"He [Nichiren] said everything he wrote before sado [most of what you quote]) was his expedient means teaching." -- Tim Janakos
Point # 1: Most of the 100 + passages of proof of the identity of and Nichiren's reverence for the Original Eternal Buddha [Shakyamuni] are from during or after Sado. This proves that Nichiren never wavered in his teachings or gratitude for this Buddha.
Point # 2. I suggest that in order to avoid the Buddhist sin of hypocrisy that you cease teaching your members again and again such Gosho as Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime, A Ship to Cross the Sea of Suffering, The Daimoku of the Lotus Sutra, and Establishing the Correct Law for the Peace of the Land.
Nichiren says that in the Gosho that everything he wrote before Sado is his expedient means teaching. So I am quoting from the Gosho. Read it and you will learn something.
ReplyDeleteAnd would you stop saying I'm a leader. I'm not a leader of anything. I've been in Self-imposed Exile for 10 years near Sado Island in Niigata, so I couldn't lead anything.
ReplyDeleteWhose words are point # 1 and point # 2. Those are your words, Mark I'm surmising?
ReplyDeleteRead Letter to Misawa, if you want it from the horses mouth.
"As for my teachings, regard those before my exile to the province of Sado as equivalent to the Buddha's preLotus Sutra teachings. I had thought that, if the ruler of this country desired to govern well, he would summon the priests of the True Word school for an open debate with me, and that on that occasion I would reveal a matter of truly supreme importance. Before my exile, I withheld this even from my disciples for fear that if I should tell them, even in confidence, they might inadvertently disclose it to the True Word priests, who would then avoid the debate. This is why I refrained from revealing it to each one of you as well.... I felt pity for my followers because I had not yet revealed this true teaching to any of them. Whit this in mind, I secretly conveyed my teaching to my disciples from the province of Sado.... With the appearance of this teaching, all the teachings advocated by the scholars and teachings of Buddhism during the Former and Middle Days of the Law will be like stars after sunrise, or an awkward apprentice beside a skilled craftsman. It is stated that, once this teaching is revealed in this era, the Buddha images as well as the priest of the temples built in the Former and Middle Days will all lose their power to benefit, people and only this great teaching will spread throughout the entire land of Jambudvipa. Since all the you have a bond with this teaching you should feel reassured."
ReplyDeleteIf you want to draw conclusions based on some narrow minded interpretations that because he had not revealed his ultimate teaching before his Sado exile that I am saying that everything he wrote before that is not meaningful, and we should not study it, you will only be fooling yourself.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you want to draw some rankist conclusion that because Nichiren revealed on Sado Island that we are all buddhas from time without beginning that that somehow means we should no longer have respect for the teachers (Shakyamuni, Tientai, Dengyo, Nichiren, etc) who brought us that idea, then go ahead, but I never said anything of the sort. Nichiren still quotes all the preLotus Sutra teachings (and respects and studies them) in many of his writings, even though he had already realized the Lotus Sutra was the only true teaching for the later day of the law. He says on many occasions that all the other teachings have significance, but only when you look at them from the perspective of being expedients.
So you can praise Shakyamuni and Nichiren all you want, but unless you realize that as Nichiren wrote on Sado Island that you should never seek the treasure tower outside of you own body, you are in fact slandering your teachers and their highest teachings, which foolishly thinking you are respecting them. As Shakyamuni said, "In the beginning, I made a great vow, to make all people equal to me with no distinctions."
You Mark are trying to make distinctions, thus trying to deny the vow Shakyamuni made that we are all equally the buddha from time without beginning.
Tim you are thick. Points # 1 and # 2 are my response to you. You are wasting bandwith.
ReplyDeleteYou will fare no better than your pal "Nichiren" Buddhist regarding the teachings of Nichiren. Your arrogance and lack of gratitude knows no bounds.
ReplyDeleteYou should have commented on the post Confusing the General with the Specific: Tim Janakos-Kobayashi and the Soka Gakkai [A top ten post]
ReplyDeleteSGI member:
"Present within our lives is the Lord Shalyamuni who obtained the three enlightened properties of life before gohyaku-jintengo, the Original Buddha since time without begining." (MW vol 1, The True Object of Worship, pg 65)
and
"The Lord Shakyamuni who declared 'I alone can save them,' at a time even more distant than gohyaku-jintengo, is none other than each of us." (MW vol 2, I2U Exile, pg 55)
So, since Shakyamuni, Nichiren and each of us are the same, then we must all be the eternal Buddha Shakyamuni. Then how can one deny that Nichiren is also the eternal, original Buddha? (And each of us too).
