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A Collation of the Layers of the Various
Teachings
of All the Buddhas of the Past,
Present
and Future as to Which
Specific Doctrines
are to be Discarded
or Established
Sô Kan Mon Shô
Goshô Shimpen, p.1408-1426
The tenth month of the second
year of Kô.an [1279] at 58 years of age
That lifetime of holy instruction, which on the
whole is fifty years of explaining and teaching, can also be referred
to as all the sutras. The sutras are divided into two categories, the
first is for the conversion of others and the second is the Buddha's
own conduct.
When it comes to the teachings for the conversion of others, this would
include all the sutric teachings of the forty-two years that came before
the Dharma Flower Sutra. These are said to be the provisional teachings,
and are also designated as being expedient means. These are the three
of the four teachings, that come before the Dharma Flower, those of
the Three Receptacles, the Interrelated Teachings and the Particular
Teaching. In terms of the five periods, the Flower Garland [Kegon],
the teachings of the individual vehicle [Agon], the Equally
Broad [Hôdô] and the Wisdom Period [Hannya]
make up the four periods of sutric teaching that came prior to the Dharma
Flower. Again from the point of view of the ten realms of dharmas (things) the
provisional teachings apply to the first nine dharma realms only. If
we look upon it as the difference between dreaming and being wide awake,
the provisional teachings are like the good and evil in a dream. Dreams
are said to be transient whereas alertness corresponds to reality. Therefore
because a dream is supposedly without a fundamental substantial nature
we think of it as being provisional. An alertness that abides eternally
is the unwavering fundamental substance of mind. For this reason we
call it reality. This is in contrast to all the sutric teachings which
Shakyamuni expounded over a period of forty-two years which really are
no more than good and evil events taking place in the dream of living
and dying, thus, these are called the provisional teachings. These sutric
teachings I presume were the required expedient means for rudely shattering
the illusory dreams of sentient beings so that they could be enticed
to the enlightenment of the Dharma Flower Sutra. Again this is why they
are called the provisional teachings. This would imply that one must
know the readings of the ideograms properly, because the ideogram for
'provisional' should be read and understood as meaning 'for the time
being'. A dream would be a basic example of something that is provisional.
Once again the ideogram for 'real' has the undertone of 'in fact' or
'the truth in the sense of the fruition of a sequence of events and
circumstances'. 'A matter of fact' is an example of being consciously
aware. Because the dream of living and dying is a temporary state of
affairs without a fundamental substance it is then an example of something
that is provisional. This we refer to as a delusion or a wild idea.
The awakening to a fundamental enlightenment is real, it is a mind that
is separated from coming into being or becoming extinct, this is an
example of true reality. This is what is called the real aspect. According
to these premises you must know that these two ideograms for 'provisional'
and 'real' accurately point to the difference in a lifetime of holy
teaching between the provisional teachings for the conversion of others
and the real teaching that is the Buddha's own conduct. Because within
the bounds of the four teachings during Shakyamuni's lifetime it is
the first three of these teachings, (i) those of the three receptacles,
(ii) the interrelated teachings, and (iii) the particular teaching.
Out of the five periods, the first four that came before the Dharma
Flower (which are the Flower Garland, the teachings of the individual
vehicle, the interconnecting and the wisdom periods), as well as the
first nine of the realms of dharmas (things) (which culminated in that of the
bodhisattva) are all expounded in the same way as though they were the
good and evil happenings in the midst of a dream. Hence they are called
the provisional teachings. This particular aspect of the Buddha teaching
is expounded in the Sutra on the Incalculable Significance where it
says, "For forty years or so I have not yet revealed the true reality."
So that all the sutras that have not yet revealed the true reality are
the provisional teachings. In the Explanatory Notes on the Recondite
Significance of the Dharma Flower it says, "Even though there
is no particular self nature, but without a doubt due to the availability
of illusion, illusory propensities are moved by the illusory Buddha
to an illusory response to take an illusory direction, those who do
respond and those who are converted are neither those of the provisional
nor the real teachings. All these teachings that are in a hallucinatory
dream are those of the expedient means." The explanation for this
is, "There is no particular self nature." When we become awakened
to the idea that the dream we saw is the essence of mind and that there
is only one essence of mind, then broadly speaking there is no fundamental
difference between the illusory nature of one thing or another. On being
awakened to the unreality of the events in the dream, the dual nature
of events becomes the single mind of dharmas (things). What we thought we saw
is said to be the working of our own mind. In the Universal Desistance
from Troublesome Worries in order to See Clearly [Maka Shikan],
it says, "In those first three teachings that came before the Dharma
Flower, even the four all embracing vows of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas,
both he who is able to fulfill them and those that are held to them
are now extinguished." What the four all embracing vows of the
Buddhas and bodhisattvas entail is, (i) to vow to ferry unaccountably
boundless sentient beings over the sea of living and dying to the shores
of Nirvana, (ii) to vow to cut away unaccountably boundless troublesome
worries, (iii) to vow to try and know the inexhaustible number of gateways
to the dharma, (iv) to vow to substantiate the unsurpassed Enlightenment
of the Buddha. He who is able to fulfill these vows is the Tathâgata
and those who are held to them are sentient beings. In this way we have
an explanation to show that the Buddha who can fulfill, the sentient
beings who are held to the four all embracing vows of the Buddhas and
bodhisattvas, as well as the first three teachings that came before
the Dharma Flower are inevitably immersed in a dream. This being the
case then all the sutras that were expounded and taught during the forty-two
years prior to the Dharma Flower are the expedient means of the provisional
doctrines that have not yet revealed the true reality. Because they
are only an expedient means to entice people to receive and rely on
the Dharma Flower, they cannot be the actual truth. After this the Buddha
himself completed forty-two years of teaching and finding it now suitable
to expound the Dharma Flower Sutra, it was then time for the introductory
part of the opening Sutra on the Incalculable Significance. By being
the special teaching that deals with the Buddha's own profound collation
of his teachings, there was no need to bother with human modes of speech
since there was no need to give rise to discriminating thoughts. The
Explanatory Notes on the Recondite Significance of the Dharma Flower
alludes to this by saying, "The nine realms of dharmas (things) refer to
the provisional, the dharma realm of the Buddha refers to what is real."
The Buddha preached and expounded for forty-two years the provisional
teaching which involves the nine realms of dharmas (things), the real teaching
of the dharma realm of the Buddha are the eight years of his exposition
of the Dharma Flower Sutra. This is why the Dharma Flower Sutra is called
the Buddha vehicle. On account of the principle that the living and
dying of the nine realms of dharmas (things) is a self delusion it is called
the teaching that is based on what is provisional but due to the principle
that the enlightenment to the Buddha realm is eternally abiding, it
is called the teaching of what is real. As a result of fifty years of
teaching and expounding during a whole life of holy teaching which is
made up of forty-two years of converting others through the provisional
doctrine and the eight years based on his own realization, so that there
would be no indistinctness at all.
Nevertheless if I were to think that by following the practices of the
three receptacles teachings for three asogi hundred universal kalpas
I would end up by becoming a Buddha, my person would come out of the
fire and my person of ashes would enter Nirvana, but by having been
turned into ashes I would therefore be lost forever. If I were to follow
the practices of the interrelated teachings for seven asogi hundred
universal kalpas to the full measure, with the thought of becoming a
Buddha, in the same way as the previous instance my person reduced to
ashes would enter Nirvana and disappear without even the trace of a
shadow. Now if I were with the intention of becoming Enlightened and
do the practices of the particular teaching until I had reached the
end of twenty-two universal asogi and hundreds of ten thousands of kalpas,
I would then become a Buddha of the provisional teachings in the midst
of a dream of living and dying. But when it comes to the time of the
original enlightenment of the Dharma Flower Sutra, the Buddha of the
particular teaching by having attained to the fruition of a dream, is
no longer the real Buddha at all. Since we are able to say that the
doctrine of the way of the particular teaching is not that of the real
Buddha. The proof of having attained to the way of the particular teaching
means to have arrived at the beginning of the ten stages in the fifty-two
grades of the development of a bodhisattva into a Buddha. That means
having broken through one tenth of his unenlightenment and to have come
to realize one tenth of the principle of the middle way. What we see
from the beginning is the knowledge that the particular teaching is
a doctrine of a practice that runs through separated and disjointed
ages. On moving into the all-inclusive teaching this person ends up
by having a way of being that is all-inclusive and is no longer held
back by the particular teaching. People become different due to their
having greater, medium or lesser propensities, but even those who are
at the first, second or third stages of firm ground in the development
of a bodhisattva into a Buddha or even those who have arrived at the
overall enlightenment can also become people of the all-inclusive teaching,
because apparently the Buddha of the particular teaching does not exist.
This is why we talk about the existence of a teaching, which has not
produced a person who is enlightened. This is referred to in the Essays
on Safeguarding and Protecting the Frontiers of the State as: "The
provisional fruition in the dream of the reward body of a Buddha who
came to exist through karmic causes and affinities" refers to [the
Buddha of the three periods of teachings and practices that came before
the Dharma Flower]; "The triple body independent of all karma is
the real Buddha prior to his own enlightenment to it" refers to
[the all-inclusive teaching of the Buddha of the contemplation of the
mind who came afterwards]. Also in the same text we have, "The
triple body of the provisional teachings had not yet been able to avoid
its own transiency." This refers to [the Buddha of the three periods
of teachings that came before the Dharma Flower]. "The triple body
of the real teachings is endowed with the fundamental substance and
its workings." This refers to [the all-inclusive teaching of the
Buddha of the contemplation of the mind who came afterwards]. You should
very thoroughly get to know these explanations. If you are thinking
of becoming a Buddha through the austere and ascetic observances and
practices of the provisional teachings, you will then become a provisional
Buddha in the midst of a dream and when the time comes to be awakened
to the original enlightenment and understanding, you will no longer
be a real Buddha. Since there is no one who has become a Buddha as though
it were the ultimate fruition of a long process, consequently there
is a doctrine but there is no person to found it on. Therefore how could
the teaching of such a dharma be real? If we are to take the provisional
teachings as they are and try to practice and observe them, then they
become little more than a muddied approach to the teaching that is whole.
Let us no longer discuss it and just put aside the testimonies of the
three teachings, that came before the Dharma Flower Sutra, as one cannot
become a Buddha through them. We should set about opening up the understanding
of the sentient beings of the final age of the dharma of Shakyamuni
as well as their power to discern things and also their underlying principle.
Sentient beings of the nine realms of dharmas (things) whose instant of mind
has fallen into the sleep of unenlightenment, and by being drowned in
the dream of the cycles of living and dying, have forgotten their enlightenment
to the original enlightenment and understanding, they by hook or by
crook attach themselves to the dream and slip into one benightedness
after another. This is why the Tathâgata enters into our dreams
of living and dying just like a sentient being with absurd ideas such
as we, then by making use of the language of the dream in order to entice
the deluded sentient beings to gradually listen to discourses that can
differentiate between the dream's good and evil contents. Since the
good and evil contents in the dream are in uncountable layers and boundlessly
variegated, the Buddha with a view to the good dharmas (things) first established
dharma teachings for the three vehicles of (i) the hearers of the voice,
(ii) those who are partially enlightened due to karmic circumstances,
(iii) the bodhisattvas. This is what is called "the three times
three that make nine categories of good dharmas (things)". The higher good
dharma applies to bodhisattvas, the medium good applies to those who
are partially enlightened due to karmic circumstances and the lesser
good refers to the hearers of the voice of the Buddha. Within each of
these three categories there are also higher, medium and less good dharmas (things),
which make a total of nine. After the Buddha had finished expounding
the teachings of the three times three that make nine categories of
good dharmas (things), he then established the highest summit of these nine teachings
referring to them as the fundamental root of good. Nevertheless, the
whole of these teachings throughout consists of the rights and wrongs
of good and evil in the midst of the dream of living and dying in the
nine realms of dharmas (things). Nowadays they are generally considered as being
distorted views outside the path. [This is implied in A Search into
the Essentials as an Aid to the Practice of the Universal Desistance
from Troublesome Worries in order to See Clearly]. However, since
the Buddha's thinking behind that highest summit of the teaching is
true to reality, its principle was underlined by the original enlightenment.
