Passage 1: “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude”
The old fox never forgets the hillock where he was born; the white turtle repaid the kindness he had received from Mao Pao. If even lowly creatures know enough to do this, then how much more should human beings! … What can we say, then, of persons who are devoting themselves to Buddhism? Surely they should not forget the debts of gratitude they owe to their parents, their teachers, and their country.
—The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 690
Passage 2: “The Actions of the Votary of the Lotus Sutra”
[I]t is not one’s allies but one’s powerful enemies who assist one’s progress. … I am grateful when I think that without them I could not have proved myself to be the votary of the Lotus Sutra.
Passage 3: “On Establishing the Four Bodhisattvas as the Object of Devotion”
From a mundane view, I am the poorest person in Japan, but in the light of Buddhism, I am the wealthiest person [literally foremost wealthy person] in all Jambudvipa [the entire world].
Fulfilling Our Vow for Kosen-rufu Is a Genuine Expression of Gratitude
The following is excerpted from Ikeda Sensei’s Lecture Series published in the September 2017 Living Buddhism, pp. 42–43.
A Treatise Written to Honor the Memory of His Teacher
The old fox never forgets the hillock where he was born; the white turtle repaid the kindness he had received from Mao Pao. If even lowly creatures know enough to do this, then how much more should human beings! Thus Yü Jang, a worthy man of old, fell on his sword in order to repay the debt he owed his lord Chih Po, and the minister Hung Yen for similar reasons cut open his stomach and inserted the liver of his dead lord, Duke Yi of Wei. What can we say, then, of persons who are devoting themselves to Buddhism? Surely they should not forget the debts of gratitude they owe to their parents, their teachers, and their country.
But if one intends to repay these great debts of gratitude, one can hope to do so only if one learns and masters Buddhism, becoming a person of wisdom. (“On Repaying Debts of Gratitude,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 690)
Dozen-bo was Nichiren Daishonin’s childhood teacher when he was studying at Seicho-ji temple in Awa Province (present-day southern Chiba Prefecture). Among Dozen-bo’s disciples close to Nichiren at that time were Joken-bo and Gijo-bo, who were his seniors.
In June 1276, Nichiren learned of Dozen-bo’s death. One month later, he composed “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude” to honor the memory of his late teacher and repay his debt of gratitude to him.
In his cover letter to “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude,” he requests that the treatise be read aloud before Dozen-bo’s grave: “I ask that just the two of you, you [Joken-bo] and Gijo-bo, have the work read aloud two or three times at the summit of Kasagamori [a woody knoll on the grounds of Seicho-ji temple], with this priest [who carried my letter to you] to do the reading. Please have him read it once before the grave of the late Dozen-bo as well” (“On Repaying Debts of Gratitude,” WND-1, 737).
Seeking the Way and Propagating Buddhism to Repay His Gratitude to His Teacher
In “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude,” Nichiren Daishonin recounts his life of seeking the way and propagating Buddhism to repay his debt of gratitude to his teacher. It was also a life dedicated to the struggle of “refuting the erroneous and revealing the true” to lead all people in the Latter Day of the Law to enlightenment.
He further states, “In the enclosed treatise, I have written matters of the utmost importance” (WND-1, 737)—referring to his revelation of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of the Three Great Secret Laws, opening the way to secure a brighter future for all humanity.
At the very beginning of this treatise, he presents the examples of the old fox and the white turtle to illustrate that even animals repay debts of gratitude, underscoring that it is all the more important for human beings to do so. Then, he cites the examples of Yü Jang and Hung Yen, asserting that since even the worthy men of old practiced the way of gratitude, practitioners of Buddhism should not forget the debts of gratitude they owe to their parents, teachers, country and society.
How can Buddhists repay their debts of gratitude? The Daishonin tells us that we can do so by studying and gaining a deep understanding of the teachings of Buddhism, thereby becoming people of true wisdom and striving to guide to happiness those to whom we owe debts of gratitude.
“Acknowledging What Has Been Done on One’s Behalf”
Here, let’s take a moment to consider the meaning of repaying debts of gratitude.
Repaying debts of gratitude is deeply rooted in human nature, irrespective of time or place, and is an integral part of people’s lives, as the tales and historical anecdotes quoted by Nichiren Daishonin in is treatise illustrate.
In modern Japan, the phrase “repaying debts of gratitude” is often associated with the hierarchical relations of Japan’s feudal period, but that is really only one small aspect of the concept.
The Chinese characters that the sutras used to denote “repaying debts of gratitude” (Jpn. ho’on; Chn. bao en) are thought to be translated from the Sanskrit expression krita-jna, which literally means “acknowledging (jna) what has been done on one’s behalf (krita).”
Recognizing that we owe our present existence to the help and support of many others and, with gratitude for that fact, working in turn to help and support others—this in itself is what is meant by “knowing one’s debts of gratitude” and “repaying one’s debts of gratitude.”
Repaying debts of gratitude is proof of our humanity. In Buddhism, repaying debts of gratitude is not just limited to the debts owed to a specific group of people such as one’s parents or the country’s ruler. A life of deep and genuine gratitude naturally recognizes the debt of gratitude one owes to all living beings.
How do we repay our debt of gratitude to all living beings? The Daishonin tells us that “learning and mastering Buddhism” is also important in this endeavor (see WND-1, 690).
The passage we are studying in this section is followed by the words, “Can a ship steered by someone who cannot even tell the direction of the wind ever carry the traveling merchants to the mountains where treasure lies?” (WND-1, 690). This is saying that unless we attain true wisdom through practicing Buddhism, we cannot lead others to the truth. In Buddhism, repaying debts of gratitude means developing an expansive state of life so that we can communicate our appreciation to many others and repay our debts of gratitude to them on the deepest level.
In Nichiren Buddhism, this means taking action to fulfill the vow to lead all people to happiness. “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude” teaches us this by chronicling the Daishonin’s own great efforts and struggles for this purpose.
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