Discussion of “The Life Span of the Thus Come One” Chapter (Chapter 16); The Ten Worlds
“I” in the passage “in truth the time since I attained Buddhahood is extremely long” (IS16, 226) refers to Shakyamuni, who attained enlightenment in the remote past. According to the actual meaning of this [“Life Span”] chapter, however, “I” represents the living beings of the Dharma realm. Each and every one in the Ten Worlds is being referred to here in the word “I” (cz, 753)
Non-existence of birth and death [from the passage
“There is no ebb or flow of birth and death” (ISI6,
226)] means that all phenomena in the Dharma realm are simultaneously functions of Myoho-renge-kyo.
Existence indicates that Hell is in itself the total entity of the wonderful Law of the Ten Worlds. (GZ, 754)
Suda: We have discussed each of the Ten Worlds. Our focus here is the doctrine of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.
Ikeda: Nichiren Daishonin writes that while the doctrine of the Ten Worlds is found in sutras expounded before the Lotus Sutra, only the Lotus Sutra explains their mutual possession.
In one place he says: “This is precisely the doctrine of the Lotus Sutra. While the causes and effects of the Ten Worlds were revealed in the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, only the Lotus Sutra establishes the mutual possession of the causes and effects of all Ten Worlds” (GZ, 40I).
It is the Lotus Sutra’s most essential doctrine. For that reason, it cannot be adequately covered in a brief discussion. Therefore, why don’t we first try to get at precisely what is meant by “mutual possession” and then talk about how understanding this principle can change our lives?
Suda: Mutual possession of the Ten Worlds literally means that each world from Hell to Buddhahood contains all Ten Worlds. In other words, each of the Ten Worlds contains the other nine. This state of mutual possession is also described as the “hundred worlds,” the product of multiplying ten times ten.
Endo: The doctrine of the Ten Worlds is often used to explain state of life. One of the most frequently asked questions is: “If the Ten Worlds mutually contain one another, giving us a hundred worlds, does this mean there are a hundred different states of life?” Within these hundred worlds we find, for example, the world of Buddhahood contained in the world of Hell or the world of Buddhahood found in the world of Humanity. This gives rise to the question, “If there are indeed a hundred worlds, then how does the world of Hunger contained in the world of Hell differ from the world of Hell in the world of Hunger?”
Suda: From one standpoint, to be born a human being is in and of itself to be in the world of Humanity. Thus, the state of life of a person who (I) is born human, (2) experiences the suffering of Hell on account of something like illness, and (3) subsequently awakens to his or her mission as a bodhisattva, could be described as the world of Bodhisattva contained in the world of Hell contained in the world of Humanity. We would then have ten times ten times ten, or a thousand worlds.
Saito: That would mean that a single moment of life contains not three thousand realms, but thirty thousand!
Ikeda: Something is wrong here! We have so far tried to clarify each of the Ten Worlds using our own lives as a model. Though not explicitly stated, our talks have been naturally premised on the doctrine of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds, in par-ticular, the existence of the Ten Worlds within the world of Humanity.
Suda: That’s true.
Ikeda: In fact, such an approach to the Ten Worlds would be impossible without the teaching of the Lotus Sutra.
Saito: While the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings explain the Ten Worlds, they conceive of each as separate and independent.
According to this understanding, those in the world of Humanity cannot reach the world of Buddhahood until they have discarded the world of Humanity. So according to these teachings one would have to practice for aeons, eradicating one lower state of life after another while being reborn into successively higher worlds, until one finally becomes a Buddha. Alternately, to make Buddhism more accessible, some schools taught that after death one could be reborn in another land far away from this strife- ridden saha world, such as the Pure Land of Perfect Bliss (of Amida Buddha).
Ikeda: We tend to take it for granted that the world of Humanity contains the Ten Worlds, but this is in fact the key point of the teaching of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.
The Ten Worlds also exist in the universe. The entire universe is a great living entity endowed with the Ten Worlds, and it is there that we were born in thee world of Humanity. The world of Humanity existing in the universe also contains the Ten Worlds, as do the worlds of Animality, Hunger and Anger.
Endo: That is the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds in the life of the universe.
Ikeda: So why does the Lotus Sutra explain the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds? Ultimately, it is to reveal that the world of Humanity contains the Ten Worlds, and, in particular, the world of Buddhahood. This means that ordinary people can reveal their Buddha nature just as they are—without having to be reborn in any other form or in another land.
Saito: To profoundly grasp this truth is called “observing one’s mind.” The Daishonin says that to “observe one’s mind” means to perceive the Ten Worlds within it (WND, 356).
Suda: In “The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind,” Nichiren Daishonin emphasizes the concept of the Ten Worlds, and in particular the world of Buddhahood in the world of Humanity.
Endo: Now that we have clarified the purpose of the doctrine of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds, it seems that dwelling on the difference between the world of Hunger existing in the world of Hell and the world of Hell existing in the world of Hunger is actually missing the point.