Response:
First of all, the happiest New Years to you and yours. Thank you so much for your question. I have pondered your question all day, chanted about it, and hope that I can answer it to your satisfaction.
Nichiren Daishonin stated: "If you confuse the general with the specific, even in the slightest, you will fail to attain Buddhahood."
The Daishonin states in the Gosho, Dialogue on the Way to Correctly Hold the Sublime Lotus Sutra (Ji Myo Hokke Mondo Sho)
ReplyDelete"The Lotus Sutra teaches:
If, in the future, there should be in any world, a good son or good daughter having a pure heart and reverential belief, free from doubt, such a one shall not fall into hell or become a hungry spirit or animal, but shall be born, instead, into the presence of the Buddhas of the universe."
You should definitely understand and embrace this passage, expecting, in the next lifetime, to be born into the presence of the Buddhas.
If you find yourself at the foot of a high cliff and, unable to scale the bank, discover that someone has lowered a rope to pull you up and asks that you seize it, should you hesitate to grasp the rope because you doubt the strength of your rescuer or the security of the rope? If you refuse to take hold of the rope, how can you be lifted from the depths? If you place trust in the words of the rescuer and stretch out your hands to clasp the rope, then you may be pulled from the abyss.
So then, how can you be saved if you doubt the strength of the Buddha who declares: "I alone can save and protect you?" How can you be saved if you question the security of the rope of the Lotus Sutra that teaches: "Only with faith can you enter into Buddhahood?" The Sublime Dharma reveals that, "If you believe in, and devote yourself to this Law you will, without fail, create the destiny to become a Buddha." If you hesitate to chant the Daimoku of the Sublime Dharma, it will be impossible for you to reach the peak of the precipice of enlightenment. Those who refuse to believe this will fall into hell. Thus, the Sutra teaches: "Those who doubt and disbelieve this Sutra will fall into the evil paths."
How could you possibly spend your life in vain, after having received a human life which is so difficult to receive, after having encountered Buddhism which is so rare to encounter?
If all of your relatives depart from your native village, leaving the path to your home abandoned and overgrown, your eagerness to return there will wane. If a loved one cannot be depended upon, and refuses to make a vow together with you for the future, then your longing to see the loved one will naturally diminish.
Then why do people not visit the Pure Land of Eagle Peak, an easy place to reach, and much more wonderful than the mansions of nobility? Why do people not long to see the Buddha’s figure, who tenderly declares, "I am your Father?" This thought causes me such overwhelming grief that my heart aches within my chest and my sleeves are heavy with tears.
Pensive or melancholy feelings may arise within you as you note the hue of the clouds in the evening sky, or the pale light of the moon as night gives way to dawn. At these moments, and at any and all other times, you should think of your eternal life. Think of it in the late afternoon of a day colored by the blossoms of spring; think of it on the morning of a heavy snow fall. Remember it on an evening as you watch the winds drive tufts of clouds across the sky. An outgoing breath does not wait for the incoming one. You should not at any moment forget the Buddha’s merciful pledge, "I am always thinking of how to save all living beings." Nor should you abandon the Sutra that reads, "There is no being who cannot become a Buddha."
Yesterday became today and last year became this year, but can you be certain that you will see this year pass into the next? When we count the years that have passed since birth, we know exactly how long we have been living, but one is assured of not even one day more, nor of even a moment longer. Even with the knowledge that they may die at any moment, many people still are filled with self-conceit and stubbornly adhere to their own narrow ideas, or they foolishly waste themselves striving after fame and profit, neglecting to chant the Daimoku of the Sublime Law. It is truly lamentable that even though this Law allows anyone to realize Buddhahood, such people are unable to enter into the Buddha’s Path. How can the moon-light be reflected off the sleeve of a cold-hearted person?
ReplyDeleteAs a life is nothing more than what exists in a single moment (Ichinen), the Buddha taught that it is a great benefit to believe in the Lotus Sutra and feel the joy of that belief for even a moment. If it were necessary to practice for even two or three moments to realize such joy, it would contradict the Buddha’s vow to allow all beings to enter, equally, the Buddha’s great wisdom, and therefore, it could not be the teaching to bring all beings to immediate enlightenment.
If a person is not in the seat of Eternal Tranquil Light, then any place will be full of agony. What pleasures can be enjoyed by those who are away from the home of true enlightenment?
