Lotus Sutra Quotes

When the mind is silent like a lake the lotus blossoms.

The way to overcome fear is simply to do what is right.

Regulate your mind. Do not worry excessively about the future. If you have done everything that has to be done, the future will take care of itself.

Life is like an echo! when you give something, it comes back to you many, many times.

Every day, I am thinking: 'How can I lead all living beings to enter the unsurpassed way so as to quickly acquire the body of a Buddha?" (LS 16: 3.23) Lotus Sutra, Chapter 16, Section 3, Paragraph 23

The Light is always there. How much light comes to you depends on you.

A word is like a finger pointing at different things. Do not look at the finger; focus on the essence of the word. Focus on what the finger is pointing at!

As you develop, the people around you also develop. As you progress, the world progresses with you to a certain degree.

Spirituality is a way of life. it is not just doing meditation.

Among all the sutras I have expounded, Lotus Sutra is the first and foremost! If you are able to uphold the Lotus Sutra, it means you are able to uphold the body of a Buddha!” (LS 11: 3.35) Lotus Sutra, Chapter 11, Section 3, Paragraph 35

The Teacher provides Spiritual Energy! Just like roots provide nutrients to the flowers!

Forgive other people before you ask for forgiveness… As you forgive, you will be forgiven.

Courage is the difference between success and failure. You must have this attitude, this is the right thing to do.

By being high, you become low and by being low, you become high. By being humble, you become high.

Among all shravakas and pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas are the foremost. So is the Lotus Sutra; among all sutras, it is the foremost! Just as the Buddha is the King of the Law; so is the Lotus Sutra, it is the King of all Sutras!" (LS 23:2.16) Lotus Sutra, Chapter 23, Section 2, Paragraph 16

Courage is the difference between success and failure. You must have this attitude, this is the right thing to do, so let's do it.

A sense of being part of the great all-inclusive life prompts us to reflect on our own place and on how we ought to live. Guarding others' lives, the ecology and the earth is the same as protecting one's own life. By like token, wounding them is the same thing as wounding oneself. Consequently, it is the duty of each of us to participate as members of the life community in the evolution of the universe. We can do this by guarding earth's ecological system.

Steam in an open space would just simply scatter in different directions. Steam contained in an engine can move a whole train. Success comes from One-pointedness and Constancy of Aim and Effort.

The true entity of all phenomena can only be understood and shared between Buddhas. This reality consists of the appearance, nature, entity, power, influence, inherent cause, relation, latent effect, manifest effect, and their consistency from beginning to end.

The Lotus Sutra The Lotus Sutra. Ultimate reality. So far you've been bashing me badly. Now I'll cudgel you, bastard. Oh! Ouch! You're made for bashing. Oh! Ouch! Oh! Ouch! The Lotus Sutra dashed away Fields open wide, once the farmers have gone.

True leaders are those who can offer appropriate advice based on their own rich experience, not people who just give orders and are all words and no substance. Leaders are first people of action who lead by personal example. They are not people who merely occupy some status or position. Leaders are people of hard work, not people of tactics and maneuvering. Above all, they are not authoritarians.

The Chinese construction of South Asia’s tallest edifice, the Lotus (a Lotus Sutra in Buddhism) Tower, both points to Beijing’s Peaceful Rise and unsettles some onlookers. For the nervous India and the United States, the cleverly designed and highly sophisticated rising communications tower is more than a Buddhist symbol of Peaceful Rise.

Make the practice pleasant, that is what I beg you to do.

All things are the truth in themselves

All things are the truth in themselves -

Because he always teaches the unexcelled way, He will be called Universal Light. His land will be clean and pure. And all its bodhisattvas will be daring.

If you want to dwell in the Buddha way And gain natural wisdom, You should always be diligent about making offerings To those who receive and embrace the Dharma Flower.

With the appearance of this light, the body of Universal Sage Bodhisattva will become as dignified as a mountain of purple gold, so well ordered and refined that it has all the thirty-two characteristics. From

However you must do it, to truly understand. When you say ‘Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo’ it will slowly remove all of the bad decisions you have ever made. The more you repeat the words the more you make your life clearer. The more you chant it the closer you get to your true nature. Your true nature is the right way of thinking and the right way of acting. The longer you go on this path, the more you avoid making wrong decisions. The Lotus Sutra helps me in my daily life. It is indeed mystical! And my life has proven this!

