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I have been watching The Buddha on Netflix, and although I came well-prepared to scoff, there is a surprising amount of food for thought from a Pureland perspective. What follows is a review of the Pureland touches in the episode, coloured inevitably by my upbringing in India, although I have now lived in Britain for more than half my life.

The scene opens in the republic of Kapilavastu, depicted as a green and pleasant land, with the Himalayan mountains as a backdrop. (I was surprised at the opulence and bold colours of the sets; this series certainly does not have the local-theatre look of the 1980s Indian productions of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.)

The king, Suddhodhana, is shown riding home at the head of a victorious army, having put down several rebellious tribes.

The town crier announces the news throughout Kapilavastu and the younger queen, Prajapati, rushes to tell her sister and principal queen, Mahamaya ('Great Illusion'). Maya is shown playing blind man's buff with a number of children, but when she catches one of them and takes off her blindfold, there is only a single child - Devdutt, who is, of course, the Buddha's older cousin and will be his great rival. It turns out that Maya has envisioned the many children out of her longing to be a mother, and she makes Devdutt fulfil his promise to call her 'Mother', so that she can briefly imagine that she has a child. Prajapati, greatly saddened, witnesses her sister's grief. 

Maya does not want to receive the king at the city gates, protesting that she is barren and therefore 'inauspicious'. However, Prajapati too has failed to bear him children, so she convinces her sister to keep calm and carry on, as it were. 

When the queens are reunited with the king, he too expresses his sorrow at this one lack in his life, although he is very loving towards Maya (this is certainly not the traditional way of things in India, where a woman who fails to bear sons is considered not fit for purpose - the traditional marriage blessing being 'May you be the mother of a hundred sons').

The king, together with the queens, decides to conduct the Heir-Bearing sacrifice to propitiate the Sun God, his original ancestor. The Sun God blesses the royal family, and for cinematic purposes, it appears to be a 'one night' deal. Prajapati voluntarily yields her place to her sister, and Maya gets her long-cherished wish to become a mother.

What is touching about the scenes between the sisters is that the affection between them as adults feels very real. The traditional Indian woman had to leave her family home and all her relatives when she married, not being able to visit her birth family without the permission of her 'new' family. Indian weddings were an occasion for much sorrow in the bride's family, and in all the trials that a wife was expected to submit to, one's sisters - even if only contactable by the occasional phone call or letter, as in Vikram Seth’s novel A Suitable Boy - are a vital source of support. Tradition disapproves of two sisters marrying into the same family, since they might form an organised front and challenge the mother-in-law's established order. Maya was therefore very astute to convince the king to marry Prajapati, rather than an unknown woman, when she felt she could not give the king children (according to the episode anyway, I remember no such intrigues detailed in the Pali canon). 

Maya is the good and beautiful wife, Prajapati is the dutiful and loving sister…and at this point the episode takes a sharp turn off the Pali canon and introduces (drum roll) the favoured scapegoat of the Indian epic. This is the scheming mother, corrupted by ambitions for her son, who brings about the destruction of the entire family. As a child learning the Buddha’s story in India (every Hindu child does) nowhere did Devdutt’s mother figure in the story, but here she is named Mangala and figures prominently. This seems a direct importation from the Ramayana, where Kaikeyi is the corrupted queen who causes the death of the king, the exile of the god Rama, and the eclipse of the dynasty.

The episode is tedious in the number of ‘She’s behind you!’ moments, with Mangala as the pantomime villain repeatedly trying to harm Maya, so as to prevent the new heir coming between Devdutt and the throne. She even persuades Maya to travel all the way to her parents’ kingdom for the birth, whereas in canon, this is the accepted custom. I suppose the directors had to have what we Indians call masala (spice) – generally wall-to-wall drama with conflict and emotions in bold primary colours exploding all over the place. No British understatement here, thank you very much.

Poor Mangala is noticeably darker than the fairer queens – in line with the traditional  skin colour of Hindu demons. (The first question asked of any prospective bride is: is she fair? Whatever other assets an Indian woman may have, dark skin will always be an enormous liability when she attempts to marry. I have no difficulty believing that this was so in the Buddha’s time as well, and one can only wonder at the scale of his achievement in creating the world’s first order of nuns, giving women of all classes a worthy alternative to marriage.)

Luckily for me, the episode reverted to canon for the depiction of the much-loved moment of the Bodhisattva’s conception, with Maya dreaming of a red-caparisoned elephant, pure white and adorned with golden ornaments, flying towards her with a red lotus in its trunk. The crucial moment is somewhat bowdlerised, because the episode’s Disney-looking elephant chastely drops the lotus on her stomach, whereas in canon it pierces her flank and enters within. But I am not complaining, I promise. As a child, I thought it a charming detail (which child doesn't love a flying elephant?) and it has lost none of its charm with the passage of time.

This vision somehow feels extremely Pureland, and it makes complete sense that it is a result of Maya’s bhakti, or devotion, and anguished longing for a child.

There are also some very moving Pureland moments as the episode closes.

There is the joy of Maya and Prajapati when the baby is born in Lumbini gardens, with the thick black hair and large black eyes of all Indian babies. The baby is shown smiling lovingly at Maya.

Far away in the Himalayas, the sage Asita who has been waiting and praying for the Deliverer is granted a vision. This is depicted in a highly stylized manner. The sage sees the royal company in Lumbini gardens. It is night, but the brilliance of the full moon low in the sky lights up a very young, curly-headed boy in a white robe, laughing and running towards him. The child is surrounded entirely by a white halo and with each step that he takes, lotuses bloom in the grass.

The moment reminds me of the presentation of Jesus in the temple. According to the narrative in Luke, Simeon was a devout Jew who had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah. He takes the baby Jesus in his arms and utters the famous words in the Canticle of Simeon:

Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine, secundum verbum tuum in pace:

Quia viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum

 ----

Now dismiss, O Lord, thy servant, in peace according to thy word:

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation.

---- 

What is very moving is the longing of Maya and of Asita, and their ecstasy at the fulfilment of all their hopes.

When the king is informed, he does not have any truck with visions, but reveals his ambitions. He expresses his determination that his heir will be a great warrior. There is much approving sabre-rattling at this pronouncement, so the king repeats it, adding for good measure that he himself is only a king, but this child will be the king of all kings. 

Some parents will always have grand ambitions for their children; whether or not they are ultimately disappointed is not in their hands.

We are left with the contrast between Suddhodhana's and Mangala's ambitions and Maya's and Asita's visions.

A very Pureland end to the episode. Namo Amida Bu.

I wasn't getting as much done as I intended to or 'needed' to in my previous mode of moving between lots of different activities, so I decided to devote one day a week to a particular activity, and this week I'm doing a Buddhism day. I've finally managed to get started on Vow 22, then I did some online research and catching up with mostly Buddhist emails, then I wrote a dharma talk. I plan to do a service run-through later. It's certainly easier for me to get things done this way. Namo Amida Bu!

Today is the fourteenth anniversary of the death of Gisho Saiko. Sensei Saiko was the founder of Shinshu Counselling. He wrote a number of books and presented his ideas at international conferences as well as through his university and Buddhist organisations in Japan. He referred to my work in his books and when I visited Japan a few months before his death, he took on to invite me to a number of gatherings and hosted my wife and I in royal fashion. He was enthusiastic that I should play a significant role in bringing Pureland Buddhism and Buddhist Psychology to the West and I have done my best to fulfil his wish over the years since that time. 

Sensei conveyed his Pureland faith as a matter of the heart and particularly stressed that this was Buddhism for the ordinary person with an ordinary human nature. He talked of how this was the special treasure of Pureland, that it addressed the condition of the common man, rather then placing the main emphasis upon ideals that are difficult to reach. In his model of therapeutic work, he saw how the therapist can be supported by Amida and this sense of support can then extend to the client through an intuitive connection. What the client takes from counselling or therapy is, fundamentally, enhanced faith, however this may be expressed. Amida Buddha can take innumerable forms according to the situation and need, but is infallibly there to rely upon.

I canno really do justice here in a few words to the great importance that my meeting with him has had in my life. He was a very special teacher and the love that he poured into his work continues to inspire.

Ho alzato alle sette e ho preso colazione alle otto. Era un colazione grande e bellissimo con una diverse seleccione di succi, cereale, panne, briochi, frutta, yoghurt, marmellate, miele, uova, e cose cosi, con caffè buono e molto latte caldo.

Questa mattina, dopo di aver fatto un lezione di ilaliano, sono andato a piedi in città ancora una volta. Questa volta ho caminato più lontano. Scoperto altre librerie. Quando ero a Milano ho desiderato un dizionario etimologico - mi piace sapere l’origine delle parole - ma era molto costoso. Tuttavia, in una piccola libreria, a questa città di mare, n’ho trovato uno per meno di sei euro. Un meraviglia! Tornando guardavo le vetrine, ho visitato la chiesa di San Francesco e ho fermato per bere qualcosa in un chiosco nel parco.

Nel pomeriggio lavoravo al montaggio mentre bevando caffè e ascoltando il Mediterraneo, seduto sulla terassa. Anche ho scrito un articolo e lo prendere sul sitio web. La sera ho fatto un ultimo giro in spiaggia, in direzione opposto al mattino. Alla fine della baia c’è un piccolo chiesa o sanctuario dedicato a tutti perduti in mare. Il passeggiata di ritorno era nel buio. Sono molto contento di avere passato questa breve periodo in riva al mare.

I was up at seven and breakfasted at eight. It was a great breakfast with many juices, cereals, breads, croissant, fruit, yoghurt, jams, honey, eggs, and suchlike, plus good coffee and lots of hot milk.

This morning, after doing an Italan language lesson, I walked into town again. This time I went further than yesterday. I discovered some more bookshops. When I was in Milan I covetted an etimological dictionary - I like to know the origins of words - but it was too expensive for me. However, here, in a little shop in this seaside town, I found one for less than six euro - a miracle! I strolled back looking in shop windows, visited the church of St Francis, and stopped in the park for a soft drink.

In the afternoon I worked, editing while drinking coffee and listening to the Mediterranean, sitting on the hotel terrace. I also wrote an article and put it on the site. In the evening, a final stroll along the beach in the opposite direction to the morning. At the end of the bay there is a shrine dedicated to people lost at sea. My walk back was in the dark. I am very contented with my day at the seaside.

Ero alzato di pronto. Andavo a piedi i tre isolati fino al garage, pausando per strada, per un caffè e brioche alla "bar degli artisti". Guidavo la macchina a casa e ho trovato un parking in centro di Via Abbruzzi. Ho tornato a casa e mi ho fatto una colazione e completato il mio pacco. Ho detto arrivederci alla padrona di casa e me ne sono andato. Sono andato da Milano alle otto. Era zero gradi. Guidavo al sud ovest verso Genova tra campi da neve: panorama bellissima. Mi sentava felicissimo, e io cantavo. Ho raggiunto tutti i miei obiettivi e di più a Milano e sono sopravissuto a due mese di scuola. Ora sono libero.

Dopo due ore ho fatto una sosta presso una stazione di serice. La temperatura era meno due. Tornato in strada ho raggiunto la strada costiera. Un’ora dopo, a Ceriale, ho deciso lasciare l'autostrada per vedere il mare. Sempre adoro il Mediterraneo. Mi sono seduto sotto un palmiero e ho mangiato una mela, mentra ascolavo le onde. Poi ho visitato un Lidl per comprare cibo per il pranzo.

Arrivato ad Alassio, la temperatura era più calda e ho deciso di pranzare in spiaggia. Ho trovato una panchina vicino alla spiaggia e stavo facendo un picnic quando ho visto un picolo albergo di fronte al mare. Mi sono avvicinato, ma era chiuso, ma più lontano ce n'era un altro. Ho entrato. Il brochure di albergo dice “Sulla bellisima spiaggia di Alassio… l’Hotel Eden è un angolo di paradiso dove coccolati da un calda atmosfera familiare.” Secondo me, è vero, un posto ottimo per il primero serata del mio viaggio.