I pray for you to cherish the Sublime Law, the Law of security in this life time and of wonderful existence in the next. Upholding the Sublime Law is the only real honor of this life time, the only genuine path guiding us into the next. Whole-heartedly chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo yourself and teach it to others. To chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo is the purpose of this human life and is the only support we can carry with us into the next.
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.
Nichiren
It is a good thing not to doubt one's own power. It is a sublime thing not to doubt the power of the Eternal Buddha Shakyamuni and the Gohonzon.
Now, let us look at the first Gosho quote you posted:
"Present within our lives is the Lord Shakyamuni who obtained the three enlightened properties of life before gohyaku-jintengo, the Original Buddha since time without begining." (MW vol 1, The True Object of Worship, pg 65)
An alternative translation is as follows:
"...Shakyamuni Buddha, within our minds, is an ancient Buddha without beginning, manifesting Himself in three bodies he attained Buddhahood in the eternal past......( Kanjin Honzon Sho, translated by Kyotsu Hori P.94)
The Daishonin states in the Hoon Sho:
"Yet it was not I, Nichiren who made these important pronouncements. Rather it was in all cases the spirit of Shakyamuni Buddha that had entered into my body. And at having personally experienced this I am beside myself with joy." (MW vol 3, Ibid, pg 171)
In The Supremacy of the Law he states:
ReplyDelete"When I was about to be beheaded, the Lord Buddha Shakyamuni took my place." (MW vol 3, The Supremacy of the Law, pg 199).
These passages are not inconsistent with the passage you posted. When we practice correctly, the Buddha enters into our mind.The Eternal Shakyamuni entered into the minds of the Great Saints and Sages of Buddhism such as Buddhamitra, Nagarjuna, Kumarujiva, Nan Yueh, Tientai, Chang-an, Miao-le, and Saicho in order to correctly expound the Lotus Sutra. The Daishonin states in the Kanjin Honzon Sho:
"The Causal Practices and the Virtues of the Effect of Buddhahood of Lord Shakya are fully possesed in the Five characters "Myoho renge kyo." When we receive and keep these Five Characters, he spontaneously yields and cedes to us the merit of those causes and effects."(Kempon Hokke Seiten).
The second passage you posted reads:
"The Lord Shakyamuni who declared 'I alone can save them,' at a time even more distant than gohyaku-jintengo, is none other than each of us." (MW vol 2, I2U Exile, pg 55)
Let us contrast this with three passages from three other writings of Nichiren Daishonin
"Shakyamuni Buddha, our father and mother, who is endowed with the three virtues of sovereign, teacher and parent, is the very one who encourages us, the people driven out by all other Buddha, saying, "I alone can save them." The debt of gratitude we owe him is deeper than the ocean, weightier than the earth, vaster than the sky. Though we were to pluck out our two eyes and place them before him as an offering until there were more eyes there than stars in the sky, though we were to strip off our skins and spread them out by the hundreds of thousands of ten thousands until they blanketed the ceiling of heaven, though we were to give him our tears as offerings of water and present him with flowers for the space of a hundred billion kalpas, though we were to offer him our flesh and blood for innumerable kalpas, until our flesh piled up like mountains and our blood overflowed like vast seas, we could never repay a fraction of the debt we owe to this Buddha! (MW vol. 4, The Learned Doctor Shan-wu-wei)
"However, later seeking and entering the deep cave, you see a single hermitage. The voices of the reading and reciting of the Hokekyo echo against blue heaven and the words of discussing the doctrine of the One Vehicle are heard in the midst of the mountains. Informing [them, of your presence and requesting] admittance, you enter the chamber, place your mother's bones before the Master of Teachings Lord Shakya, cast your five limbs to the ground, press your palms together, and opening your two eyes, look up to the Holy Face: joy overflows your body and the pain of your heart suddenly ceases." (On Forgetting Ones Copy Of The Lotus Sutra, NOPPA
Translation)
"........, I was banished to Ito in the province of Izu. Eventually, on the second day of the second month of the third year of Kocho(1263), the year with the cyclical sign mizonoto-i, I was pardoned and allowed to return. After that, I became more determined than ever to attain enlightenment and continued to speak out." (Repaying Debts of Gratitude, 1276)
ReplyDeleteThe passage from the Izu exile teaches that we are the Eternal Buddha Shakyamuni ourselves. Nevertheless, the Daishonin qualifies this in the Hoon Sho, where he states, "I became more determined than ever to attain enlightenment". This is not the eternal nature of the enlightenment of the Original Buddha Shakya, the teacher of the Daishonin. The other two Gosho passages also give the impression that there is a distinction between the Eternal Shakyamuni and oneself. What are we to make of these seeming contradictions?