Suda: What about the issue of the thousand worlds?
Saito: That’s the question of the world of Bodhisattva existing in the world of Hell existing in the world of Humanity, and so forth.
Suda: I think considerable confusion surrounds this point.
Saito: If we say that the Ten Worlds exist in the universe, and that people, who are born in one of these worlds, are entities of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds (i.e., that they possess the hundred worlds), then the universe contains a thousand worlds. I think this interpretation reflects a basic misunderstanding about the Lotus Sutra’s intention in setting forth the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds. This intention is primarily to elucidate the wondrous truth that all living beings, regardless of which world they happen to inhabit at any given moment, are endowed with the Ten Worlds.
Essentially, the Lotus Sutra explains the inscrutable, mystic truth of life —that the “part,” or just one of the Ten Worlds, in fact contains the “whole,” or all of the Ten Worlds; this is what is meant by “mutual possession.” Given this reality, it can be said that one’s life is endowed with a hundred worlds.
THE HUNDRED WORLDS ExIST BOTH IN THE UNIVERSE AND IN OUR LIVES
Ikeda: Perhaps it is helpful to put it in these terms. The individual is a microcosm. The microcosm is itself the macrocosm; the two can never be separated, so the self is in fact the universe.
Since the entire universe is a living entity manifesting the mutua. possession of the Ten Worlds, it possesses the hundred worlds. At the same time, since our lives, too, are one with the uni-verse, we also possess the hundred worlds. We are entities of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds just as the universe is.
Suda: Certainly, to say that we (the microcosm) are the hundred worlds and that the universe (the macrocosm) is the thousand worlds is contradictory, because then it could not be said that we are one with the universe. This is clear now.
Endo: The universe itself is a single great life; we, too, are a single life. Both are life and are in that sense equal. The doctrine of mutual possession explains the mystic true aspect of this single great life.
Ikeda: Whichever of the Ten Worlds we are in, the true aspect of our life at that moment is a perfect microcosm just as it is. This is what we learned from our discussion of the principle of the true entity of all phenomena.
Nichiren Daishonin says regarding the Lotus Sutra’s teaching of the true entity of all phenomena,
, “All beings and environments in
the Ten Worlds, from hell, the lowest, to Buddhahood, the high-est, are, without exception the manifestations of Myoho-renge-kyo” (WND, 383). In this passage, “all beings and environments in the Ten Worlds, from hell, the lowest, to Buddhahood, the high-est” refers to all phenomena in the universe, which are subsumed within the Ten Worlds. “All beings and environments” points to the inseparability of the entity of people’s lives and the entity of the universe, meaning, for example, if a person is in the state of Hell, then the person’s environment will also be that of Hell.
“All beings and environments in the Ten Worlds” indicates all phenomena in the universe. The Daishonin thus teaches that all phenomena without exception are “manifestations of Myoho-renge-kyo”; that is their true aspect. In other words, every phenomenon is an expression of the great life of the universe, which is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
Saito: From that perspective, the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds naturally follows from the principle of the true entity of all phenomena, since the teaching of the true entity of all phenomena reveals that all manifestations of life (all phenomena) are themselves expressions of the universal life (true entity).
Applying this to the Ten Worlds, we find that living beings in any world are endowed with the entire universe; that is to say, with the Ten Worlds. This is the relation between these two doctrines.
Ikeda: It’s a truly remarkable view of life, the world and the uni-verse. Nichiren Daishonin says, “Grasses and plants, trees and forests, mountains and rivers, the great earth and a single speck of dusteach is endowed with all Ten Worlds” (Gz, S6I).
Suda: I am reminded of a poem by the famous English poet William Blake:
To see a World in a Grain of Sand And a Heaven in a Wild Flower, Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand And Eternity in an hour.!
Tkeda: A grain of sand and a wild flower-these are both entities of the Mystic Law; they contain the life of the universe in its entirety.
Endo: Such a view transcends superficial distinctions between phenomena, like whether they are large or small.
With regard to the principle of three thousand realms in a single moment of life, Nichikan addresses the question: “How can we say that a single moment of life contains the vastness of three thousand realms?” In answer, he explains that the Lotus Sutra reveals the principle of “endowment and pervasiveness,” saying:
“The Dharma realm in its entirety is contained in each moment oflife. And the moment of life in its entirety pervades the Dharma realm.
The macroscopic exists in the microscopic. The microscopic encompasses the macroscopic. He continues: “To illustrate, a speck of dirt is endowed with all of the constituents making up the vast land that surrounds it. And when a drop of water is added to the ocean, it spreads out, pervading the entire ocean.” Suda: Without undersanding the truth of nonsubstantialicy it is probably impossible to make sense of such mysteries.
By the way another question am asked fregenty is whether saying that the Ten Worlds exist in the universe means that there are specinc parts of the universe that correspond to specific worlds. Some suggest that the vicinity of the earth, for example, would correspond to the world of Humanity.
WHAT IS “NONSUBSTANTIALITY”?