When this root of good was justified to his hearers, it was on account
of the impact of their being awakened out of the good and evil of the
dream they were informed for the first time of the intrinsicality of
the real aspect of the enlightenment of the original mind. It was on
this occasion that the Buddha explained this concept by saying that
between dreaming and being awake there is illusion and reality but there
is only the oneness of the dharmas (things) and mind. Our dreams are due to the
circumstances we encounter in our sleep and when sleep ends our minds
become alert. The Buddha by having to make people come to the understanding
of the oneness of mind and dharmas (things), he had to create an underlying foundation
through the expedient means. [This is the principle of the middle way
of the particular teachings]. But nobody became a Buddha because there
was no revelation of the ten realms of dharmas (things) being mutually endowed
with the same ten realms or that the apparent identities of being and
things cannot be separate from the all-inclusive unobstructed accommodation
of phenomenon [ke], relativity [kû] and the
middle way [chû]. From the four direct, gradual, esoteric
and variable methods of teaching whose content of the fundamental truth
was accommodated to the propensities of the disciples and from the teachings
of the three receptacles to those of the particular teaching which make
up the eight classifications of Shakyamuni's teachings, were taught
over a period of forty-two years, all of them from beginning to end
were an expedient means as well as simply being the good things and
the bad things in the middle of a dream. However the Buddha for the
time being, used these doctrines as provident expediencies in order
to induce sentient beings to enter upon the path. Throughout all of
these provisional doctrines which in parts are the genuine truth, but
neither the provisional nor the real teachings are destitute of the
dharma. The teaching of the three receptacles, the interconnecting teachings,
the particular teaching and those of the all-inclusive teachings, each
one of them without any differentiation whatsoever are all gateways
to the dharma. The wording used throughout is exactly the same and there
is not the slightest difference in the ideograms that are used. So according
to this, when people become confused over the wording and cannot discriminate
between the provisional and the real teachings, then the dharma of the
Buddha will become extinct.
The teachings that are the expedient means belong to this impure and
imperfect world of ours, as a rule they do not exist in places that
are immaculate. It says in the Dharma Flower Sutra, "In all the
Buddha lands of the ten directions there is only the dharma of the one
vehicle, there are neither two nor are there three; apart from those
expedient means that were expounded by the Buddha himself. Because you
know that by taking the teachings of the expedient means that do not
exist in the Buddha lands of the ten directions, they can be used as
a means to help people to pass over to be reborn in the immaculate terrain
of the Buddha Amida! Would it not be possible that people would take
a dislike to the one vehicle and turn them away from the principle that
would make them into Buddhas? The Lord of the teaching, the Tathâgata
Shakyamuni, after collating the layers of profundities of all the sutras
that he had expounded during a lifetime, said that his manner of expounding
the Dharma was carried out in the same way as all the Buddhas of the
past, present and future who also collated the layers of profundities
and set them in order with a oneness of language and mind, Shakyamuni
did the same, by expounding the teaching without a single discrepancy
in words whatsoever."
It says in the Second Chapter on Expedient Means, "In the same
manner as All the Buddhas of the past present and future, I now in like
fashion expound the dharma that makes no distinction between one thing
or being and another." The dharma that does not discriminate is
the Utterness of the Dharma of the one vehicle. It neither picks out
good nor bad, nor the plants, trees, forests nor groves, not even the
mountains, rivers nor the great earth nor even the tiny particles of
dust. Each and all of them are endowed with the mutual possession of
the ten realms of dharmas (things). The one vehicle of the Sutra on the Lotus
Flower of the Utterness of the Dharma is my mind which takes in all
the surrounding immaculate terrains of the ten directions without leaving
anything out whatsoever. The majestically virtuous merits of the reward
of the subjectivity and their dependent environments of immaculate terrains
of the ten directions, which are never absent for an instant from my
mind, are the three bodies not separate from the one of the originally
enlightened Tathâgata. Beyond this there are no dharmas (things). This
one dharma alone is in possession of the immaculate terrains, other
teachings do not possess them. This is why this dharma is called the
one that is devoid of discrimination. By not taking to the practice
of the one vehicle of the Utterness of the Dharma, all the immaculate
terrains cease to exist. By resorting to the teachings of the expedient
means with the idea of becoming a Buddha is bewilderment in the midst
of a delusion. After becoming a Buddha, were I to return to stand upon
this unclean world of ours so as to induce the sentient beings who inhabit
it to enter into the realm of the dharma of the Buddha, I would gradually
entice them by using expedient means to direct them, these teachings
are for the conversion of others. Hence they are referred to as the
provisional doctrine or the expedient means. As the gateways to the
dharma that are for the edification of others now stand, are on the
whole known to have omissions in one way or another.
Next, we come to the Dharma that is the Buddha's own practice, these
are the eight years during which he expounded the Dharma Flower Sutra.
This is the sutra that deals with the enlightenment to the original
mind. Because sentient beings can only habitually think in terms of
their minds and their dependent terrains as being in the midst of a
dream. The Buddha makes use of the words and language of the dream in
order to teach them about the original mind. Nevertheless, even though
the words may be those of the language of the dream, the intention is
to bring about an awareness of the original mind. This is what is inferred
in the text and the explanations of the Dharma Flower Sutra. If this
is not understood clearly you most certainly have a muddled vision of
the sutric text and its explanations. But since these gateways to the
dharma for the conversion of others from within the dream are also furnished
with the enlightenment to the original mind, they then become gateways
to the dharma in the sense of making use of this underlying truth. By
accepting that the teachings from within the dream are underlined by
an enlightened mind, then the forty-two years of gateways to the dharma
that were an expedient means for the instruction of those people within
the dream, were also governed by the enlightened mind of the Sutra on
the Lotus Flower of the Utterness of the Dharma, otherwise the dharma
would be non existent. This is what is referred to as clearing away
the provisional teachings so as to arrive at the Dharma Flower Sutra.
In the same way as all the running streams flow into the great sea.
In as much as the mind and the dharma of the Buddha is utterness as
well as the mind and the dharmas (things) of sentient beings is also utterness
and that both these two utternesses are what make our minds work, so
that outside of mind dharmas (things) do not exist at all. One's own mind, the
self existing fundamental pure mind and the fundamental make up of mind
are the three properties of the triple body of the Tathâgata of
the original enlightenment in our own bodies. This is expounded in the
sutra when it says, "Such an appearance [the corresponding body
of the Tathâgata], such a nature [the reward body of the Tathâgata],
such a reality [the dharma body of the Tathâgata]..." This
phrase is referred to as the three such qualities. These three such
qualities in the sense that they imply the Tathâgata of the original
enlightenment which means that the ten directions of the dharma realm
become the person and his reality, also the ten directions of the dharma
realm become the self existing fundamental pure mind and the ten directions
of the realms of dharmas (things) become the personal fine features of the Tathâgata
as well. It is on this account that what my role really amounts to is
the person and the reality of the triple body of the Tathâgata
of the original enlightenment. When it is expounded that the One Buddha
whose virtuous function is surrounded on all sides by the realms of
dharmas (things), then all those dharmas (things) are all the dharma of the Buddha. So
that connected to his throne are all the monks, nuns, male and female
devotees, devas, dragons, yasha, kendatsuba, ashura, kinnara and magoraka,
animals and even people outside the Buddha teaching without overlooking
a single being. All of them everywhere are scattered and hindered by
wild fantasies, hateful resentments and prejudiced thinking, but by
going back to the wakefulness of the original enlightenment they can
all attain the path of the Buddha. The Buddha is like a human who is
awake and a sentient being is like being a person in a dream. Therefore
when one wakes up from the aimlessness of the reverie about living and
dying and turns towards the wakefulness of the original enlightenment;
this is what is called opening up our inherent Buddha not being separate
from our persons just as they are, or the impartiality of the all embracing
wisdom, or that it is the dharma that does not differentiate or even
we can say that everything attains to the path of the Buddha. Nevertheless,
there is only one gateway to the dharma. Even though the Buddha lands
of the ten directions which mean that each and every individual being
and item with their respective one instant of thought containing three
thousand existential spaces; all may be divergently separated from each
other, it is the dharma of the one vehicle that pervades them all. By
the fact that there are no expedient means then there can be no discrimination
between one being or thing and another. Even though the sentient beings
of the ten realms of the dharmas (things) are in various ways different from
each other, since their real aspect has only one fundamental principle
there cannot be any differentiation between them. In spite of the hundred
realms of dharmas (things), the thousand such qualities and the three existential
spaces which are all distinct from each other, but because each of the
ten realms of the dharmas (things) are mutually endowed with the same ten realms,
there cannot be any discrimination between them. Be that as it may dreams,
wakefulness, absurdity and reality are separate concepts and therefore
different, but because they are all dharmas (things) of the oneness of mind they
cannot be picked out separately. Even though the past, present and future
are seen as three, but because of the fundamental basis of the ever
present now of the mind they cannot be set apart from each other.
The language in all the provisional sutras is worded with allusions
to what is familiar to us in the dream, such as fans and trees. But
the words that reveal the awakened mind of the Dharma Flower Sutra are
more likely to refer to the moon and the wind. Because in terms of the
awakened the mind of the original enlightenment, the light of the disk
of the full moon shines through the darkness of our unenlightenment
and the wind of the profound understanding of the wisdom of the real
aspect blows away the dust of our wild delusions.
The reason for this is that by means of the wording of the dream such
as holding up a fan so as to cover the layers of mountains that obscure
the full moon which is used as a metaphor for enlightenment, or a tree
that is blown by the winds of mind, people can be made aware of the
words 'moon' and 'wind' that stem from a mind that is awakened. In this
way their lingering memories of the dream are dispersed and they can
be turned back towards the wakefulness of the original mind. This is
why we have in the Universal Desistance from Troublesome Worries
in order to See Clearly, "A simile can be made by raising
a fan to show how the moon is hidden by layers of mountains and we can
teach people that trees are swayed by the wind because of the inexhaustibility
of the universal void." In the Broad Elucidation to Support
the Practice of the Universal Desistance from Troublesome Worries in
order to See Clearly it says, "the real eternal essence of
the moon is hidden by mountains of troublesome worries, because these
troublesome worries are not merely one so that they are referred to
as being in layers. When the transforming breeze of the teaching of
the perfect sound comes to a standstill it returns to its own silence.
The intrinsic nature of silence is without hindrance and is compatible
to the universal void. The four important principles on which the practitioner
relies are, (i) his practicing according to the Dharma and not according
to the person who expounds it, (ii) to practice according to its intended
significance and not just the words that are used, (iii) to practice
according to his inner wisdom and not according to his acquired knowledge,
and (iv) to practice according to the real aspect of the middle way
as it is expounded in the Sutra on the Inexhaustible Significance, these
four are all like the fan and the tree until the practitioner is able
to understand the moon and the wind." The doubled layers of overloading
troublesome worries are like mountains whose eighty-four thousand particles
of dust which pollute both body and mind as well as obscuring the moonlike
disk of the original enlightenment of the self existing fundamental
pure mind. By teaching sutras and making discourses that use words and
concepts like the fan and the tree, they become the holy doctrines that
make people perceive and become aware of the original enlightenment
as being something like the moon and the wind. Simply because the texts
and the words are metaphors like the fan and the tree. This explanation
I have just given you is one that is a superficial gloss and does not
entail the whole meaning.