I was up early and walked the three blocks to the garage, stopping along the way to pick up a coffee and croissant at the "Artist's Cafe". I drove the car to my place and found a place to park in the middle of Via Abbruzzi. I went back home,  had breakfast and finished the last bits of packing. I said goodbye to the landlady and was off. I left Milan at eight. It was zero degrees Celsius. I drove south west towards Genoa through fields of snow. It looked fantastic. I felt happy and was singing. I achieved all my goals, and more, in Milan, and survived two months at language school. Now I'm free.

After two hours I had a break at a motorway services. The temperature was minus two. Back on the road I made it to the coast road. An hour later, at Ceriale, I decided to leave the motorway in order to see the sea. I adore the Mediterranean. I sat under a palm tree and ate an apple while listening to the sound of the waves. Then I called in at a Lidl to buy some food for lunch.

By the time I got to Alassio it had warmed up a bit and I decided to take lunch on the beach. I found a bench on the prom and was having my picnic when I noticed a small hotel right on the waterfront. I went closer to see, but it was all shut up. However, there was another further along. I went in. The brochure says, "Situated on the lovely Alassio beach, the Eden Hotel is a little corner of paradise where you are cossetted in a family atmosphere." Well, it's true - just the place for the first night of my travels.

I am now near to the end of my stay in Italy. I have achieved my basic objectives of delivering some teaching and of learning basic Italian. I've also spent some good times with friends here of long standing and made some new ones. While here I attended language school and right now I feel like a schoolboy anticipating the end of term

It has been an interesting adventure internally. Not so much externally, as I have not ventured far nor done anything extraordinary. Weekdays I have attended language school in the mornings and in the afternoon there has been a good deal of homework to tackle. I've also done some teaching of Buddhist psychology, seen a few clients for psychotherapy, explored the city (and its bookshops - Milan has some very good ones) made or joined a few cultural, touristic visits and otherwise led a rather sedentary existence.

Internally, however, it has proved more turbulent than I expected. The experience of "going back to school" stirred up a host of emotions and memories, especially from my rather troubled adolescence, and I have found myself doing a good deal more "emotional work" than I anticipated. Also, being in a class full of people in their twenties and thirties, highlights one's stage of life and its impermanence, not least that whereas I have more life experience than they, their minds fizz along at a much faster rate of knots than mine does. 

Furthermore, learning a language involves a lot of talking about life situations, and such courses are inevitably predicated upon an assumption of a manner of life that is considered socially "normal". One film that featured a carnivorous diet was too much for me and I absented myself. Other discussions sometimes held my attention and at other times felt irrelevant to my typical activities. This highlights the fact that my own life has been and continues to be far from such.  Nonetheless, one learns a good deal, not just linguistic, but also sociologically. All this makes for a lot of reflection.

Some people have told me that I am very bold to have embarked upon such a venture at my age and I know what they mean. It has been a challenge. I'm glad to have done it. I'll be pleased to get home. I am invited to teach in Italy again early next year. Until then I shall have to see if it is possible to keep up my Italian. My new little library of volumes in the language will help. And, when the time comes, I shall have to decide whether to "go back to school" again.

As far as my life goes, it is pretty boring; nothing too exciting or too adventurous. We had a ‘minor scare’ over Christmas, however, but it turned out to be nothing but a change in hormones. Had it come to fruition it would have meant another three years of my life doing nothing but the same thing that I have been doing for the past six years, and boy oh boy, I am so relieved that it was just a scare. You can never be too careful, and at the same time you can’t even plan the perfect time to have a baby, but now certainly is not the right time. In fact after having two, never is now the best time to have another one. 

Before Dorian, there was Selena, and before Selena, there was Damian, and before Damian, I was a nun.  When I think back to all those years as a novice Buddhist nun I remember loving being on retreat, in solitude. But I also remember hearing that the best meditation was looking after children. Before children, I would just nod my head, accepting that sort of wisdom, “ah yes, but did I really know why?” There are so many other wise things I hear, that I find myself nodding my head to, but now I know that I am nodding because I have heard and my head is acknowledging that I have heard but if you asked me back then why that is the case I would only be able to give you half the answer. 

So, ever since I had Selena I haven’t really been able to meditate. So how can looking after children be better than meditation. What some practitioners discover after entering the second or third dyana state is a kind of blissful feeling. One enters into it by focussing and concentrating single mindedly on an object and then eventually all distractions fall away and one is left in a pleasant abode. I can honestly say that I have not achieved even the first dyana as a mother, let alone the third. So why do eminent Buddhists say that looking after children is even better than meditation? 

What I have learned is very hard to admit, but it is something that all parents learn, if not feel, pretty much from the time the baby is born. I am selfish. I have so many things that are important to me that I think I need but actually when faced with a new born baby who is dependant on me as though I am her only lifeline, well, the baby’s need are always so much greater. So the baby, and then toddler, are a constant source of dukkha to the well preserved ego. Thankfully I was aware of what was happening so I managed to convince myself that my well-being depended on how well I could nurture and mother this precious girl. So, my needs changed greatly, and so long as Selena needed me, my ego was being preserved rather than eroded. 

All of a sudden, rather than focussing on Buddhist issues, I was tuned into all the parenting issues, and learned as much as I could about parenting so that there was no conflict between my needs and the baby’s, and it felt so easy to look after children. So then came the impulse to have another child. If baby number one taught me that I was selfish, then how hard could it be to have another one? 

Shinran, one of Honen’s disciples, is renowned for saying how evil he is. And once again, I used to nod and think I understood what he met, but after having two children, I have learned and felt just how evil I am. So, lesson number two has turned out to be equally hard. 

As a mother of one daughter, I thought all my babies would require the same kind of nurture and care. (I can hear other parents of more than one child laughing after reading that sentence.) I was pretty much ready to do everything for him, so how hard could it be? I could say that where I was once selfish I was now only giving. As a baby, I gave him food whenever he wanted, and held him close whenever possible, but he would push his arms straight whenever he could as if I was suffocating him. Then, when he was old enough to show any kind of personal traits, he made it pretty clear that he wants to do things by himself and if he can’t then he will let me know. And if I don’t let him, then he is going to make me suffer. And the best way to make me suffer is to scream and cry. All my efforts to be selfless, helpful, nurturing, and mothering are evil to him. What worked with Selena seemed to kill his independent spirit.

If only I knew what I had been doing wrong after the first time he had cried about it. But I didn’t. I was determined to help and be the ever helpful mum because I didn’t think he could do what he wanted to by himself, but really, it worked for me to help him. Until the time came when he got stronger, and his determination to do things his way actually made my help worse. I would give him a spoon and myself a spoon but he would throw the bowl of food if I held it for him. Or he would grab the spoon from my hand and the food would go everywhere. I would put his coat on and he would take it off and then refuse to put it on, thereby stopping us from going out on time. It wasn’t until he looked at me as if I was evil that I actually reflected on what I was doing. And even after I saw just how self-centred and evil I was, i still couldn’t break the habit of going ahead and doing things for him. He has taught me that where I thought I had opened up to the other and Other-power, I was still caught up with my self and still operating from Self-power. And for a Pureland Buddhist, that is rather humiliating and shameful, not to mention evil. 

The thought of maybe being pregnant again has taught me that I am no longer in control of my life. Whether I want children or not is irrelevant. Surprises happen, and when it does expect dukkha. But the best gift in my life at this very moment is to have the full knowledge through lived experience that in spite of being selfish and evil, Amida loves me. Namo Amida Bu. 

I am currently in Milan - a fine city. This is the commercial hub of Italy, home of many big names and innumerable small enterprises that attract shoppers from all over the world. There is quite a strong sense of energy here. The biggest tourist attractions are La Scala and the Cathedral.

I have rented a pleasant and convenient room in a side street on the east side of the city. This is something of an adventure. I am gradually getting to know the city and enjoying the atmosphere. I shall be taking some Italian classes and hope to get deeper into the local culture.

L'engouement quasi mystique qu'a suscité la mort de Johnny Hallyday m'a incité à réfléchir sue un phénomène qui m'est apparu comme un substitut de religiosité...

Un monstre sacré
La mort de Johnny Halliday et ses obsèques le 8 décembre 2017

Il y a eu comme une sorte de fièvre médiatique lors de la mort – pourtant attendue – de notre chanteur national Johnny Halliday (Jean-Philippe Smet). Il venait de décéder un jour, après Jean d’Ormesson, et le dernier événement a en quelque sorte phagocyté le premier, comme si le succès populaire prenait le pas sur la gloire, plus discrète, de l’homme de lettres qui était pourtant, lui aussi, un homme des media. Quoiqu’il en soit, le battage médiatique (radio, TV, presse) qui s’est tout à coup manifesté autour de la mort de Johnny m’a d’abord agacée. Comment pouvait-on, toutes affaires cessantes par ailleurs, consacrer tant de place à cet événement ? « Il y a longtemps que plus personne ne parle plus de rock n roll » m’a dit, condescendante, une amie britannique. Mais Johnny a continué jusqu’au bout à le défendre. Les Américains doivent rire sous cape de ce Frenchie qui attirait les foules avec un genre totalement oublié aux USA. D’ailleurs à LA où Johnny vivait en partie, il n’était guère connu. Je n’ai jamais été une fan des chansons de Johnny, encore moins de son style, mais à force d’entendre tous ces jours-ci certaines de ses chansons, j’ai été touchée surtout par certaines paroles… qui ne sont pas d’ailleurs de Johnny, mais de son parolier Rondeau, je crois. J’avoue aussi, que, j’ai tout de même eu la curiosité – un peu coupable - de suivre le déroulement grandiose de ses obsèques à la TV. Les reporters parlaient d’un million de personnes massées sur les Champs Elysées, pour rendre un dernier hommage à Johnny dont le cercueil en bois blanc reposait dans une limousine, sans compter les 15 millions de téléspectateurs ! Les fans lui lançaient des roses en scandant Johnny, Johnny. Les musiciens de Johnny, sur une estrade près de l’église de la Madeleine, jouaient des airs de son répertoire et la foule reprenait les chansons, en tapant des mains, parfois le visage comme illuminé de bonheur, parfois les yeux en pleurs. Même les journalistes qui commentaient les faits à la télévision semblaient parfois avoir la gorge nouée. « C’est extraordinaire… incroyable ! »
Mes émotions primaires surmontées – cela n’a pas été trop difficile tout de même - j’ai éprouvé le besoin d’analyser le phénomène. A plusieurs moments, on a évoqué, à titre de comparaison, les obsèques de Victor Hugo. Mais cette comparaison me paraît pour le moins saugrenue. Oui, il y avait sans doute autant de monde le long de l’un et de l’autre cortège. Oui, il y a eu une mobilisation générale des hommes politiques. Johnny était l’ami de Chirac, Sarkozy, et toutes les autres classes politiques de gauche comme de droite, étaient représentées à ces obsèques. Le président Macron se tenait avec la famille la plus proche, au bas de l’escalier de la Madeleine, et c’est lui qui a fait le premier discours sur les marches de l’église. Il n’en reste pas moins qu’on ne pouvait tout de même pas comparer l’action politique menée par Hugo et le non-engagement de Johnny qui n’a jamais prétendu faire de la politique, quoiqu’il ait pu, par sa présence et comme malgré lui, servir les intérêts politiques de certains. Il a chanté à la Fête de l’Huma, tout comme il se montrait aux rassemblements des Républicains avec Sarkozy. Cela dénotait plutôt une sorte d’indifférence à la politique, une indifférence dans laquelle le bon peuple se retrouve aujourd’hui : car on ne pleure plus un héros politique, mais un héros du showbiz. Comment fallait-il comprendre alors la présence de tous ces hommes politiques de gauche comme de droite, autour de Johnny ? Ironie de cette situation : les hommes politiques par leur seule présence, semblaient tous acquiescer à une sorte de dépolitisation incarnée par Johnny, un Johnny qui a su rassembler le peuple, bien plus que ne pourrait le faire le représentant d’une quelconque idéologie.
L’analyse politique menant à une impasse, fallait-il plutôt se tourner vers une sorte de religiosité ? Certains éléments m’y incitaient fortement et tout d’abord en prêtant l’oreille au vocabulaire des commentateurs : monstre sacré, ferveur, incroyable communion etc. Et puis on pouvait surtout observer ce déferlement d’émotions : rires, pleurs mêlés, gestes de dévotion et d’adoration dans les fleurs jetées sur le convoi funéraire, le cortège des 700 dévots sur les Harley Davidson, le nom de Johnny scandé par les fans - ou, devrais-je dire les fidèles ? - les signes d’appartenance au groupe des adorateurs : les T-shirts au nom de Johnny, toutes les déclarations d’amour dans la bouche des fans ou sur des banderoles et, bien entendu, la musique elle-même, reprise en chœur par la foule, et particulièrement ces chansons intitulées «Oh Marie, si tu savais… » ou encore « Que je t’aime, que je t’aime ». Voyant le visage angélique et doux et le sourire triste de Laetitia donnant la main à ses deux fillettes, je n’ai pas pu m’empêcher de penser à une autre Marie ! Il y avait là une ferveur palpable. Mais quel était l’objet d’adoration, puisqu’on n’adorait pas un héros politique ? C’est là que l’on se trouve, me semble-t-il, dans une curieuse situation. D’une part, un événement qui rassemble les politiques, mais sur une absence de héros politique, une ferveur religieuse qui se noue autour de l’absence d’objet religieux, car Johnny dont d’aucuns louaient la gentillesse, la générosité, n’est cependant ni un saint, ni encore moins un martyr. Et pourtant tous les signes de religiosité étaient présents : l’émotion, l’amour, la communion, la fraternité, le besoin chez certains de ressembler à leur idole. Faut-il considérer alors que cette ferveur religieuse tournait à vide ? Et pourtant le cortège se dirigeait aussi vers l’église de la Madeleine. Une cérémonie religieuse avait été programmée. Johnny lui-même avait souhaité être enterré en catholique, sans être vraiment pratiquant, il se disait croyant. Le curé des loubards était présent…Quand les prêtres sur le parvis de l’église ont accueilli le cercueil et la famille, quand l’archevêque a fait son homélie, j’ai eu comme l’impression que la religion établie reprenait, sans ambiguïté ses droits, mais sans plus entrainer la foule dans un grand élan de ferveur.
En ce dimanche 10 décembre, Johnny s’est envolé au ciel, mais … en avion. Il ne s’est pas non plus envolé au paradis, mais à St Barthélémy ! Ni héros national à la Victor Hugo, ni saint, ni martyr. Le bon peuple continuera à lui vouer un culte… en achetant ses CD.
PS Je viens d’entendre à la radio que de petits malins se font maintenant de l’argent avec des « reliques » de Johnny. On vient de mettre en vente des empreintes des oreilles de l’artiste et des morceaux de l’un de ses slips…Décidément, on ne sait pas s’il faut rire ou pleurer de ce pitoyable ersatz de religiosité.