We should examine to whom the Daishonin is speaking. Yasoboru was a Nembutsu believer before taking faith in the true Buddhism. The Daishonin probably felt that he had to break Yasoboru's attachment to something [another being] outside himself for his own salvation. Another example is the teaching to Abutsubo in On the Treasure Tower. The Hoon Sho, on the other hand, was one of the Daishonin's most important works. It was entrusted to Niko with Joken, Gijo, Dozen-bo, and all mankind who were the recipients of this treatise.
We should also keep in mind that the Daishonin's teachings and understanding continued to develop throughout his life. Early on, before Tatsunokuchi and Sado. Nichiren Daishonin more fully embraced the principles of Original Enlightenment, that we are all Buddhas endowed with the Three Properties of the Buddha's life. Later, after Tatsunokuchi and during the Sado exile, he realized that it was only due to the Original Teacher Eternal Lord Buddha Shakyamuni's enlightenment, that we can experience the boundless joy and benefit of the Lotus Sutra. For example, in the Opening of the Eyes we read,
"But now that it has become apparent that Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment countless aeons ago, then the Bodhisattvas Nikko and Gakko, who attend the Buddha Yakushi of the eastern region, the Bodhisattvas Kannon and Seishi, who attend the Buddha Amida of the western region, along with the disciples of all the Buddhas of the worlds of the ten direction and the great bodhisattvas who are disciples of the Buddha Dainichi as they are shown in the Dainichi and Kongocho sutras --- all of these beings are disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha. Since the various Buddhas themselves are emanations of Shakyamuni Buddha, it goes without saying that their disciples must be disciples of Shakyamuni. And of course the various deities of the sun, moon and stars, who have dwelt in this world from countless ages in the past, must likewise be disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha.
Lastly, let us look carefully at the entire paragraph of the passage that you cite:
"We common mortals all have dwelt in the sea of suffering since time without beginning. But now that we have become votaries of the Lotus Sutra, we WILL (certain words capitalized for emphasis) without fail become Buddhas who are enlightened to the entity of body and mind which has existed since the infinite past. We WILL reveal the unchangeable nature innate within us, as well as the mystic wisdom which enables us to realize the mystic truth. We WILL enjoy a state of life as indestructible as a diamond. THEN how can we be in any way different from the Buddha who appeared from the sea? The Lord Shakyamuni, who declared, "I alone can save them," at a time even more distant than gohyaku jintengo, is none other than each of us. This is the teaching of ichinen sanzen expounded in the Lotus Sutra . Our Behavior is a personal demonstration of "I am here always, teaching the Law." Thus we are all entities embodying the supreme teaching of the Lotus Sutra and the august life of Shakyamuni Buddha, though ordinary people never realize this. This is the meaning of the passage in the Juryo chapter, ".....the deluded people cannot see me even when I am nearby." The difference between delusion and enlightenment is like the four different views of the grove of sal trees. Let it be known that the Buddha of ichinen sanzen is anyone in any of the ten worlds who manifests his inherent Buddha nature."
ReplyDeleteWe see in this long paragraph that the Daishonin teaches that we will attain Buddhahood in the future. He then goes on to delineate who will go on to attain Buddhahood; those who embody the teachings of the Lotus Sutra and the "august life of Shakyamuni Buddha" will go on to attain Buddhahood. This excludes the SGI and NST members since they have abandoned the Lotus Sutra and Lord Shakyamuni. He then goes on to restate his teachings of the difference between a Buddha and a common mortal; the common mortal is deluded while a Buddha is enlightened. He concludes this paragraph defining Buddha, " Let it be known that the Buddha of ichinen sanzen is anyone in any of the ten worlds who manifests his inherent Buddha nature."
Taking the paragraph in its entirety we must conclude that those who embrace the Lotus Sutra and embody the life of Shakyamuni Buddha will without fail reach the seat of enlightenment in the future.
The snippet you cite, can only be understood in light of the above paragraph, the entire Izu Gosho, the Five Major Works, and the entire body of the Daishonin's teachings (keeping in mind the question of the accuracy of the NSIC translation and that this Gosho falls into the pre-Tatsunokuchi teachings). "A common mortal is a Buddha, and a Buddha a common mortal" when and only when certain criteria are met: embodying the Lotus Sutra and life of Lord Shakyamuni Buddha; and when one manifests his inherent Buddhahood completely (is no longer deluded). To interpret the Daishonin's teachings to mean that we are the Buddha just as we are is irrational, egotistical, and simplistic. If we look at the Fukyo chapter of the Lotus Sutra which the Daishonin embodied, we read, "I dare not slight you, because you are all to become Buddhas." No where, not in one place does the Lotus Sutra state you are Buddhas just as you are. The SGI's and NST's doctrines are distorted and lead to misery (delusion).