The Utterness of the Dharma, which is, like the moon. Its perfect circle
is like the self existing pure mind and that the wind is like the discernment
of our own minds that teaches us to know the wisdom that is called the
Sutra on the Lotus Flower of the Utterness of the Dharma. It is on this
account that the Explanatory Notes on the Significance of the Dharma
Flower says, "In the search for the innermost of what sounds
and materiality really are, we arrived at the ultimate universal basis
of their being, which is devoid of any characteristics." This innermost
concept is like the fan and the tree in the sutras and discourses that
were discussed from within the dream. The ultimate universal basis being
without any trace of characteristics is like the moon and the wind,
which is the silence and illumination of the awakening of our persons
to the self-existing fundamental pure mind. This reward of ultimate
bliss for the individual sentient beings of the ten directions of the
realms of dharmas (things), combined with the objective reward for the abodes
and terrains of the realms of dharmas (things) of the ten directions, becomes
the one fundamental substance of the three bodies which are not separate
from the one. The four terrains of, (i) where common mortals and the
holy live together, (ii) the terrain of expedient means, (iii) the terrain
of the real reward, and (iv) the terrain of eternal silence and illumination
are not separate from each other nor are they separate places. They
are the dharma realms of the one Buddha. When the ten realms of dharmas (things)
become a single entity which is the dharma body, when the ten realms
become mind they are the reward body as the substantiation of the Buddha
wisdom and when the ten realms take on a form they become the corresponding
body. There is no Buddha outside the ten realms of dharmas (things). Apart from
the Buddha there are no ten realms of dharmas (things) other than the non-duality
of subjectivity and its dependent environment or the non-duality of
the body and its dependent terrain. By becoming the person and the substance
of the one Buddha is said to be the terrain of silence and illumination.
Because of this it is referred to as the ultimate intrinsicality which
is devoid of characteristics. By being separate from any indication
of the transiency of either coming into existence or ceasing to be,
it is therefore devoid of characteristics. The nature of the dharma
is the final ground of the unfathomable abyss of recondite meaning.
Hence the expression of it being the ultimate intrinsicality. This culmination
of the bliss of silence and illumination of the ultimate intrinsicality
is devoid of characteristics and is the immaculately pure essence of
mind which is outside the stream of transmigratory suffering. This is
also the property of all sentient beings. By giving this a name it is
the calyx which is the very heart of the Lotus Flower of the Utterness
of the Dharma.
As a result, by stating that there is no single dharma that stands apart
from those of mind. This is called the thorough perception and understanding
that all dharmas (things) are the Buddha dharma. The essential element of the
duality of life and death is that they are inherently the dream of living
and dying which is no more than a fantasy or a wild idea. But due to
an awareness of the original enlightenment we can see ourselves as the
self existing fundamental pure mind which can neither have a beginning
by coming into existence nor can it come to an end by dying. Then, is
this not already being separated from the cycles of lives and deaths?
Not to be incinerated by the conflagration at the end of a kalpa. Not
to be waterlogged and decompose in the waters of disaster. Not to be
cut through by a sword or be shot by a bow and arrow. Or even enter
a mustard seed without making it expand. The dharma mind does not shrink.
Even when it fills the spaceless void, the emptiness without space does
not become wider, nor does the dharma of the mind become less. The opposite
of good is said to be evil and the opposite of evil is said to be good.
This separation from either good or evil is described as being beyond
description. Outside this indescribability of good and evil there can
be no existence of mind. Because it is here where all the unreasonably
absurd verbosity of mental activity concerning good and evil, purity
and defilement, the common mortal and the holy man, both heaven and
earth as well as what is great and small or the four directions of east,
west, south and north including both the above and below cease to exist.
Even by taking into account and discerning what is mind in terms of
words and language, discrimination outside the mind does not exist.
Even if there are words that do not discriminate then they are said
to be the expression of a voice that echoes thoughts that are in the
mind. By being a common mortal my mind is bewildered through my lack
of understanding and I am not enlightened. The name of what the Buddha
reveals, what he is enlightened to, is called the reaches of the mind
of the Buddha. The reaches of the mind of the Buddha penetrate into
every single dharma without any hindrance. Yet these reaches of the
mind that are free from resistance are also in the possession of the
minds of each and every sentient being. Because even foxes and racoons
to some extent reveal their ability to see into things, every mind is
to some degree enlightened. So that a single dharma from the mind can
be extended until it arrives at its existential space of abode and terrain.
This is the content of what was taught during a lifetime of holy teaching
and is talked of as the eighty-four thousand repositories of the dharma
for dealing with the eighty-four thousand sorts of troublesome worries
of humankind [In ancient India the number of particles in the human
body was said to be 84,000]. These are gateways to the dharma that exist
everywhere throughout the human body. In that case then, these eighty-four
thousand repositories of the dharma are recorded chronicles of my person
as an individual. My mind is pregnant with and holds to with care these
eighty-four thousand repositories of the dharma. So that due to the
mind that is within my person, it would be a mental disorientation to
even think of seeking the Buddha, the dharma or the immaculate terrain
outside of myself. According to the karmic circumstances this mind encounters,
it comes up with and creates good or evil dharmas (things). In the Flower Garland
Sutra it says, "The mind is like a skilful master of painting who
depicts the different sorts of five aggregates which obscure our original
enlightenment such as, (i) our bodily forms and (ii) the sensations
they receive which make them (iii) conceive a world around them that
gives them (iv) the volition to act which in turn brings about (v) distorted
ways of seeing things. There is not a single dharma throughout all the
existential spaces that is not brought about by mind. Even the nature
of the Buddha is just the same as mind and the nature of sentient beings
is just the same as the Buddha. The three realms where sentient beings
have, (i) organs of sense as well as desires and needs, (ii) where there
is real physical contact and (iii) a realm where there is only mental
activity, are only the oneness of mind. There are no separate dharmas (things)
outside of mind and out of these three realms; there are no discrepancies
between mind, the Buddha and sentient beings." In the Sutra on
the Incalculable Significance it states, "The incalculable significance
is born out of the single dharma which is devoid of characteristics
and therefore does not characterize." This single dharma which
is devoid of characteristics and which does not characterize is the
one instant of mind of all sentient beings. The Textual Explanation
of the Dharma Flower makes this clearer by saying, "Because
the transiency of coming into being and ceasing to exist has no distinctive
mark it is said to be devoid of characteristics. Since it is separate
from the two nirvanas of those people of the two vehicles who have a
remainder of karma to fulfill and those whose remains of karma are completely
ended, it is ascribed as being devoid of characteristics." Mind
by being imponderably indescribable becomes the pivotal implication
of the sutras and discourses and our enlightenment to and our understanding
of this oneness of mind is called the Tathâgata. After we have
become aware of this as well as understanding it, the ten realms of
dharmas (things) become our persons, our minds and the way we look. The Originally
Enlightened Tathâgata becomes our persons and our minds, but when
we are unable to comprehend this it is called unenlightenment. The word
unenlightenment is to be read in the sense of the absence of an illuminating
quality or that we do not experience mind just as it is as being light.
When we become enlightened we then understand mind as being the nature
of the dharma. Thus we have both unenlightenment and the nature of the
dharma as separate names for the oneness of mind and even though these
concepts are different there is only the single oneness of mind. Therefore
it is not our unenlightenment that we have to cut off, otherwise by
cutting off the lack of clarity of the mind in the dream we could lose
the mind of the enlightenment. Generally speaking the intended meaning
of the all-inclusive teaching is that there is no need to cut off the
tiniest hair of unenlightenment, since it is said that all dharmas (things) are
those of the dharma of the Buddha.
In the Dharma Flower Sutra it says, "such an appearance" [The
thirty-two marks and eight signs of the physical bodies of all sentient
beings are the corresponding body of the Originally Enlightened Tathâgata],
"such a nature" [The self existing fundamental pure mind of
all sentient beings is the reward body of the Originally Enlightened
Tathâgata], "such a fundamental substance" [The person
and the reality of all sentient beings is the dharma body of the Originally
Enlightened Tathâgata]. After these three such qualities come
seven more such qualities which all together add up to ten. These ten
such qualities become the ten realms of dharmas (things). These ten realms of
dharmas (things) become the eighty-four thousand gateways to the dharma that
emerge from the mind of one person alone. [In the teaching of Shakyamuni
the human body is made up of eighty-four thousand basic elements and
the reward or wisdom body of a Buddha has the same number of distinguishing
marks and signs. There are also eighty-four thousand Buddha teachings
as a cure for the eighty-four thousand mortal sufferings]. In this way
we can take one person as an example of the sameness of all sentient
beings. All the Buddhas of the past, present and future, after collating
the layers of profundities of their teachings ratified the texts by
putting their seal of infallible judgment upon them. The judgment of
the Buddha is the seal that is the sign of the real aspect (myôhô
renge kyô). To put one's seal upon something is another way
of saying 'to decide'. All those sutras that do not have the seal of
their being the real aspect are those texts that were not ratified and
are completely devoid of the real Buddha. By there being no real Buddha
they become texts from out of the midst of the dream. Therefore, there
cannot be an immaculate terrain. Even though there are ten of the ten
realms of dharmas (things) there is only one sequence of the ten such qualities.
In the same way as there are uncountable reflections of the moon on
water but only one in the open sky. Because the ten such qualities of
the nine realms of dharmas (things) are the ten such qualities from out of the
midst of the dream they are like the reflection of the moon in water.
But because the ten such qualities of the realm of the Buddha dharma
are those of being enlightened to the original enlightenment they are
like the moon in the open sky. The reason being that when the one sequence
of the ten such qualities was revealed, the nine realms of dharmas (things) were
still like the moon reflected in the water. Yet without leaving a single
item out. Everything came to light simultaneously as a single wholeness
of the fundamental substance and its bodily function of the one embodiment
of the Buddha. Each of the ten realms of dharmas (things) by being mutually endowed
with the same ten realms, so that the sentient beings of these ten realms
are all equal, regardless as to whether they belong to the original
moon in the open sky and are those that are its reflection in the water,
each and every individual is fully furnished with the mutual possession
of the ten realms of dharmas (things) without any deficiency whatsoever. Therefore,
in the ten such qualities there is an ultimate superlative that equally
runs from the original to the final of the other ten such qualities
without discrimination. The 'original' are the ten such qualities of
ordinary sentient beings, the 'final' are the ten such qualities of
All the Buddhas. Since All the Buddhas emerge from the one instant of
thought of the minds of sentient beings, sentient beings are the origin,
whereas All the Buddhas are the finality. Just as it says in the Sutra,
"All three of these realms, (i) where sentient beings have organs
of sense as well as desires and needs, (ii) where there is real physical
contact and (iii) a realm where there is only mental activity, are where
I happen to be and all the sentient beings everywhere within them are
my children." The Buddha Shakyamuni's attainment to the path was
in order to be able to convert others so that while he was proclaiming
his attainment to the path, in the dimension of time and space of the
dream of living and dying, he was also able to expound his awakening
to the original enlightenment. This is expounded in the Chapter on the
Life Span of the Tathâgata as the father being a metaphor for
wisdom and discernment and the children as a simile for foolish stupidity.
Even though sentient beings may be themselves the ten such qualities
of the original enlightenment, but in an instant the slumber of unenlightenment
can overturn their minds, making them slip into the dream of living
and dying, and forgetting their universal foundation of the original
enlightenment. As clearly as a parting combed in black oiled hair they
will witness a hollow dream about past, present and future. Since it
is the Buddha who is enlightened, he enters into their dream so as to
shake up the dreamers with his wisdom. In the dream the Buddha takes
on the role of being a parent and we, who are within the dream, are
the children. It is in this sense that the Buddha said, "All sentient
beings everywhere are my children." If we think about and understand
the reasoning that even though, it is we who are the sentient beings
and All the Buddhas are the 'origin' [in the sense of there being 'such
an appearance to such a requital, all these nine such qualities (nyoze)
are equally the ultimate dimension of the real aspect of all dharmas (things).
Here the word first must be understood as the original enlightenment.]
But we are still father and child on account of the [finality which
refers to the last of the other nine qualities'. This implies that since
both father 'all the Buddhas' and the children, who are all sentient
beings, by being originally enlightened can finally open up their inherent
Buddha nature.] Therefore, in accordance with this we have to maintain
that there is no difference between our own minds and that of the Buddha.
