Key Passages From The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings (Part 6)

The Example of a Great Human Revolution

In that afterword, I stressed that a human revolution in the life of one person would lead to the human revolution of all humankind, writing: “Ultimately, President Toda’s life itself was an example of a single individual’s sublime human revolution; I was convinced that chronicling it would make it possible for multitudes of people to pursue that same path.”^[2]

In Buddhism, the mentor serves as an example and model for how to live the best possible life. The mentor opens the way, and the disciple vows with the mentor to realize kosen-rufu. Mentor and disciple work side by side for this goal and together carry out their human revolution. In that sense, mentor and disciple can also be described as comrades who share deep bonds and strive to demonstrate the boundless potential people possess and the inherent dignity of life. In addition, the disciple has the mission to carry on the mentor’s legacy and realize the mentor’s vision.

Today, we have built a vast network of Bodhisattvas of the Earth encompassing 192 countries and territories.

Six months after the final installment of The Human Revolution was published, I began writing its sequel, The New Human Revolution,^[3] on August 6, Hiroshima Day, in Nagano, where I created fond memories with my mentor. I did so out of my hope that an account of how we developed today’s movement for worldwide kosen-rufu, our global movement for peace for all humanity, would spread recognition of my mentor’s greatness.

Kosen-rufu Is the Flow Itself

Ultimately, the shared struggle of mentor and disciple means making tireless and unceasing progress, in accord with Nichiren Daishonin’s admonition “Strengthen your faith day by day and month after month” (“On Persecutions Befalling the Sage,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 997). The realization of one goal marks the start of a new, fresh challenge.

Kosen-rufu is not the end point of the flow—a destination reached after spreading the Mystic Law. It is the flow itself, an unending movement joined by ever-growing numbers of people to spread the Mystic Law. It is the vibrant coursing of a living Buddhism throughout society and the world. The great river of kosen-rufu created through the shared struggle of mentor and disciple is also producing capable individuals who will build a better society. It is a powerful force for actualizing world peace that prioritizes respect for the dignity of life.

The Lotus Sutra depicts the grand drama of mentor and disciples continually striving together as one to broaden and extend that magnificent flowing river of kosen-rufu. In this installment, we will focus on the section in The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings on “The Parable of the Phantom City” chapter of the Lotus Sutra.^[4] It highlights that the mentor-disciple relationship in the Lotus Sutra represents a profound karmic bond forged throughout a continuous journey of shared struggle from the infinite past.

The One Buddha Vehicle Explained Through the Parable of the Phantom City

Chapter Seven: The Parable of the Phantom City
Seven important points
Point One, concerning “the phantom city” (kejo)

In effect, now Nichiren and his followers, people who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, gain enlightenment into the fact that our bodies and minds are the Wonderful Law itself, namely, that the phantom city is identical with the treasure land. The Ten Worlds are all of them phantom cities, and each of these Ten Worlds is a treasure land. … In this statement that the phantom city is identical with the treasure land, the single word “identical” is symbolic of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Each moment of life in the phantom city is a moment of life in the treasure land. (The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, p. 72)

In the previous installment, we discussed the three rounds of preaching^[5] that appear in the Lotus Sutra. The second of the three rounds—preaching based on parables—comes to an end in “Bestowal of Prophecy,” the sixth chapter, and the third of the three rounds—preaching based on connections [i.e., clarifying the Buddha’s connections to his disciples from past existences]—begins in “The Parable of the Phantom City,” the seventh chapter. In this third round of preaching, Shakyamuni reveals that Purna^[6] and other voice-hearer disciples share a connection with him from the distant past.

Shakyamuni says that in the inconceivably distant past of major world system dust particle kalpas ago,^[7] there was a Buddha named Great Universal Wisdom Excellence. He was a king with 16 sons. After attaining Buddhahood, he preached numerous teachings to these sons, culminating in the Lotus Sutra. He then withdrew and entered meditation. In his place, the 16 princes preached the Lotus Sutra to many different beings. (This is known as the restatement of Great Universal Wisdom Excellence Buddha’s teaching).

Shakyamuni explains that, in a former lifetime, he was the 16th prince, and the voice-hearers assembled on Eagle Peak now are reunited with him, their teacher, through the cause of having heard his preaching of the Lotus Sutra those countless eons ago. He indicates that the relationship between him and his disciples is not limited to their present existence.