She weaves me anew, sacred and true Naked to her strength, I hear anew I need not even seek her for, she is here with me. Infinite space, sacred hums where all returns to one. The truths revealed and the lessons unraveled Seeker of time, I need not even travel All is here, with this one sacred love, sacred embrace.

The Master said, “Fa-ta, when your mind practices, it reads the Lotus. When it doesn’t practice, the Lotus does the reading. When your mind is true, it reads the Lotus. When your mind is false, the Lotus does the reading. When you develop the understanding of a buddha, you read the Lotus. When you develop the understanding of an ordinary being, the Lotus reads you.

Among all shravakas and pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas are the foremost. So is the Lotus Sutra; among all sutras, it is the foremost! Just as the Buddha is the King of the Law; so is the Lotus Sutra, it is the King of all Sutras!" (LS 23:2.16) Lotus Sutra, Chapter 23, Section 2, Paragraph 16

Every day, I am thinking: 'How can I lead all living beings to enter the unsurpassed way so as to quickly acquire the body of a Buddha?" (LS 16: 3.23) Lotus Sutra, Chapter 16, Section 3, Paragraph 23

The Saintly Masters, the Lion-like Ones, Who are expounding The most wonderful sūtra With their pure and gentle voices, And teaching Many billions of Bodhisattvas. The brahma voices of the Buddhas Are deep and wonderful, Causing people to wish to hear them.

Your sons born from your mouth are looking up at you With their hands joined together, entreating: “With your wonderful voice, Explain all this as it really is!”   As many gods and dragons As there are sands in the River Ganges, And the eighty thousand Bodhisattvas Who are seeking Buddhahood, And the wheel-turning-holy-kings Of billions of worlds Are joining their hands together respectfully, Wishing to hear the Perfect Way.

The last God of Gods Was called Burning-Light Buddha. As the leader of seers, He saved innumerable living beings.

Śāriputra! The Tathāgatas divide [the Dharma] into various teachings, and expound those teachings to all living beings so skillfully and with such gentle voices that living beings are delighted. Śāriputra! In short, the Buddhas attained the innumerable teachings which you have never heard before.

He may come across various views of life, and yet he does not entertain any loving [clinging] thought. This is like the lotus, which does not become soiled by defilement. In order to save beings, he practises various expedients and lives a worldly life."Any such sutras and vinayas are the sermons of the Tathagata. One who follows what Mara says is kindred to Mara; anyone who follows what the Buddha says is a great Bodhisattva.

World-Honored One, You must know that in the muddied age Evil monks who do not understand The Buddha’s skillful means—   How the Dharma is taught In accord with What is appropriate— Will frown upon and abuse us.   Repeatedly we will be driven out And exiled far from stupas and monasteries. Remembering the Buddha’s orders, We will endure all such evils.

Wherever such a teacher lives or stays, Walks, sits, or lies down, Or teaches even a verse, There a stupa should be erected.   It should be wonderfully And beautifully adorned. And offerings of many kinds Should be made to it.   When children of the Buddha live in such a place, It means that the Buddha accepts them And always lives among them, Whether walking, sitting, or lying down.

Needless to say, so will be the merits of the person Who keeps this sūtra, gives alms, observes the precepts, Practices patience, prefers dhyāna-concentrations, And does not get angry or speak ill of others.

1. “Meditation practiced by beginners / meditation on the meaning of characteristics / meditation based on suchness / or the pure meditation of the tathagatas 2. On such shapes as the sun or moon / or a lotus in the depths of hell363 / or space after the fire364 / thus do practitioners contemplate 3. A myriad of objects such as these / fill the meditations of other schools / and those trapped in the realms / of shravakas or pratyeka-buddhas 4. Those who abandon these / are thereby free of projections / buddhas come from every land / with hands beyond conception / and touch their heads as one / and lead them into suchness.“365

Complacency has no place in Buddhism. Continuous efforts are required to fully polish our lives so that we can manifest our inherent Buddha. We should not be lulled into accepting our life, as it is no matter if it is good or not so good. We can always improve ourselves. Polishing away the rough edges, working on the things in us that seem to pop up when faced with certain situations. Changing our response to things in our environment, which cause us suffering.