Johnny Hallyday died just after midnight this morning.

A vous autres, hommes faibles et merveilleux
Qui mettez tant de grâce a vous retirer du jeu
Il faut qu'une main posée sur votre épaule
Vous pousse vers la vie, cette main tendre et légère

On a tous quelque chose en nous de Tennessee
Cette volonté de prolonger la nuit
Ce désir fou de vivre une autre vie
Ce rêve en nous avec ses mots à lui

Quelque chose de Tennessee
Cette force qui nous pousse vers l'infini
Y a peu d'amour avec tell'ment d'envie
Si peu d'amour avec tell'ment de bruit
Quelque chose en nous de Tennessee

Ainsi vivait Tennessee
Le cœur en fièvre et le corps démoli
Avec cette formidable envie de vie
Ce rêve en nous c'était son cri à lui

Quelque chose de Tennessee
Comme une étoile qui s'éteint dans la nuit
A l'heure où d'autres s'aiment à la folie
Sans un éclat de voix et sans un bruit
Sans un seul amour, sans un seul ami

Ainsi disparut Tennessee
A certaines heures de la nuit
Quand le cœur de la ville s'est endormi
Il flotte un sentiment comme une envie
Ce rêve en nous, avec ses mots à lui

Quelque chose de Tennessee
Oh oui Tennessee
Y a quelque chose en nous de Tennessee

i have been attending a parent and toddler group at the Steiner school in Kings Langley for a little while. I first started going there with Selena and then started taking Dorian there in September. It’s a lovely place with a different outlook and philosophy, and where I have learned about the Rubicon stage, but unfortunately the regulatory body Ofsted had rated it badly and so it had to introduce radical measures in order to stay open. 

But these changes have made things worse for everyone. When I first started taking Selena there the grounds were open to the public. The site is quite large with lots of fields, buildings, houses, and gardens dotted about. The people I bumped into would look at us and say hello and I remember feeling quite lost and unsure about where I was supposed to go but everyone I met helped us by either pointing us in the right direction or walking a bit of the way with us and then advising us just to ask the next person we see for help. There was a lovely atmosphere and a trusting attitude towards us being there. After the group, some of us would stay and eat our lunch in the field or garden, use the toilet or go back to the group room for something before leaving the premise. 

When I started taking Dorian a gate had been put up to close off the site from the public. You ring to get let in and then you queue at reception to sign in. If you are late then you have to wait for another person to escort you to the house where the group meets and if you want to use the toilet then it is an added strain on the escort and whoever else might need escorting somewhere. Once the group finishes, you get escorted back to reception, and because we are relying on a member of staff who is often about to go to a different session, meeting or class, there is a pressure to leave. The place and the site is not as lovely and open anymore. Not because of the Steiner school but because of the new policies that must be in place to show that they are creating a safe place for the children. 

Anyway, that was a bit of a distraction from what I had in mind to write about. What I have recently learned about from going to this group is that there is a stage of life that is known as the Rubicon stage. It happens when we are about 9 or 10 years old. At that stage in life we start to recognise and see that we are different and separate from our parents. It strikes me that this marks the beginning of a journey as an individual. The start of the process of individuation. The Rubicon as you know is a river, quite a famous river I think, and when you cross it, you cross it to get to the other side. There is no way that you can go into the river and stay there and once you are in the river there is no turning back. But not everyone wants to cross it, and this, it seems, can have a devastating impact on the young person. 

It is almost as if the river represents the torrent or emotions that only that individual can process. Up until that point, the child looks to the primary carer as if they were an extension of themself but this new current sweeps the child into a new area of life and they realise that the primary care giver is a separate individual. They are no longer a union but have moved into the position of other. And the fact that they are other means so many things. It means that the parent becomes a sort of stranger, an embarrassment, and a source of powerful emotions. But then eventually, a different sort of relationship can start to build between the child and parent. If the conditions are set for kindness, understanding, respect for differences, then a healthy attitude can develop in the child. Patience, tolerance, acceptance, respect and so on. 

But if that river is never crossed, what happens to the child? In Buddhist psychology, there is a process of becoming, and of identifying oneself as this or that kind of person. And if the conditions around the individual do not support that identity then a feeling of being lost or not knowing who they are can occur. And if they can’t cope, then next phase is a destructive process where one seeks oblivion because their identity is no longer working for them. 

It seems that the worst case scenario is one where the child rejects crossing the river but then cannot live a fulfilled life knowing that they are not who they thought they were. 

And the best case scenario is one where a child willingly crosses the river to meet the other waiting on the other side, embracing the unknown, the darkness, and the mystery of the Rubicon.

I have recently just published a book of daily quotations from the Lotus Sutra.  This may or may not be something of interest to folks in this group.  Perhaps though you might enjoy having this book by your practice space for encouragement from the Buddha in the Lotus Sutra.  The book is only in English, so please accept my apologies for those who wish to read it in their own native language.  As a Nichiren Shu priest I have unrestricted rights to copy freely from the Senchu Murano translation into English.  I do not have those same rights for any other translation into English or any other language.  I can only begin to imagine the legal and administrative nightmare to get those permissions, it's more than this present life envisions possible.

I am providing an image of the cover of the book as well as a link to the book on the French Amazon site.  It is available throughout Europe on Amazon.

With Gassho,

Ryusho

A little trivia about the cover.  The image of the Dharma Wheel is a photo of a utility hole (man-hole) cover. For many years I've been intruiged by the use of this image, the Wheel of the Dharma for basically what amounts to sewer covers.  I wonder what the reaction of other faiths would be if their symbol was used in such a way.  Of course I do know that many of these are made in India and the symbol is also sometimes used to represent that country.  But not all of them are made in India and in fact some are made in the USA.  So, over the years I have acquired a sizeable collection of photos of such covers.  I've become quite adept at spotting the design even as I'm driving down the road, but only at moderate speeds.  When I spot one I do what needs to be done and snap a picture.  This particular cover was found in a small suburb around the Raleigh-Durham area of North Carolina.  It was while visiting practitioners there I spotted it.  When I take these photos I never clean the cover nor remove any debris, I take the photo as it appears in that moment.

I am in the process of writing a new book on the practice of Nichiren Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.  What I'll be posting is my first draft, imperfect as it is.  What I post has been sent to my editor and trust me will be greatly improved by his wonderful work. I'm sharing here on the chance others may find something of value or something to correct of offer feedback on.  Let the reading of this not be an onerous task nor a task of anything less than joy.  The source material comes from the Shutei Nichiren Shu Hoyo Shiki which draws from Miao-lê, as well as most importantly the Mohe-zhiguan or Makashikan by Chi-i.

Endon Sho

Our devotion and the devotional phrase is a two part deal.  One part is Myoho Renge Kyo, which we all know is the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Flower Sutra.  So that is there.  Picture if for a moment as a book, it is certainly more than just a book but for now hold that image.  Now the book is sitting over there on the coffee table or perhaps it’s on a book shelf.  There you are on the sofa, all nice and comfy.  You are Namu.  The book is over there, Myoho Renge Kyo is over there, and you are over here, Namu is over here.  

At this point you can see there is a separation between you the subject and it the object.  But if you go over to the book shelf and pick up the book and hold it and begin to read it you the subject and it the object are connecting, now Namu is beginning to be appended to Myoho Renge Kyo.  Mind, this is only an illustration.

At this point you are more connected holding the book or holding it and reading than when you were in one place and it was in another.  Suppose as you read it you become emotionally involved in some part of the sutra.  Say you’re reading about this big huge assembly of people gather watching the Buddha sit in meditation, and you are curious about this scene you’re reading.  Now you are even more connected you the Namu has come closer to the Myoho Renge Kyo.  You are coming closer to an experience of oneness of subject and object.

Now let’s say that further on you’re reading the sutra and you come to the guy with the run down dilapidated house that’s on fie and his children are inside.  You might be a parent yourself, and perhaps this might trigger a maternal or paternal response as you imagine if it were your children.  At this point you have entered into the Lotus Sutra even more deeply and your Namu is ever more at one with the Myoho Renge Kyo.  You are ever more closer to the unification of subject and object.  You are though not simply becoming the Lotus Sutra, you are in fact beginning to feel the Lotus Sutra that is fundamentally at the core of your life.

Further along you read about some folks who pop up out of the ground and have wondrous bodies and some have lots of followers and some are traveling solo.  But out of the ground they come, and they keep coming in what appears to be an impossible number.  And you may realize that you too came from the earth, and you too have a desire to go to and praise the Buddha just as they did.  You also realize that you have been trying to tell people about the Lotus Sutra just as they promised they would.  And you begin to think you might just possibly be acting as they did and fulfilling the promise they made.  