Ikeda: With regard to the len Worlds as they exist in the uni-verse, President Toda would often use radio waves as a metaphor to explain the concept of nonsubstantiality. I imagine you may have heard this comparison before.
Endo: Yes. Radio waves transmitted from many different broadcast stations, including frequencies sent from overseas, all reach a single room. Despite the proliferation of radio waves, you cannot see them. Yet, if you doubt their presence, by setting up a radio and tuning the channel you can readily receive any one of them. The room is never too small to hold any number of frequencies, nor do they impinge on one another. Mr. Toda explained that the Ten Worlds in the universe are also in such a state.
Ikeda: That’s right. But we need to remember that this is just a means of description. The condition in which radio waves exist does not itself signify nonsubstantiality. In the universe, each of the Ten Worlds neither pile up on one another nor are they lined up side by side or individually concentrated in any particular place.
They are thoroughly diffused throughout the entire universe and manifest in accord with relations, or external causes. The same is true of the Ten Worlds extant in each person’s life.
Saito: For instance, when our lives are manifesting the world of Hell, no matter how we might search for a way out, all we find is Hell. As we squirm about in hellish suffering, we cannot see the existence of any other state of life, such as Heaven. Yet, it may happen that at the next moment our sufferings will disappear and the world of Heaven will dominate. Where did this world of Heaven come from? Certainly not from anywhere outside us.
While we were suffering in Hell, the world of Heaven was in a condition of nonsubstantiality. When any one of the Ten Worlds appears —and they appear only one at a time-then the other nine worlds all recede into nonsubstantiality. The worlds become manifest in our lives as “temporary existence” in response to external causes. This seems to be more or less how it works.
Ikeda: Nonsubstantiality is a difficult concept. Why don’t we try to probe a little deeper?
Strictly speaking, the term Ten Worlds means “ten Dharma realms.” What does “Dharma realm” signify?
Suda: “Dharma realm” means the world of all phenomena; that is, the entire universe. “Dharma” itself points to all phenomena, which are revealed through various chains of causality. There are ten different kinds of causality corresponding to each of the worlds from Hell to Buddhahood.
“Realm” indicates the specific realm or domain as distinguished from the others. The ten Dharma realms, therefore, refer to the ten kinds of Dharma world—or universes-that appear according to ten kinds of causes.
Ikeda: Does that mean that there are ten different universes then?
Endo: There’s only one universe. In terms of Dharma realm, “one Dharma realm” indicates the entire universe.
Ikeda: So “ten Dharma realms” does not suggest the existence of ten universes, which would be ten times as great as the space indicated by “one Dharma realm.”
Endo: That’s right. I guess there’s no way to describe it except to state that one Dharma realm (one world) contains the ten Dharma realms (Ten Worlds) within it.
THREE WAYS OF INTERPRETING THE TEN DHARMA REALMS
Ikeda: That’s truly beyond our ordinary scope of thinking. The Daishonin says, “The Dharma realm is neither broad nor is it nar-row” (GZ, 769). The Great Teacher Tien-t’ai of China gives three ways of interpreting the term ten Dharma realms.*
Saito: Yes. These are “ten Dharma realms,” “the realms of ten Dharmas” and “the ten [Dharma realms] are themselves the Dharma realm.” These correspond to the three truths of nonsub-stantiality, temporary existence and the Middle Way.
First, “ten Dharma realms” reflects the view that, differences in the Ten Worlds not withstanding, each of these worlds is a Dharma realm, a world of the true entity as perceived by the Bud-dha, which is identical with the entire universe. From this stand-point, every world, whether Hell or Humanity, is equally a
“Dharma realm,” an entity of the universal life or the Mystic Law.
Endo: This is the perspective of nonsubstantiality.
Saito: That’s because, despite differences between the worlds of Hell and Humanity, for example, these differences are not viewed as substantial.
Ikeda: In other words, each world is seen as itself representing the totality of the universe. This is the perspective of”all phenomena are themselves the true entity,” and “the part is itself the whole”; that a single grain of sand reveals the entire universe.
The corollary to this view is that since the true entity is all phenomena, the whole is the part. This is the standpoint that the life of the universe manifests through all phenomena with their myriad differences.
Suda: That is the idea of the truth of temporary existence. While all phenomena are equally manifestations of the Dharma realm, they still exhibit the differences of the Ten Worlds. This brings us to the interpretation, “the realms of ten Dharmas.” In this case,
“realm” is synonymous with “difference.”
Ikeda: Why do such discrepancies exist?
Endo: It has to do with how the Dharma realm is perceived. Phenomena are perceived and sensed differently by different people.
It would seem, therefore, that there are ten ways of seeing things, according to one’s life-condition.
Ikeda: That sounds correct. In that sense, the ten Dharma realms (i.e., Ten Worlds), rather than being objective aspects of the uni-verse, can be understood to express worlds of subjective percep-tion-how we view things—or states of life.