Day by day we make effort to change our life, to become enlightened, and if you’re like most people you become discouraged and maybe you even want to take a break from your efforts, or even give up. Having a good friend at times like this to encourage us is without value.

But practicing in and with a Sangha can provide us that lifeline. We can find a clever, or wise, or well-informed person who can understand the conditions of the road we are traveling, and encourage us.

The Lotus Sutra says to us: Expand your horizons, open up to reality as it is. There is more to reality than what the worldview of your culture offers you. There is more to you than what you imagine yourself to be, more to you than your personal dramas, your hopes and dreams, your feelings and ambitions. There is more to reality than the history of your time, as you and the people around you imagine your history to be. Expand your horizons, let reality in, so you can live in your local world free from illusions and ready to work to serve truth.

In brief, all the teachings of the Tathagata, all the unhindered, divine powers of the Tathagata, the hidden core of the whole storehouse of the Tathagata, and all the profound matters of the Tathagata are proclaimed, demonstrated, revealed, and preached in this sutra.

Therefore, after the extinction of the Tathagata, you should all wholeheartedly embrace, read and recite, explain and copy, and practice it as you have been taught. In any land, wherever anyone accepts and embraces, reads and recites, explains and copies, and practices it as taught, or wherever a volume of the sutra is kept, whether in a garden, or in a woods, or under a tree, or in a monk’s cell or a layman’s house, or in a palace, or in a mountain valley or an open field, in all these places you should put up a stupa and make offerings. Why? You should understand that all such places are places of the Way. They are where the buddhas attain supreme awakening; they are where the buddhas turn the Dharma wheel; they are where the buddhas reach complete nirvana.

Listen to me attentively! I will tell you about my hidden core and supernatural powers. The gods, men and asuras in the world think that I, Śākyamuni Buddha, left the palace of the Śākyas, sat at the place of enlightenment not far from the City of Gayā, and attained Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi [forty and odd years ago]. To tell the truth, good men, it is many hundreds of thousands of billions of nayutas of kalpas since I became the Buddha.

All this time I have been living in this Sahā-World, and teaching [the living beings of this world] by expounding the Dharma to them. I also have been leading and benefiting the living beings of one hundred thousand billion nayuta asaṃkhya worlds outside this world.

All that I say is true, not false, because I see the triple world as it is. I see that the triple world is the world in which the living beings have neither birth nor death, that is to say, do not appear or disappear, that it is the world in which I do not appear or from which I do not disappear, that it is not real or unreal, and that it is not as it seems or as it does not seem. I do not see the triple world in the same way as [the living beings of] the triple world do. I see all this clearly and infallibly.

As I said before, it is very long since I became the Buddha. The duration of my life is innumerable, asaṃkhya kalpas. I am always here. I shall never pass away.

Medicine-King! How should the good men or women who live after my extinction expound this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma to the four kinds of devotees when they wish to? They should enter the room of the Tathāgata, wear the robe of the Tathāgata, sit on the seat of the Tathāgata, and then expound this sūtra to the four kinds of devotees. To enter the room of the Tathāgata means to have great compassion towards all living beings. To wear the robe of the Tathāgata means to be gentle and patient. To sit on the seat of the Tathāgata means to see the voidness of all things. They should do these [three] things and then without indolence expound this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma to Bodhisattvas and the four kinds of devotees.

The story of the Burning House is really about our practice of Buddhism.  We are constantly living in a burning house, a house of the sufferings of life.  Sometimes we distract ourselves from these sufferings by indulging in a variety of things, all basically misguided attempts to eliminate suffering but actually often contributing to more suffering.

The Eightfold Path, the path leading to the cessation of suffering is: 1) Right View 2) Right Intention 3) Right Speech 4) Right Action 5) Right Livelihood 6) Right effort 7) Right Mindfulness 8)Right Concentration. Let me point out here that ‘right’ in the above is not the opposite of ‘wrong’.  Right in the above is about doing those things which will yield the greatest good.  In Buddhism it is not merely enough to do no harm, we are striving to do the greatest good.  We call this living skillfully, and that is what we strive to do when following these Eight Right Ways.  Not all of the time will we be presented with clear choices, sometimes our options may all be less than favorable.  In all things though our intention, our basis for action, is to do the least harm and the greatest good.