You the Namu is now even more deeply connected to the Myoho Renge Kyo but now it is not the book you’re holding but something deeper inside you.  You may feel a glowing inside you, or perhaps it makes you feel warm, or even giddy at times.  Or perhaps you simply feel at home, you may feel it’s just right, it fits.  Now you begin to experience the connection to you and your Myoho Renge Kyo which has been in a sense activated by your Namu.

Namu is you, it is your action.  Namu is from the word Namaste.  Namaste means devotion, reverence, respect.  Namu and Namaste are action words, they indicate you doing something.  Being passive is not Namu.  The more your devotion, your honoring, your actions, your behaviors, your thoughts, your every sense is directed to Myoho Renge Kyo the more the Myoho Renge Kyo of your life is activated and the more of your environment becomes Myoho Renge Kyo.  But you are the key.  Myoho Renge Kyo is there, it always has been, it takes you to activate it.  Buddhism is not a passive religion.

We have these images of the Buddha sitting under a tree and we think that’s all we need to do.  But you see that’s only part of the story.  Yes the Buddha attained enlightenment or awakening, but only after defeating Mara.   I believe that one of the toughest battles the Buddha waged against Mara was doubt.

The Buddha doubted he could teach people, he had doubts about whether he could do it.  Mara tempted him by playing to those doubts, first creating them and expanding them, then by offering alternatives.  In any case, had the Buddha not gotten up from the tree and gone to teach the Four Noble Truths then whatever awakening that was achieved under the tree would have meant nothing. The awakening would have died right there and Mara would have won.  The image for us to hold on to is not of the Buddha sitting under the tree.

The image we should hold on to of the Buddha is a man who got up and walked.  He walked wherever he could and he taught whomever he could.  He did not rest.  Sitting under the tree is a misrepresentation, if you will, of the Buddha and Buddhism.  Buddhism requires you to participate, and to participate with your entire life.  The more of your life that participates the more of your Myoho Renge Kyo will manifest because of your  Namu.

*** “When one fixes [the mind] on the Dharma-realm [as it is], then there is not a single sight nor smel that is not the Middle Way.  The same goes for the realm of self, the realm of Buddha, and the realm of living beings.”  Grand Master Miao-lê

As our Namu more fully awakens our Myoho Renge Kyo and our lives manifest the fullness and truth of the Dharma then there is no distinction or separation of self and Myoho Renge Kyo.  Every bit of our lives and our experiences of life more and more take on all the truth and beauty of the Lotus Sutra.  

In a way, in my mind the image that comes to me is one of atoms, though that may not be the exact correct word, since I’m not a physicist I could be wrong.  Even if I’m wrong perhaps you can imagine it as I describe.  So you have all the atoms floating around some atoms are you or various people.  Some atoms are the Dharma.  As single atoms they form nothing they just simply are.  But as they become more attracted to each other, as the polarity of them changes then they want to get closer together.

At first you’re sort of this neutral atom just floating around, bouncing off other atoms even.  As you begin to chant, to practice and study you begin to reveal the positive polarity of yourself.  As a neutral atom you could go either way but lets just say positive, it really doesn’t matter.  And as you chant and practice the opposite polarity of the Dharma atoms begin to gravitate towards you.  Your practice increases and your polarity becomes stronger hence you attract the Dharma atoms even more.  This increased attraction causes the space between the two of you to decrease.  It keeps decreasing until bam, you and the Dharma atom become one.  A nuclear explosion doesn’t happen but something incredible does.  It up to you to find out what that is.

The really cool thing is that as you the subject and Myoho Renge Kyo the object become more unified then you begin to experience your world differently.  You being to smell the flavor and scent of Myoho Renge Kyo, and it’s everywhere, and it’s very pleasing, sort of like Christmas cookies.  The tastes, the sights, the sensations, every thing and every where is Myoho Renge Kyo.  What’s even cooler is it was always there you just couldn’t see it, feel it, smell it, or sense it.  You aren’t transported anywhere, you stay where you are but your eyes are opened.  You become awakened.

All of this is not to one extreme or another. It isn’t all perfect, not by any means.   Your perfection might be some else’s hell.  It isn’t all a bummer either.  It’s sort of like Goldielocks.  Perhaps I shouldn’t use such colorful or seemingly silly language.  Yet I do think it can help to illustrate and help you form a mental image of this very important concept.  

There is no distinction between you and the Dharma.  Your practice doesn’t make you into someone else, it doesn’t change who you are.  What does happen is the good or beneficial characteristics of all the Ten Worlds are strengthened so that they rise above the potential negative.   In other words you reveal the greatness that lies within you, the greatness of the Bodhisattva from beneath the ground who has been taught by the Eternal Buddha from the infinite past.  You become the living manifestation of the truth of the Lotus Sutra.  Now the book that was sitting on the coffee table is not merely a manuscript recorded thousands of years ago, but a living document of today.

The fact that you are not transported to some new magical perfect place with no troubles or road bumps is a blessing.  If that were the case then you would not be on this Saha world, you would not be able to fulfill the vows of the Bodhisattvas from beneath the ground, and no one would be able to relate to you.  You with all your foibles and imagined shortcomings are the perfect person for the role you are to play to spread the Dharma.  This too is the Middle Way.  You are not perfect, you are not broken, you are just who you need to be and awakening the Myoho Renge Kyo within your life allows all the truth of the Dharma to manifest in your life, and then you can reveal it to others through your very real lived experiences.

And in truth, the realm of self, the realm of Buddhas, and the realm of living beings are all one. There is no fundamental distinction in terms of the True Dharma of the Myoho Renge Kyo.  There is not you to be cast off, there is no Buddha to be taken on.  There is only the one, fully awakened through your Namu at one with Myoho Renge Kyo.

The view of a separation, even the illustration examples I’ve used, are all false views.  I used them because that is usually the starting point where many of us began as we first were introduced to Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.  Those examples are where we start from, and where we move to is the realization of the truth of the Middle Way. 

Miao-lê says, “Since ignorance and defilements are themselves identical with enlightenment, there is no origin of suffering to be eradicated.  Since the two extreme views are the Middle Way and false views are the right view, there is no path to be cultivated.  Since samsara is identical with Nirvana, there is no cessation to be achieved.”

Further Miao-lê says, “A single, unalloyed reality is all there is, - no entities whatever exist outside of it.”

There is the Myoho Renge Kyo and us but it is not an and it is a mutuality.  There really is no way to write it or express it and the best we can do is what Nichiren realized Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.  Remember Ananda begins his recollection of the Sutra with Thus have I heard.  He says Myoho Renge Kyo is what I heard and what follows is an explanation.  When we live Namu we are not simply manifesting the words of the 28 chapters.  We are in fact unifying in body, mind, and spirit our fundamental Dharma reality and revealing the Myoho Renge Kyo.  In a way Myoho Renge Kyo is who we are and everything we live and do is like the explanation of the Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.  

As an aside, for those who doubt their ability to teach other the Lotus Sutra, or who think they are not skillful enough to explain the Lotus Sutra to others fear not.  You are Myoho Renge Kyo, all you need to do is let people experience your Namu and the Myoho Renge Kyo of your life.  Your words are not nearly as important as your life.  When you want to learn something from someone who do you go to?  I’m guessing if you are able you will turn to the person who has solved similar problems or experienced the things you wish to learn.  So it is with those around you who are most likely going through similar situations in their lives.  Your life is the most powerful teacher around, never doubt yourself and don’t underestimate the power of your actions.

“You should know that there are 3000 worlds in one thought moment within this body and land.  So when [the Buddha] attained the Way, this true principle found in all bodies and all thought moments was able to spread throughout the Dharma realm.” Miao-lê

I am in the process of writing a new book on the practice of Nichiren Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.  What I'll be posting is my first draft, imperfect as it is.  What I post has been sent to my editor and trust me will be greatly improved by his wonderful work. I'm sharing here on the chance others may find something of value or something to correct of offer feedback on.  Let the reading of this not be an onerous task nor a task of anything less than joy.  The source material comes from the Shutei Nichiren Shu Hoyo Shiki which draws from Miao-lê, as well as most importantly the Mohe-zhiguan or Makashikan by Chi-i.

Shodai Kan

For those who may be new to Nichiren Buddhism, or any Buddhism for that matter, when you enter the practice hall you may see various statues, or simply a scroll with paintings or calligraphy.  I’ve been asked by non-Buddhists about the statues, and almost always the question leads to the notion of worshiping idols.  There is no simple answer to this issue of whether a person worship the statue as an idol.

Many people form all walks of life and from various cultures practice Buddhism.  There is no single one practice or even belief.  Some people may and do pray to the statue as a representation of a benevolent force to intercede on their behalf to resolve some important mater in their life.  Is that wrong?  I would say simply it isn’t my belief or my teaching, and that I am not the sole arbiter of what is right or wrong.

In some ways it’s the wrong question.  

Perhaps a better question might be is the practice of praying to some representation of an entity one hopes to answer a prayer harmful, or is it helpful.  The answer to those questions may actually be different for the same person at different times and under different circumstances.

In times of extreme crisis, perhaps so extreme you may never have experienced anything like it, people often reach out, grasp even, at anything that will bring them hope in face of hopelessness.  That same person in a different situation may realize that the image is merely a reminder or stimuli to focus their efforts of faith and practice.  The wrist mala I wear is not magical, though it could be in the right situation.  It is however a constant reminder that I say I believe in Buddhism and that my actions should be reflected upon to verify if they are indeed in accord with what I say from my mouth. More often than not this is the function of my wrist mala for me.  

As a reminder though it would be an understatement of its significance since I would not think to discard it casually, nor treat it disrespectfully.  If it were merely a prop, or reminder then anything could do and anything could replace it.  As a prop or reminder I wouldn’t necessarily be concerned about simply throwing it away since they are easily acquired and inexpensive.  Yet it means more to me than just a reminder.  It’s complicated.

When we place faith in our practice what our faith best represents is our actions.  If in our prayers we somehow believe we are no longer responsible for taking appropriate actions on our own behalf, or that we no longer need to change our patterns of behavior, then our prayers are misguided and potentially harmful.

An example of this I frequently recall a book I read many years ago at the suggestion of a Rabbi friend titled The Seventh Telling by Mitchell Chefitz.  In this book the teller of the tale, a Jewish mystic talks about inappropriate prayers.  The example he uses is, suppose on your way home in the distance you see a house on fire.  The house is in the general direction of your very own residence. At this distance you are unable to discern if the fire is your house or another.  An inappropriate prayer, and an impossible prayer would be to pray the fire isn’t in your house.  The fire is already burning, it is either your house or it isn’t.  Your prayer will not change the location of the fire simply to suit you.  There are many other possible prayers to speak but praying it is not your house burning is not one of them.  

Also in the book he writes of a beautiful example of how prayer is sometimes a negotiation.  You want red widgets, the factory only has yellow and green widgets.  You can’t have red widgets, but you can have yellow or green.  Sometimes life is like that.  Praying for red widgets is pointless they don’t have any and they’re not going to make any.  You can have yellow or green, or leave empty handed.  Life is like that sometimes.  

Sometimes a mother no matter how hard she prays cannot change the medical course towards death her 18 year old son is heading towards.  I shall never forget the week I spent with the mother and father of such a boy.  Medically, death was certain.  Over the course of the week as the mother prayed and read her Bible, she realized that for her the answer to her prayers lay in becoming at peace with the reality, being able to peacefully let her son breath his last breath, and know nothing will ever be the same.  I could not bring her to such a place, she had to find and walk that path herself.  I could witness, accompany so she was not alone, and honor her journey towards a continued life while her son took his journey into death.  His death, was beautiful, if any death can be.  His mother, father, and siblings were all present, as was I at their invitation.  Together we all stood around his bed and when I told the doctors the family was ready they removed him from the “machines”.  Within minutes he breathed his last breath as we all wept.  We all cried, it was sad, it was terrible sad.  It is the way of life.  Many of his organs were able to be used to enhance the lives of many people throughout the United States, though that is in reality only perhaps a small comfort though we often wish it were a greater comfort.  It’s like second place, it’s like a yellow or green widget.

