedtoasingleperson.” In29

otherwords,theyencourage“single-mindedfaithin[thehighpriest]asthelivingbodyofShakyamuni(Nichiren)” throughwhichprac99onerscanaccesstheheritage30

oftheLaw.

Theystatethatthetransmissiontakesplacethrougha“goldenu_erance”inaface-to-faceconversa9onbetweentheoutgoinghighpriestandhissuccessorandthat“thefundamentalprincipleoftheDaishonin’sBuddhismistransmi_edonlytotheHighPriest.” 31

Quitetothecontrary,NichirenrepeatedlystressesthattheLawisinheritedthroughembracingtheGohonzonwithfaith.Hestates:“TheheritageoftheLotusSutraflowswithinthelivesofthosewhoneverforsakeit

“NichirenhasbeentryingtoawakenallthepeopleofJapantofaithintheLotusSutrasothattheytoocansharetheheritageanda_ainBuddhahood”(“TheHeritageoftheUl9mateLawofLife,”TheWri9ngsofNichirenDaishonin,vol.1,p.217).

TheideaofanexclusivelineagebelongingtoaselectgroupofclergywasprevalentinotherBuddhistschoolsduringtheDaishonin’s9me,butNichirenhimselftookpainstorefutesuchviewsinhiswri9ngs.Concerningtheques9onofwhocontrolswhatisholyorsacredintheuniverseandthehumanheart,NichirenBuddhismteachesthatallpeoplehaveequalaccessthroughtheirownfaithandprac9ce.

NichirenShoshuMonthly,October2008(LosAngeles:NichirenShoshuTemple,2008),p.17.29

NichirenShoshuMonthly,September2008,p.22.30

NichirenShoshuMonthly,December2008,p.21.31

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Error 3: Inequality of Priests and Laity

ThatpriestsareaffordedanelevatedstatusinsocietyisespeciallytrueinJapan.Duringthe17thcentury,partlyinresponsetotheinfluxofChris9anity,theJapanesegovernmentmandatedthatallci9zensregisterwiththeirlocalBuddhisttemple.Priestsbecamedefactoagentsofthegovernment,conduc9ngthecensus,issuingtravelandworkdocuments,andbecomingintertwinedinboththesecularandreligiouslivesofthepeople.NichirenShoshustates:“NichirenShoshubelieversmustsupporttheirdirectmasters,whoarethechiefpriestsoftheirlocaltemples,andoffertheirdevo9ontothemajormaster,whoistheHighPriest.Ifweeverlosesightofthisessen9alprac9ceofourfaith,weul9matelywillloseourprivilegetohaveanaudiencewiththeDai-Gohonzon. 32

Inhisle_ertotheSokaGakkaionJanuary12,1991,NichingFujimoto,thegeneraladministratorofNichirenShoshu,wrote:“Totalkaboutthepriesthoodandthelaitywithasenseofequalitymanifestsgreatconceit.Infact,itcorrespondstothefivecardinalsins—todestroytheunityofBuddhistprac99oners.”

Andmorerecently,thepriesthoodpublished,“ItisonlynaturalthataninnatedifferenceexistsbetweenthepriesthoodandlaityintheDaishonin’sBuddhism.”

Nichirenclarifiestheequalityofpriestsandlaitywhenhestates:“TheBuddhasurelyconsidersanyoneinthisworldwhoembracestheLotusSutra,whetherlaymanorwoman,monkornun,tobethelordofalllivingbeings”(“TheUnityofHusbandandWife,”WND-1,463)and“anyonewhoteachesothersevenasinglephraseoftheLotusSutraistheenvoyoftheThusComeOne,whetherthatpersonbepriestorlayman,nunorlaywoman”(“AShiptoCrosstheSeaofSuffering,”WND-1,33).

Andfinally,hewrites:“ShakyamuniBuddhawhoa_ainedenlightenmentcountlesskalpaago,theLotusSutrathatleadsallpeopletoBuddhahood,andweordinaryhumanbeingsareinnowaydifferentorseparatefromoneanother.TochantMyoho-renge-kyowiththisrealiza9onistoinherittheul9mateLawoflifeanddeath.Thisisama_eroftheutmostimportanceforNichiren’sdisciplesandlaysupporters,andthisiswhatitmeanstoembracetheLotusSutra”(“TheHeritageoftheUl9mateLawofLife,”WND-1,216).

TheequalityofallpeopleisafundamentaltenetoftheLotusSutraandNichirenBuddhism.Thecorrectrela9onshipbetweenaBuddhistteacherandadiscipleisexpressedintheprincipleoftheonenessofmentoranddisciple,whichmeansthatboththeteacherandthediscipleequallyshareresponsibilityforkosen-rufubasedonmutualrespectandcommitment.AgenuineteacherbecomesqualifiedassuchthroughrelentlessstruggletoawakenBuddhahoodwithinordinarypeopleinthefaceofallobstacles,evenattheriskofone’sownlife.