As the son of the Buddha I imagine Rahula lived with a lot of stress and pressure and yet always in the shadow of his teacher, his father.  It is not an easy place to practice.  If we think of the Buddha’s cousin, Devedatta we see that he succumbed to jealousy and even envy of the Buddha and sought to kill the Buddha.  Rahula on the other hand lived quietly and meekly never causing problems and never seeking fame based upon his relationship to his father. Being content with ourselves as we awaken to the Buddha residing in our lives is not easy.  We may think that we are not doing enough for Buddhism, but we should never feel this way.  It is the ordinariness of our lives and our ability to attain enlightenment that will be most encouraging to others.

The parable of the gem in the robe is very short, only one paragraph long in the Murano translation.  Yet in spite of its brevity it packs a very powerful message.  In each of us is already the enlightened nature or potential.  Enlightenment isn’t something we have to bring into our lives, it is already resident.  The practice of Buddhism isn’t so much about becoming someone different, as it is about becoming who we really are.  We do not take on enlightenment from outside ourselves, but develop what we already have.  We have the gem, we just need to take it out and use it, there is no need for us to continue our sufferings.

Yesterday you learned of the Eightfold Path.  Beginning today for the next 7 days try to focus on one of those eight right ways.  Make this the focus of your practice outside of your dedicated time reading and chanting.  You might pick Right Speech and then for the rest of the week try, to the best of your ability, to only engage in speech that, not only causes no harm, but encourages good.  Or you might pick another of the Eight Right Things.  Focus on one, maybe even write it on a card and tape it to your computer or bathroom mirror to remind you of your intention.  Actually this kind of setting your intention is engaging in another of the Eight Right Ways, that of Right Intention.  See how easy it is to do this practice, or at least try to do the practice.  If in the course of this week you should mess up or forget, please do not worry about it.  Use it as a lesson to advance your growth.

We are like the poor son and the Buddha is like the rich father.  We may feel no connection, or we may feel that we are not deserving of great joy.  We may be just like the son who runs in fear of the man who is his father.  We may run from the promise of enlightenment, thinking we are not worthy or that it isn’t possible for us to be happy. Yet, through your daily practice of Buddhism you can slowly elevate your life condition and see potentials for unimaginable benefits.

Also today when you sit down to eat your meal, no matter where you are, try to think about the many people who have made the meal possible.  See if you can engage in this activity while you eat slowly.  Let appreciation well up from within you as your taste buds are activated.  Think of the people who built your car with all of its complex components that work together to provide transportation.  Or think of the bus driver or train engineers.  Think of those who laid the roads or rails.  Think of the cashier who stands on their feet all day long ringing up purchases.  Think of the truck driver who delivered the merchandise to the store.  Think of the packagers.  Think of the farm laborers who make the food possible.  Think of those in oil producing countries who provide their natural resources and labor.  The list is almost endless.  I can imagine that by the end of the meal you still have not thought of all the countless labors, big and small, that made that meal possible.  Don’t forget to include your own labors as well.

Today as you continue to read the Lotus Sutra, and chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, and of course continue observing your selected Right Way, also think about what your future would be like if you overcame the sufferings you may currently be dealing with.  You should know that no matter what point you start from on the path to enlightenment, no matter what your past has been, no matter what you think you are capable of, enlightenment is not just a possibility but a certainty if you continue your practice.  If even the worst of the worst, as I have mentioned before, can attain enlightenment through the practice of Buddhism then you certainly can as well.

The good men or women who keep, read, recite, expound and copy even a phrase of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma, and offer flowers, incense, necklaces, incense powder, incense applicable to the skin, incense to burn, canopies, banners, streamers, garments and music to a copy of this sūtra, or just join their hands together respectfully towards it, should be respected by all the people of the world. All the people of the world should make the same offerings to them as they do to me. Know this! These good men or women are great Bodhisattvas. They should be considered to have appeared in this world by their vow to expound the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma out of their compassion towards all living beings, although they already attained Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi [in their previous existence]. Needless

Finally, let me close today by pointing out, as I mentioned earlier, that in this section we read we are now looking forward into the future to a time after the Buddha has died.  We see the great promise of enlightenment given to those who practice and have faith in the Lotus Sutra at this time.  We see that they, meaning us, will be born in an evil world, a world where Buddhist ideals are not widely observed.  We see that the people who appear after the Buddha’s life and practice the Lotus Sutra actually have given up rewards of good karma just so they can practice in this time and lead countless people to faith in the Lotus Sutra. 