So whether a person prays to a statue or a piece of paper or prays to nothing as they venerate a statue or piece of paper is a personal question and not always the most appropriate question.

When you enter a Buddhist hall you may see many statues, or even none at all.  Depending upon the location and the statues you may be seeing what is frequently referred to as an Image Hall or Founder’s Hall.  In this location the statue or picture is not of someone to worship, that is not the intent.  This image and hall is for honoring or venerating the founder of the sect or lineage.  

When I lived at Joen-ji in Shinjuku Tokyo I attended a lecture given by a speaker from a different Nichiren denomination in the basement of the Founder’s Hall.  During the course of the lecture the speaker mistakenly offered as proof that Nichiren Shu worshiped Nichiren the fact that there was a life-size statue of Nichiren up above.  The hall above was a place where few services were held.  It was a place where novice priests practiced their sutra recitation and chanted abundant Odaimoku in preparation for Shingyo Dojo.  On special occasions marking various persecutions in Nichiren’s life as a group all the priests would go there, sit upon special straw mats guaranteed to cut your insoles to shreds and offered prayers commemorating the persecution.  I can attest, those special straw mats are not made of straw they are in fact razor blades disguised as straw.  They are deadly.

The point I’m making is the Image or Founder’s Hall is not a place of regular services or daily practice.  Where the practice or service takes place is in the Main Hall or Hondo.  This is where you will see not one statue of some guy but lots of statues of various personages.  In the case of Nichiren Buddhism and in larger temples such as Joen-ji there is a statue for every character represented on the Mandala Nichiren founded for the practice of the Lotus Sutra.

Now it is possible that there are some who may indeed worship one or more of those statues.  I’m not blessed or cursed with the ability to read minds, so I don’t know what goes through the minds of people who come there.  Some may come, and indeed I suspect many come who have no clue about anything in the hall, even in Japan.  One of Joen-ji’s main function was to offer memorial prayers for the thousands of families who have relatives interned in the huge cemetery.  Many people come to Joen-ji, and other temples, who are only fulfilling a family obligation. That’s not wrong, it is simply the culture and not our culture so not something we can judge or criticize.  

The original function, going back to the oldest established temples in Buddhism, was to recreate the environment representing the most important teaching of that particular denomination.  Going back to 4^th, 5^th and 6^th centuries in many cases there were not statues, instead the entire room would be painted to represent the important teaching.  This way the practitioner actually enters into the mandala.  

There are some wonderful examples of entire rooms painted as if the Diamond Sutra or even the Lotus Sutra.  The idea is when you enter into the hall you immediately have a sense of being immersed in the sutra itself.  So it is with the statues and even the calligraphic mandala used in Nichiren Shu.  Our handicap is we don’t automatically recognize the characters represented by the characters.  With the statues we can see an image, yet usually the statues are far away or up on a dais and so we loose the sense of being right there amidst the statues or amidst the people present.

In our case, Nichiren Buddhism, whether calligraphy on paper or statues we are not merely acting like some disconnected observer.  On the calligraphic mandala it is written in such a way that we are gazing up at the two Buddhas seated abreast of the Odaimoku which represents the two Buddhas seated beside each other in the great stupa hovering above the ground.  We are also looking at the Four Great Bodhisattvas.  Everyone else depicted on the mandala we are looking at their backs because they also are looking up at the two Buddhas.  We along with all the others are together gazing upon the two Buddhas, Shakyamuni and Taho as they sit together in the great stupa of Taho’s mausoleum.  

We are not really disconnected outside observers to this ceremony.  We are in fact participants in it.  In some ways there is no ceremony until we perform it.  Everyone in the congregation, every character on the paper mandala, every wooden statue is sitting there waiting on us to begin the ceremony.  The two Buddhas are patiently waiting for you to begin.  If you don’t begin soon then all the tea they’ve been sipping waiting for you will cause one of them to need to go to the water closet.  If you don’t begin soon then one of them may be attending to his bodily functions and you may miss him.  So please go, sit with the others in this great crowd, look upon the Buddhas hear with your ears the sutra you recite as if it were from the mouth of the Buddha.

You are present and the ceremony is being held just for you, your special, and they are wanting to honor you that’s why they are waiting.  They could have finished up 3000 years ago, but at the request of the Buddha they have waited.  The Buddha told them someone of great importance was coming and now finally you have arrived. Go to them and tell them you are ready to begin the ceremony in the air.

Whether the focal point of your gazing or veneration is a paper mandala or a statue arrangement mandala there is no doctrinal distinction.  They are all equal.  In Nichiren Shu, there are 5 versions of the mandala which are recognized as equally fulfilling the capacity of Nichiren’s establishment of the object of devotion.  They are as follows:  a full statue arrangement, a full calligraphic scroll, the single phrase Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, a statue of the Buddha, a statue of the Buddha and Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.  Any of those is equal to the others. Never fear that because you don’t have all the statues you are somehow missing out on something.  In the final analysis regardless of which one you have or if you have none at all, it is your faith and practice that is most important.  

The Odaimoku in the center is manifesting the entity of the Original Buddha in our mind.  As such it contains all the Buddhas of the ten directions, the four cardinal points, the intersections between each, and up and down.  It also contains all the sentient beings of all the Dharma realms, the lands of those realms and in fact everything in them.  In other words every every thing is contained in and embraced by Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.  

You see here, that there is no division between us and them or self and other in reality.  Namu Myoho Renge Kyo manifests what’s in our mind and everything beyond our minds from the perspective of the Original Buddha.  The trick is for us to operate from that perspective of the Original Buddha in us.  That’s an incredibly difficult thing to do for every moment of ones life.  It’s not impossible, just hard.  There is no easy path to enlightenment as you can see.  The work of the Buddha, our work, is never fully done.  

If you’re anything like me, pretty much most of the time I’m operating from the mind of a rather ordinary human that frequently thinks he is disconnected from most everything that isn’t within eye-sight.  Yes, sure I can intellectually touch that notion, but to actually live, go about my business, interact with countless others, well that’s an entirely different matter.  I do believe I’m better than I once was,  hopefully even better than I was yesterday.  I also know I’ve room to grow and improve so that tomorrow I can be better than I am today.

I’m writing this on the eve of the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States.  In just a few days over a month from now it will be New Year’s Eve.  In years past as part of the service schedule at the temple on New Year’s eve I have led a Repentance and Reflection Ceremony, called Hokke Senbo.  The instruction I give prior to the service is that while it is important to repent on our past transgressions what is equally if not more import is to reflect on why we did whatever it was, how can we change our response next time, how can we grow from this.

When I think of repentance or forgiveness I am drawn to the Jewish concept of repair, specifically repair the world.  In our situation as we reflect on the causes of our transgression and how we might grow and change so that we don’t act unskillfully we might also reflect on what might we do to repair any damage we may have caused. This is not to say we need pick up a guilt burden, it is to say however that we should reflect on this as well when we consider future actions.  In all things we seek to do the greatest good while avoiding causing harm, or causing as little harm as possible.

Think about the Odaimoku manifesting in our minds and hold the image of that Odaimoku as a great ocean.  Now as is the case with an actual ocean there are numerous waves, and they are formed due to a variety of causes.  Some waves are the result of the gravitational pull of the moon, these are not only the tidal waves washing towards or away from the shore, they are the full tidal action on the entire ocean.  Also winds cause waves and these can be anything from gentle breezes to tropical storms.  Further causes for waves are the geographic formations beneath the surface of the ocean.

Consider your mind and what sorts of waves are being created by your thoughts.  Perhaps you are unlike me, however in my case sometimes my thoughts create those huge waves tropical storms are famous for and storm surge.  You may however never make waves such as those, and perhaps your waves are the gentle ones formed by the gentle thoughts emanating from your mind.  Sometimes my ocean is quite calm and at other times it can be extremely stormy and hazardous to any ships or surfers.  Other times I might get lucky and create the perfect surfing wave, and I’m imagining it on Sunset Beach in Hawaii, which by the way is a beautiful place to surf.  

Consider next those murky images that are moving around beneath the surface of an ocean, your ocean.  Those images, some clear and some indistinct are all products of your thoughts.  Some may be benign and others may be malevolent, some good and some less so.  As your chanting the Odaimoku and focusing your mind on the mandala your voice, your thoughts spread out to the entire ocean of your mind.  This your chance to calm those rough seas and rid your ocean of pollution.  

There is a bay on the island of Oahu, Hawaii called Waimea Bay.  The water there is crystal clear and due to the protective rock formations around it remains calm except in extreme weather.  It is a protect environment both by nature and by government regulations. Swimming is allowed but only snorkeling and not scuba diving.  The water is not so deep but deeper than standing height.  The bay, protected as it is, is the home to many species of tropical fish.  It is such a delight to swim there and be able to clearly see the fish swimming alongside.  You can see from the surface to the bottom regardless of the depth.  Recalling the times I’ve been swimming there and the beautiful colors of the fishes is a fond memory.  This is the kind of ocean I wish to create from my Odaimoku.  Perhaps I’ve given you an adequate enough description that you too might wish to  create this sort of ocean of your mind from chanting Odaimoku.  Any way I think it is a nice image.

The Ten Worlds are mutually possessed in the Odaimoku, and each of these Ten Worlds mutually posses one another.  All of the virtues of each of the 100 Worlds thus derived are infused in the Odaimoku and thus we receive the merit of those virtues.  Our chanting helps to restore the imbalances in our lives smoothing out the rough patches.  Perhaps we’ve had a bad day and we have over exercised our anger.  We become out of harmony and our world appears as an angry place.  Perhaps we have become muscle bound by using anger so much.  In order to restore balance we need to not only be angry less but we need to strengthen the virtues of of the other worlds.  

Perhaps anger isn’t the problem perhaps it is hunger.  I’m writing this on the sales weekend following the US Thanksgiving holiday.  This is a time of heavy promotion to buy stuff.  All sorts of emails have been flooding my inbox with solicitations to purchase things with supposedly special sales and discount coupons.  It can be tough to keep hunger in its proper perspective.  Each of the ten worlds can present a problem if out of balance.  Compassion is an admirable trait, yet it can be destructive as well.  In the hospitals we frequently talk about compassion fatigue, or what has been frequently called burn out.  

When we chant Odaimoku in front of the mandala it is these things we are advised to contemplate.  Balance in our living and calm and clear seas of our mind.  

Next consider your environment as you experience it.  In Chapter XI, Beholding the Stupa of Treasures, the Buddha in response to the requests of the people in the congregation to be able to see the Buddha of Many Treasures purifies the land.  He also calls back his emanations, the many forms and manifestations which serve various functions of teaching and propagation.  He also adds more worlds and lands to the space originally occupied by the congregation.  He joins them all together and removes impurities and reveals the beautiful adornments that are inherent in each of the lands.  

In this action we are taught that our world, our land, our environment is actually all of the lands and places throughout the entire universe.  This means that our occupancy in space is connected to and part of the furthest reaches of what we think of as the solar system and even the universe.  Captain Kirk, Picard, and Janeway haven’t even begun to explore as far as the space we are a part of and connected to.  I’m not sure it is possible to impress upon you with my words the vastness of your environment and land.  All of the countless realms, the infinite number of Buddha lands are all contained in this land.  As humble and meager you may think your environment is it is only an illusion.  

The Odaimoku we chant contains all the Dharmas of all the Buddhas from all the realms of the universe and manifests all of the pure Buddha Worlds of Tranquil Light, they are all manifest in your life through the sound of your voice chanting the Odaimoku.  