NichirenShoshuMonthly,March2009,p.8.32

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ButinNichirenShoshu,theteacherisqualifiedsimplybyofficeandrank.Ratherthanselflesslyworkingtoteachothers,thehighpriestrequiresthatothersveneratehim,whileconsideringlaybelieversunworthytoknowthe“secrets”hesupposedlypossesses.Itisimportantthatweclearlyunderstandthatthisapproachisadistor9onofBuddhismandseektodevelopacorrectunderstandingthroughourstudyandprac9ceoftheprinciplesNichirenhimselftaught.

LEARNING FROM THE WRITINGS OF NICHIREN DAISHONIN:

THE TEACHINGS FOR VICTORY

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[28] “How Those Initially Aspiring to the Way Can Attain Buddhahood

Through the Lotus Sutra”

Chanting Vibrant Daimoku Is the Driving Force for Limitless Progress— Everything Starts with Our Own Inner Transformation

As for the meaning of Myoho-renge-kyo: The Buddha nature inherent in us, ordinary people; the Buddha nature of Brahma, Shakra, and the other deities; the Buddha nature of Shariputra, Maudgalyayana, and the other voice-hearers; the Buddha nature of Manjushri, Maitreya, and the other bodhisattvas; and the Mystic Law that is the enlightenment of the Buddhas of the three existences, are one and identical. This principle is called Myoho-renge-kyo. Therefore, when once we chant Myoho-renge-kyo, with just that single sound we summon forth and manifest the Buddha nature of all Buddhas; all existences; all bodhisattvas; all voice-hearers; all the deities such as Brahma, Shakra, and King Yama; the sun and moon, and the myriad stars; the heavenly gods and earthly deities, on down to hell-dwellers, hungry spirits, animals, asuras, human and heavenly beings, and all other living beings. This blessing is immeasurable and boundless.

When we revere Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion, the Buddha nature within us is summoned forth and manifested by our chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. This is what is meant by “Buddha.” To illustrate, when a caged bird sings, birds who are flying in the sky are thereby summoned and gather around, and when the birds flying in the sky gather around, the bird in the cage strives to get out. When with our mouths we chant the Mystic Law, our Buddha nature, being summoned, will invariably emerge. The Buddha nature of Brahma and Shakra, being called, will protect us, and the Buddha nature of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, being summoned, will rejoice. This is what the Buddha meant when he said, “If one can uphold it [the Mystic Law] even for a short while I will surely rejoice and so will the other Buddhas.”

All Buddhas of the three existences, too, attain Buddhahood by virtue of the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo. These five characters are the reason why the Buddhas of the three existences appear in the world; they are the Mystic Law whereby all living beings can attain the Buddha way. You should understand these matters thoroughly and, on

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the path of attaining Buddhahood, chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo without arrogance or attachment to biased views. (WND-1, 887–88)

Lecture

Courage gives rise to fresh resolve, and deep prayer infused with fresh resolve is the first, hope-filled step toward great victory.

In the SGI, May is always a month brimming with our members’ fresh determination to further advance kosen-rufu. May 3, Soka Gakkai Day, deeply embodies the Soka spirit of mentor and disciple. It is not only the prime point for our shared vow, but also the starting point for our fresh departure, the day we set forth toward our next goal in our efforts for kosen-rufu.

The history of our movement is one of embarking on new challenges based on first earnestly chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo with fresh determination. Everything begins with daimoku. With our best wisdom and effort based on steadfastly chanting daimoku, we have triumphed over all manner of great obstacles. By regarding adversity as an opportunity to deepen our faith, bring forth the beneficial power of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, and gain brilliant personal experiences of spiritual rebirth and revitalization, we have pressed forward tirelessly to open the way for kosen-rufu.

No matter what the times or circumstances, the practice of chanting daimoku is our foundation. Nichiren Daishonin writes: “Suffer what there is to suffer, enjoy what there is to enjoy. Regard both suffering and joy as facts of life, and continue chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” (WND-1, 681). He urges us to chant daimoku in times of “both suffering and joy.” To keep chanting through all—times of happiness, sadness, or suffering—is the sure path to attaining Buddhahood in this lifetime. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the means by which we can tap our inner Buddhahood, vanquish devilish functions, overcome our karmic suffering, and transform our state of life. It is an unparalleled practice that enables us to savor the “boundless joy of the Law” 33(WND-1, 681). Chanting daimoku makes it possible for us to forge a state of absolute happiness in which being alive is itself a joy. If we always keep chanting no matter what happens, we will come to savor complete peace of mind. We will be able to bring forth the vast and boundless life-state of Buddhahood within us.

“Boundless joy of the Law”: The supreme and ultimate happiness of the Buddha, the benefit of 33

the Mystic Law. In “Happiness in This World,” the Daishonin says: “There is no true happiness for human beings other than chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. The [Lotus] sutra reads, ‘ . . . where living beings enjoy themselves at ease’ [LSOC16, 272 (LS16, 230)]. How could this passage mean anything but the boundless joy of the Law?” (WND-1, 681).