Shakyamuni then goes on to explain that the life states of the practitioners of the three vehicles (voice-hearers, cause-awakened ones and bodhisattvas), which he had thus far taught people to aspire to are like a phantom city, while the true treasure land is the true nirvana (enlightenment) taught in the one-vehicle teaching of the Lotus Sutra. In this way, the parable of the phantom city elucidates the very important principle of the “replacement of the three vehicles with the one vehicle.”^[8]

The parable of the phantom city is as follows.

A party of merchants sets forth on a perilous journey of five hundred yojanas^[9] to reach a wonderful treasure land. Along the way, they become so exhausted that they want to give up and turn back. Their wise leader, feeling it would be a pity if they should quit and return without the treasure, employs his transcendental powers to create a phantom city and encourages the travelers by offering it as a place they can rest and recuperate.

The merchants rejoice, enter the city and rest. When the leader sees that they have all recovered, he makes the phantom city disappear and reveals the truth to them. The city was just a mirage—the true treasure land is close at hand, he says, and he urges them to press on.

The Phantom City Is the Treasure Land

Nichiren Daishonin teaches that the phantom city and the treasure land are in fact not two distinct entities, declaring: “The phantom city is identical with the treasure land” (OTT, 72).

In The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, he explains the phantom city in terms of impermanence and earthly desires.

First, immediately before the passage we are studying, the phantom city is explained from the perspective of the two elements of body and mind. In one sense, our bodies and minds can be regarded as constantly changing and disintegrating, as impermanent as a phantom city. But seeing them as impermanent is dismissed as the viewpoint of the provisional teachings: “The message of the Lotus Sutra is the assertion that this impermanence is in fact a state of permanent abiding. That is, the phantom city is identical with the treasure land” (OTT, 72).

Nichiren tells us that by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, our bodies and minds, which we thought were impermanent, are in fact “the Wonderful Law [Mystic Law] itself, namely, that the phantom city is identical with the treasure land” (OTT, 72).

He also says that the treacherous path to our destination represents nothing other than earthly desires that comprise the three categories of illusion:^[10] “This distance of five hundred yojanas [from the phantom city to the treasure land] is symbolic of the illusions of thought and desire, of the dusts and sands that impede religious practice, and of darkness or ignorance” (OTT, 72). He then continues, “To understand that these five hundred yojanas of earthly desires are the five characters of the Wonderful Law [Mystic Law] means to realize that the phantom city is identical with the treasure land” (OTT, 72).

Nichiren is describing the path to a great transformation. It is not separate from our impermanent selves and does not entail eradicating all earthly desires. Rather, it means realizing that we ourselves are the Mystic Law, the five characters of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,^[11] opening and manifesting the life state of Buddhahood that exists within us, and becoming aware that the path to the phantom city is in itself the treasure land.

As the Daishonin puts it: “The Ten Worlds are all of them phantom cities, and each of these Ten Worlds is a treasure land” (OTT, 72). Illuminated by the Mystic Law, each of the Ten Worlds shines brilliantly as a realm giving expression to the Mystic Law.

This principle of transforming the phantom city into the treasure land can also be explained in terms of our Buddhist practice. Through the power of the Mystic Law, all of our hardships and struggles in kosen-rufu and in life to realize one goal after another become a brilliant expression of infinitely precious value creation. We can also use all kinds of trials as fuel for our human revolution and attaining Buddhahood in this lifetime—turning earthly desires into enlightenment and viewing them as a treasure trove of joyous benefits.

The Word Soku Refers to Nam-myoho-renge-kyo

What transforms the phantom city into the treasure land?

Nichiren Daishonin states, “The single word ‘identical’ [Jpn soku] [in the statement that the phantom city is identical with the treasure land] is symbolic of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.” The word soku expresses the transformation realized through faith in the Mystic Law. Nichiren Buddhism teaches the principle of “attaining Buddhahood in one’s present form.”^[12] This means we can realize a state of indestructible happiness in our lives just as we are.

Nichiren goes on to say, “Each moment of life in the phantom city is a moment of life in the treasure land” (OTT, 72).

Our power to transform the phantom city into the treasure land and make them “identical”—expressed in the word soku—is determined by our mind, our inner resolve at each moment of our lives. Each moment on the journey of mentor and disciple, as illustrated in the parable, is infinitely profound. United by the bonds of mentor and disciple, we together chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and strive to realize kosen-rufu, “exhausting the pains and trials of millions of kalpas in a single moment of life” (see OTT, 214), while overcoming one obstacle after another. Our solid unity and shared commitment activate the wondrous power to transform the phantom city into the treasure land and make them “identical.”