“…When we contemplate the Original Buddha with every thought and chant the wondrous name with every utterance the inconceivable power of the wondrous name and the wondrous entity manifest itself .  All delusions will be eliminated and all merits will be achieved.  Dedicate this merit so it will spread to the entire Dharma-realm and benefit all sentient beings in the depths of their minds so that they will attain the merit of the Buddha of inherent existence.”

I am in the process of writing a new book on the practice of Nichiren Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.  What I'll be posting is my first draft, imperfect as it is.  What I post has been sent to my editor and trust me will be greatly improved by his wonderful work. I'm sharing here on the chance others may find something of value or something to correct of offer feedback on.  Let the reading of this not be an onerous task nor a task of anything less than joy.  The source material comes from the Shutei Nichiren Shu Hoyo Shiki which draws from Miao-lê, as well as most importantly the Mohe-zhiguan or Makashikan by Chi-i.

Dokuju Kyoden Kan

The Lotus Sutra begins with the phrase “Thus have I heard” and we may interpret that to mean the text that follows is what the teaching is and in so doing ignore or pass over the title of Myoho Renge Kyo.  To do so would be in error as what was heard was the title and the text following in an explanation of Myoho Renge Kyo.  The title is the teaching.

Both the title and the body text are deeply connected and both are necessary.  The Myoho Renge Kyo is as if a key to open a locked door.  In this case the the following 28 chapters are what is to be opened.  To consider one separately from the other would be as if trying to enter you home through a locked door you did not pull the key out of your pocket and insert it into the lock.  While it is true you do have the key, as it rests in your pocket, without actually utilizing it you are challenged to enter your home.  Busting down the door or breaking a window you could enter the house without the key, however using the key would provide you quicker entry with less residual mess and expense. 

Even in the case of my electronic lock without either the key or my cell phone the magic of automatic entry or back up manual entry is not possible.  Like my automatic electronic door lock which automatically unlocks when I pull into my driveway the benefits of the Lotus Sutra come to us when we both practice and study even without our full understanding.  This is faith.  

Every phrase, every character of the text of the Lotus Sutra converges within the title of Myoho Renge Kyo.  The five characters, as written in Chinese, contain every stroke and every mark of all the 69,000 characters comprising the Lotus Sutra.  All of the virtues of the entire 28 chapters of the text are all contained within the five characters of the title.  Also every single character within the text of the sutra contains all the virtues of the five character title.  Neither is too small, nor too large.  Neither is required to expand or contract to accommodate or fill the other.   Every character produces virtue due to its relationship with and inclusion of all the other characters.  To ignore the text or to ignore the title deprives us of the mutual benefit of the two together.  I imagine this much like the relationship of beans and rice.  Both contain protein yet when combined the total protein is greater than the sum of their individual proteins.  That is perhaps why even without understanding the science of protein analysis cultures throughout the world you can find some version of a beans and rice combination food staple.  And so it is with the characters of the title of the sutra and the body text.

“Each character produces virtue just as the wish-fulfilling jewel constantly rains down many other jewels.  Even one jewel is enough, while 10,000 jewels are not too many.  No matter the quantity what is produced in sufficient.  You should know that each character and sound spreads throughout the Dharma-realm to propagate the Buddha’s teaching in the past, present, and future, bringing benefit to all beings.” Shutei Hoyo Shiki

As we practice reading and reciting the sutra the place we are in, the place in which practice our devotion to the Lotus Sutra is where the Three Treasures of the ultimate truth of the Buddha appears.  It is also the place where the protective forces of the universe accept our offering of the nourishment of the Dharma we read and recite.  In fact your practice space becomes the Buddha’s Pure Land of Eternally Tranquil Light, and your body becomes awakened to the Dharma-body, the Manifest-body, and the Reward-body.  The sutra is where the Buddha’s from the past, present, and future put their mark of certification, their swearing to the truth of the highest teaching of Shakyamuni Buddha contained in the the Lotus Sutra. 

Our reading and reciting is a solemn practice one which carries great significance.  We are not who we may think we are when we engage in this seemingly simple practice.  We are no longer the mere mortal living a mere mundane life as we may sometimes think of ourselves and our existence.  Our voices are carried throughout the entire universal Dharma-realm, our thoughts are also spread to the farthest edge of the limitless universe, as contradictory as that may seem.  They are our offerings we carry to all the entities, all the beings, all the energies throughout space and time.  We are in fact creating a cascade of Dharma influenced causes which reverberate outward from us, and inward toward us.  Just as we send the Dharma nourishment to the beings of time and space that same nourishment imprints on our own lives the Ultimate Truth of the Buddha causing us to manifest all the rewards and benefits of the Lotus Sutra.

Our actions upon the environment become actions on ourselves as well.  These thoughts should be the thoughts that occupy our minds as we engage in our devotions of reading and reciting the sutra.  Our sitting, or kneeling, our prostrations, our bowing, our bell ringing, our water offering, our incense lighting, our book opening, the turning of the pages, our shifting in place as our joints ache, our singing of the hymns, our reading and reciting the sutra and chanting the sacred title are all priceless offerings we give to all sentient beings and to the Three Treasures of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.  We are not merely common mortals sitting in a simple room with a small box shrine housing a yellowing scroll or dented Buddha statue reading in a scratchy voice.  All of those are transformed into the grandest castle housing a gold-plated shrine wherein is housed a scroll written in gold, silver and platinum characters as we lift up the sutra with the voice of an operatic singer. 

You and your place of practice are not merely transformed, no they are truly revealed.  Your place is revealed as the Buddha’s Pure Land it has always been.  You are revealed as a Buddha you have always been.  

These are the mysteries for us to contemplate as we engage in the solemn yet joyful practice of reading and reciting the sutra in our daily practice.  

And you know what, this doesn’t wear out, you cant use it all up.  In fact the more you do it the more abundant it becomes.  Your dedicating merit to others does not reduce your own merit.  Your Buddha’s Pure Land and your own enlightenment grow and expand as your practice continues to grow and deepen.

Let me interject a caution here.  I’m not sure I would have even mentioned this say 10 or so years earlier, but with an increase in religions teaching prosperity as an indicator of faith or prosperity first before helping others I feel it is important to do so.  While it is true we benefit from our practice, it is not true that our benefits are the indicator of our faith or practice.  Prosperity has nothing to do with joy, it has nothing to do with enlightenment.  The Buddha turned his back on prosperity, he turned his back on austerity.  If our teacher did this then shouldn’t we also.

You do not need to become wealthy in order to benefit others.  Your financial situation has nothing to do with your ability to benefit others, it has nothing to do with your ability to cause others to be joyful, it has nothing to do with your enlightenment.  In fact financial prosperity may even hinder all of the above.  This is not to say we shouldn’t try to become secure in our living situations, or that we shouldn’t try to be wise in our finances.  Finances and prosperity are simply things which can hinder or encourage, but it is the hindering and encouraging we should focus on.

When we become virtuous,  kind, trustworthy, respectful, humble in our selves then we are manifesting the qualities desired and these are unmeasurable and not indicated by our bank account or the place we dwell in, or the car we drive, or clothes we wear.  These qualities are in our actions and our words; our presence of being.  Being honest with yourself you will know and others will certainly respond.

“This is the place of practice where the Three Treasures of ultimate truth and the unseen beings who protect the Dharma now appear and descend to this place.  They see us clearly with the light of their wisdom. This place of practice where we are is the Pure Land of Eternally Tranquil Light.  This present form-body is the awakened Dharma-Body.  The sutra that we are upholding is what all Buddhas certify as the Dharma.  The thought that is rightly upheld is the entire Dharma-realm.  May each sound and each thought and all the virtues spread equally to adorn the Buddha’s land as offerings to the Three Treasures and contributions to all sentient beings. May awakening spread everywhere manifesting its light.  May all the natural spirits, other beings, and the four kind of devotees in this world, those who are far and near, inside and outside the place of practice, throughout heaven and earth, and those who have a relationship with the Dharma and are seeing, hearing, and enjoying it receive conspicuous and inconspicuous benefit equally and limitlessly.” Pg. 395

I am in the process of writing a new book on the practice of Nichiren Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.  What I'll be posting is my first draft, imperfect as it is.  What I post has been sent to my editor and trust me will be greatly improved by his wonderful work. I'm sharing here on the chance others may find something of value or something to correct of offer feedback on.  Let the reading of this not be an onerous task nor a task of anything less than joy.  The source material comes from the Shutei Nichiren Shu Hoyo Shiki which draws from Miao-lê, as well as most importantly the Mohe-zhiguan or Makashikan by Chi-i.

Ju Kyo Mon

“When we chant the sutra all the heavenly dragons, the eight kinds of supernatural beings, the monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen will all gather round to listen.  When we become a Dharma-master we must understand that we are to convey the True Dharma and teach the four kinds of devotees. After we finish chanting the sutra we must pray that in the future we will attain awakening together with all sentien beings by this merit.”  Grand Master T’ien-t’ai Chih’i from Kanjin-jukyo-ho (The Way of Contemplative Recitation)

I am unsure it can be said often enough or even too much that chanting the sutra yields immeasurable benefits.  I think we all know that or at least we all say we know that.  I wonder though how deeply aware we are of that in the depths of our lives?  I wonder if there are those who maybe perhaps will say this is true yet deep down inside find a space in their lives that is unsure?  I don’t think there is anything broken in you if you are such a person with some of those thoughts creeping around in your thoughts and feelings.  Nope, nothing wrong with you at all, in fact it would perhaps be more normal than not.

All too often in matters of faith there is a supposition that true faith is a faith without even the slightest of doubt or questioning. Because of this people often fear reveling the truth of their lives and so everyone wanders around thinking they must be the only one who has some doubt. It is like we don’t want to reveal the chink in our armor fearing that the next person will use that as a way to attack us or ridicule us for not have a ‘pure undoubting faith’ whatever that might look like.

I like to think of those spots as exciting places.  They are places of discovery and invite curiosity. They also mean we are human and when we can relish our doubts we can humanize our beliefs and our practice.  Pure faith, again whatever the heck that is, is inhuman, it isn’t approachable.  I mean seriously, how do you relate to someone who is perfect?  Knowing that I’m not perfect I would find such a person quite avoidable, even avoidable at all costs perhaps.  Rather the person without those doubts lurking around and yet being quite human would be rather someone I could relate to.  The person who wears a sandwich board advertising their perfection would I suspect be trying to sell me snake oil and not something that really worked.  

For me my doubts center around whether I am qualified to even teach others about the Dharma.  Who am I to think he has any claim to any wisdom or knowledge that everyone else has long ago sorted out.  In fact writers often engage in writing to sort out those things, the things that others have sorted and who now delight in the humor of witnessing someone try to get to where they already are.  I also have doubts about whether I am offering any thing of value with regard to understanding and practicing the Lotus Sutra.  I’m not fishing for compliments or assurances, rather to let you peek inside my mind.  

Since I’ve been writing I’ve had numerous people come to me and say complimentary things about how what they have read helped them understand and have a deeper relation to their practice of the Lotus Sutra.  I am left speechless often fearing that if I say anything it will ruin the illusion.  Yet I am aware also that what they say is true, and they are being sincere.  I am thankful that I can have such an ability, though I am doubtful that I can claim it as my own.  I know that it only comes from my faith in and my practice of the Lotus Sutra.  Even if unskilled it is still my wish to somehow share with and encourage others to find the joy I have found, not exactly like mine but their own version.

When we recite the sutra we should do so with a clear voice, strong and confident, clear and melodic.  In my writing this is how I hope to be.  Whether you write, draw, make music, add up numbers on a spread sheet, direct planes in an airport, guard resources, answer telephones, field consumer complaints on a hot line, report the news, care for children, make babies, arrange flowers, collect the refuse of humanity, test water quality, drive a bus, guard the cross walk for children going to school, represent voters as a politician, litigate matters before a judge, cary a weapon in combat, train for combat, and on and on the list could go you have an opportunity to sing the phrases of the Lotus Sutra with the very actions of your task. This is how we can recite the sutra with our lives.