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In this installment, let us look at what the Daishonin has to say about the fundamental practice of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, focusing specifically on the closing section of the Daishonin’s writing, “How Those Initially Aspiring to the Way Can Attain Buddhahood through the Lotus Sutra” (WND-1, 887–88). In this writing, the Daishonin clarifies that the Lotus Sutra alone reveals the Buddha’s true intention and that Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the Law for attaining Buddhahood to be propagated in the evil latter age after the Buddha’s passing.

While the letter’s date and recipient are unclear, its content focuses on refuting 34

the Nembutsu school’s view of the existence of an otherworldly Pure Land, which formed the heart of Amida worship during the Daishonin’s day. There is also a brief 35

reference made to the attainment of enlightenment by women taught in the Lotus Sutra. The contents, therefore, suggest that the letter may have been addressed to a female follower of the Daishonin—who had either formerly recited the Nembutsu (the name of Amida Buddha) or was still drawn to the Pure Land practice—with the aim of teaching her the basics of faith in the Lotus Sutra, the essence of which is chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

We will be discussing the section that comes immediately after the Daishonin’s detailed guidance on the basics of faith. He goes on to explain the profound significance of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and the benefit to be experienced as a result.

Chanting daimoku gives us the energy and vitality for limitless progress. It gives us the wisdom and courage to be able to regard any adversity as a cause or opportunity for great development. This is because Myoho-renge-kyo is the name of 36

the fundamental life-force of the universe itself.

Based on the Daishonin’s writing, let us now examine the significance of chanting daimoku, which is the source of true victory.

***

The background notes in The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin state that this letter was 34

addressed to the lay nun Myoho, but more recent scholarship has disputed this.

The worship of Amida Buddha taught in the Pure Land (Nembutsu) school of Buddhism. 35

Amida is a Buddha described in the Pure Land sutras as dwelling in the Pure Land of Perfect Bliss in the west. Believers of the Pure Land school seek salvation through the assistance of this Buddha and aspire to be reborn in the Pure Land in their next existence.

Five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo: Myoho-renge-kyo is written with five Chinese 36

characters. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, meanwhile, is written with seven (nam, or namu, being comprised of two characters). The Daishonin, however, often uses Myoho-renge-kyo synonymously with Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in his writings.

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As for the meaning of Myoho-renge-kyo: The Buddha nature inherent in us, ordinary people; the Buddha nature of [the main tutelary gods of Buddhism] Brahma, Shakra, and the other [heavenly] deities; the Buddha nature of [Shakyamuni’s leading disciples] Shariputra, Maudgalyayana, and the other voice-hearers; the Buddha nature of Manjushri, Maitreya, and the other bodhisattvas; and the Mystic Law that is the enlightenment of the Buddhas of the three existences, are one and identical. This principle is called Myoho-renge-kyo. Therefore, when once we chant Myoho-renge-kyo, with just that single sound we summon forth and manifest the Buddha nature of all Buddhas; all existences; all bodhisattvas; all voice-hearers; all the deities such as Brahma, Shakra, and King Yama ; the sun and moon, and the myriad 37

stars; the heavenly gods and earthly deities, on down to hell-dwellers, hungry spirits, animals, asuras, human and heavenly beings, and all other living beings [in the nine worlds]. This blessing is immeasurable and boundless. (WND-1, 887)

The Benefit of Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Is Immeasurable and Boundless

This passage elucidates the profound significance and infinite benefit of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

Until the advent of the Daishonin’s Buddhism, it had become a widespread practice in Buddhism to chant the names of certain Buddhas or bodhisattvas as a demonstration of one’s faith or devotion to the teaching. One of the better-known examples is the Nembutsu practice of the Pure Land school—that is, reciting the name of Amida Buddha. The practice of chanting that was established by Nichiren Daishonin, however, is based on reciting of the name of the Law—in other words, the daimoku of Lotus Sutra, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

The Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the Mystic Law (Jpn. myoho) to which all Buddhas have awakened. It is the seed of Buddhahood that enables Buddhas to attain enlightenment. Because this fundamental Law for attaining enlightenment is characterized by the simultaneity of cause and effect, the Buddha likens it to the 38

lotus (Jpn. renge), which flowers and fruits at the same time.

When the wondrous Mystic Law, the seed of Buddhahood, is activated in the ground of our lives, it simultaneously produces flowers and beneficial fruit in the form

King Yama is king of the world of the dead who judges and determines the rewards and 37

punishments of the deceased.

Simultaneity of cause and effect: The principle that both cause and effect exist together 38

simultaneously in a single moment of life. � 92

of wisdom and compassion. Because the Law contains the totality of the blessings of the cause and effect of Buddhahood, it is called Myoho-renge-kyo. The Buddha named it so, based on his enlightened wisdom.