When we wake up from the dream of living and dying we return to the
awakening of the original enlightenment. This is what is referred to
as becoming a Buddha not being separate from our persons just as they
are. To become a Buddha, with our persons just as they are, refers to
our heavenly nature and earthly bodies of who we are now. To be without
troubles and obstacles is the fortune of sentient beings which is also
a fruition and reward surreptitiously added.
Taking this into consideration, the time when we are dreaming is a metaphor
for our minds being bewildered and when we are awake is another metaphor
for our minds being enlightened. Now, if we are awakened and enlightened,
we look back at a vacant dream which has no aftermath, but has left
the mind so anguished that we become bathed in rivulets of sweat. But
on being startled awake we find neither our person nor our home nor
even our bed is without any difference from what it was, also they are
all in the same place. Even though the mind may think and the eye may
see both the unreality of the dream and the reality of being awakened
as two separate facts, there is only the one place where they occur
and only one person who is in possession of both the real and the unreal.
You must be aware that there is no discrepancy between our own minds
that see the dream about living and dying, which belongs to the nine
realms of dharmas (things), and the enlightened mind of the dharma realm of the
Buddha that dwells in eternity. There is no change as to where the dream
about living and dying in the nine realms of dharmas (things) or as to where
the awakening to the eternally abiding Buddha realm takes place, nor
is there any differentiation between the mind and the dharmas (things) it perceives
and even though there is no change of place as to where these events
happen, all dreams are vacant happenings and all awakenings are that
which is real. In the Universal Desistance from Troublesome Worries
in order to See Clearly it says, "A long time ago there was
a person called Sôshû [Zhuangzi, c.fourth century
BCE] who dreamed that he had turned into a butterfly for a period of
a hundred years during which he suffered a great deal and had very little
joy. Bathed in perspiration, he woke up with a start to find that he
had not become a butterfly, nor had a hundred years gone by. Both the
suffering ceased to exist as well as the joy. All of this turned out
to be a vacant happening and simply a wild fantasy." In the Broad
Elucidation of the Desistance from Troublesome Worries of Myôraku,
"The butterfly in the dream is analogous to unenlightenment and
the hundred years are a simile for the one instant of thought containing
three thousand existential spaces. Therefore, if the one instant of
thought is non existent then so is the butterfly, and as the three thousand
existential spaces do not exist then the non existent years cannot accumulate."
This explanation is evidence of a person having opened up his inherent
Buddha nature with his person just as it is. When Sôshû
became a butterfly in the dream it was not different from Sôshû
himself. When he woke up and discovered he was no longer a butterfly
it was not another Sôshû. When I think of myself as a common
mortal bound to the cycle of living and dying then I have become like
the butterfly in the dream with a distorted way of seeing things and
a foolish way of thinking. But when I think of myself as the original
awakened Tathâgata, I become like the original Sôshû
whose becoming a Buddha was not separate from his person just as it
was. It was not by having the body of a butterfly that he did not become
a Buddha, but by thinking that he was a butterfly which is nonsense
and furthermore, there is no mention of his becoming a Buddha. The real
story of Sôshû is somewhat different. If you understand
that being unenlightened is like the butterfly of the dream, then our
misguided thinking is still like the dream we had yesterday which being
without any fundamental essence or substance was just a delusion. Anybody
can believe in and accept the vacant dream about living and dying, but
why do people have doubts about the infinite oneness of the Buddha nature?
This is pointed out in the Universal Desistance from Troublesome
Worries in order to See Clearly where it says, "The origin
of our perplexity through being misled by the appearances that stem
from our unenlightenment is in actual fact the dharma nature, because
when we become misled by appearances and get confused, the dharma nature
itself becomes our unenlightenment which brings about all the reversals
and inversions of what is good and not good. Just as when the icy cold
comes along the water freezes andturns into ice, also it is like when
we fall asleep all sorts of dreams arise due to the mind's cogitations.
But in actual fact, all our mad delusions are nothing but the dharma
nature and you must bear in mind that they are not different and yet
they are not one. Even though the topsy-turvy appearance and disappearances
of phenomena and events are like the illusory wheel of fire, you should
not take them for real but believe that they are only the dharma nature.
The appearance of phenomena and events are the appearances of the dharma
nature, the disappearances of phenomena and events are the disappearances
of the dharma nature. By bearing this in mind it can be said that nothing
comes into being nor does anything cease to exist; they are all delusions.
Whatever one points to wherever it may be, it is only a delusion which
is really the dharma nature. It is on account of the dharma nature that
our dharma nature is pulled along on a leash, it is also due to the
dharma nature that we bear the instant of the dharma nature in mind.
The dharma nature is eternity and without the dharma nature time does
not exist." Thus we have in the dharma nature whose intrinsicality
is devoid of even the tiniest flash of time, then suddenly we are bewildered
by a dream like that of the butterfly which our unenlightenment makes
us think it is really happening.
In the ninth fascicle of the Universal Desistance from Troublesome
Worries in order to See Clearly it says, "For instance, whilst
the dharma of slumber overshadows the one instant of mind, it is like
living in a dream about what goes on in uncountable eons." The
text continues until, "What would be the next stage after the suchness
of the silence and extinction of Nirvana. All beings are inseparable
from the infinite oneness of the Buddha nature." Then the text
continues until, "Moreover would they not be extinguished into
the nothingness of Nirvana? What is the next stage after high, low,
universal or lesser. Even though it is not possible to discuss as to
whether something that does not come into being does not exist, but
on account of the fact that the causes and karmic circumstances do exist
we have to talk about it. The doctrine of the chain of ten of the causes
and karmic circumstances that run through the whole of sentient existence
which are (i) a fundamental unenlightenment which leads to the (ii)
dispositions that are inherited from former lives, (iii) the first consciousness
after conception takes place in the womb, (iv) body and mind evolving
in the womb, (v) the five organs of sense and the functioning of mind,
(vi) contact with the outside world, (vii) receptivity or budding intelligence
and discrimination from six to seven years onwards, (viii) thirst, desire
for love at the age of puberty, (ix) the urge of sensuous existence
that forms (x) the substance of future karma. This chain represents
the causes of one's being alive. All this is rather like planting the
seed of a tree as an expedient means to describe the emptiness without
space. It only discusses all the stages that bring about our lives."
The requital on subjectivity and dependent environment of the ten realms
of dharmas (things) is the dharma body of the Buddha, one has to be thoroughly
acquainted with and completely understand that the one fundamental substance
is the virtue of the three bodies of the Tathâgata and that all
dharmas (things) are those of the dharma of the Buddha. This is called the inseparability
of the Buddha nature from its name and ideograms Nam myôhô
renge kyô. Since the inseparability of the Buddha nature
from its name and ideograms has the implication of becoming a Buddha
is not separate from our persons just as we are, then this is an immediate
all-inclusive teaching which does not pass from one stage to the next.
This is why it says in the Explanatory Notes on the Recondite Significance
of the Dharma Flower, "Many scholars of the final era of the
dharma of Shakyamuni are in the habit of disputing and quarreling in
order to break down the arguments of the sutras and discourses as simply
being an expedient means. Even though the water has become freezing
cold, if you do not drink it then how can you know it to be so?"
Tendai argues this point by saying, "The Sutra on the Benevolent
King and the Flower Garland Sutra are a means to enmesh sentient beings
into, and save them through the practice of the dharma through gradual
ascending stages. The way to dispute and overcome refutations is through
the Sutra on the Universal Wisdom that Carries Beings over to the Shore
of Nirvana and the Universal Discourse on the Wisdom that Carries Beings
over to the Shore of Nirvana." The Sutra of the Benevolent King,
the Garland Flower Sutra, the Sutra on the Universal Wisdom that
Carries Beings over to the Shore of Nirvana as well as Ryûju's
Universal Discourse are all sutras and discourses that belong
to the three receptacles or the interrelated teachings or the particular
teaching which were taught either directly or gradually or esoterically
or in various ways, all of which came prior to the Dharma Flower Sutra.
Now, since the Dharma Flower transcends the provisional doctrines mentioned
above, by being all-inclusive and speedily brings people to become Buddhas
through pointing out the fact that mind, sentient beings and the Buddha
are all present in a single instant of mind outside of which there is
nothing. At least a practitioner of lesser propensities within even
a single lifetime can arrive at the stage of being enlightened to utterness
[myôgaku]. If we go by the principle that the singularity
of one cannot be separated from the rest of the universe, then each
one of the fifty-two stages in the process of becoming a Buddha is fully
endowed with the other fifty-one because they are all inserted in the
oneness of a lifetime. If it is thus for those people of lesser propensities,
then why should it not be so for those of either medium or superior
capabilities? There are no other dharmas (things) outside the real aspect of
all dharmas (things), which is Myôhô renge kyô and
because the real aspect has no consecutive order there cannot be any
stages. Talking in general terms, the lifetime of holy teaching was
due to the one person who knew the fundamental substance of our persons
completely and thoroughly. This person who is enlightened to all this
is called the Buddha; the person who is confused about all this is a
sentient being. This is implied in the text of the Flower Garland Sutra.
In the sixth fascicle of the Broad Elucidation of Myôraku
it says, "We know that this body is a detailed emulation of heaven
and earth, we know the head to be round in the same way as the heavens
and our feet are square just like the earth. Inside our bodies there
are hollows and cavities which conform to empty space. The warmth of
the stomach is modeled after the spring and summer. The rigid toughness
of the back is a metaphor for autumn and winter. The four limbs are
patterned after the four seasons. The twelve major joints are likened
to the twelve months and the three hundred and sixty lesser joints are
comparable to the three hundred and sixty days of the lunar year. The
breath that passes in and out of the nose is modeled after the wind
that blows down from the mountains, over the marshes and into the valleys
and dales. The respiration that passes through the mouth is like the
wind blowing through empty space. The eyes are like the sun and moon;
their opening and shutting can be compared to day and night. The hair
on the head is modeled after the heavenly bodies in the sky. The eyebrows
are fashioned after the constellations around the Pole Star. The veins
and arteries are like the rivers and estuaries. The bones epitomize
precious minerals and rocks. The skin and flesh are like the soil on
the ground. Hair on the body can be like the grass and woods. The heart,
lungs, spleen, liver and kidneys are analogous to the Pole Star, Venus,
Mars, Jupiter and Saturn in the heavens or the Five Great Peaks of China
on Earth [Taisan (Taishan in Shandong), Kôsan (Hengshan in Hunan),
Kasan (Huashan in Shanxi), Kôsan (Hengshan in Hebei) and Sûsan
(Songshan in Henan)]. What is contained within yin and yang can be correlated
with the five elements of water, fire, wood, metal and earth. What is
contained in the external world can be seen as a parallel to the five
constant rules of conduct which are benevolence, righteousness, propriety,
wisdom and sincerity. What the world contains on the inside is comparable
to the five components of the mind. These are the animus, anima, and
mentation, will and supernatural powers. The cultivation of oneself
in living according to established principles is in conformity with
the five Confucian virtues of being good-natured, respectful, unwasteful
and polite. To control evil there are five befitting punishments. These
are to carve a large mark on the forehead and smear it with ink, cutting
off the nose, amputation of the feet, castration and the death penalty.
(These five punishments are to cause the culprits varying degrees of
pain. Such painful castigations amount to three thousand but are still
referred to as the five punishments). Those in control are the five
regulators of the bodily functions. They are called Kobo, Shukyu, Jokushu,
Genmei and Kôdo. This is quoted from the eighth fascicle of the
Compendium of Natural History. Ascending to the heavens they
are called the five clouds. On transformation they become the five dragons.
The heart becomes the Vermilion Sparrow, the liver becomes the Cerulean
Dragon, the lungs become the White Tiger and the spleen becomes the
Arched Battle Formation."