Reciting the sutra traditionally means doing so from memory whereas reading is the actual eyes on paper reading the text on the page either out loud or silently.  When we do our daily service we are encouraged not to recite but to read as this ensure we don’t take shortcuts or mispronounce the words.  Of course we can recite, yet we should be mindful of checking our recitation frequently to ensure we remain faithful to the words of the text.  

Our actions in our lives are as I said an opportunity to recite the sutra with our lives.  We have a choice as to whether our actions in life can be melodic, in harmony with the situation and task at hand or if they will be discordant and at odds with our environment.  Harmony yields joy, disharmony yields discomfort.  When we are in harmony with the Lotus Sutra and our environment it makes it easy for others to enter into the wonderful benefits of the Dharma even without them being aware.  This the Buddha responds to, this their Buddha nature responds to and this awakens the seed to their enlightenment.  There is nothing we need to but provide the nutrients to the awakening of their Buddha.  

The notion of converting people, or convincing them to take faith in the Lotus Sutra is at odds with any belief in everyone possessing Buddha within their lives.  Seriously what is there I can convince someone of, or convert them to if they are already Buddha.  Rather it is incumbent on my to provide the fertile field for their Buddha to sprout and grow from within their lives.  Conversion, is a mind game and one of dominance.  It is operating from a mindset of superiority and subjugation, which is contrary to anything taught or found in the heart of the Lotus Sutra.

Just this past Sunday one of the members of the Sangha asked a question about chanting the Sutra in English.  The stated that it didn’t seem melodic or have the same affect on them as chanting the Shindoku.  Another member of the Sangha shared that when the recite in English they modulate their voice as they would normally when reading.  They add emphasis to the parts they feel moved to emphasize, they raise the pitch of their voice when so moved and in doing so their voice reflects their feelings in the moment to the words they are reading.   

I fully support this way of reciting in English for your personal practice.  When we read in group it isn’t always the case that people will modulate the same way which can cause a discordant sound to our English chanting.  So adopting a monotone voice is perhaps appropriate, even if it isn’t the natural way English is spoken.  I do think eventually this will change and I’d be glad to see it happening sooner rather than later.  The monotone voice is a Japanese sensibility based on the fact that there are no accented sounds with everything receiving relatively equal weight, except in the affected speech patterns of young people and women.  Currently the Japanese way has the upper hand, it won’t always be the case I believe.  I feel it more appropriate to adopt a more natural manner in our English recitation.  And this notion is supported with in the Hoyo Shiki which I’ll talk more about in a later section on vocal quality.  Briefly though we as priests are encouraged to be melodic and not unnatural or unpleasing.  Of course all of that is subjective and currently Japanese sensibilities are the subjective measure.  I suppose I should end this line of thought here because it isn’t my intent to stir up trouble. 

“With a scattered mind you cannot chant the Lotus Sutra, nor can you enter into the concentration meditative absorption.  Concentrate and be mindful of each word of the Lotus Sutra when you practice it whether sitting or standing. If you accomplish this practice you will see the body of Universal Sage Bodhisattva.” Grand Mater Nan-yüeh Hui-ssu, Hokekyo-anrakugoy-gi (Annotations on the Peaceful Practices Chapter of the Lotus Sutra)

What I’m about to say won’t end the debate over whether or not chanting or sutra reciting is meditation, yet I am going to once again say that in every way it is as much meditation as anything is including silent sitting.  Silent sitting and all the permutations of mindfulness practice is mostly a Western phenomena and in many cases an attempt to market for profit a misrepresentation of Buddhism and its practices.  

That may sound rather harsh, yet when I look around the evidence I see is devoid of much that contradicts this.  Silent meditation is not now nor has it ever been a primary practice for Buddhists.  Even today the most common form of practice is sutra chanting.  This is not a Japanese thing, this is a Buddhist thing.  

For those who lightly toss off notions of chanting as being meditative I suspect they really haven’t fully engaged in a practice that has challenged them to go beyond their comfort zone.  For many it is the pitfall of Buddhism of Convenience.  When it becomes inconvenient they loose their attention.  Chanting the sutra is extremely difficult, and even more so if one tries to maintain a concentrated mind.  Try chanting Odaimoku for 10 minutes and see how prone your mind is to wandering.  It isn’t because chanting hinders meditation it’s because chanting challenges you to concentrate your mind in ways that silence and sitting in groups of individuals isolated in their own minds does not.  Chanting and reciting are difficult enough as a solitary practice and the challenge is jumped up 10-fold in group.

The concentration one can achieve by chanting can elevate the mind and life condition in ways I do not believe silent sitting can.  The transcendent affect of meditation is multiplied when the mind is carried into the heart of the sutra or Odaimoku through concentrated meditative active presence.  You can’t simply check out when your reciting the sutra.  Well, you can, and so it is with sitting there in your self-group-isolation in silence.  

In group chanting or reciting it is not only your voice, it is your voice along with other voices.  You are a part of and not isolated from the experience.  You both give and receive.  You contribute and you partake.  Your voice naturally seeks harmony with the group voice, your ears hear the voices of others as well as the modified voice of self.  Your voice you hear is not the same voice the others hear and what you hear of others is not what they hear of themselves. You add to the group voice as well as take from the group voice.  Your listening does not diminish nor lessen the sounds others are making.  It is like a candle light which is not diminished because it lights other candles, and the light of a candle can illuminate darkness without being consumed regardless of how long the darkness has persisted. 

To chant the sutra together with others requires courage.  We don’t often think of that.  But think back to your first times chanting in group.  If you are like most people you were shy, hesitant, and even afraid.  You probably were hyper-aware of your voice, and most likely you were the only one so aware of your voice.  Over time those fears became less and you perhaps now gladly and with confidence join your voice with others in recitation.  Just because you are more confident now does not mean you don’t have courage when you chant.  Your lack of awareness of the courage it takes to chant is merely a function of your practice and continually shoring up your courage.  I’m guessing the first times you recited the sutra alone you were just as shy and timid as in group, even though perhaps no one was around.  

To chant the sutra take incredible courage.  The sutra talks about the roar of the lion, yet for many when we first start chanting a lion is not what would come to mind.  Over time you overcame those doubts and fears, you were manifesting the behavior of a lion, though you probably didn’t think about it at the time.  The lion is fearless, and over time you become fearless in your recitation.

The lion, besides being fearless also focuses on the task at hand, acquiring a good meal.  So too, even though we may be confident in our recitation and chanting Odaimoku, we need to remain focused on the sutra, the task at hand, acquiring the nourishment of the Dharma.

“If a Phrase of the sutra fills your heart it will be an aid to reaching the other shore.  By deeply reflecting on and mastering the Dharma it will become a great vessel for crossing over.  Being able to see and hear the Dharma follows upon it’s joyful reception, as a vassal always follow after his lord.  Whether somebody accepts this teaching or abandons it, they will form a causal connection with it through hearing.  Whether somebody follows it or goes against it, they will finally be able to achieve liberation through hearing it.” Venerable Ching-hsi (aka Miao-lê Chan-jan), Hokke-mongu-ki (Annotations on the Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra)

It is interesting and noteworthy the quote does not say when you have memorized a phrase, nor does it say when you have comprehended a phrase.  Instead it speaks of when your heart is full of the sutra, that is when you have joy and excitement, even irrational, then you have the tool you need to liberate yourself from suffering.

Reflecting while certainly engages the mind it is generally thought of as heart centered.  Know what makes your heart sing, understanding and being aware of that is introspective.  All too often in life we ignore the heart, and even more frequently we fail to hear the quite whispers of the soul.  The mind shouts with a loud voice and generally the only voice that shouts louder is when we have passion, when we are in love.  Both are extreme and in reflection, in introspection we can create space for the voice of the soul and its connection to the spirit of the universe.  

When we have great joy the sutra says in Chapter II, we will become Buddhas.  Joy is not a mental phenomena.  Miao-lo says that being able to see and hear the Dharma is connected to our joyful reception.  These ancient wise Dharma masters had an admirable passion for the Dharma.  It seems from this distance of several hundred years that their passion was so great one would be greatly influenced simply by being in their presence even if you didn’t understand a word they spoke.  

There is something about being passionate that radiates in a person, certainly different from someone who is well versed but passionless in theory.  I think back to the story I was told when I first began practicing Nichiren Buddhism.  It was about two brothers who were so intellectually challenged they didn’t even know their own names, and would answer to the name of their brother before answering to their own.  Or the story of someone who recently converted to Buddhism after meeting the Buddha.  In the case of the brothers they were able to ‘teach’ Buddhism through their very being.  In the case of the newly converted man, while traveling he met someone and converted them to Buddhism simply by saying he didn’t know anything but he had met the Buddha.  In both cases it was the passion that filled their lives that communicated in ways words could not.

I wonder if in our time we have somehow relegated passion to the bin or feel it inappropriate, or even substandard to intellectual mastery.  It’s as if intellectualism has replaced rather than being simultaneous with passion. 

Your words, however eloquent or not they may be, when coupled with your passion of faith can move people and cause them to become happy.  Your passion for the Dharma and the joy it brings you is capable of awakening the Buddha in other you meet.  That little spark of your passion is like a small jolt of electricity that startles the slumbering Buddha in other people causing it open its eyes and begin to seek out its full awakening.  You may not see it, you may think your efforts are inconsequential, and this is the mistake of the intellect.  Because you don’t see it, because you can’t measure it, because it isn’t quantifiable there is the tendency to ignore it.  In Chapter XXII we are told our mission is to cause people to have great joy, simply by sharing any truth of the Buddha’s teachings not just the Lotus Sutra.  Causing people to have great joy is not about convincing someone of some intellectual or philosophical profundity.  It is about having great joy in yourself for them and the Buddha already in their lives.  

None of us fully knows the route we took to have faith in Buddhism, much less the Lotus Sutra.  We may know the path in this lifetime but before that what do we know.  We may have been the Walmart cashier in some distant realm  of the universe who one day had someone check out in their line who simply smiled and said thank you wishing for you great joy.  Long ago in the past our flame was ignited, and we began our search for a way to fully manifest our Buddha self.  Eventually after traveling thousand of galaxies and being reborn in untold realms sometimes as a humanoid and other times as some other being, finally we were reborn in this place in this time and seemingly quite by accident we came across the Lotus Sutra and took faith.  Then bam we are here, and now what shall we do?  Shall we think about it?  Or shall we embrace it, feel it, be energized by it?  

Hear me now roar like the lion!

“The Buddha is the unexcelled King of the Dharma.  Once we chant what he preached with his golden lips, the spiritual phrases of the sacred teachings, those words will become a Dharma-wheel that travels throughout the earth.  The yakshas chant to the sky as an offering to the Four Heavenly Kings.  After the Heavenly Kings hear it, they then pass it on until it reaches the King of the Brahma Heaven.  This chanting spreads out to the dead and to the living.  The dragon-gods are as pleased as when people listen to the speech of a king.  Who would not praise it?  The merit of chanting is like this.” Wu-chin, Goho-ron (Treatise on Protecting the Dharma)

Even though our ears are not fine tuned and so are unable to hear many frequencies our voices are heard and cause the universe to move.  We can have a voice of love or of hate, and then what we hear in return, what we experience is in accord with our voice.  Think how the universe is moved when we recite the words of the Buddha.  Even our small voice reaches the heavens.

I remember as a child one night while taking a bath my parents got into an argument in another room and started yelling at each other.  My father stormed into the bathroom grabbed some things and turned out the lights as he  slammed the door.  There I was alone in the bathtub with no lights.  I hit my head on the water spout and got a cut which started bleeding.  Maybe that’s why to this day I don’t like taking baths, maybe not.  Regardless their voices and their actions reverberated, and were felt by me.  We know the energy of angry words are powerful, I think we often discount the equal power that words of kindness have and the even greater power of our voice lifting up the words and phrases in the sutra, especially the Lotus Sutra.