In another writing, “The Entity of the Mystic Law,” the Daishonin states that Myoho-renge-kyo is the name given to the ultimate truth by a sage of the past who had awakened to that truth (cf. WND-1, 421). The Mystic Law is the origin of all 39

things and the fundamental value-creative force that gives rise to compassion and wisdom.

The Daishonin says that Myoho-renge-kyo is not only the name of the Buddha nature latent within the lives of ordinary people who repeat the cycle of birth and death in the realm of illusion and suffering, but also the name of the Buddha nature of persons of the two vehicles (i.e., voice-hearers and cause-awakened ones), bodhisattvas, and heavenly deities (the protective functions of the universe).

Because of the inner darkness or ignorance of living beings in the nine worlds (from hell through the world of bodhisattvas), the beneficial workings of the Mystic Law for attaining enlightenment remain latent or inactive in their lives, existing only as a potential. This is why we refer to it as the Buddha nature. Myoho-renge-kyo is the name of the Buddha nature universally inherent in all life.

This complete and perfect name was assigned to it based on the Buddha’s enlightened wisdom. Therefore, when we chant Myoho-renge-kyo, we can summon forth the Buddha nature in all living beings. Myoho-renge-kyo is the universal name, complete and perfect, of the Buddha nature of all livings beings. As such, the single sound of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the daimoku of the Mystic Law, has the power to call forth the Buddha nature of living beings in any state of life.

In contrast to the recitation or chanting practices found in some other Buddhist schools, Myoho-renge-kyo is not the name of one particular Buddha, bodhisattva, sage, or protective deity. It is the name of the seed of Buddhahood by which all Buddhas have attained enlightenment, the name of the fundamental Law that has been sought by all bodhisattvas in their practice, and the name of the supremely noble potential, or Buddha nature, inherent in all living beings. Chanting that name, Myoho-renge-kyo, summons forth not only one’s own Buddha nature but the Buddha nature of all living beings.

What this means is that each of us, here and now, irrespective of our present state of life in terms of the Ten Worlds, can manifest our inner Buddha nature. Moreover, we can also call forth the Buddha nature of all living beings throughout the entire

In “The Entity of the Mystic Law,” the Daishonin writes: “The supreme principle [that is the 39

Mystic Law] was originally without a name. When the sage was observing the principle and assigning names to all things, he perceived that there is this wonderful single Law [myoho] that simultaneously possesses both cause and effect [renge], and he named it Myoho-renge” (WND-1, 421).

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universe, and make our environment, the world in which we live, shine with the brilliant light of the world of Buddhahood.

Because the great benefit of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo extends to both our lives and our environments, the Daishonin writes: “With just that single sound we summon forth and manifest the Buddha nature of all Buddhas. . . . This blessing is immeasurable and boundless” (WND-1, 887). The wonderful nature of those blessings is described in the next passage.

***

When we revere Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion [Gohonzon], the Buddha nature within us is summoned forth and manifested by our chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. This is what is meant by “Buddha.” To illustrate, when a caged bird sings, birds who are flying in the sky are thereby summoned and gather around, and when the birds flying in the sky gather around, the bird in the cage strives to get out. When with our mouths we chant the Mystic Law, our Buddha nature, being summoned, will invariably emerge. The Buddha nature of Brahma and Shakra, being called, will protect us, and the Buddha nature of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, being summoned, will rejoice. This is what the Buddha meant when he said, “If one can uphold it [the Mystic Law] even for a short while I will surely rejoice and so will the other Buddhas” [cf. LSOC11, 220 (LS11, 180)]. (WND-1, 887)

Establishing a State of Indestructible Happiness

Here, the Daishonin describes the great benefits of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the single sound with which we can summon forth the Buddha nature of all living beings.

He begins by speaking of “revering Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion” (cf. WND-1, 887). The Daishonin revealed the Mystic Law inherent in his own life and manifested it in the concrete form of the Gohonzon, the

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object of devotion or fundamental respect. Only when our chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is based on faith in the Gohonzon does it become a practice for attaining Buddhahood.

We revere the Gohonzon bestowed on humanity by the Daishonin, taking it as a mirror and guide for our life, and believe that we possess and are able to manifest within us the same supremely noble state of life as the Daishonin. By doing so, we are “revering Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion” (cf. WND-1, 887).

The Daishonin—embodying the three virtues of sovereign, teacher, and parent —strove with boundless compassion amid a dark and evil age to protect and 40

teach people and help them reveal their highest potential. The way for us to show true reverence and respect for the Gohonzon is to venerate the Daishonin as our fundamental teacher in faith, learn from his selfless dedication, and carry on his efforts for the happiness and welfare of all people.

In other words, to revere the Gohonzon essentially means that, no matter how troubled the times, we strive to make our mentor’s spirit our own, take personal action for kosen-rufu, and become a source of hope, courage, and peace of mind for others.