Myôraku then goes on to say, "The five notes of the musical
scale, which correspond to earth, wind, wood, fire and water. The five
sciences of India, grammar and composition, the arts and mathematics,
logic and philosophy as well as the six Confucian arts of propriety,
music, archery, charioteering and numerology all are derived from this.
Furthermore, you should get to know the teachings of governing the inner
self. You must be thoroughly aware that by becoming a universal sovereign
inwardly, you dwell in a hundred different homes, on the outside the
five regulators of the bodily functions await in attendance like guardsmen.
The lungs become the minister of war, the liver becomes the minister
of public instruction, the spleen becomes the minister of public works,
the four limbs become the filial populace (those on the left control
the way we live and the limbs on the right keep a record of what we
do with our lives). Our human life and destiny is the supreme commander,
until we arrive at the navel, which is the Supreme First Prince. The
meditational gateways to the dharma make this doctrinal point abundantly
clear." If you examine in detail all that goes into the make up
of our human bodies, then this is what they are. However it is on account
of this indestructible vajra body of ours that we misconstrue ourselves
to be transient with our coming into being and being extinguished. This
is explained by the metaphor of Sôshû becoming a butterfly
in his dream. The five elements are earth, water, fire, wind and relativity
[kû]. The seeds of the universe are these five; whether
they be referred to as the five aggregates or the five shadows that
smother our awakening to the original enlightenment, (i) bodily form,
matter, the physical form related to the five organs of sense, (ii)
reception of sensations and feelings, the functioning of the mind in
connection with affairs and things, (iii) conception, thought discerning,
the function of the mind in distinguishing, (iv) the functioning of
the mind in its process with regards to likes and dislikes, good and
evil, etc., etc., (v) the mental faculty that makes us think of who
we are on account of what we have stored in our minds. Or the five precepts
of the monks of the individual vehicle of not killing, not stealing,
not having sex, not to make up stories and not to drink alcohol. In
these we have the five Confucianist constant rules of conduct, benevolence,
righteousness, propriety, wisdom and sincerity and even the directions
of north, south, east and west and the centre. In addition to these
there are the fivefold wisdom of the Shingon school, (i) the wisdom
of knowing that the dharma realm consists of water, fire, wind, relativity
and knowledge, (ii) the wisdom of knowing that the manifestations of
dharmas (things) are like reflections in a mirror, (iii) the wisdom of perceiving
that all dharmas (things) are fundamentally without distinction and are equal,
(iv) the wisdom of the exquisitely ineffable perception that sees the
propensities of all beings and the ability to destroy their doubts and
(v) the wisdom of continually being able to create good karma for oneself
and for others. Also there are the five doctrinal periods of the teachings
that Shakyamuni taught throughout his lifetime which are, (i) the period
of the Flower Garland Sutra, (ii) that of the Three Receptacles, (iii)
the stage of the Interrelated Teachings, (iv) the Wisdom [Prajñâ]
Teachings and finally (v) the period of the Dharma Flower and Nirvana
Sutras. This fivesome implies only one thing but there are various explanations
throughout the sutras also the doctrines outside and within the Buddha
teaching that have different names and designations for it. With the
present Sutra those other fivesomes are cleared away, in the center
of the minds of all sentient beings there are the five Buddha natures,
which mean that (i) the Buddha nature is a direct cause for enlightenment.
All things, all beings and all events are inherently and infinitely
endowed with this fundamental Buddha nature, (ii) the enlightening or
revealing cause which is associated with the Buddha wisdom, (iii) the
revelation of the Buddha nature that is brought about by the karmic
circumstances of practice, (iv) the fruition of the Buddha nature which
is enlightenment and (v) the fruition of enlightenment which is the
substantiation of Nirvana. These five are explained as being the seeds
of the Tathâgatas of the five wisdoms. These are the five ideograms
for Myôhô renge kyô, the Sutra on the Lotus
Flower of the Utterness of the Dharma. The make up of the fundamental
substance of the human body consists of those five ideograms which are
originally existing and eternal, they are the Tathâgata of the
Original Enlightenment and also the ten such qualities. This is what
is referred to as 'only between Buddha and Buddha can the real aspect
of all dharmas (things) indeed be exhaustively fathomed'. This is a gateway to
the dharma, the vertical threads of the sutra through which the threads
of the simultaneousness of cause and effect of the utterness of all
existence are woven, which even the bodhisattvas, who will never give
up practicing or the people of the two vehicles who have attained to
the superlative fruition, know very little about. Yet this is known
to the ordinary person with the initial determination to seek enlightenment
through the immediate and all-inclusive teaching. This is because he
has become a Buddha with his person just as it is and that its fundamental
substance is the indestructible vajra. This is something you should
understand very clearly.
If the heavens were to fall apart my person would break into pieces
also, if the earth were to split wide open then my person would do the
same. If the earth, water, fire and wind were to be annihilated then
my person would also be extinguished. However, even though the five
universal elements of earth, water, fire, wind and relativity [kû]
are subject to the temporal changes of past, present and future, these
five universal elements do not change at all. Although the correct,
formal and final phases of the dharma are three separate periods, these
five universal elements by being the basic building blocks of existence
are devoid of any growth, decline, change or modification. It says in
the eighteenth fascicle of the Textual Explanation of the Dharma
Flower which deals with the Chapter on the Metaphor of the Medicinal
Herbs, that the principle of the all-inclusive teaching is the great
earth and it is the all-inclusive teaching that is the rain from the
sky which brings about our enlightenment. [It is in the Chapter on the
Medicinal Herbs where a comparison is made between the five vehicles
to the three plants and the two trees. Out of the three plants of three
different heights of which the lowest represents the vehicle for men
and devas, the middle height stands for the vehicle of the people of
the two vehicles and the tallest for the vehicle of the bodhisattvas
of the doctrine of the three receptacles, then there are the two trees
of which the less tall represents the bodhisattvas of the interrelated
teachings and the taller signifies the vehicle for the bodhisattvas
of the particular teaching and the tallest signifies the vehicle for
the bodhisattvas of the all-inclusive teaching.] These plants and trees
grow out of the great earth of the principle of the all-inclusive teaching
and are nourished by the rain from the sky of the all-inclusive teaching
that directly brings about enlightenment. Which makes those plants and
trees of the five vehicles flourish. Because the hearers of the voice
of the Buddha and those who were awakened by themselves due to karmic
affinities as well as the bodhisattvas of the particular, the interrelated
and the three receptacles teachings unwittingly assumed that their well
being was due to the sky and the earth, the Buddha drew the comparison
between them and plants and trees. But because of the kindness of the
Buddha, these people are alluded to as insensitive plants. Ever since
the outset of the Dharma Flower, the plants and the trees that represent
the people of the five vehicles got to know the theory of the all-inclusive
teaching which is their mother and their father who bring about an enlightenment,
directly.
Because those, which grow on the one and only earth, are those who know
a mother's love and those that are moistened by the single rain know
the loving kindness of a father. This is the intended meaning of the
Fifth Chapter on the Metaphor of the Medicinal Herbs.
Prior to a period of time that would be equal to the amount of grains
of dust that go into the making of five hundred kalpas when the Tathâgata
Shakyamuni could only have been a common mortal, he became aware that
his person consisted of earth, water, fire, wind and relativity [kû].
At that every instant just where he was seated his inherent enlightenment
was clearly revealed. Later in order to convert others he got himself
born into the world. From one consecutive lifetime after another he
attained to the path and in every place he was born he revealed the
eight aspects of the lifetime of a Buddha [(i) the descent from the
Tosotsu [Tushita] heaven, (ii) entry into the womb, (iii) birth,
(iv) leaving home, (v) the subjection of evil, (vi) the attainment to
perfect enlightenment, (vii) preaching the dharma and (viii) entering
Nirvana]. Each time he was born into a royal palace and after attaining
to the path under the bodhi tree, he knew by insight that he must set
about finding a way to make sentient beings become Buddhas. For forty
years he led people on through the benefit of teachings that were an
expedient means. Afterwards he renounced all the sutras that were an
expedient means and revealed the theoretical discourse of the seeds
of the Tathâgata of the fivefold wisdom of Myôhô
renge kyô, the Sutra on the Lotus Flower of the Utterness
of the Dharma, which rounded off the forty-two years of sutras that
were an expedient means. Then he was able to introduce the single Buddha
vehicle. This is referred to as the dharma of the oneness of humankind
and the original Buddha. It is the dharma that concerns just one person.
Without further embroidery by other people the correct text of Nam Myôhô
Renge Kyô was a drawn up, it was ratified by having a seal pressed
down upon it. Then when the text of the doctrinal inheritance of all
the Buddhas of the past, present and future that was passed on from
the original Shakyamuni, throughout the empty space that involves three
thousands of three hundred millions of the nayuta abodes and terrains,
so that these abodes and terrains were crammed so full of this text
that finally it was stroking the crowns of the heads of many of the
bodhisattvas. The time that was indicated was the recently arrived period
of the final phase of the dharma in order that sentient beings such
as we should definitely be made to hear its message. On account of the
fact that the letter that was handed down from the Buddha to be conferred
upon the sentient beings of the final era. The same words of the text
were then ceremoniously repeated three times over. Thereupon an inexhaustible
number of bodhisattvas bowed and prostrated themselves and on their
repetition of the same words thrice, the Buddha graciously replied,
"you are not less than I." The Buddha having set his mind
at rest returned to the capital of the original enlightenment. All the
Buddhas of the past, present and future expounded the teaching of how
the ceremony was carried out, it was a document that had exactly the
same wording and indicated that it was to be handed down in the final
era of the dharma of Shakyamuni. Indeed, the letter handed down was
apparently the textual proof of the doctrinal inheritance that pointed
toward the fifth five hundred years period as being the time when sentient
beings must become Buddhas through reciting Nam Myôhô
renge kyô, the consecration and founding of our life on the
Sutra on the Lotus Flower of the Utterness of the Dharma.
It is expounded and established in the Chapter on Practicing with Peace
and Joy that in the present time of the final phase of the dharma of
Shakyamuni, any common mortal who has made up his mind to become enlightened
through observing the practice of the Dharma Flower Sutra will be able
to become a Buddha. They will do the three practices for the karma of
the body, the mouth and that of the mind in peace and joy. Also they
will practice with the same peace and joy of holding to their universal
vow for the conversion of others as well as the wish that the dharma
shall not become extinct in the time of the final age which was to come.
This is the period that is at hand. Furthermore, there is the foretold
topic (of the self received reward body that is used by the Tathâgata
of the primordial infinity of the original beginning who is Nichiren
Daishônin who is also not separate from the dharma body of the
Fundamental Object of Veneration of the oneness of the person and his
dharma). Two references to this are discussed in the Chapter on the
Original Practice of the Bodhisattva Yakuô and there are two more
references in the Chapter on the Compelling Inspiration of the Bodhisattva
Fugen. All these particular points that have been handed down refer
to recent times. Other people have ignored the correct teaching and
have attached their mundane commentaries to them. The testament inherited
from all the Buddhas of the past, present and future has been entrusted
to stupidly foolish minds who contradict it in such a way that should
the dharma of the Buddha be brushed aside, then how desperately regretful
and how lamentably sad it would be for All those Buddhas of the past,
present and future. In the Sutra on the Buddha's Passing over to Nirvana
it says, "It should be according to the dharma and not according
to the person who teaches it." It is indeed painful and it is indeed
sad that the scholars of the final era who through the work on their
studies devastate the dharma of the Buddha. It is unhappily pointed
out in the Broad Elucidation, "They listen to this all-inclusive
teaching which brings about an immediate enlightenment without any reverence
or giving it any weight, which is due to the arbitrary confusion of
those who have studied the universal vehicle in recent years. It is
needless to say that the inadequate, threadbare and muddied faith of
the scholars of the formal period of the dharma, who gradually ceased
to think about the all-inclusive teaching that brings about a direct
enlightenment, even though its repository was full to overflowing. In
the end their eyes were clouded over, they lived their lives in vain
and died useless deaths, so that in the long run, what was all their
suffering about?" In the fourth fascicle of the same work it goes
on to say, "Apparently the fundamental common mortal is sustained
by the all-embracing teaching that directly brings about enlightenment.