Soka Gakkai Members Are ‘Courageous Bodhisattvas of the Earth’

Mr. Toda often remarked to the effect: “As courageous Bodhisattvas of the Earth, we of the Soka Gakkai have chosen to be born in this defiled age. We have appeared in the world to lead all people to enlightenment, to realize kosen-rufu, while overcoming life’s challenges and demonstrating the great benefit of the Gohonzon.”

For each one of us, this saha world^[13] is the grand stage upon which we carry out our mission. That is why it is so important for us to triumph where we are. The next passage we will study from The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings makes this clear.

The Place We Are Right Now Is the Grand Stage for Changing Our Karma

Point Six, on the words “wipe out the phantom city” in the passage “At that time the leader, knowing that the people have become rested and are no longer fearful or weary, wipes out the phantom city and says to the group, ‘You must go now. The place where the treasure is is close by.’” [The Lotus Sutra and Its Opening and Closing Sutras, p. 175] …

Now, when Nichiren and his followers chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, they are revealing that the phantom city is none other than the treasure land. These mountain valleys and broad plains where we live are all, every one of them, treasure lands of Eternally Tranquil Light. (OTT, 76-77)

In June 1978, 45 years ago, I studied this passage with our dedicated champions who were striving for kosen-rufu in the vast northern land of Hokkaido. Undefeated by the bitter winter cold, our Hokkaido members, chanting for the happiness of others, gladly traveled long distances to compassionately share and spread Buddhism, engaging in dialogue and encouraging one another. I was deeply and powerfully moved by their bonds as Bodhisattvas of the Earth emerging to act as true beacons of hope of the Mystic Law and illuminate our troubled age.

I stressed to them that the places where they undertook activities for kosen-rufu were, just as they are, “treasure lands of Eternally Tranquil Light” (OTT, 77), Buddha lands. This is because when we realize that the place where we are, wherever it may be, is the land of our true mission, and exert ourselves there, we are guaranteed to attain a boundless state of life overflowing with benefits. This is the essence of Buddhism.

Nichiren Buddhism teaches that we can shine with the great radiant state of Buddhahood right here and now, not in some other place or time.

The Daishonin says, “These mountain valleys and broad plains where we live are all, every one of them, treasure lands of Eternally Tranquil Light” (OTT, 77). As practitioners of the Mystic Law, wherever we are is the grand stage for changing our karma; it is the treasure land where we have vowed to fulfill our mission as Bodhisattvas of the Earth.

Awakening to the Vow ‘Deep in Our Hearts From the Start’

In “The Parable of the Phantom City” chapter, Brahma kings gathered in the assembly declare to Shakyamuni: “We beg that the merit [we have] gained … may be spread far and wide to everyone, so that we and other living beings all together may attain the Buddha way” (LSOC, 168). Nichiren Daishonin quotes this passage in letters to disciples, including Nanjo Tokimitsu.^[14]

These words embody a vow that is identical to the Buddha’s wish to enable all living beings to attain enlightenment—in other words, to make it possible for all people to become happy. That is why it resonates as a call for “all together” to advance toward the goal of attaining Buddhahood. Seeking to share the teaching one has awakened to with everyone so that they, too, may awaken to it—this is the essence of Buddhist humanism. Rather than just establishing Shakyamuni alone as a great being, the fundamental aim of Buddhism is to elevate all people to the same great state of life as Shakyamuni.

The Lotus Sutra teaches that mentor and disciples strive together eternally to transmit this great teaching to all people.

In the opening of “Prophecy of Enlightenment for Five Hundred Disciples,” the eighth chapter, which follows “The Parable of the Phantom City” chapter, Purna, filled with joy, thinks to himself, “Only the Buddha, the World-Honored One, is capable of knowing the wish that we have had deep in our hearts from the start” (LSOC, 182). Shakyamuni then says of Purna and the other voice-hearers: “Inwardly, in secret, the sons act as bodhisattvas, but outwardly they show themselves as voice-hearers” (LSOC, 185).

