"And on another occasion the little retreat where I was living, where I had enshrined a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha as the object of devotion, and where I stored the texts of the various sutras, was attacked and destroyed, and the statue of the Buddha and sutra texts were not only trampled upon, but thrown into the mud and filth. And a scroll of the Lotus Sutra, which I had placed in the breast of my robe, was snatched forth and I was mercilessly beaten over the head with it. These heinous crimes were carried out not because of any ancient enmity harbored against me or because of any offense I had recently committed, but solely because I worked to propagate the teachings of the Lotus Sutra."
There are many tens of dozens such passages that you will never see discussed at an SGI meeting, study meeting or otherwise.
ReplyDeleteThe truth can sometimes at first be painful and confronting when we can't let go of the delusion that gives us a false sense of security but liberating when we can see what we were holding onto wasn't real.
ReplyDeleteBecause the Fundamental Darkness of life is so powerful it is easy to see something which is beneficial as being detrimental.
Nichiren had enshrined a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha as the object of devotion
If its good enough for the Goose it should be good enough for the Gander(“What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.”
I like my statue of Shakyamuni Buddha. I do not pray to it. I bow to it in deep reverential respect and gratitude. I pray only to the Gohonzon.
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ReplyDeleteI have met other Buddhists Mahayana Hinayana and Vajrayana that said that they are focusing on the Buddhist Law that the of the Buddha's statue represents
ReplyDeleteOf course, Nichiren's heart was different than theirs.
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