How could it be that the Buddha did not intend to benefit ordinary people?
Or the Buddha whose person is the dharma nature and who dwells in the
dharma nature, how could he not expound to all the bodhisattvas this
all-inclusive direct teaching that does not hold back the truth? Why
did the Buddha reveal himself as an ordinary person to all those bodhisattvas
who had cut off their troublesome worries and who were able to reveal
something of their own Buddha nature? Also was it necessary for the
Buddha to be manifest in the three realms (i) where sentient beings
have organs of sense as well as desires, (ii) where there is real physical
contact and the realms (iii) where there is only mental activity?’
The text continues until, ‘Since the oneness of mind is omnipresent
this is the concept that we must cultivate and practice." What
this amounts to is that if our individual minds and that of the Buddha
are seen as a oneness, then we should be able to quickly become aware
that our inherent Buddha nature is not separate from who we are now.
This is why it says in the Broad Elucidation, "Since the
mind of All the Buddhas, our individual minds and the mind of enlightenment
are considered to be in no way different from each other, is the reason
why all beings become Buddhas." This is what is referred to as
contemplating the mind, so that even if we really become awakened to
the fact that our own minds and that of the Buddha are the oneness of
mind, then, if we have to be obstructed by the moment of death being
pressed upon us, there will probably be no bad karma and if we are forced
into the cycles of living and dying again they will probably be no more
than a series of illusory thoughts. If we know that all dharmas (things) are
the Buddha dharma, then there is no need for an acquaintance who would
stimulate our minds to greater wisdom or give us instruction. Because
in spite of what people may think, whatever people may say, whatever
people may do or however they may behave or even the four respect inspiring
forms of behaviour which are walking, standing, sitting and lying are
all actions of a single fundamental substance that is at one with the
mind of the Buddha whose person is without a blemish or hindrance and
is free from all resistance. This is referred to as the personal practice
of the Buddha who teaches the dharma in conformity with his own enlightenment.
On the other hand by rejecting this independent freedom that is the
personal practice of the Buddha who taught the dharma according to his
own enlightenment, we would find ourselves living in a twisted mind
of ignorant and deluded thoughts. By having turned our backs on the
teaching and instruction of All the Buddhas of the past, present and
future we pass from one lightlessness to the next in a long drawn out
repudiation of the Buddha dharma which is a very sad state of affairs
indeed. Now, at this moment if you are earnestly thinking of turning
back in order to restore your original enlightenment, you should realize
that outside of our own persons there is no way of becoming aware of
our inherent Buddha nature.
Although the mirror of our minds and the mirror of the mind of the Buddha
are one and the same, when we look at the back of the mirror we are
unable to discern the principle of our own natures, this is why we call
it unenlightenment. But the Tathâgata on looking at the front
of the mirror can see what the principle of that nature is. This is
because both enlightenment and unenlightenment are the oneness of the
mirror. There is only one mirror of the mind but the difference is made
through our looking at it with either common sense or stupidity. Whatever
there may be at the back of the mirror there is nothing to prevent us
from looking at the front of it. It is only the way we look at the mirror
that brings about the duality of whether we see things in it or not.
Since all life experiences are of a single fundamental substance, all
our life experiences are a continuity without any barriers but there
is the single dharma with its two implications. By practicing the gateways
to the dharma that were taught by Shakyamuni for the salvation of others
is comparable to looking at the back of the mirror. But the mirror of
the contemplation of the mind of the Buddha who taught the dharma in
conformity with his own enlightenment is like looking in front of the
mirror. Whether it be at the time of the teachings for the salvation
of others or the Buddha's teaching in accordance with his own enlightenment,
there is no change in the singularity of the mirror that is the nature
of our minds. The mirror is a metaphor for our persons. When we look
in front of the mirror we become Buddhas, when we look at the back of
it we are just sentient beings. Looking at the back of the mirror is
a metaphor for getting rid of our evil natures, looking at the back
of the mirror does not have the virtues of looking in front of it and
is similar to the meritorious virtues of the teachings that were for
the conversion of others and their incapability to reveal the Buddha
nature in sentient beings.
What one attains or does not realize through either the teaching of
the Buddha’s personal practice which he expounded in conformity
with his own enlightenment or those doctrines that were taught for the
conversion of others is a matter of the potential and effectiveness
of the teachings in question. In the first fascicle of the Recondite
Significance of the Dharma Flower it says, "If we are to give
a definition of Sarubashitta's (Sarvasiddhârtha) [a former
incarnation of Shakyamuni] drawing the bow of his royal ancestors to
its fullest extent, it would be 'strength.' Then when the arrow went
straight through seven iron drums, piercing through the iron range of
mountains that surround Mount Sumeru and then right on through the disk
of the earth until it was caught up in the wheel of water that supports
the world, this would have to be defined as effect. Here we have the
strength and the effect of the Buddha's own practice. The strength and
effect of the teachings that are an expedient means are those whose
strength and effect are as weak as the bows and arrows used by common
mortals. Whatever karmic relationship you had in the past with the two
wisdoms of the teachings that were for the conversion of others, (i)
wisdom as an expedient means that the Buddha used in teaching his dharma
in varying stages to the sentient beings of the nine realms of dharmas (things),
(ii) the real wisdom of the underlying principle of all existence which
is the ten such qualities and the ten realms of dharmas (things). However not
only was this principle incapable of explaining the whole of existence
[because the three existential realms had not yet been included]. Hence
these doctrines generated a faith that was not deep and the remaining
doubts about these teachings were never ending. [The above refers to
the teachings that were for the transformation of others]. Now that
you have a karmic relationship with the two wisdoms of the practice
of the Tathâgata who taught his dharma in conformity with his
own enlightenment, (i) the wisdom of being able to teach sentient beings
according to their capacities in order to lead them to the truth and
(ii) the wisdom of the real aspect of all dharmas (things) which is the ultimate
truth of the Buddha teaching, you are decidedly within the karmically
determined environment of the Buddha, your faith will increase on its
way to become all-inclusive and utter. You will reject your fundamental
bewilderments and your whole life will be free from the suffering of
the alternations of living, dying and the six paths of sentient existence.
However, not only will you have the two advantages of being a bodhisattva
who is born with a body of flesh but also of having been born with a
body of flesh that has attained the patience through the dharma to withstand
the delusions of unenlightenment, furthermore you will have the two
advantages of being both a bodhisattva whose entity is the dharma who
has rejected a part of his troublesome worries and is able to reveal
something of his Buddha nature but also you will be a bodhisattva who
has finally attained an enlightenment that is universally equal. The
merits of your conversion will be vastly beneficial, enriching and as
broad as they are deep, after all this is the strength and effect of
the Dharma Flower Sutra." [The above quotation refers to the personal
practice of the Buddha who taught the dharma in conformity with his
own enlightenment.]
Obviously, the one that has the greater potential and efficacy out of
either the teaching of the personal practice of the Buddha or the doctrine
that the Tathâgata expounded for the conversion of others is blatantly
clear. You should think about this very carefully. The teaching of the
personal practice of the Tathâgata is the quintessence of his
intentions. The culmination of the karmically determined environment
of the Buddha is the dharma gateway of the ten such qualities with each
of the ten realms of dharmas (things) being mutually furnished with the same
ten realms which become the simultaneousness of cause and effect of
the ten realms of dharmas (things), their ten such qualities [and the three existential
spaces where differentiation occurs]. Since this is decidedly the substantiation
of what the Buddha told us. On our awakening of faith in the dharma
realm we begin to understand the ten realms of dharmas (things) as our reality,
these ten are also our minds and the way we look as well. You must believe
that the originally enlightened Tathâgata is at the very centre
of our own persons. The path of the all-inclusive utterness increases
when the identity of the teachings of what the Buddha practised for
himself and those which he used for the conversion of others become
a perfect harmony. In the same way as the gem, the brilliance and its
preciousness are the three virtues of a single jewel. Do not abandon
your faith even for the shortest period of time, there is nothing lacking
in the Buddha dharma whatsoever. You must also build up the joyful thought
that you will become a Buddha within a single lifetime. To reject our
fundamental bewilderment is to wake up from the slumber of the one instant
of unclear thinking and return to the wakefulness of our original enlightenment.
Then living, dying along with Nirvana will be left behind without a
trace like yesterday's dream. The people who claim to have done the
practices that free them from the alternating changes of living and
dying are people who have passed over to be reborn into the ultimate
bliss of the threefold terrain where the holy and ordinary people dwell
alongside each other, the ultimate bliss of the terrain of expedient
means or the ultimate bliss of the terrain of real reward. The people
on those terrains who wish to become Buddhas cultivate themselves in
the practices of the bodhisattva path, upon which they change the causes
and replace the effects, thus giving them the possibility of making
progress upwards through following one stage of practice after another.
This patience of waiting for numerous kalpas in order to become a Buddha
is referred to as 'the alternating changes of living and dying'. The
lower stages that these people have already abandoned they refer to
as death, the higher stages which are yet to be ascended are talked
of as being life. So that on the immaculate terrains these people are
also afflicted with the alternating changes of living and dying.
However when we ordinary people cultivate ourselves in the practice
of the Dharma Flower Sutra in this impure and imperfect world of ours,
there is the mutual possession of the ten realms of dharmas (things), since the
dharma realm is of a single suchness, the alternating changes in the
existence of the bodhisattvas of the immaculate terrains diminish. Because
when ordinary people intensify their practice on the Buddha path, the
alternating changes of living and dying are condensed to a single lifetime
in which there exists the attainment to the way of the Buddha. Because
the two kinds of bodhisattvas of the temporary gateway with human bodies
who have not broken off their unenlightenment and those who have reached
the forty-eighth or forty-ninth stages of the development of a bodhisattva
into a Buddha and are also capable of perceiving the dharma nature,
on account of the increase of their wisdom of the middle way, they are
able to abandon their attachment to their lives that are made up of
the alternating changes of living and dying. When those bodhisattvas
whose entity is the dharma who at the same time have been able to reject
a part of their troublesome worries and are also able to reveal something
of their Buddha nature, relinquish the bodies they were born with, then
they are able to dwell on the terrain of real reward. The bodhisattvas
who are at the final stage of enlightenment are those who attained that
stage of perfect and universal enlightenment [tôkaku].
However the effective benefits of the temporary gateway are either to
become a bodhisattva of the provisional teachings who has not yet broken
off his unenlightenment or a bodhisattva who has attained through the
dharma the patience to withstand the delusions of unenlightenment. The
effective benefits of the original gateway are either to become a bodhisattva
whose entity is the dharma or a bodhisattva who is at the final stage
before enlightenment. But now, through the temporary gateway being cleared
away and the original gateway being replaced with the single teaching
of the Utterness of the Dharma, then according to the intensity of how
we ordinary people carry out its practice in this impure and imperfect
world of ours, our practice then becomes the effective benefit of the
immaculate terrain of the ten stages of bodhisattva development into
a Buddha and that of the perfect and universal enlightenment [tôkaku].
Furthermore the merit of converting others is enormous. This refers
to the virtue and benefits of proselytizing. However the vast, profound
and effective enrichment and also the enormous benefits are those derived
from the personal practice of the Buddha who is the practitioner of
the all-inclusive direct teaching that is completely endowed with the
one instant of mind containing three thousand existential spaces without
overlooking a single dharma. If we look at this concept horizontally,
then it is as vast as the ubiquity of the dharma realms of the ten directions,
from a perpendicular viewpoint it is the utmost depth of the abyss of
the dharma nature that spans the past, present and future. Such is the
greatness of this sutra when the personal practice of the Buddha is
applied to it.
