Strive

Dialogue On The Lotus Sutra #41

Those Who Practice With a Spirit of Endurance Are Buddhas


Ikeda: The Buddha goes to the place where people are suffering the most - to the saha world. A real Buddha shares everyone's sufferings. Anything short of this is not the genuine article. Is a priest automatically respectable? No, definitely not. Does being a politician or a celebrity make someone great? Certainly not. Nor does having a high position in our organization. Commendable are those who exert themselves alongside the people facing the most hardship. Members on the forefront of the women's division who pray for the happiness of all and work tirelessly to spread the Daishonin's teaching, sometimes even over the chiding and opposition of their husbands and the bad-mouthing of others, are truly great. That spirit to endure is what we mean when we say "Buddha." . . .

. . . Even after he had attained the Way, Shakyamuni continued to carry out the actions of a bodhisattva to spread the great Law to which he had awakened. While boundlessly rejoicing in the awareness of the eternity of life that filled his being, he took action to spread that Law to others. This is what is meant by a "bodhisattva-Buddha." That's why Mr. Toda said that this revelation turned Buddhism on its head. The essential point is that even after attaining enlightenment, Shakyamuni continued to exist as a human being. The Lotus Sutra thus appeals: "Restore your humanity!" - Daisaku Ikeda -