We are not truly “revering Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion” (cf. WND-1, 887) if we seek the assistance of, or put our faith in, some supernatural being or Buddha outside of our own life to attain salvation—for example, like one of the Buddhas taught in the provisional, pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, as is the case in the Nembutsu faith. 41

In “The Real Aspect of the Gohonzon,” Nichiren Daishonin writes: “Never seek this Gohonzon outside yourself. The Gohonzon exists only within the mortal flesh of us ordinary people who embrace the Lotus Sutra and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” (WND-1, 832). When the Daishonin embodied his own Buddhahood, “the soul of Nichiren” (WND-1, 412), in the form of the mandala that is the Gohonzon, his purpose was to enable each of us to reveal the Gohonzon that exists within us. The Gohonzon is the clear mirror that enables us to manifest the Gohonzon in our own life.

Chanting with faith in the Gohonzon is the key to manifesting the Gohonzon within us and activating the “Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life” (WND-1,

Three virtues of sovereign, teacher, and parent: The benevolent functions of sovereign, teacher, 40

and parent that a Buddha is said to possess. The virtue of the sovereign is the power to protect all living beings, the virtue of the teacher is the wisdom to instruct and lead them to enlightenment, and the virtue of the parent is the compassion to nurture and support them.

The provisional teachings that precede the Lotus Sutra do not teach that the world of 41

Buddhahood exists in all people, and instead describe Buddhas as idealized and superior beings. The Pure Land (Nembutsu) teachings, for example, explain that instead of relying on one’s own efforts, one should exclusively depend on salvation through such a Buddha—namely, Amida.

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887). If we were to lose sight of this important point, our Buddhist practice runs the risk of lapsing into the subservient worship of some absolute being outside of us.

My mentor, second Soka Gakkai president Josei Toda, often said: “You yourself are Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,” and “How can a Buddha be defeated by illness or economic hardship?” Once we awaken to our enormous potential, we can face any adversity. The purpose of faith in the Daishonin’s Buddhism is to develop such inner strength.

Out of a spirit of profound compassion, Mr. Toda often gave strict guidance to members who lacked conviction in faith and displayed a resigned or defeatist attitude. When those same members later came back to share with him their experiences of overcoming difficulties and achieving victory in their lives, he would smile happily and rejoice together with them on their success. He constantly urged people to awaken to their greater self and to reveal their true potential.

The purpose of our Buddhist practice is for each of us to bring forth the “Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life” (WND-1, 887) and establish an inner state of everlasting and indestructible happiness.

Our Life Communes with the Universe When We Chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo

In this letter, the Daishonin writes: “When we revere Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion [Gohonzon], the Buddha nature within us is summoned forth and manifested by our chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. This is what is meant by ‘Buddha’” (WND-1, 887).

He then proceeds to explain the process by which this great life-state of Buddhahood manifests, employing the very accessible metaphor of a bird in a cage: “When a caged bird sings, birds who are flying in the sky are thereby summoned and gather around, and when the birds flying in the sky gather around, the bird in the cage strives to get out” (WND-1, 887).

The “bird in the cage” represents the Buddha nature of us ordinary people. The “cage” represents a state of being shackled by fundamental darkness or ignorance, various deluded impulses or earthly desires, and all kinds of suffering. The “caged bird sings” refers to ordinary people rousing faith in the Mystic Law and chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. The “birds who are flying in the sky,” meanwhile, represent the Buddha nature of all living beings. We call forth our Buddha nature—that is, the Myoho-renge-kyo within us—with our own voice chanting daimoku.

At the same time, however, the sound of our chanting in fact also calls forth the Buddha nature of diverse living beings. This is because—as we saw in the earlier passage—Myoho-renge-kyo is also the name of the Buddha nature of all Buddhas,

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bodhisattvas, and other living beings in the Ten Worlds. Once we chant the Mystic Law, therefore, its power is such that it can call forth the Buddha nature of all of them. In other words, our voice chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the powerful sound that awakens and summons forth the Buddha nature of all living beings throughout the universe.

When the birds flying in the sky are called forth by the bird in the cage and gather around it, the bird in the cage tries to get out, says the Daishonin. This refers to the moment when the cage of ignorance and suffering disappears, we are liberated from all shackles of illusion, and can soar freely in the “sky of the essential nature of phenomena” (WND-2, 976)—that is, the realm of enlightenment as vast and 42

unimpeded as the heavens.

Earnest prayer in the form of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo resonates with the Mystic Law that pervades the universe, envelops one’s own life, and brings forth the power to break through one’s own inner darkness or ignorance. In other words, the act of chanting daimoku is a drama of profound communion or interaction between ourselves and the universe.

The Daishonin states: “When with our mouths we chant the Mystic Law, our Buddha nature, being summoned, will invariably emerge” (WND-1, 887). As you will note, he uses the word “invariably.” When we chant daimoku we will invariably be able to manifest within us the limitless beneficial power of the Mystic Law. And the more we persevere in our Buddhist practice with strong faith, the more we can experience this immeasurable and boundless power in our life.