If you know your true nature of no coming, no going; no being, no nonbeing; no birth, no death, then you will have no fear and can dwell in the ultimate dimension, nirvana, right here and now. You don’t have to die in order to reach nirvana. When you dwell in your true nature, you are already dwelling in nirvana. We have our historical dimension but we also have our ultimate dimension, just as the Buddha does.

From the point of view of Mother Earth, poison oak and weeds are as wonderful as chrysanthemum or rosemary. It is our mind consciousness that discriminates and declares, "I want this and I do not want that." Mother Earth does not have these ideas. The true nature of reality for her is neither defiled not pure, neither increasing no decreasing. The true nature of everything is free from concepts such as good and evil; it is indeterminate. There is no discrimination. As living beings, we have our needs, desires, and cravings, and we have our discrimination. So we see things in terms of good and evil, increasing and decreasing, defiled and immaculate. Mother Earth does not discriminate. If you throw perfume or flowers on her, she's not proud. If you throw urine or excrement on her, she's not offended. For her, everything is perfect. She knows that without this, the other cannot be. Without the mud, the lotus cannot be. So we can learn a lot from Mother Earth.

To practice is not to practice for ourselves alone. We practice for everyone. We should be proud to say, Violence, it may come from somewhere else, but not from me. Hatred, discrimination, it may come from somewhere else, but not from me.

Bhikshu, you should know that the Tathagata is the Dharma King. If the Tathagata says something then those words are not false, they are always true. If the Tathagata says something exists, that is true. If the Tathagata says something does not exist, that is also true. If the Tathagata teaches the Mahayana, it is true. And if the Tathagata teaches the Hinayana, it is also true.

This is the great insight of the Mahayana—that everyone can become a Buddha. What Siddhartha achieved, all of us can also achieve, whether we are a man or a woman, no matter what social class or ethnic group we were born into, or whether we practice as a monastic or as a layperson. We all have the capacity to become a fully enlightened Buddha. And while on the path to becoming a fully enlightened Buddha, we are all bodhisattvas.

Whenever everyone’s eyes are fixed on the earth—looking at the trees, plants, hills, mountains, or each other—then we know we are in the historical dimension, the world of birth and death. But when everyone’s eyes look into space then we have entered the ultimate dimension, the unborn and undying world.

The concept of “emptiness” here is not a form of nihilism as some early Western scholars of Buddhism thought; it simply means that all things are empty of an inherent, unchanging, and permanent nature—no thing exists independently and remains fixed, but arises due to a set of constantly changing causes and conditions. This is the insight of interbeing.

Therefore the Lotus Sutra is like a cool breeze, a gentle rain, assuaging the stifling atmosphere of contention between the conservatives and the progressives.

No matter what the reason, a member who harbours jealousy, grudges or hatred for another member who is wholeheartedly striving to fulfil his or her mission for kosen-rufu commits an extremely grave offence. Nichiren Daishonin warns: “…always remember that believers in the Lotus Sutra should absolutely be the last to abuse one another

Nichiren sect stressed the chant “Hail to the Sutra of the Lotus of the Wonderful Law.

The six perfections of Bodhicitta described in the Prajñapāramitā Sūtras and the Lotus Sutra are: Dāna pāramitā: generosity, giving of oneself Śīla pāramitā : virtue, morality, discipline, proper conduct Kṣānti pāramitā : patience, tolerance, forbearance, acceptance, endurance Vīrya pāramitā : energy, diligence, vigour, effort Dhyāna pāramitā : one-pointed concentration, contemplation Prajñā pāramitā : wisdom, insight

Basing their teaching on the essay on the Amitabha Sutra by the great monk Van The, the Vietnamese Zen masters have thus realized a synthetic doctrine combining Zen and the Pure Land practices that suits the masses of the people. Except for the pure Zen monasteries, almost every pagoda in Vietnam practices this combined Zen-Pure Land doctrine.