Because you remain in the Soka Gakkai Tim you are deluded. Since you are deluded you claim for yourself the august title, Tathagata from time without beginning. More correctly you are an "unenlightened worldling" ["bombu" -- Jiga-ge] who rejects his father Shakyamuni Buddha.
ReplyDeleteWow Mark, you sure get your self all worked up, don't you?
ReplyDeleteI don't even have to read all your posts to feel your blood boiling.
I'm a little worried about your health, but thank you for all your interesting points of view.
Hey brother, I got a good idea.
Why don't we both let go of our addictive and obsessive/compulsive need to be right?
Let's pretend for once that we are not both fundamentalist, religious fanatics and for once agree that we CAN both disagree.
You can put Shakyamuni on his pedestal and worship him and I can put us all equally on the pedestal and see we are all equal.
And we don't have to get all rapped up in the polarity of who is right or who is wrong, or who is good or who is bad, or who is just and who is evil.
Ahhh, there we go, let's breath....
Every thing we have been defending for or again, that if we didn't have to defend for or against it, would allow us to have all of us, as the infinite beings from time without beginning, would we be willing to destroy and uncreate everything that is and everything that brings up, times a Buddhazillion? Yeah? Right, wrong, good, bad, all nine, POD, POC, shorts, boys, and beyonds, Ho'opono'pono, Nam myo-ho ren-ge kyo.
OK I'm done with this blog post, Sayonara!
"I am what ever it is you say I am; and it I wasn't, why would you say I am?" - Eminem
Sorry one last thing, I mis-quoted Eminem, "And IF I wasn't why would you say I am." OK Peace!
ReplyDeleteTim: Wow Mark, you sure get your self all worked up, don't you?
ReplyDeleteI don't even have to read all your posts to feel your blood boiling.
I'm a little worried about your health, but thank you for all your interesting points of view.
Mark: More proof that you are deluded Tim, confusing mercy, pity, and a calm and reasoned response for anger. As far as my health is concerned, you would be better off worrying about your mentor's health.
Tim: Hey brother, I got a good idea. Why don't we both let go of our addictive and obsessive/compulsive need to be right?
Mark: We both can't be right Tim. This is not tomAto, tomato. It is watercress and mutton. It is Shakyamuni Buddha and Nichiren against Ikeda.
Tim: Let's pretend for once that we are not both fundamentalist, religious fanatics and for once agree that we CAN both disagree.
Mark: I will accept the fundamentalist appelation but not "fanatic". We do disagree, fundamentally.
Tim: You can put Shakyamuni on his pedestal and worship him and I can put us all equally on the pedestal and see we are all equal.
Mark:Nichiren worshipped Shakyamuni Buddha and others or did you forget all those whose names are preceded by Namu on the Gohonzon. Fact is Tim, you only worship Ikeda. Devedatta too is on the Gohonzon but his name is not preceded by Namu. I Namu Shakyamuni Buddha, Taho, and the four leaders of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth as did Nichiren. You prefer to Namu the Devedatta of the modern age, Ikeda.
Tim: And we don't have to get all rapped up in the polarity of who is right or who is wrong, or who is good or who is bad, or who is just and who is evil.
Mark: That's not Nichiren's Buddhism Tim. You are like the elementary school girls chanting, "I must, I must, I must increase my bust" while flexing their pecs. Deluded you are Tim, as were they. The difference is their delusion was karmically neutral. Your delusion will lead you into the the Avici hell.
Tim:Ahhh, there we go, let's breath....
Every thing we have been defending for or against, that if we didn't have to defend for or against it, would allow us to have all of us, as the infinite beings from time without beginning, would we be willing to destroy and uncreate everything that is and everything that brings up, times a Buddhazillion? Yeah? Right, wrong, good, bad, all nine, POD, POC, shorts, boys, and beyonds, Ho'opono'pono, Nam myo-ho ren-ge kyo.
Mark: "Delusions are infinite, I vow to conquer them all". You, on the other hand, wallow in your delusions and you worry about my health? Nichiren taught that the Buddha loves all his children equally but he is most concerned about his sick children. I too feel this way about you and all the SGI members. For once in your life can you be honest with yourself and about others?
Tim: OK I'm done with this blog post, Sayonara!"
Mark:Your reflection is not pleasing to you?
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