All the provisional sutras that were expounded for the conversion of
others do not necessarily have the background of the Buddha's personal
practice, which makes these sutras comparable to birds with only one
wing incapable of flying through the air. Because fundamentally there
is nobody who became a Buddha in any of these sutras. Now by exposing
and disposing of the teachings that were an expedient means for the
conversion of others and then leaving them reintegrated as the temporary
gateway into the one vehicle that is the Buddha's own practice, there
can be nothing lacking in the dharma whatsoever. Therefore, just as
a bird with two wings can fly without hindrance, there can be nothing
in the way of becoming aware that our own inherent Buddha nature is
not separate from who we are now. The Bodhisattva Yakuô used ten
comparisons to show the potential and effectiveness of the personal
practice of the Buddha as opposed to the teachings he used for the conversion
of others. [These ten comparisons are as follows, "Just as out
of all watercourses, effluents, streams, rivulets and great rivers the
sea is the greatest, so it is the same with this Dharma Flower Sutra
which is the most embracing and profound out of all the sutras that
the Tathâgata has expounded. Just as out of all the mountains
of soil, black mountains, the lesser inner ring of iron mountains that
surround the world and also the larger range of iron mountains that
mark the boundary of this world, Mount Sumeru is the greatest, so it
is the same with this Dharma Flower Sutra which is the highest peak
among all sutras. Just as out of all the stars the moon as prince of
the devas is the first among the heavenly bodies at night, again it
is the same with this Dharma Flower Sutra which shines the brightest
out of the thousands of myriads of millions of different kinds of sutric
dharmas (things) that exist. Again just as the sun as prince of devas can take
away all darkness, so it is the same with this Dharma Flower Sutra that
is able to reverse the darkness of everything that is not good. Again
in the same way a holy ruler whose chariot wheels roll everywhere without
hindrance is a monarch among all the lesser kings, it is the same with
regard to this sutra which is the most revered out of all the others.
Just as Bonten is the father of all sentient beings, it is the same
with regard to this sutra which is the parent of all those who aspire
to the mind of a bodhisattva, all those who are holy and wise and all
those who are still studying to get rid of their delusions and thosewho
have begun to cast them off. Again, just as those whose practice is
beyond the stream of transmigratory suffering or those whose practice
requires only one more lifetime before reaching Nirvana or those who
have attained the supreme rewards of the individual vehicle or those
who realize Nirvana for themselves and without a teacher are foremost
among ordinary people, so it is the same with this sutra, whether it
be expounded by the Tathâgata or by a bodhisattva or even a person
who has heard the Buddha's voice. Among all the dharmas (things) this sutra is
superior to all. Also the person who is able to receive and hold to
this archetypal sutra takes first place among sentient beings. Just
as the bodhisattvas are foremost among the hearers of the Buddha's voice
and those who realize Nirvana for themselves without a teacher, so it
is the same with this sutra, out of all the sutric dharmas (things) this sutra
is superior to all. Just as the Buddha is the sovereign of all dharmas (things),
so it is the same with this sutra that is the most important of all."]
The first of these comparisons says, "All the other sutras are
like all the watercourses the Dharma Flower is like the great sea."
At least this is the intended meaning of the quotation. In actual fact
all the watercourses of the sutras that were expounded for the conversion
of others have been flowing ceaselessly day and night towards the great
sea of the Dharma Flower Sutra that embodies the individual practice
of the Tathâgata. Nevertheless, even if these watercourses have
been flowing into the great sea, the great sea itself neither diminishes
nor increases, which reveals the imponderably inexplicable quality of
the virtue and effectiveness of this sutra. But none of these watercourses
of all the sutras even for the slightest moment add anything to the
great sea of the Dharma Flower Sutra. Such is the superiority of the
teachings that are derived from the Buddha's own practice as opposed
to those that were used as an expedient means. Through the quotation
of this one comparison we have an example which covers the other nine,
yet all the comparisons are what the Buddha expounded without any words
inserted by humankind. When you have taken the meaning of this concept
to heart then the significance of the Tathâgata's lifetime of
holy teaching will become as clear as daylight on a cloudless day, who
could have any doubts or confusion about this remark concerning the
Dharma Flower Sutra? Since this remark refers to the collation of the
layers of teachings of All the Buddhas of the past, present and future,
I would not dare add a single word from the commentaries of the scholars
of humankind. Also this sutra is the ultimate aspiration and the reason
for All the Buddhas of the past, present and future for coming into
this world. Furthermore this sutra is the direct means for all sentient
beings to become Buddhas.
The forty-two years of sutric teachings that were for the conversion
of others led to the establishment of the Kegon school [the school of
the Flower Garland Sutra], the Shingon school [the Tantric and Mantra
school], the Daruma school [the school of the teachings that were transmitted
by Bodhidharma, i.e. Zen], the Jôdo school [the school of the
Immaculate Terrain, i.e. Nembutsu], the Hossô school [the Cognition
Only school], the Sanron school [the school of the Three Treatises on
the Middle Way], Risshû, the Ritsu school [the school of Monastic
Discipline], the Kusha school [the school of the Doctrinal Store of
the Dharma, Abhidharma kosha], and the Jôjitsu school
[the school of the Establishment of the Real Meaning]. All the teachings
of these schools belong to the four doctrinal periods of the eight classifications
of Shakyamuni's teaching that were expounded prior to the Dharma Flower
Sutra. These first four doctrinal periods of the Buddha teaching, (i)
the combined doctrinal period in which the all-inclusive, the particular
teaching were also taught during the Flower Garland period, (ii) the
teachings that were taught during the period of the individual vehicle
were those of the three receptacles, (iii) the comparative doctrinal
period which corresponds to the period of the equally broad teachings
in which the doctrines of the three receptacles, the interrelated teachings,
the particular teaching and the all-inclusive teaching were contrasted
with each other and (iv) the comprehensive doctrinal period which is
the period of the wisdom teachings that were the final preparation for
the perfect teaching. These four doctrinal periods were all an expedient
means to entice people towards the Dharma Flower. This is the order
in which All the Buddhas of the past, present and future have expounded
the dharma. The fact that this order is the correct one makes this argument
a discourse that is a gateway to the dharma. If however the order is
in someway divergent then it cannot be the Buddha dharma. The lifetime
of instruction of the Lord of the Teaching, the Tathâgata Shakyamuni
was also founded on the precedence of doctrine in which All the Buddhas
of the past, present and future expounded the dharma without a single
discrepancy of even one ideogram, I also expound the dharma in exactly
the same way. In the sutra it says, "In the same manner as All
the Buddhas of the past, present and future have expounded the dharma,
I now in like fashion expound the dharma that is (a one suchness) that
is devoid of discrimination." If it were in any way otherwise,
it would forever be in contradiction to the original intent of All the
Buddhas of the past, present and future. All the other teachers who
have founded their own schools make the error of errors by disputing
the school of the Dharma Flower [Hokkeshû], it is also
the bewilderment of not knowing what the Buddha dharma is about.
In the book called A Probe into the Errors of other Doctrines,
where it refutes the arguments of these various schools we have, "On
the whole if one were to look over the dharma store of eighty thousand
sutras, the four categories of teachings that came prior to the Dharma
Flower which are those of (i) the three receptacles, (ii) the interrelated
teachings, (iii) the particular teaching and (iv) the all-inclusive
teachings, the special characteristics of these teachings are not at
all apparent. These four teachings first become noticeable in the sense
that the three receptacles teachings were for the hearers of the Buddha's
voice, the interrelated teachings were for those who were awakened due
to karmic circumstances, the particular teachings were for the bodhisattvas
and the all-inclusive teachings were the Buddha vehicle. How could the
Shingon school, the Zen school, the Hossô school, the Ritsu school,
the Jôjitsu school go beyond the four categories of teaching just
mentioned or any further than whatever their schools may have taught.
How could they go beyond the teachings of their individual schools or
their own theoretical concepts? If I were to say they do go beyond the
four categories of teaching, then how could they not be distorting and
incomplete practices outside the Buddha teaching? If I were to say that
the teachings of these schools do not go any farther than the four categories
of teaching that came before the Dharma Flower Sutra. Then did you have
any other expectation through asking? This is what the fruition of the
four vehicles amount to. Naturally, now I have given you the answer,
you must be sure of what your are inferring through your questioning.
Through looking into the practice and study of the four categories of
teaching that came prior to the Dharma Flower, I can decide what the
anticipated fruitions will be. If you think I am wrong then you must
press for further answers. In the meantime I would like to say that
just like the Flower Garland Sutra, each one of the five teachings of
Shakyamuni's lifetime are those in which the cultivation and practice
of the cause leads the practitioner towards the virtues of their fruition.
[All the practices of the Buddha teachings prior to the Dharma Flower
Sutra were conducted through fifty-two stages right on from the first
until the practicant had reached the fifty-second stage which was understood
to be the dharma realm of the Buddha. This quotation refers to these
stages of practice as] the first, middle and latter stages cannot become
the oneness of the practice of the Dharma Flower Sutra. Each single
doctrine that came before the Dharma Flower has its own awaited fruition.
If the three receptacle teachings, the interrelated teachings, the particular
teachings and the all-inclusive teachings did not have their respective
causes and fruitions it could not be the Buddha Teaching. It has to
be decided as to which one of the three dharma wheels one is referring
to, whether it be the dharma wheel of the basic fundamentals [the period
of the teaching of the individual vehicle], the dharma wheel of the
branches and twigs [the period of the equally broad teachings] or the
dharma wheel of removing the twigs and returning to the roots [the period
of the wisdom teachings]. By which vehicle of the dharma are you aspiring
to become enlightened? If you say it is the Buddha vehicle, you have
not yet seen the practice or the contemplation for becoming a Buddha.
If you say you wish to become a bodhisattva it is the difference between
the practices of the middle way that are perpetuated over innumerable
kalpas whose teachings consider relativity, phenomenon and the middle
way as separate entities and the practice of the middle way whose doctrine
is based on the all-inclusive, unobstructed accommodation of phenomenon,
relativity and the middle way. Are you able to choose the correct vehicle?
If you choose the practices of the middle way that are perpetuated over
many kalpas then you need not expect any fruition at all. If you make
the practices of the all-inclusive, unobstructed accommodation of phenomenon,
relativity and the middle way your central point, then with the Buddha
Shakyamuni as a precedent it is going to be difficult. Even if you were
mistakenly going to start reciting mantras, you will probably not understand
the destination of utterness through perceiving the three axioms of
relativity, phenomenon and the middle way as not being separate from
the oneness of the mind of sentient beings, like many other people I
doubt that you will ever substantiate the underlying principle of utterness.
Hence, it is a principle of our school to judge other teachings according
to their ultimate aspirations. Because if you are looking in the direction
of the Dharma Flower, the Flower Garland and the Sutra on the Buddha's
Passing over to Nirvana, you will find that these sutras are gateways
to the dharma that were used as an expedient means to entice people
towards the real teachings. Such people become amenable through their
propensities for the provisional teachings which will ultimately lead
them forward. Since they are disciples who are following the individual
vehicle or teachings that are distorting and incomplete, they should
be brought to a level of insight that will bring them to the real teachings.
Therefore when one is expounding, one should be aware of those people
who relied on the four important principles of the practitioner, [(i)
practising according to the dharma and not the person who expounds it,
(ii) to practice according to the intended significance and not the
words used, (iii) to practice according to one's inner wisdom and not
according to acquired knowledge, (iv) to practice according to the real
aspect of the middle way as it is revealed in the Sutra on the Inexhaustible
Significance and none other.] These practitioners may have found it
necessary in their preaching to keep the real teachings back, but they
used various expedient means until people were ready to hear what the
real intention of the Buddha teaching was concerned with. Nevertheless
one must not become attached to these provisional doctrines. When people
are inquiring into the significance of one's own school by means of
the provisional teachings, one has to decide as to where these other
teachings are right and where they are wrong. But on all accounts one
must not become a bigot." Generally speaking there are many direct,
gradual and undetermined doctrines but only a very few have the implications
of the all-inclusive teachings. This is what the virtuous universal
teacher of the past had decided when all the teachings of every school
were held up to the bright light of day and set in order. The scholars
of the final period are not aware of this, they are confused and cannot
make judgements with regard to the gateways of the Buddha teaching.