To underscore how great the benefit of the Mystic Law is, Mr. Toda often used to say humorously in his lectures: “Supposing the benefit I have received is comparable in size to this hall, then the benefit all of you have received is still no more than the size of my little finger.” He also described the benefits of the Mystic Law as being inexhaustible, like an endlessly flowing wellspring. I still fondly remember Mr. Toda’s lectures.

The purpose of our daily Buddhist practice is to be able to freely and fully experience in our own life the immeasurable beneficial power that flows from the vital and dynamic Buddha nature of all the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and protective deities.

The Protection of the Heavenly Deities and the Rejoicing of the Buddhas

Next in this passage, the Daishonin states that the Buddha nature of such heavenly deities as Brahma and Shakra—the two main tutelary gods of Buddhism—will be

Fundamental nature of enlightenment: Also, Dharma nature. The unchanging nature inherent in 42

all things and phenomena. It is identified with the fundamental Law itself, the essence of the Buddha’s enlightenment, or ultimate truth.

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called forth and function to protect us, while the Buddha nature of all Buddhas and bodhisattvas will be summoned and rejoice (cf. WND-1, 887). Here, he explains the benefit that we gain by chanting daimoku from two perspectives—namely, the protection of the heavenly deities and the rejoicing of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas.

First, the Daishonin writes: “The Buddha nature of Brahma and Shakra, being called, will protect us” (WND-1, 887). The protection of the heavenly deities is a manifestation of the workings of the Mystic Law. This is activated through the act of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, which summons forth our Buddha nature.

Buddhism teaches the principle of “the Buddha nature manifesting itself from within and bringing forth protection from without.” When our Buddha nature 43

emerges internally, it also activates the Buddha nature in the lives of others, which then manifests in the form of external protection. Protection received from the positive forces of the universe, therefore, is dependent on us first bringing forth our Buddha nature. Or put another way, it is our determination in faith that sets these protective functions into motion. Our Buddha nature manifests the moment we break through our inner darkness or ignorance based on our strong conviction in faith. Hence, in one of his writings, the Daishonin cites the words of the Great Teacher Miao-lo of China, “The stronger one’s faith, the greater the protection of the gods” (WND-1, 614), and 44

comments: “So long as one maintains firm faith, one is certain to receive the great protection of the gods” (WND-1, 614).

Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo with all our heart is what activates the protective functions of the universe. It is our inner transformation—namely, bringing forth our Buddha nature—that spurs them to action. Just expecting their protection without transforming our own life is not the correct way of prayer in Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism.

Joy Is the Essence of the Worlds of Bodhisattva and Buddhahood

In this passage, the Daishonin also writes: “The Buddha nature of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, being summoned, will rejoice” (WND-1, 887). He cites a passage from

“The Buddha nature manifesting itself from within and bringing forth protection from 43

without”: A phrase from the Great Teacher Miao-lo’s Annotations on “Great Concentration and Insight.” “The Buddha nature manifesting itself from within” means the power to manifest the Buddha nature, or truth, existing within life. “Bringing forth protection from without” describes functions to protect and aid those whose lives are clouded by illusion. In “The Three Kinds of Treasure,” the Daishonin says: “Buddhism teaches that, when the Buddha nature manifests itself from within, it will receive protection from without. This is one of its fundamental principles” (WND-1, 848).

From Miao-lo’s Annotations on “Great Concentration and Insight.” 44

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“The Emergence of the Treasure Tower” (11th) chapter of the Lotus Sutra to substantiate this: “If one can uphold it [the Mystic Law] even for a short while I [Shakyamuni Buddha] will surely rejoice and so will the other Buddhas” [cf. LSOC11, 220 (LS11, 180)] (WND-1, 887). The rejoicing or joy of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, mentioned here by the Daishonin, constitutes the true benefit to be gained by chanting daimoku. In other words, the vast and all-embracing world of Buddhahood and the compassionate world of bodhisattvas—the latter of which is characterized by the desire to seek the Mystic Law and transmit it to others—manifest and function vibrantly and actively in our life.

In The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, the Daishonin states: “Great joy [is what] one experiences when one understands for the first time that one’s mind from the very beginning has been the Buddha. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the greatest of all joys” (OTT, 211–12). There is no joy surpassing that experienced when our Buddha nature emerges, and the world of Buddhahood vibrantly pulses in our life.

Faced with the many demands and pressures of daily life, some may think that such joy is fine in theory but that they will never be able to experience it in reality. But countless SGI members have in fact savored this joy in their actual lives, as they devote themselves tirelessly to working for the cause of kosen-rufu—the Buddha’s intent and decree—despite their busy schedules and diverse commitments.

One noted example was the joy felt by members who participated in the Osaka Campaign (of 1956) and contributed to our achieving what had widely been thought 45

impossible. In that endeavor, many members who had just started practicing the Daishonin’s Buddhism and were still struggling in their daily lives experienced a joy that they had never known before. They spoke to each other of the pleasure they felt to be working for kosen-rufu, sincerely chanted daimoku, and energetically strove to share their Buddhist practice with those around them.