While the ocean itself is the same, the amount of water people can draw from it will vary depending on the size of their ladles.
The same is true of the “water” of wisdom.
Fundamentally, living beings, whichever of the Ten Worlds they inhabit, are themselves the entire universe. That is the true aspect of life and the universe that the Buddha perceives. But living beings, unable to realize this, suffer in Hell and Hunger, contend with one another in the world of Anger, and once they reach the higher worlds of Learning and Realization, feel satisfied that they have achieved all that they need to achieve.
Even if one is in the world of Hell, the world of Hell is endowed with the Dharma realm in its entirety. This is the perspective of the truth of the Middle Way, the third interpretation that T’ien-t’ai provides.
Saito: Yes. that’s the interpretation “the ten are themselves the Dharma realm. “This means that the world of Hell just as it is, is the Dharma realm. There’s no need to move from the world of Hell to another world; Hell contains all phenomena. Since “all phenomena” indicates all beings of the Ten Worlds and their envi-ronments, the world of Hell contains the len Worlds. The same of course holds true for each of the Ten Worlds.
Endo: That’s the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds. It seems very difficult to grasp this concept correctly, but I feel that it is gradually becoming clearer.
Suda: Probably what makes it hard to understand is that it is so far beyond our ordinary linear way of thinking where we assume that a collection of parts makes up a whole. But this assumption does not hold true in the profound Buddhist view of life, which holds that the part, or the individual fragment, is itself the whole.
KOSEN-RUFU LIES IN THE HAPPINESS OF THE INDIVIDUAL
Ikeda: That’s why I’m always saying that the individual is so important. The life of one person is as large as the entire universe and is supremely worthy of respect. This is something that people have a hard time comprehending.
It’s important that we go out of our way to encourage not only those in our immediate surroundings but those who are struggling inconspicuously behind the scenes. To only pay attention to those in the fore is no different than bureaucratism. A Buddhist first and foremost seeks to shed light on those who tend to go unno-ticed. We need to make efforts to inspire all people and help them become happy. That is what is meant by kosen-rufu. To deviate from this fundamental path and try to run the organization top-down is completely counterproductive.
In any event, the concept of the true aspect of life, from the standpoint of which the part is itself the whole, certainly transcends our ordinary way of thinking. That’s why it is called inscrutable or mystic.
Endo: T’ien-t’ai used the doctrine of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds to express “the region of the unfathomable” to which he had awakened. It may well be that it is impossible to fully comprehend the truth of life intellectually.
Ikeda: But this “region of the unfathomable” does not exist somewhere apart from the reality of people’s lives. Rather, the lives of ordinary people are themselves mystic. The Lotus Sutra proclaims that the human being is sublime. We must never forget this. There isn’t some “mystic place” or wondrous “mystic being” existing apart from the reality of our lives.
In terms of our Buddhist practice, we must decide that faith is the only way. We have to resolve: “I will win, basing my actions on faith!””I will forge a path through faith!” The “region of the unfathomable” ultimately is none other than the Gohonzon and the realm of faith.
As the Daishonin says, “It is the heart that is important” (WND,
949). Someone who just goes through the motions of praying to the Gohonzon will eventually succumb to inertia or doubt; someone who merely complains or tries to avoid difficulties will not receive true benefit. The Daishonin says, “Whether or not your prayer is answered will depend on your faith; [if it is not,] I will in no way be to blame” (WND, I079).
There is no realm more wonderful than that of faith. The Gohonzon is the supreme storehouse of treasures. This is itself the inscrutable mystic realm; in our faith in the Gohonzon we have the most wonderful treasure. When we practice with such an overflowing sense of joy and conviction, we receive boundless benefit. If, however, we believe there may be a more wonderful place in some other world, or that there may be some method superior to that of faith in the Mystic Law, it will greatly undermine our ability to manifest the world of Buddhahood.
When we reveal the world of Buddhahood within our lives, we can truly validate the principle that Buddhahood contains the nine worlds and the nine worlds contain Buddhahood. Only then do we embody the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten
Worlds.
Saito: Without faith, the doctrine of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds is nothing but words.
Endo: A little earlier you cited the passage, “Observing one’s mind’ means to observe one’s own mind and to find the Ten Worlds within it.” Nichikan explains that from the standpoint of the Daishonin’s teaching, the phrase observing one’s mind means to observe one’s own mind indicates belief in the Gohonzon. That’s why the Gohonzon is also called the “Gohonzon for observing one’s mind.” He further says that “to find the Ten Worlds within it” is to chant the Mystic Law.
Ikeda: That’s right. We who invoke the Mystic Law correspond to the nine worlds, and the Mystic Law corresponds to the world of Buddhahood. Through chanting the Mystic Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the nine worlds and the world of Buddhahood become one; that is, we actualize the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds. This is what produces a great transformation in our state of life.
