Buddhist Morning Thought #20, Many in Body but One in Mind

All disciples and lay supporters of Nichiren should chant Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo with the spirit of many in body but one in mind, transcending all differences among themselves to become as inseparable as fish and the water in which they swim. This spiritual bond is the basis for the universal transmission of the ultimate Law of life and death. Herein lies the true goal of Nichiren's propagation. When you are so united, even the great desire for widespread propagation can be fulfilled. (WND, 217)

Buddhist Morning Thought #18, Unshakable Self

Worthy persons deserve to be called so because they are not carried away by the eight winds: prosperity, decline, disgrace, honor, praise, censure, suffering, and pleasure. (WND-1, 794)

Devadatta

Devadatta was by tradition a Buddhist monk, cousin and brother-in-law of Gautama Siddhārtha. The accounts of his life vary greatly, but he is generally seen as an evil and divisive figure in Buddhism, who led a breakaway group in the earliest days of the religion. 

Devadatta is said to have joined the sangha along with Ananda, who was possibly his brother, in the 20th year of the Buddha’s ministry. Fifteen years later, strengthened by his friendship with the crown prince of Magadha, Ajatashatru, Devadatta proposed formally at a meeting of the sangha that the Buddha retire and hand over the leadership to him. This proposal was rejected, and Devadatta is said to have successfully instigated Ajatashatru to execute Bimbisara, his aged father and the king of Magadha. He is also said to have made three abortive attempts to bring about the Buddha’s death: by hiring assassins, by rolling a rock off a mountainside at him, and by arranging for a mad elephant to be let loose in the road at the time of the collection of alms.

Sensing popular approval, Devadatta proposed stricter ascetic rules for the sangha. When these were refused, he persuaded some 500 of the Buddha’s followers to join in a secession. Nothing further is known about Devadatta’s movement, but it may possibly be referred to under the name of the Gotamakas in the Anguttara Nikaya (a canonical text), for Devadatta’s family name was Gotama (Sanskrit Gautama). The Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang recorded that in the 7th century ce monks of a monastery in Bengal were following a certain regulation of Devadatta’s.

In The Lotus Sutra

“Devadatta” chapter [提婆達多品] ( Daibadatta-hon): The twelfth chapter of the Lotus Sutra. It teaches that both women and evil persons are capable of attaining Buddhahood in their present forms, something generally denied in the provisional, or pre-Lotus Sutra, teachings, as well as the principle of attaining enlightenment without completing many kalpas of practice. In the first half of the chapter, Shakyamuni discloses that in a past life he was a king who renounced his throne to seek the truth. For one thousand years, he served a seer named Asita, who in turn taught him the Lotus Sutra. This seer, he explains, was none other than Devadatta. He then prophesies that, in the distant future, Devadatta will attain enlightenment as a Buddha called Heavenly King. Devadatta had tried on several occasions to kill Shakyamuni and foment disunity within the Buddhist Order and is said to have fallen into hell alive. The prediction of his future enlightenment indicates that even one disposed to evil has the potential to become a Buddha.

Next Bodhisattva Manjushrī relates how he has preached the Lotus Sutra in the palace of a dragon king and converted innumerable beings, and Bodhisattva Wisdom Accumulated asks him if there is anyone there who by practicing the sutra has attained Buddhahood quickly. Manjushrī replies that the eight-year-old daughter of the dragon king has fully attained the supreme Buddha wisdom. Wisdom Accumulated and Shāriputra both challenge this; Wisdom Accumulated on the grounds that Buddhahood requires the practice of austerities spanning many kalpas, Shāriputra for the same reason and because he believes women to be incapable of attaining enlightenment due to the five obstacles. But by now the dragon king’s daughter has appeared in front of them. After presenting a jewel to Shakyamuni Buddha, she at once transforms herself into a male and perfects the bodhisattva practice. Acquiring the thirty-two features and eighty characteristics of a Buddha, he appears in a land to the south called Spotless World, where he preaches the Lotus Sutra to all beings in the ten directions.