Formal confession prepares us for meditation. Formless confession is the meditation process itself. It is being upright. Formal confession is the work of finding your place and taking your seat, in the midst of all your ancient twisted karma. Formless confession, according to the Lotus Sutra, is to “sit upright and contemplate the true characteristics of all things.”5 The true character of all things is that they have dependently co-arisen. When we contemplate this truth, all the karma accumulated from beginningless time melts away like frost in the warmth of the morning sun.

Mindfulness practice is the kind of practice that allows us to enter the wonderful realm of the Avatamsaka. There is a lot of light, of space, of flowers, of joy, of peace, of loving-kindness in the realm of Avatamsaka. And the realm of Avatamsaka is available to us at any time. We need only to use the energy of mindfulness in order to step into that world where you can meet the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and all the wonderful things.

World-Honored One, what is this gateway to the Dharma called? What does it mean? How does a bodhisattva practice it?” The Buddha replied: “Good sons, this unique gateway to the Dharma is called innumerable meanings. A bodhisattva who wants to practice and study the gateway to the Dharma of innumerable meanings should observe that all things were originally, will be, and are in themselves empty and tranquil in nature and character; not large or small, not subject to arising or extinction, not fixed or movable, and neither advancing nor retreating. Like empty space, they are non-dualistic. “All living beings, however, make delusory distinctions: weighing whether something is this or that; whether it is a gain or a loss. Bad thoughts come to them, producing a variety of evil actions. They transmigrate within the six states undergoing all kinds of suffering and harm, from which they cannot escape during innumerable billions of eons. Seeing this clearly, bodhisattva great ones cultivate sympathy and show great kindness and compassion in the desire to extricate others from suffering. What’s more, they penetrate deeply into all things. “In accord with the character of Dharma, all things emerge. In accord with the character of Dharma, all things live. In accord with the character of Dharma, all things change. In accord with the character of Dharma, all things perish. In accord with the character of Dharma, bad things emerge. In accord with the character of Dharma, good things emerge, live, change, and perish. Bodhisattvas, observing these four modes and being thoroughly familiar with them from one end to the other, should next observe clearly that none of these things continues to live even for a moment, but emerges and perishes every moment, each emerging, living, changing, and perishing in an instant.

A serene mind does not require precepts. An upright behaviour does not need contemplative practice. 心平何勞持戒　行直何用修禪 Filial piety is gratefully taking care of parents. Justice is tenderly empathizing both the superior and inferior. 恩則孝養父母　義則上下相憐 Deference is to be in harmony despite nobility and inferiority. Tolerance is to not reveal the faults of others. 讓則尊卑和睦　忍則眾惡無喧 Given that fire can be made from drilling wood, Red lotuses can surely sprout from mud. 若能鑽木取火　淤泥定生紅蓮 Effective medicine is bitter to the taste. Earnest advice are words hard against the ear. 苦口的是良藥　逆耳必是忠言 Correction of errors gives rise to wisdom. Concealment of failures indicates an unvirtuous mind. 改過必生智慧　護短心內非賢 Altruism should be practiced often everyday. Ascension does not come from monetary alms. 日用常行饒益   成道非由施錢 Bodhi can only be found in the mind No need to search profound outside. 菩提只向心覓　何勞向外求玄 Upon hearing these words and practice accordingly, then heaven will be nowhere but before your eyes. 聽說依此修行　天堂只在目前

Each tool symbolizes one of the four things to keep in mind when supervising any project. •The conch-shell trumpet stands for clear communication. The yajaman needs to clearly communicate his expectations to his team. •The wheel stands for repetition and review. The yajaman needs to appreciate that all tasks are repetitive and need to be reviewed periodically. •The lotus is about appreciation and praise. It complements the club. •The club stands for reprimand and disciplinary actions. It complements the lotus.

Wonderful-Voice is told not to think less of this world, our world, just because it is full of mud, stones, and impurities.  I think this is an important reminder for us.  We should not think that we are somehow inferior, or that our faults are something to be ashamed of.  There is much in society that seeks to have us believe that we are somehow inferior.  Think about advertisements for example, the whole purpose of advertisements is to convince you that you are incomplete, or lacking, or inferior to some ideal because you don’t use a particular product.  You may have even received messages in school or growing up, which you carry around, that make you feel you are not worthy of being happy. The message of this chapter is that there is not one among us who is disqualified from attaining enlightenment or of being happy.  We are not missing anything, nor are we short of anything, nor are we not good enough to become Buddhas.