Unless we actually manifest the world of Buddhahood, the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds will remain nothing more than a theoretical potential. Through faith and practice, we can actualize this principle. In that sense, while the theory of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds is very subtle and complex, there are countless people in the SGI who have demonstrated actual proof of it. I think we can go so far as to declare that only in the SGI are such people to be found.
Endo: The other day I heard the experience of a Ms. Chan Bok-soon of Hiroshima and was extremely moved. Ms. Chan is a Korean national living in Japan who was a victim of the atomic bomb. Having overcome anti-Korean discrimination from the Japanese and the painful aftermath of the bombing, she is now active as a volunteer spokesperson for peace.
Ms. Chan, whose parents had immigrated to Japan, was born in Osaka. Her family had run an extensive agricultural operation in Korea. Militarist Japan invaded the country, however, and the family lost its land as a result of Japan’s colonialist policies.
They had no choice but to come to Japan. In making their deci-sion, they had placed their trust in advertisements promising that a wonderful life awaited them there. But after being sent to one dangerous construction site after another, they finally arrived in a small village deep in the mountains. They were put in a tiny room in the corner of a cocoonery that was partitioned off by only a straw mat, and they were made to work as assistants to a tenant farmer.
Moreover, they were assigned to work a swamplike field. There was no way they could get a satisfactory harvest from this poor piece of land. They reportedly lived in a constant state of hunger, surviving on a meager allowance and what plants and fruit they could collect.
Suda: That’s terrible. At the time, a great many Koreans were similarly duped into coming to Japan.
Endo: They later moved near Hiroshima. A year later, on August 6, 1945, the rumor spread that the city had been totally destroyed by a new kind of bomb. Ms. Chan and her mother, concerned about the safety of relatives and friends, entered the city of Hiroshima immediately after the blast. As a result, Ms. Chan became a victim of secondary radiation from the bomb. She was twelve. When they finally located Ms. Chan’s aunt and her son, they found them so badly burned that there was nothing they could do for them.
Her aunt cried: “There are too few doctors and too little medicine … not enough to go around for Koreans. All we can do is wait for death to come!”
At this, her mother wailed: “Our country was taken, and we were brought all the way to Japan to be mercilessly worked like cows and horses. They don’t even make death easy for us; instead they force us to die in excruciating flames. What offense did we commit? Will they continue to discriminate against us even after we are dead?” Even now Ms. Chan vividly recalls how her mother sobbed and lamented, pounding the ground with her fists.
Later, when she was sixteen, Ms. Chan married. She married so young because her family had limited means and there were too many mouths to feed. From around the time she gave birth to her first child, she was afflicted by severe anemia and various internal disorders —probably as a result of her exposure to the atomic bomb—and had to undergo many operations. She was told by her doctor that she had no chance of recovery, and when she was transferred to a hospital in Hiroshima, she was reportedly in a coma.
Her husband stopped coming to see her, and she and her two small children had to share her hospital meals. Since she had no money, she was forced to leave the hospital and wound up living in a tiny hut without running water or utilities. They had to go to a neighborhood park to use the toilet. It was a pitiful existence.
The local women of the Soka Gakkai extended a helping hand to Ms. Chan and her family. They would warmly encourage her, saying things like, “Let’s become happy together!” and would sometimes bring over dishes of hot noodles for her and her chil-dren. What a profound impression this must have made on Ms.
Chan, who had lost all trust in people!
In 1964, at age thirty-two, she began practicing Nichiren Dai-shonin’s Buddhism. Through earnestly exerting herself in faith, she succeeded in recovering vibrant health. Upon witnessing this, her husband also took faith.
Ms. Chan had a question that had been on her mind for a long time. She wondered why she had to suffer so much. When she learned about the Buddhist concept of deliberately creating the appropriate karma, meaning that one undergoes suffering in order to help other people in similar circumstances, she found at last she could make sense of her predicament.
“I see,” she exclaimed. So I have a mission that only I can fulfill. My situation is my responsibility?” Through reading President Toda’s Declaration for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons and studying your guidance, President Ikeda, Ms. Chan developed a strong determination: “There must be some unique way that I, as a Korean A-bomb victim living in Japan, can contribute to peace. I will put more effort into fulfilling my mission! I will study harder!”
At fifty-two, she enrolled in night middle-school classes. She later attended night high school, where she maintained a grade point average at the very top of her class. At fifty-seven, she was admitted to the night school of the University of Hiroshima.
Saito: To undertake one’s education at that age is no small feat. It must have been very arduous.
Endo: She comments that she cannot recall having once gone to sleep in her bed while she was attending classes or being aware of when she fell asleep and when she awoke. Through such tenacious effort, in the spring of 1995, at sixty-two, she succeeded in getting her diploma.
Now, while teaching part-time in the night school she once attended, she is participating in lecture meetings and symposiums near and far as a spokesperson for peace. She has tirelessly given her support to schools for adult literacy and has carried out volunteer activities to promote education programs in many countries of Asia, including Nepal and the Philippines.