When we earnestly engage in the practice of shakubuku, of teaching others about the Mystic Law—which is the mission of Bodhisattvas of the Earth—our lives naturally come to be filled with joy. And when we see our friends revitalizing their lives, overcoming adversity, and rising to new challenges based on faith in the Mystic Law, it drives home to us the fact that we are advancing on the path to happiness for ourselves and others as emissaries of the Buddha, and gives us a wonderful sense of being alive. Many of our members have experienced this for themselves.

The Daishonin speaks of “oneself and others together experiencing joy” (cf. OTT, 146). Taking action for the happiness of others and the welfare of society as an expression of compassion corresponds to the work of Buddhas and bodhisattvas. Such efforts on our part, therefore, cannot fail to delight and draw the praise of the Buddhas

Osaka Campaign: In May 1956, the Kansai members, uniting around a young Daisaku Ikeda, 45

who had been dispatched by second Soka Gakkai president Josei Toda to support them, introduced 11,111 households to the practice of the Daishonin’s Buddhism. In elections held two months later, the Soka Gakkai–backed candidate in Kansai won a seat in the Upper House, an accomplishment that was thought all but impossible at the time.

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and bodhisattvas throughout the universe. Today, the dedicated efforts of our members in Japan and around the world and the ongoing development of our movement for kosen-rufu are causing the Buddhas and bodhisattvas to rejoice.

In places all across the globe, our members are chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo based on their vow for the widespread propagation of the Mystic Law as Bodhisattvas of the Earth. The day has now come when our entire planet is enfolded in the powerful daimoku chanted by our members who pray and take action for world peace and the happiness of all humanity.

Our members believe in people’s potential for inner change and their capacity to triumph over the most adverse situations. Everywhere around the world, they are exemplifying this true strength and richness of character and working for peace and the welfare of others as good citizens and responsible members of society. The emergence of this network of individuals with unwavering faith in human potential is in itself a development of historic significance. The entire world is eagerly awaiting our advance and victory, which we will achieve by always basing ourselves on chanting daimoku.

***

All Buddhas of the three existences, too, attain Buddhahood by virtue of the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo. These five characters are the reason why the Buddhas of the three existences appear in the world; they are the Mystic Law whereby all living beings can attain the Buddha way. You should understand these matters thoroughly and, on the path of attaining Buddhahood, chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo without arrogance or attachment to biased views. (WND-1, 887–88)

“The Mystic Law Whereby All Living Beings Can Attain the Buddha Way”

Why do the Buddhas of the three existences rejoice? Because they all attained enlightenment through the Mystic Law. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is “the reason why the Buddhas of the three existences appear in the world” (WND-1, 887). It is the Law “whereby all living beings can attain the Buddha way” (WND-1, 888). In other words, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is not only the fundamental Law that enabled all Buddhas of the three existences to gain enlightenment, but also the seed of Buddhahood that enables us, ordinary people in the nine worlds, to do so. We chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo precisely because it is the name of the Buddha nature.

We all inherently possess the “seed of Buddhahood,” Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, within our life. But our Buddhahood does not automatically shine forth simply because it exists within; it must be activated. The key to unlocking our inner Buddhahood is the practice of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Chanting is the way to manifest our Buddha nature.

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When we chant, the Buddha nature of the heavenly deities—the protective functions of the universe—is also manifested and functions to protect us. Similarly, the Buddha nature of all Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the three existences is manifested, enfolding us in a realm of joy.

Through the power of the Mystic Law, we can throw off the fetters of ignorance and suffering and revitalize our life on a fundamental level. When we do so, we will savor a state of being brimming with the boundless joy of the Law.

The character myo of myoho, or Mystic Law, has three meanings: to open, to be fully endowed, and to revive. There is no more wonderful Buddhist practice than 46

chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, an act that itself affirms the supreme dignity of those who base their lives on the Mystic Law. Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism exists to enable individuals to discover and bring forth the infinite potential that resides within them.

The Daishonin closes this writing with the words: “You should understand these matters thoroughly and, on the path of attaining Buddhahood, chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo without arrogance or attachment to biased views” (WND-1, 888).

The various Buddhist schools of the Daishonin’s day had lost sight of “the true intention of the Buddha” (WND-1, 875). The Daishonin observed that “each school in its conceit maintains its own biased attachment” (WND-1, 874). They had forgotten the original starting point of Buddhism of awakening people to their inner dignity and worth. No longer caring about helping others unlock their incredible human potential, as vast and boundless as the universe itself, they had formulated doctrines that led in other directions. In other words, they made the error of seeking the Law outside of themselves. As a result, they could not relieve the people of the Latter Day from suffering on a fundamental level or lead them to enlightenment.

In addition, they slandered the Lotus Sutra—the teaching that embodies the Buddha’s true intent and enables all people to attain enlightenment. That’s why the Daishonin condemned the errors of the established Buddhist schools of his day. Working to restore the original purpose of Buddhism, he widely proclaimed the correct teaching of the Lotus Sutra and established the practice of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo as the means for all people of the Latter Day to attain Buddhahood.

The Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin is a teaching that enables people to awaken to and actualize their sublime inner potential. Through chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, anyone can manifest within their life the same Buddha nature that Buddhas possess. This is a teaching of supreme equality, and the realm of faith in the Mystic Law is one of unsurpassed respect for all people.

In “The Daimoku of the Lotus Sutra,” the Daishonin discusses the meaning of myo of myoho, 46

the Mystic Law: “The character myo means to open” (WND-1, 145); “Myo means to be fully endowed, which in turn has the meaning of ‘perfect and full’ (WND-1, 146); and “Myo means to revive, that is, to return to life” (WND-1, 149).

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The Gohonzon is the object of devotion for manifesting the Mystic Law inherent within us; it is the clear mirror that lets us see that our life itself is an entity of the Mystic Law.

The Daishonin repeatedly asserts in his writings that a state of life identical to that embodied in the Gohonzon exists within each of us. To bring forth the Gohonzon that resides within us represents our attainment of Buddhahood. As such, the Gohonzon expresses the supreme nobility of all people’s lives. The Daishonin’s Buddhism is a humanistic teaching, emphasizing from beginning to end the unsurpassed dignity and worth of the individual. It is a teaching for living in accord with our greater self.

Strong and Invincible Faith

Responding to a question about the significance of Soka Gakkai members chanting in front of the Gohonzon, Mr. Toda once said in a magazine interview:

Our bodies themselves are the same as the mandala [i.e., the Gohonzon bestowed by Nichiren Daishonin]. Yet while our lives are identical to it, the form of the mandala doesn’t appear in our lives without effort on our part. It is by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to the Gohonzon, the object of devotion, that the mandala [Gohonzon] is firmly established within our lives. At that point, the power of the bodhisattvas and the Buddhist gods Brahma and Shakra inherent in the Gohonzon is activated. That’s why we become happy. The Gohonzon doesn’t give us this happiness. It’s already there within us, and is brought out through the practice of chanting daimoku. There’s nothing magical about it. 47

Close to eight centuries have passed since the Daishonin made his appearance in the world. Seeking to fulfill his prophecy for the widespread propagation of the Mystic Law, the Soka Gakkai established a concrete daily practice based on faith in the Gohonzon, which enables all people to bring forth their innate Buddhahood. It’s no exaggeration to say that when the Soka Gakkai first emerged, the path of inner transformation that is the original essence of the Daishonin’s Buddhism had been forgotten by its professed believers. The first and second presidents of the Soka Gakkai, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi and Josei Toda, however, taught that faith in the Gohonzon should be directly linked to the goal of fundamentally changing our lives, achieving our human revolution, and positively transforming society as a whole. The Soka Gakkai is the sole organization whose members are steadfastly walking the path of attaining Buddhahood based on the sincere chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in exact accord with this writing of Nichiren Daishonin. The spirit of faith of “putting

Translated from Japanese. Musei Tokugawa, Mondo Yuyo: Musei Taidan-shu (Open for 47

Dialogue: Musei’s Interviews), (Tokyo: Sanshusha, n.d.), vol. 11, p.102. � 102

daimoku first” and “making the Gohonzon our foundation” is vigorously alive in the SGI.

In opening a path of unsurpassed hope for humanity, the SGI is actualizing the Daishonin’s assertion that, through chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, he was “enabling all living beings to attain Buddhahood in the ten thousand years of the Latter Day of the Law” (OTT, 41).

The members of the SGI possess truly strong and invincible faith. They always support and encourage others, striving in their lives with fearless courage to fulfill their vow for kosen-rufu. They are great victors whose Buddha nature shines forth with a brilliance equivalent to any Buddha in the universe. Those who persevere in their Buddhist practice for the happiness of themselves and others based on chanting daimoku will be able to attain the same lionhearted state of life as the Buddha. While achieving growing happiness and joy for themselves and others, they will also be able to establish an unshakable state of life overflowing with the power of great wisdom and the spirit of great compassion.

Let’s chant to demonstrate the truth that “myo means to revive” (WND-1, 149), and show proof of the beneficial power of the Mystic Law to change poison into medicine. Let’s chant to prove the tenet that “when great evil occurs, great good follows” (WND-1, 1119). Let’s chant to realize a peaceful and prosperous society—what is described in the sutras as a Buddha land—by spreading the ideals and principles of Nichiren Daishonin.

Causing the sound of the Mystic Law—our chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo— to ring out vibrantly, let us continue to carry out our mission of positively transforming society as champions of the spiritual realm, and advance dynamically toward the Soka Gakkai’s triumphant 100th anniversary (in 2030).

Living our lives

based on chanting the Mystic Law,

we joyfully savor

the honor and brilliance

of our existence in this world.

(Translated from the May 2011 issue of the Daibyakurenge, the Soka Gakkai monthly study journal)

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