Hearing Shakyamuni’s preaching, the voice-hearers realize that they are not Shakyamuni’s disciples in the present existence alone but in fact have heard him preach the bodhisattva practice of the Lotus Sutra in the distant past and vowed long, long ago to carry it out. Their appearance in this lifetime as voice-hearers, they realize, is merely a matter of outward form, while in fact they are and have always actually been bodhisattvas eternally striving to fulfill their vow together with their mentor.

Hearing of the mentor-disciple bond they shared with Shakyamuni dating back to the remote past, these true voice-hearer disciples awakened to the wish, the vow, they had had “deep in their hearts from the start.” And they finally arrive at their true mission as bodhisattvas—namely, fulfilling their vow to guide all people to enlightenment.

‘Constantly Reborn in Company With Their Teachers’

As I have mentioned in this and the previous installment, Shakyamuni engaged in three rounds of preaching for the voice-hearers: preaching based on doctrine, preaching based on parables and preaching based on connections.

Shariputra, Maudgalyayana and the others to whom the first two rounds—preaching based on doctrine and preaching based on parables—were directed had not just heard the Buddha’s voice but had also awakened to the bodhisattva practice and shared the Buddha’s voice or words with others.^[15] It can be said that all the voice-hearers of the three rounds of preaching had awakened to the supreme truth that they had carried out bodhisattva practice, fulfilling the mission of kosen-rufu, “all together” and with their mentor throughout past, present and future.

“The Parable of the Phantom City” chapter also states: “Those persons who had heard the Law dwelled here and there in various Buddha lands, constantly reborn in company with their teachers” (LSOC, 178). This passage also shows that the ties connecting mentor and disciples who embrace the Lotus Sutra are eternal—extending throughout past, present and future. And from the standpoint of the bodhisattva vow, it can be read as affirming the shared struggle of mentor and disciple that continues forever to guide them to happiness.

‘As Long as They Are Together With Nichiren, They Will Reach the Treasure Land’

The section in The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings titled “Chapter Seven: The Parable of the Phantom City: Seven important points” concludes: “Nichiren and his followers, those who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, one and all will ‘together reach the place where the treasure is.’ This one word ‘together’ means that, as long as they are together with Nichiren, they will reach the treasure land” (OTT, 78).

This is the Daishonin’s commentary on the scene in “The Parable of the Phantom City” chapter, where the travelers, after resting and recuperating in the phantom city, set forth “together” on their journey to at last achieve their great goal of finding the treasure land. [The Daishonin specifically prefaces “together” with “one and all,” emphasizing everyone proceeding together.] The phrase “one and all” means all people, all beings of the Ten Worlds and three thousand realms.

Here, Nichiren is saying to his disciples “We will always strive together.” That’s the meaning of “together with Nichiren.”

For us, this means pressing forward together with our great shared vow to realize worldwide kosen-rufu, Nichiren’s wish.

And that is nothing other than advancing “together with the Soka Gakkai,” which is making worldwide kosen-rufu a reality.

The Soka Gakkai Embodies the Great Vow of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth

Mr. Toda resoundingly declared: “The Daishonin bequeathed to us the mission of realizing worldwide kosen-rufu and the happiness of all people. Please never forget this. The ultimate aim of the Soka Gakkai is to free the world and humankind of suffering.”

The Soka Gakkai is a gathering of Bodhisattvas of the Earth united in the shared struggle to actualize the Lotus Sutra’s great vow to lead all people to enlightenment and the cherished wish of Nichiren Daishonin. The mentors and disciples of Soka have been working together for that cause since the time of our founding president.

The Shared Struggle of Mentor and Disciple, a Journey for a Brighter Future

As I was about to make my first visit to Kansai after becoming the third Soka Gakkai president, I wrote in my diary: “Will treat each and every person in a friendly manner. Will talk with every person, hold dialogues and ask that we share one another’s happiness and sufferings for the rest of our lives. This is my credo. I shall advance, fight and suffer as an emissary of the Buddha, an uncrowned hero and an honorable ally of the ordinary people.”^[16]

Let us cheerfully continue our great journey of the shared struggle of mentor and disciple for worldwide kosen-rufu committed to changing the destiny of all humankind.

It is time for our successor Bodhisattvas of the Earth to take the stage.

Strengthen your life force through confident prayer! With vibrant courage build a brighter future! Keep encouraging and supporting one another throughout all! Advance to victory!

Translated from the April 2023 Daibyakurenge, the Soka Gakkai’s monthly study journal.

From the February 2024 Living Buddhism