When she joined the Soka Gakkai, Ms. Chan was told by the person who first introduced her to the Daishonin’s Buddhism,
“You will become unimaginably happy.” She recalls thinking at that time: “Rather than unimaginable happiness, would be satisfied with happiness that I can readily imagine. It would be enough if my husband would just quit drinking and get a job.” She has in fact constructed a state of life truly far beyond anything she could have then imagined.
Ms. Chan says emphatically, “Making the spirit of the Monument of Prayer for World Peace’ that President Ikeda established in Hiroshima my own, l am determined to exert every ounce of strength I have to fulfill my mission for the peace and happiness of people throughout the world.”
FREELY ENACTING THE TEN WORLDS
Ikeda: That’s a wonderful experience. A wonderful life. A wonderful example of victory through faith.
In the “Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings,” the Dai-shonin says of Bodhisattva Wonderful Sound (who appears in the twenty-fourth chapter of the Lotus Sutra): “He manifests thirty-four different bodily forms, illustrating the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds and preaching the Law so as to bring benefit to others” (GZ, 80I).
To lead people to enlightenment, this bodhisattva appears in various guises (thirty-four bodily forms) and widely propagates the Lotus Sutra in accord with people’s capacity and their worries.
This, the Daishonin says, is “illustrating the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.”
Ms. Chan’s life had sometimes revealed the suffering of the world of Hell and, at other times, the sadness of the world of Hunger. But through faith in the Mystic Law, she realized that these were the effects of karma she herself had willingly created in order to show actual proof of faith. She developed the confidence that, for the sake of kosen-rufu, a Bodhisattva of the Earth readily undergoes even the most abominable suffering.
While revealing various states of life, in the end the bodhisattva demonstrates victory and so teaches others about the greatness of the Mystic Law. Those who do so are great actors in the drama of the Ten Worlds. Such a life could well be described as revealing
“thirty-four different bodily forms” and “illustrating the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.”
Suda: “Illustrating the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds” refers to the idea that people, though originally Buddhas or bodhisattvas, manifest the various states of life of the Ten Worlds.
Saito: In “The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind,” Nichiren Daishonin, commenting on the passage in the “Life Span” chapter that reads, “Sometimes I speak of myself, sometimes of others; sometimes I present myself, sometimes others; sometimes I show my own actions, sometimes those of others” (LSI6, 226), says that it expresses the truth that “the world of Buddhahood contains the Ten Worlds” (WND, 357). Here, he interprets “myself” as pointing to the Buddha’s life, or the world of Buddhahood, and “others” as meaning the various states of life that the beings of the Ten Worlds manifest.
Ikeda: The Daishonin elucidates that, since the remotest past, the Buddha, while appearing in various states among the nine worlds, had been continually taking action as the Buddha. This was possible because the nine worlds continued to exist in the Buddha’s life even after the attainment of supreme enlightenment. This is the meaning of the passage, “All beings of the Ten Worlds are essentially Buddhas.”
Also, in contrast to the “theoretical” mutual possession of the Ten Worlds found in the “Expedient Means” chapter, the “Life Span” chapter explains the “actual” mutual possession of the Ten Worlds. The Buddha revealed the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds through his own actual conduct. This is the meaning of
“Sometimes I speak of myself, sometimes of others…”
Just as Bodhisattva Wonderful Sound leads people to enlightenment through freely manifesting thirty-four bodies, we advance kosen-rutu while carrying out various roles and activities, whether it be, for example, through education, business or taking care of the home. Whether revealing the pain-filled world of Hell, the joyous world of Heaven or the world of Anger, through it all we continue progressing.
Based on our activities as SGI members to promote peace, education and culture and to reach people through words and actions grounded in Buddhism, we continue moving forward while revealing all aspects of life. This surely corresponds to the “thirty-four bodies” and represents the practice of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.
CHANGING LIFE ON A FUNDAMENTAL LEVEL
Suda: Here is one last point to confirm.
The purpose of the doctrine of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds lies in helping people manifest the Ten Worlds inherent in the world of Humanity, in particular, the world of Buddha-hood. Human life is the entity of the one hundred worlds, just as the universe is. This much I can understand. But I’m still not completely clear on the significance of the hundred worlds contained within the world of Humanity.
Saito: The Daishonin discussed the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds focusing on the Ten Worlds existing in the world of Humanity. I think what you’re asking is: What, exactly, does it mean to say that each person is an entity of the hundred worlds, or if there is even any sense in discussing it at all?
Ikeda: One way we can approach this problem is from the perspective of our basic life tendency. For example, while all people belong to the world of Humanity, some, in terms of their basic life tendency, act mostly from the world of Hell, for example, and others act mostly from the world of Bodhisattva.
Saito: Someone whose life clings to the world of Hell will become downcast and discouraged at the slightest setback. That is the kind of trend I think we’re talking about.
Ikeda: We could term this the habitual tendency of a person’s life.
This tendency has been built up by the cumulative causes that a person has made up until the present.
Saito: That would include one’s personality.