Then Maitreya Bodhisattva thought: “Now the World-Honored One has displayed a marvelous sign. But what is the cause or reason for this auspicious sign? Now that the Buddha, the World-Honored One, has entered into concentration, whom can I ask about such inconceivable and unprecedented wonders? And who will be able to answer?

First, they have small drops of moisture fall to dampen the dust of desire, and by opening the gateway of nirvana, fanning the wind of liberation, and ridding themselves of the heat of worldly passions, they bring about the cooling quality of the Dharma. Next, raining down the profound teaching of the twelve causes and conditions, pouring it on the ferocious, intense rays of suffering—ignorance, old age, illness, death, and so on—they pour out the unexcelled Great Vehicle, soak the good roots of all the living with it, scatter seeds of goodness over the field of blessings, and everywhere bring forth sprouts of awakening. With wisdom as bright as the sun and the moon, and timely use of skillful means, they make the enterprise of the Great Vehicle prosper and grow, and lead many to attain supreme awakening quickly. Always living in the blessedness of a reality that is fine and wonderful, with immeasurable great compassion, they save the living from suffering.

His distinguishing thirty-two characteristics And the eighty different attractive features seem to be visible, Yet in reality, his form is neither with nor without features. All visible features are transcended.   Without having features His body has features. This is also true of the features Of the bodies of all living beings.

Today, as you prepare for beginning the third week of practice I encourage you to write down some things that you may have noticed that appear to hinder your practice.  Write down things like “I get busy”, or “I sleep too late” or “I am too tired”, or even “It is too confusing”.  Whatever the obstacle is write it down, try to do so without guilt, and try not to have too much remorse.  Just be honest, that is also a key practice in Buddhism, to get to know ourselves in a frank and honest manner so that we can begin to work on changing the things that are preventing us from becoming happy.

In the first short section we learn of the deep connection that existed between the Buddha and this person who sought to destroy Buddhism.  We learn that the Buddha praises this person who has done so much evil saying that because of their relationship in the past the Buddha was able to become the Buddha.   I wonder how many of us can look at those who cause us grief and thank them for the growth opportunities they provide us.  It isn’t easy to express appreciation for such opportunities.  Normally we just want to avoid at all cost those things that bother us.  Or perhaps we may want to seek out only pleasurable things or the easy way.  Yet in doing the easy things we don’t always grow in the same way as if we were to challenge ourselves.  You have chosen to try something of great difficulty, you have chosen to challenge your life.  You are to be commended for this effort, and you should know that without doubt your life is changing, even if you don’t yet see it.

It is appropriate to realize that through our many manifestations as original disciples of the Buddha we are in fact representing the many manifestations of Kanzeon.  Also, through our vow to spread the Lotus Sutra in this age after the death of the Buddha, and our vow to protect the sutra and its practitioners we naturally fulfill the function of “This World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva does these meritorious deeds.  He takes various shapes, walks about many worlds, and saves the living beings of those worlds.” I believe that rather than Kanzeon being a Bodhisattva we rely upon for some benefit, it would be more appropriate to look to Kanzeon as an example of how to live in this age, in this world of suffering.  Also our fundamental relationship is directly to and with the Eternal Buddha as original disciples and it isn’t necessary to have any intermediary in that relationship.

The fourth thing is to always hold in our heart the vow to save all living beings. When we become sidetracked with our own problems, or with our own gains, to the exclusion of the sufferings of other beings we can no longer experience a relationship with the ultimate teaching of the Buddha contained in the depths of the Lotus Sutra.

We too, must overcome our own Mara, those things that arise in our minds to try to become discouraged and give up our Buddhist practice.  Previously I talked about those things that occur in our environment to try to prevent us from practicing, today we deal with the obstacles occurring in our mind.  These obstacles may be in the form of doubts such as our self-worth or our personal ability to become enlightened.  It also may be doubts about the truth of Buddhism, or doubts about the value of practicing.  We all experience these moments when we may think things impossible or not worth it. Being aware of the workings of our minds is the first step to overcoming these kinds of difficulties.  Mara isn’t so much of a real thing as it is a figurative example or a personification of those things in our mind that prevent us from becoming happy or enlightened.