It is important that people make a thorough study of the three teachings
that lead to the Dharma Flower Sutra.
There are three categories of teaching, the direct, the gradual and
the all-inclusive. Generally speaking these three doctrinal categories
were the three ways in which the truth was imparted during Shakyamuni's
lifetime of holy teaching. The direct and gradual doctrines were taught
over a period of forty-two years and for the most part the all-inclusive
teaching was revealed during the last eight years of Shakyamuni's life.
Altogether this makes the fifty years of teaching outside of which there
is no other dharma. How is it that people can get so mixed up about
this fact? As long as we are sentient beings we talk in terms of the
categories of teaching as representing the all-inclusive accommodation
of relativity, phenomenon and the middle way, but when we attain to
the fruition of becoming Buddhas we then talk about the three bodies
of the Tathâgata. These are two different ways of saying the same
thing. To give a further explanation, what I have just said implies
the lifetime of holy teaching of the Tathâgata, when we fully
realize that this becomes the total singularity of the all-inclusive
accommodation of relativity, phenomenon and the middle way. This was
taught in terms of the direct teaching of the Flower Garland Sutra as
being the axiom of relativity, the gradual teachings of all the individual
vehicle, the Equally Broad and Wisdom Sutras as being the axiom of phenomenon
and the Dharma Flower Sutra as being the axiom of the middle way. This
is what the Tathâgata taught in conformity with his own enlightenment.
Furthermore, there are eight of the established schools outside our
own that classify the three axioms of relativity, phenomenon and the
middle way as being the constituents of the lifetime of holy teaching
of the Tathâgata, but according to the doctrine propounded by
each of these schools, all of them lack the principle of being all-inclusive
and completely filling the whole, thereby making it impossible for people
to open up their inherent Buddha nature. This is the reason why all
the other schools have no real Buddha. What I dislike about these schools
is their insufficiency of meaning. By taking the all-inclusive teaching
one can contemplate each and every dharma. Since the all-inclusive teaching
is the unobstructed accommodation of phenomenon, relativity and the
middle way as well as being the all-inclusive replenished whole of the
one instant of mind containing three thousand existential spaces, it
is like the full moon of the fifteenth night of every lunar month. Because
the all-inclusive teaching is the final superlative, it is absolutely
perfect without any deficiency. It is beyond the dualities of good and
bad, choosing the occasion, or seeking quiet places or even personal
qualities. Since you know that all dharmas (things) are entirely the Buddha dharma
there is nothing that cannot be fathomed or understood. Therefore even
if you take the path of wrongdoing and injustice (you will learn sooner
or later through your negative experiences) through the fivefold wisdom
of the Tathâgata which is heaven, earth, water, fire and wind.
This fivefold wisdom dwells in the minds of all sentient beings and
is not separated from them for even an instant, this fivefold wisdom
exists harmoniously in our minds both in the realms of existence or
in the hereafter. Outside our own minds there is no dharma whatsoever.
Therefore when you hear (or read) this, you will just where you are
standing at this very moment attain the fruition of becoming aware of
your own inherent Buddha nature and in no time will be able to reason
your way through to the ultimate realization. This all-inclusive accommodation
of relativity, phenomenon and the middle way which were taught in terms
of the direct teaching of the Flower Garland Sutra as being the doctrine
of the axiom of relativity, the gradual teachings of all the individual
vehicle, the Equally Broad and Wisdom Sutras as representing the axiom
of phenomenon and the Dharma Flower Sutra as representing the middle
way. These three categories of teaching could be compared to a gem,
its brilliance and the piece of jewellery in which it consists. On account
of these three virtues we talk of this all-inclusive accommodation of
relativity, phenomenon and the middle way as the precious talismanic
stone capable of responding to every wish. Hence the metaphor of the
three axioms, were these three virtues to be separated from each other,
then any effectiveness this gem possessed would be of no avail. So it
is the same with the schools whose teachings are the expedient means
which have to be practised over periods of separate kalpas. The gem
is a metaphor for the dharma body, its brilliance is analogous to the
reward body and the piece of jewellery itself is a metaphor for the
corresponding body. If schools are founded upon partialities of the
all-inclusive accommodation of relativity, phenomenon and the middle
way, one should have no use for them due to their incompleteness. However
when all is said and done the all-inclusive accommodation of the triple
axiom is a oneness that is the inseparability of the three bodies from
the single embodiment of the originally enlightened Tathâgata.
Furthermore the terrain of silence and illumination is comparable to
a mirror, the other three terrains, (i) where the holy and ordinary
people dwell alongside each other, (ii) the terrain of expedient means
where its occupants still have the remains of misunderstanding to be
cleared away and (iii) the land of the reward of enlightenment in reality
are the images that are reflected in that mirror. These four terrains
are in fact a single terrain. The three bodies of the Tathâgata,
(i) the dharma body, (ii) the reward body and (iii) the body (i. e.
manifestation) that corresponds to the needs of sentient beings, are
the constituents of the one Buddha. Now, when these three bodies are
joined in harmony with the four terrains they become the virtue of the
one entity of the Buddha that we refer to as the Buddha enlightenment
of silence and illumination. With the Buddha of silence and illumination
becoming the Buddha of the all-inclusive teaching, then the Buddha of
the all-inclusive teaching becomes the awakening to the enlightenment
of the Buddha in reality. The Buddha in the three remaining terrains
is the provisional Buddha in the midst of the dream. But when All the
Buddhas of the past, present and future used the same modes of expression
in collating their doctrines into a coherent definitive teaching, they
did not use the terms of ordinary speech, nor did they give any discursive
explanations that could be contradicted. If these definitive teachings
had in any way been different from each other then it would have been
the enormous wrongdoing of someone who opposes the teaching of All the
Buddhas of the past, present and future. Such as one of the demonic
devas outside the Buddha path who have for ages been opposed to the
Buddha dharma. This esoteric treasure [the Fundamental Object of Veneration]
is to be kept hidden so as not to let it be seen by profane people.
If this esoteric treasure were not hidden it would be bandied about
in the open and any substantiation of its intrinsicality through practice
would be lost. Thus leaving people in this present life and in their
lives that are yet to come to be eclipsed in an ever increasing darkness.
Because both the people who vilify this dharma and who turn their backs
on All the Buddhas of the past, present and future as well as those
people who listen to these misguided concepts will fall into the paths
of evil. It is on this account that I am letting you know and cautioning
you against committing such an error. You must make the effort to substantiate
the intrinsicality of this esoteric treasure through your practice,
since this is what All the Buddhas of the past, present and future originally
had in mind. The two holy persons the Bodhisattva Yakuô and the
Bodhisattva Yuze along with the two Universal Guardian Deva Kings Jikoku
and Bishamon as well as the Rakshashi Kishimojin and her daughters will
watch over you and protect you. When you die you will be immediately
reborn in the ultimate supreme terrain of silence and illumination.
But should you for the shortest while return to the dream of living
and dying your person [dharma body] will completely fill all the realm
of dharmas (things) of the ten directions and your mind will be in the physical
incarnations of all sentient beings. You will urge them on towards enlightenment
from within and on the outside you will show these sentient beings which
path to take. Since there is a mutual correspondence between what is
on the inside and what is on the outside as well as there being a harmony
between causes and karmic circumstances, you will busy yourself with
the immense compassion that lies in the fullness of the reaches of your
mind that is independently free to effectively benefit all sentient
beings simultaneously.
What was in the mind of All the Buddhas of the past, present and future
with regard to the one universal matter of the cause and karmic circumstances
for making their appearance in the world [existential spaces] is, 'one'
stands for the middle way and the Dharma Flower Sutra, 'universal' represents
the axiom of relativity and the Flower Garland Sutra, 'matter' refers
to the axiom of phenomenon and the individual vehicle, the equally broad
and wisdom teachings. What the above implies is that the all-inclusive
accommodation of the axioms of relativity, phenomenon and the middle
way were taught throughout the lifetime of Shakyamuni in terms of the
direct teaching of the Flower Garland Sutra as being the teaching of
the axiom of relativity, the gradual teachings of all the individual
vehicle, the Equally Broad and Wisdom Sutras as representing the axiom
of phenomenon and the Dharma Flower as representing the axiom of the
middle way. When you know and fully realize the implications of this
all-inclusive accommodation of the three axioms, it means that your
fundamental motive for coming into the world is to take the direct path
for becoming enlightened. As for the 'cause' it is this all-inclusive
accommodation of these three axioms that exist everlastingly and unchangingly
in the midst of the incarnations of all sentient beings. This is generally
referred to as the 'cause'. Although 'karmic circumstances' may be said
to be the threefold aspect of the Buddha nature which is (i) the direct
cause for becoming enlightened due to our innate Buddha nature, (ii)
the cause for becoming enlightened through being able to perceive the
intrinsicality of the dharma nature and (iii) the karmic circumstances
that bring about the revelation of our own inherent Buddha nature. But
if the karmic circumstances do not exist for meeting a good friend who
can stimulate you towards the Buddha wisdom, you will never be aware
of it, or know it or have it revealed to you. On the other hand due
to the karmic circumstances of meeting a good friend who stimulates
you towards the Buddha wisdom you will certainly have it revealed to
you as the Fundamental Object of Veneration. Hence the use of the term
'karmic circumstances' being needed in the expression 'the one universal
matter of the cause and karmic circumstances for the Buddha's coming
into the world'. Nevertheless by putting these five words of 'the one',
'universal', 'matter of', 'cause' and 'karmic circumstances' together,
then you have met the difficultly encountered good friend who stimulates
you towards the Buddha wisdom. Why are you still procrastinating? When
spring comes, due to the karmic circumstances of wind and rain, this
season is when all the trees and plants whose minds are without consciousness
start sprouting shoots and buds which later become the blossoms and
the carpet of flowers that greet the world with a feeling of light colourfulness.
When the autumn comes, it is due to the brightness of the moon that
all the plants produce and all of the fruits of the trees become ripe
in order to sustain all sentient beings, then on account of the nourishing
qualities of all this produce, the lives of people are prolonged. In
the end they will reveal the enormous virtue of their role of having
become Buddhas. Is there anyone who doubts this or cannot believe it?
If the plants and trees that are devoid of consciousness can do such
things then why not humankind that is endowed with a natural sense of
right and wrong?
Even though we are bewildered common mortals, at least we are endowed
with enough mind and understanding to be able to know whether something
is good or bad. However with the entrenched karmic circumstances that
have their origin in former lives you were born in a country (terrain
and abode) that has been receptive to the dissemination of the Buddha
dharma, therefore you should be able to discriminate the cause and fruition
of having met the good friend who has urged you towards the Buddha wisdom.
Nevertheless, through having met this good friend you ought to be a
person who should be aware that your inherent Buddha nature is not separate
from who you are now. Do you mean to say you are going to remain silent
and show even less than what the plants and trees have of the threefold
aspect of the Buddha nature that is within your own person? This time
you must by all means dissipate your illusions about the dream of living
and dying and cut away the bonds of successive lives and deaths by returning
to the arousal of the original awakening. From now onwards you must
not get yourself taken in by the gateways to the dharmas (things) within the
dream. You must open up an all pervasive enlightenment by cultivating
yourself in the practice of reciting Nam myôhô renge
kyô with your whole mind in perfect harmony with All the
Buddhas of the past, present and future. The difference between the
teaching of the Buddha’s own practice and the doctrines that the
Buddha used for the conversion of others is as clear as the daylight
on a cloudless day. The collation of the layers of the various teachings
of All the Buddhas of the past, present and future is precise about
this point. This must be kept secret.
The tenth month of the second year of Kô.an
[1279]
Nichiren
Martin Bradley, The Buddha Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, ISBN: 2-913122-19-1, 2005, Chapter 4, p. 149 |