Nichiren (1222–1282) explains the significance of the dragon king’s daughter’s enlightenment in The Opening of the Eyes: “When she attained Buddhahood, this does not mean simply that one person did so. It reveals the fact that all women will attain Buddhahood. In the various Hinayana sutras that were preached before the Lotus Sutra, it is denied that women can ever attain Buddhahood. In the Mahayana sutras other than the Lotus Sutra, it would appear that women can attain Buddhahood or be reborn in the pure land. But they may do so only after they have changed into some other form. It is not the kind of immediate attainment of Buddhahood that is based on the doctrine of three thousand realms in a single moment of life. . . . The dragon king’s daughter represents ‘one example that stands for all the rest.’ When the dragon king’s daughter attained Buddhahood, it opened up the way to attaining Buddhahood for all women of later ages”.

The enlightenment of evil people, represented by Devadatta, and that of women, represented by the dragon king’s daughter, illustrate the universal possibility of Buddhahood taught for the first time in the Lotus Sutra. See also dragon king’s daughter.

 

 

Buddhist Morning Thought #19, Powerful Enemies

Devadatta was the foremost good friend to the Thus Come One Shakyamuni. In this age as well, it is not one's allies but one's powerful enemies who assist one's progress.

Shakyamuni Buddha

Shakyamuni, also known as Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism.  "Shakyamuni" means "sage of the Shakyas,"  Shakya being the name of the tribe or clan to which his family belonged. 

Shakyamuni Buddha was born in northeastern India around 500 BCE, the eldest son of a king. As a young man, he became aware of the impermanence and sufferings of life—birth, aging, sickness and death. He left the luxuries of the palace in pursuit of answers to life’s perplexing questions and to seek a way to relieve people of their suffering.

Shakyamuni tried meditation, then asceticism—subjecting his body to painful austerities—to free himself of desires. Mastering these practices left him unsatisfied, so he rejected them to seek a new, deeper path to the truth on his own. He struggled for years to conquer his own delusions about the true nature of life. In his thirties, while sitting under a Bodhi tree, Shakyamuni awakened to the fundamental truth that enables all people to overcome their sufferings. He then resolved to dedicate his life to sharing this truth with others.

Shakyamuni traveled far and wide to teach and encourage others to transform their lives and help others do the same. His disciples included people from all walks of life: from kings, warriors and merchants, to members of the lowest, untouchable class. Shakyamuni welcomed women into the Buddhist Order, treating monks, nuns, and lay men and women as equals. In the context of India’s rigid caste system, Shakyamuni’s indifference to social standing was unique. His sincere dedication sparked a people’s movement, centered on valuing and promoting the dignity of all life.

Shakyamuni taught for many years before revealing his ultimate teaching, the Lotus Sutra.

 

Buddhist Morning Thought #17, Embracing the Lotus Sutra

Shakyamuni Buddha who attained enlightenment countless kalpas ago, the Lotus Sutra that leads all people to Buddhahood, and we ordinary human beings are in no way different or separate from one another. To change Myoho-renge-kyo with this realization is to inherit the ultimate Law of life and death. This is a matter of the utmost importance for Nichiren's disciples and lay supporters, and this is what it means to embrace the Lotus Sutra. (WND, 216)

Buddhist Morning Thought #16, Inner Potential

Neither the pure land nor hell exists outside oneself; both lie only within one's own heart. Awakened to this, one is called a Buddha: deluded about it, one is called an ordinary person. The Lotus Sutra reveals this truth, and one who embraces the Lotus Sutra will realize that hell is itself the Land of Tranquil Light. 

 (WND-1, 456)

Buddhist Morning Thought #20, Many in Body but One in Mind

All disciples and lay supporters of Nichiren should chant Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo with the spirit of many in body but one in mind, transcendi...