Endo: It’s the basic course of people’s lives, the base or home to which they always retreat.
Ikeda: Just as a spring returns to its original shape after it has been extended, we return to our own basic tendency. Even if the world of Hell is someone’s base, that doesn’t mean that the person remains in that state all the time. Rather, his or her state of life will shift from one world to another, sometimes entering the world of Humanity and sometimes the world of Anger.
Even a person who strives to be superior to others (a characteristic of the world of Anger) will sometimes manifest the worlds of Bodhisattva or Heaven, for example.
Suda: Bodhisattva or Heaven is contained in the world of Anger.
Ikeda: But even if someone who has the world of Anger as his or her fundamental tendency momentarily produces the world of Bodhisattva, they will quickly revert to the world of Anger. It is doing our human revolution, transforming our state of life at the deepest level, that enables us to change this basic tendency, to change our fundamental state of mind.
Your basic tendency in a sense determines your life. To illustrate, those who tend to act from the world of Hunger are as though on board a ship called Hunger. While navigating the course of Hunger, they will sometimes experience joy and sometimes suffering. Though there are many changes and fluctuations, the boat unerringly continues to advance along that track. Conse-quently, these people’s viewpoint is always colored in the hues of the world of Hunger; after they die, their lives meld with the world of Hunger existing in the universe.
Making the world of Buddhahood our basic life tendency is called “attaining Buddhahood.” Of course, even it Buddhahood becomes our basic tendency, we still have the nine worlds; conse-quently, we still have worries and suffering. But the foundation of our lives becomes one of hope, and we acquire a rhythm of peace of mind and joy.
President Toda once explained this as follows:
Even if we should become sick, we should have the atti-tude: “I’m all right. I know that if I chant to the Gohon-zon, I will get well.” Doesn’t Buddhahood mean living with total peace of mind? Now, because the world of Buddhahood contains the nine worlds, we might still sometimes become angry or perplexed; enjoying total peace of mind doesn’t mean that we cease to experience anger, for example. A worry is still a worry. Yet, underneath everything, we feel profound peace of mind. Someone in this state is a Buddha.
He also said:
Isn’t a Buddha someone for whom to be alive is itself an overwhelming joy? Isn’t this what it means to attain the Daishonin’s state of life? Even when facing the prospect of being beheaded, the Daishonin was calm and com-posed. In a similar situation, any one of us would be ready to give up. When he was exiled to Sado, the Dai-shonin continued instructing his disciples on various matters and produced such writings as “The Opening of the Eyes” and “The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind.” Without peace of mind, he could never have written such great treatises.®
Suda: Referring to what you said earlier, I can see how President Toda enjoyed a state of life as vast as the Pacific Ocean even while facing great adversity. It seems that this is just the kind of peace of mind that he was talking about.
STRUGGLES IN THE NINE WORLDS
STRENGTHEN THE WORLD OF BUDDHAHOOD
Endo: The practice of reciting the sutra and chanting daimoku is the means for establishing the world of Buddhahood as our basic life tendency.
Ikeda: Reciting the sutra is a solemn ceremony in which we fuse our lives with the life state of the Buddha. By steadfastly and continually carrying out this practice and also chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the world of Buddhahood in our life becomes solidified, just as firmly packing together a pile of earth will produce a strong foundation. On this foundation, this stage, at each moment we freely enact the drama of the nine worlds.
Kosen-rufu is a struggle to make the world of Buddhahood the basic tendency of society. Fundamentally this comes down to forging ties of friendship with increasing numbers of people.
At any rate, when we base ourselves on Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism, absolutely no effort is wasted. When we make the world of Buddhahood our basic life tendency, we can advance toward a future of hope while making the most of all our activities in the nine worlds, both past and present. In fact, our efforts in the nine worlds become the nourishment that fortifies the world of Buddhahood.
In light of the principle that earthly desires are themselves enlightenment, sufferings (i.e., earthly desires, or the nine worlds) all become the “firewood” or fuel for attaining enlightenment (the world of Buddhahood). This is similar to how our bodies digest food and turn it into energy.
Suda: Without wood there would be no fame, and without food our bodies would have no energy. Similarly, without the nine worlds, the world of Buddhahood would be diminished.
Ikeda: That’s right. A Buddha who has no connection to the actual sufferings of the nine worlds is not a genuine Buddha—a Buddha of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds. That is the essential message of the “Life Span” chapter.
In a sense, the world of Buddhahood is expressed in the inclination to take on even the hardships of Hell. This is the world of Hell contained in the world of Buddhahood. It is suffering for the sake of others, suffering willingly taken on as an expression of responsibility and compassion. Working to spread the Daishonin’s teaching and encourage friends has the effect of strengthening the world of Buddhahood in our lives. Faith means gladly taking on hard work. Manipulating others to do things is not faith; that’s organizationalism and authoritarianism.
Saito: To enthusiastically and joyfully go into the midst of suffering —that’s analogous to the spirit of bodhisattvas to take on karmic suffering out of compassion for others.