I think at times such as when we are facing a difficult situation we have an opportunity to really internalize the teachings of the Buddha.  All at once it becomes not so much of an intellectual endeavor as one rooted deep down reaching the core of our lives.  It is at times like those when we can really understand what it means to take on the Buddha’s mantle and try to teach others of the greatness of Buddhism as we have read in the Lotus Sutra.

By cutting off pride and arrogance, He has acquired such a glorious body.

I also see bodhisattvas Who leave behind all play and laughter And all foolish companions, And seek association with the wise.   Single-mindedly removing distractions, Concentrating their thoughts while in mountain forests, For tens of thousands of millions of years, They seek the Buddha way.

The Buddha said: “Good sons, first, this sutra leads a not-yet-awakened bodhisattva to aspire to awakening, leads one without human kindness to aspire to kindness, leads one with a murderous heart to aspire to great compassion, leads one who is jealous to aspire to respond with joy, leads one with attachments to aspire to impartiality, leads one who is greedy to aspire to generosity, leads one who is full of arrogance to aspire to be moral, leads one who is angry to aspire to patience, leads one who is lazy to aspire to perseverance, leads one who is distracted to aspire to meditation, leads one who is ignorant to aspire to wisdom, leads one who lacks concern for saving others to aspire to saving others, leads one who commits the ten evils to aspire to do ten good things, leads one who is willful to aspire to let things be, leads one who is prone to backsliding to aspire to never retreat, leads one who commits faulty acts to aspire to being faultless, and leads one who suffers from afflictions to aspire to detachment. Good sons, this is called the first amazing power of blessing of this sutra.

If any living beings are afflicted with a great deal of lust, let them keep in mind and revere Regarder of the Cries of the World Bodhisattva and they will be freed from their desire. If they have a great deal of anger and rage, let them keep in mind and revere Regarder of the Cries of the World Bodhisattva and they will be freed from their anger. If they are deluded by great folly, let them keep in mind and revere Regarder of the Cries of the World Bodhisattva and they will be freed from their stupidity.

Monks and nuns full of arrogance, Proud laymen, and laywomen of little faith: In the assembly of the four groups, such people Were five thousand in number.   Not seeing their own errors, Failing to observe the precepts And carefully defending their faults, These people of little wisdom have already left.   Those dregs of the assembly left Because of the Buddha’s dignity and virtue. Such people of little merit and virtue Are incapable of receiving the Dharma.

Meanwhile, the father had searched for this son unsuccessfully, and now lived in another city. His household had become very wealthy, his goods and treasures incalculable: gold, silver, lapis lazuli, coral, amber, crystal, and other gems overflowed his storehouses. He also had many grooms and servants, clerks and attendants, and countless elephants, horses, carriages, oxen, and sheep. His revenues and investments spread to other lands. There also were many merchants and traveling traders around.

The buddhas, the most honored of people, Know that nothing exists independently, And that buddha-seeds arise interdependently. This is why they teach the one vehicle.   Things are part of the everlasting Dharma, And the character of the Dharma in the world endures forever. Having come to know this at the place of the Way, Leaders and teachers teach it in skillful ways.

Now, I am like them. For the peace and comfort of living beings I use various gateways to the Dharma To proclaim the Buddha way.   Through the power of wisdom, Knowing the nature and desires of living beings, I teach them the Dharma using skillful means, Bringing them great joy.

In continuous, Unending suffering, They are firmly rooted in the five desires Like an ox chasing its own tail.   Blinded by greed and desire, They are blind and can see nothing. Seeking neither the Buddha With his great power Nor the Dharma, Which can bring an end to suffering. With deeply entrenched wrong views, They try to use suffering to get rid of suffering.

Then I thought to myself: “If I merely praise the Buddha-Vehicle, Beings sunk in suffering Will not be able to believe this Dharma.   “And by rejecting the Dharma through unbelief They will fall into the three evil paths. It would be better not to teach the Dharma And quickly enter nirvana.