I wish for you great joy.  Is a powerful statement.  What’s even more beautiful about this wish based upon the Lotus Sutra is that it doesn’t contain any mention of what it might be so it is up to each individual what there great joy is.  That is why when I pray for someone who has requested a specific prayer from me I simply pray that they have the necessary resources to solve their situation.  I am not capable of knowing exactly what someone needs, I can’t know the specifics, but I can easily put my life energy into a prayer for the necessary resources whatever they may be.

Contained within the teachings of the Lotus Sutra are limitless resources for us to navigate our life situation.  We will never know them if we ignore reading, reciting, and studying.  As Nichiren says in the Shoho Jisso Sho, “Endeavor, endeavor to strengthen your faith”.  

As Wu-chin says, our small voices are relayed to the King of the Brahma Heaven.  And this pleases not only the living and the dead it also pleases the Brahma King.  It’s always nice to make the Brahma King happy.

I feel as if I am being a bit redundant here so rather than continuing to repeat myself and the wise ancient elders I wrap it up by simply encouraging you to pursue with joy, with vigor, with determination the practice of reciting the sutra.  Get a hold of a copy of the romanized version of the Shindoku text of the Lotus Sutra and practice reciting in this way.  If you are unable to do that right now have it as an eventual goal and recite from the English a portion of the Lotus Sutra every day.  Your life will change, and your faith with strengthen.

I am in the process of writing a new book on the practice of Nichiren Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.  What I'll be posting is my first draft, imperfect as it is.  What I post has been sent to my editor and trust me will be greatly improved by his wonderful work. I'm sharing here on the chance others may find something of value or something to correct of offer feedback on.  Let the reading of this not be an onerous task nor a task of anything less than joy.  The source material comes from the Shutei Nichiren Shu Hoyo Shiki which draws from Miao-lê, as well as most importantly the Mohe-zhiguan or Makashikan by Chi-i.

Rai Sanbo Kan

Not sure about your mind, however if it is anything like mine is at times, it is full of all kinds of stuff.  There’s good stuff and bad stuff and stuff I don’t know quite what to do with, though I’m hoping I figure it out soon.  When I’ve taught folks in detox to meditate almost to a person the common plea is “I can’t get my mind to stop thinking, how can I make it stop.” For all of those thoughts of theirs, yours, and mine there is one truth underlying it all.  That truth is our minds all contain the Three Jewels of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. Each of our minds in any single thought moment encompasses all Dharma qualities and pervades all realms.

That’s a pretty powerful statement, it is also one worthy of deep reflection.  What kind of Dharma qualities are in our thoughts?  Yea, that’s the rub, what kind of Dharma qualities are we manifesting in all of our thinking.  The good, the bad, and the ugly all reflect our own Dharma quality.  The ten worlds are always present and the ten worlds always have each of the ten worlds present in some form.  So even your bad stuff is Dharma, and so is your good stuff.  What manifests in your life out of all those thoughts is your Dharma nature but never absent is any thought good or bad.  The key to our practice is to not suppress or hide from those less than admirable thoughts but to see where they come from, examine them, and then manifest our actions from the mind of the Buddha, from the heart of the Buddha.

The principal of the Three Jewels being present in our one mind is acclaimed by Buddhas in numerous sutras.  This principle is the basis of the sutras, it is not incidental nor did it arise after the sutras.  It is the fundamental truth on which the sutras arose.  The sangha both in body and in mind has protected the Buddha Dharma throughout all time and spreads it all over the world and the infinite universe.

In our own Saha world, it is we the common mortal, full of defilements, discursive thoughts, fleeting attention spans who is tasked with spreading the Dharma.  It isn’t being spread by gods or deities, it is you and I in all of our perceived imperfections that are the most qualified to teach the Dharma to others showing with our lives that there is a way to end suffering and attain enlightenment as promised in the Lotus Sutra.

It is our minds that the Buddhas respond to.  Our minds reveal our true self.  It is easy to speak great words, it is exceedingly more difficult to keep the good words in ones mind and heart.  One needs only look into one’s mind and heart to see the answer to why certain things keep occurring, things we don’t necessarily wish to keep happening.  It isn’t an esasy exercise, and it isn’t always pleasant to reflect on one’s mind and heart.  It can show some pretty nasty stuff or at least some undesired stuff that we might rather not see.  Yet it is by repeatedly examining this where change begins.  Buddhism demands honesty to our selves.  You don’t need to bring it out to the attention of anyone except yourself.  That’s hard enough.

 For all that gunk that hangs around in our hearts and minds there is something else there.  This something else is not to be taken lightly and should never be forgotten. Our minds while being perceived by the Buddhas also contains the perception of the Buddhas.  Our minds are also the minds of Buddhas, and yes no matter how bad you may think you are you are indeed a Buddha and possess the mind of the Buddha within your mind.  The trick as it always is, is for us to tap into it while working on lessening those other qualities which work against the Buddha in our lives.

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“The innumerable great virtues of the Dharma-realm is where the Three Treasures and all human and heavenly beings abide and what the Dragon King looks up to in reverence.  These Three Treasures are not only of great benefit and win over all sentient beings but are also of the same nature and entity as us.”

I have in the past and continue to this day to stress the importance of the Sangha.  I don’t stress this importance over and above the importance of all Three Treasures, simply that without Sangha there is no Three Treasures.  Sangha is not self only, Sangha is community.  Sangha is a dynamic community, it is not simply an association with or belonging to a social platform of exchanged monologue entries.  Social media is not inherently bad and it is not automatically a substitute for Sangha.  

Here are some of my reasons for saying this.  One, in a Sangha there is a dynamic process at work.  This process is dynamic because it happens at once and not one at a time.  When you enter into an activity with Sangha present your presence altars the environment and causes reactions and interactions of others present in the Sangha.  The activity is for ever impacted by your presence and even your absence.  That is why for my online digital Sangha I task everyone with participating by speaking, asking questions, responding to other’s comments, as well as showing one’s face by video stream.  It isn’t perfect and it is an exploration into the possibility of this type of Sangha offering benefit and a close approximation of a physical Sangha.  What you hear, and what you say all change the experience for not only yourself but for others.  Sangha is about a shared experience and also a sharing experience.

Second, a Sangha is somewhat like a family sitting together at meal time.  It is an opportunity to come together, even with people you haven’t chosen to come together with and may not associate with any other time.  A Sangha is not merely being with like minded people but being with people who share a common objective to practice the Dharma together, help one another, encourage one another, and even disagree with one another.  

I recall the evening meals my family shared together virtually every day I lived at home. Sometimes they were contentious as not all the time did we get along, though mostly during meals difficult matters were set aside.  Most of the time they were happy and sometimes even boisterous.  There was always plenty of milk in the jug my dad kept on the floor beside his chair.  I liken that jug of milk to the wonderful benefit of the Lotus Sutra always there, limitless, and easy to acquire.  That milk always tasted good.  That milk sticks in my mind and even though I continue to drink milk at all my home meals it isn’t quite the same as the milk poured from that jug.

The milk I drink in solitude is good, it is to me what makes a meal a meal.  The milk in solitude though does not have the same memory nor the same experience the milk beside my dad’s chair.  Sometimes we didn’t feel like talking to one another, and the meal was consumed in an ill tempered silence and even in those times there was always unlimited milk.  More than anything else that milk in my mind was the golden elixir or ambrosia, the nectar of the gods. 

Third, a Sangha provides an environment of nourishment and encouragement immediately.  Of course we may not always feel like sharing our concerns.  The sharing of one’s problems is built on a trust in those you share with.  In a physical Sangha that trust is built over time and by experimenting with problems of a less personal nature.  Given enough time the sharing can become deeper and the trust continues to build and the ever dynamic nature of Sangha expands.  It expands because of trust, contribution, respect, and a realization that when it gets down to the core of things we all are pretty much alike and much less different than we sometimes think.

I will admit that I do not participate widely in social media and so am no expert.  I am though aware of a large body of studies on social media as well as I have my own experiences.  It is from this I say that I am not convinced that social media provides the same experiences in any way one gets from a dynamic Sangha.  One of my chief criticisms is the environment of monologue.  While I have seen some deep and caring postings and responses it still happens one event at a time and lacks a dynamic presence of concerned individuals coming together for the sole specific purpose of practicing the Dharma and participating in Sangha with the Buddha.

The Three Treasures of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are not only beneficial for each of us this also benefits all sentient beings.  The benefit is greater than simply to the participants in Sangha.  The benefit expands outward to our whole environment affecting all we experience.  In our time of increased silos of shared likes and a decrease in interactions with those not like us, the Sangha I believe will serve as a model to society at time in the future when society may need to relearn getting along and working together to solve shared problems.

Many of the Shomyo, or Buddhist hymns, we sing contain a phrase “I shin kyo rai” (Jpn), which means with our whole heart we bow.  With our whole heart we bow to the Three Treasures, not the One Treasure, not the Two Treasures, but all three of the Three Treasures.  

“Our own bowing and the Buddhas who are bowed to are all originally within one mind in which there is no bowing and no one to receive it.  Although there is no bowing and no one to receive it there is certainly the response of the Buddhas and the receptivity of the ordinary people.”

The ten directions, the four primary, the four intersecting directions of the four primary, combined with up and down encompass all the conditions of the mind.  There is no separation between our mind and the entirety of the universe.  

Not completely the same I have often taught that fundamentally there is no division or distinction between ourselves and others around us.  The substantial differentiation is the manifestation of our unique karmas.  There is really no way to separate ourselves from others when it comes to Buddhist principles as we are all part of our collective environments which would be dramatically altered and changed if even one person was absent or different.  Our uniquely seeming existence is not simply dependent upon our presence rather it exists because of the presence of others along with ourselves.  We cannot become happy alone.  If all around us is suffering then we too will suffer.  It is possible to manifest the Buddhas land in our environment because we can also affect the potential for the Buddha land to be manifest in the lives of others.

Our mind encompasses the entire universe even if we choose to ignore it.  Simply being unaware or disinclined to be aware does not absent us from the reality.  The same is also true of every other person.  This does not mean that we know all the inner workings of the universe or have the answers to every problem.  It does mean that we have the capacity to tap into the vast cosmos, the wisdom of the Buddhas of the past, present and future.  We have all of that potential within us.  We are much more than we tend to limit ourselves as being.  

Practicing the Lotus Sutra allows us to first see and experience and then open up to the vast treasures of the universe.  The Buddha, a common man, a prince from a small tribe in ancient India, did just this very thing.  The result is that here we are today some 2500 years or so removed from him and yet are able to benefit from the insight and enlightenment he gained.  That path he has revealed to us in the very teaching he found and allowed him to attain what he did.  Rather than keep it to himself, rather than dilute it down, rather than change it he gave it to us in the form of the Lotus Sutra.  

I wonder if when we engage in our daily practice, however it manifests, if we really approach the devotion with the awareness of the greatness of the teaching and the incredible fortune we have to have been exposed to this profound teaching.  I don’t believe anything that has come along in my life has come close to comparing to the greatness of the Lotus Sutra.  It is unimaginable that I should have been exposed to it in this lifetime.  A seemingly chance encounter in a military barracks only a few nights before Christmas has led me on a path which has given me fortune beyond what I could have imagined then or even now having lived it still finds hard to believe.

Bowing when there is no bowing for me means that all of my life is both an expression of gratitude and an attempt to repay the favors I have received.  Bowing when there is no one to bow to means that when I try and succeed in living according to the principle that all beings possess Buddha then even if they do not seem to respond their lives are forever impacted and the Buddha in them bows even without either of us being aware. There receptivity is not dependent upon their knowledge or awareness, the Buddha is always receptive to the actions of Buddha. The one mind of self always abiding in the Lotus Sutra is far reaching and encompassing.  The one mind abiding in the Lotus Sutra speaks to the one mind of every being in the universe and so the universe abides in us and bows to us.