Ikeda: We cannot grow as human beings without great effort.
Those who avoid the struggle can neither manifest true faith nor carry out their human revolution.
President Toda once said:
A sea bream of the Inland Sea is born in an inland body of water, grows up in the rough waves of the outlying Sea of Genkai, and then once again returns to the Inland Sea. Since it has withstood the fierce currents of the Sea of Genkai, its flesh is firm and its bones strong, and it has a wonderful taste. Similarly, battling the rough waves of the world enables young people to grow into outstanding individuals.?
According to a certain chef, the muscles that a fish has used most, such as those near the tail or the fins, taste best.
Suda: Those areas aren’t usually eaten.
Endo: It seems that people leave the best parts behind!
Ikeda: In terms of people, those who have really struggled possess the “flavor” of profound character and humanity.
There are those who give up when things get tough and consequently fall into despair. This is comparable to how you will undermine your health if you eat too much at a time when your power to digest and assimilate food is weak. Therefore, having a strong life force is important. When our lives are strong, we can turn all of our toils into a source of spiritual nourishment.
On the other hand, no matter how much we may believe in the Mystic Law and carry out the practice of reciting the sutra and chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, it is impossible to strengthen and solidify the world of Buddhahood in our lives if we avoid the hard work necessary for advancing kosen-rufu.
LIVE TRUE TO YOURSELF
Saito: In terms of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds, attaining Buddhahood does not mean eradicating the nine worlds.
Rather, it means making the best use of all of them. This gives us a sense of the broad-mindedness of this teaching.
Ikeda: To live based on the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds means to live thoroughly true to oneself based on faith.
Buddhist teachings that do not explain the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds treat the nine worlds with scorn, postulating that one can only enter the world of Buddhahood by eradicating the nine worlds. Their approach is essentially to try to carve away those parts of human existence that they regard as bad. They impose restrictions and condemn shortcomings. This ultimately leads to the idea of annihilating one’s consciousness and reducing one’s body to ashes, in other words, ridding oneself of earthly desires and attachments.
While self-reflection is of course important, if not done in a positive, growth-inspiring way, people’s lives may become closed off and rigid, causing them to lose all sense of purpose.
A Japanese saying goes that trying to straighten the horns of a cow could kill the cow. Instead of nit-picking over others’ weak-nesses, it is far more valuable to encourage them, give them hope and enable them to find goals. Through doing so, we can help someone who is impatient, for example, become someone who can’t wait to take positive action.
This applies to one’s personal growth as well as that of others.
We can be completely ourselves; there is no need to try to make ourselves appear to be what we are not.
Since we are human, there will be times when we want to cry, times when we want to laugh, times when we want to be angry, as well as times when we are confused. Though we are ordinary people subject to such frailties, when we make kosen-rufu our prime focus, the world of Buddhahood becomes our basic life tendency.
Once this happens, then when anger is appropriate we get angry. When suffering is needed, we suffer. When laughter is due, we laugh. We enjoy what there is to enjoy. The Daishonin says,
“Suffer what there is to suffer, enjoy what there is to enjoy” (WND,
681). By leading such a vigorous and vibrant life, we can advance each day by leaps and bounds toward absolute happiness and help others do the same.
Suda: That must be what it means to live based on the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.
MAKE KOSEN-RUFU THE PRIME FOCUS
Ikeda: It’s vital that we possess a strong sense of responsibility for kosen-rufu. If we have the lackadaisical attitude that “Someone will take care of things” or “Somehow things will work out,” then we do injury to the world of Buddhahood within our own lives.
For instance, when the schedule for the month is decided, if we merely write down the dates in our appointment book, we may not be roused to action.
Our minds and energy should be concentrated on the tasks we must accomplish. Our prayer is then directed, and, through the principle of three thousand realms in a single moment of life, the entire universe will move toward our victory and success. We need to make kosen-rufu our prime focus. We need to fix our attention on our friends and fellow members. We need to pray wholeheartedly for kosen-rufu, for the prosperity of the SGI, and for the happiness of all; and we have to take action. This is what it means to be a true champion of kosen-rufu.
The Lotus Sutra says, the “evil demons will take possession of others” (LS13, 194). We, however, must become people of whom the Buddha takes possession.
Kosen-rufu is what constantly occupies the thoughts® of the Buddha. When we are determined to accomplish this goal by working with our fellow members, Buddhahood will flow from our lives, and we will begin to actualize the principles of true mutual possession of the Ten Worlds and three thousand realms in a single moment of life.
The life of the Buddha wells forth in the nine worlds of an ordinary person. This is the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.
The Daishonin says, “If you exert a hundred million aeons of effort in a single moment of life, the three enlightened properties of the Buddha will appear within you at each moment” (cZ,790) We need to exert “a hundred million aeons of effort.” When we work to the utmost for kosen-rufu, Buddhahood shines like the sun in our lives. This passage expresses the essence of the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds.