How reassuring and comforting is
the level of absolute conviction that Nichiren Daishonin writes with… He is
reminding us that we cannot fail. Winter always turns to Spring…
"If only you
chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, then what offence could fail to be eradicated? What
blessing could fail to come? This is the truth, and it is of great
profundity. You should believe and accept it."
(Conversation
between a Sage and an Unenlightened Man -The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin,
page 130) http://www.sgilibrary.org/view.php?page=99
Background
This treatise is generally thought to have been written in the
second year of Bun’ei (1265). Its recipient is unknown. However, toward the end
of the work, the unenlightened man refers to himself as “a man who carries a
bow and arrows and devotes himself to the profession of arms,” so it has been
suggested that Nichiren Daishonin may have written it for someone of the
samurai class.
The treatise consists of two parts and is written chiefly in
question-and- answer form. The “sage” in the title indicates the votary of the
Lotus Sutra, or Nichiren Daishonin himself, while the “unenlightened man”
represents all ordinary people of the Latter Day of the Law. In the first part,
the unenlightened man, who has realized life’s impermanence and is seeking the
truth, is visited in succession by a priest of the Precepts school, a lay
believer of the Pure Land school, a practitioner of the True Word school, and a
priest of the Zen school. Through their conversations, the Daishonin outlines
the basic tenets of these four major Buddhist schools of his day.
The Precepts priest, who is the first visitor, asserts that the
teachings concerning the precepts are the most important of the eighty thousand
sacred teachings of Buddhism. He holds up Ryokan, the chief priest of Gokuraku-
ji temple, as an example and exhorts the unenlightened man to observe the five
precepts and the two hundred and fifty precepts and devote himself to
charitable works as Ryokan does.
The next visitor, a Pure Land believer, praises the Nembutsu
teachings, which enable one to be reborn in Amida Buddha’s Pure Land and
thereby gain emancipation from the sufferings of birth and death. He singles
out the eighteenth of Amida Buddha’s forty-eight vows as the sole source of
salvation for ordinary people in the Latter Day and asserts that even persons
guilty of the ten evil acts and the five cardinal sins can attain rebirth in
the Pure Land by calling on this Buddha’s name.
The True Word practitioner, who visits next, says that even the
most profound doctrines of the exoteric teachings are no more than an
introduction to the esoteric teachings. The exoteric teachings, he says, were
expounded by Shakyamuni, the Buddha of the manifested body, in accordance with
his disciples’ capacities, while the esoteric teachings were preached by
Mahavairochana, the Buddha of the Dharma body, out of his spontaneous joy in
the Law. He accordingly urges the unenlightened man to discard the exoteric teachings
and take faith in the more profound esoteric teachings.
The last to come calling is a mendicant Zen priest. He likens the
sutras to a finger pointing at the moon and denounces the doctrines contained
in them as so much nonsense, exhorting the unenlightened man to sit in
meditation to perceive the true nature of his mind in accordance with the
“wordless teaching” of Zen.
Troubled by the contradictions in what he has heard, and
determined to discover which teaching is correct, the unenlightened man then
sets out on a journey in search of a teacher who can clarify matters for him.
After visiting various temples one after another, he finally encounters a sage
who embraces the Lotus Sutra. The title Conversation between a Sage and an
Unenlightened Man refers to the subsequent dialogue that unfolds between them.
The unenlightened man confesses that, although he has learned the teachings of
the Precepts, Nembutsu, True Word, and Zen schools, he cannot determine whether
or not those teachings are true. In reply, the sage declares that the doctrines
of all four schools are the cause for rebirth in the evil paths, because they
are based on provisional teachings, while only the true teaching, the Lotus
Sutra, enables all people without exception to attain Buddhahood.
This comparison of the true and provisional teachings forms the
focus of this treatise. The sage refutes the doctrines of those schools that
are based on the provisional teachings and cites sutra passages to demonstrate
that the supremacy of the Lotus Sutra was set forth by Shakyamuni Buddha
himself. His rebuttal of the Nembutsu and True Word doctrines concludes part
one of this treatise. Part two begins with his refutation of Zen.
By this time, the unenlightened man has become convinced of the
truth of the Lotus Sutra. But he hesitates to embrace it out of considerations of loyalty and filial piety; he
points out that everyone from the ruler on down to the common people has faith
in other schools, and his own parents and ancestors embraced the Pure Land
teachings. The sage replies that one can best repay one’s debts of gratitude to
one’s parents and sovereign by embracing the correct Buddhist teaching and thus
leading them to salvation. Next, one should evaluate the Buddhist teachings on
their own merits and not according to the number of their adherents. The sage
also explains that there are two ways of Buddhist practice—shoju and
shakubuku—depending upon the time. The present period, when distorted teachings
flourish, is the time for shakubuku, he says.
The unenlightened man now having resolved to embrace the Lotus
Sutra, the sage reveals to him that the essence of the sutra lies in the five
characters of Myoho-renge-kyo that form its title. Myoho-renge-kyo, he
explains, is the Buddha nature inherent in all beings. When one chants
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the Buddha nature inherent in all things will be summoned
forth, and one’s own Buddha nature will simultaneously emerge. Even without
profound understanding of the Buddhist teachings, one can by this practice
attain Buddhahood in one’s present form. The sage concludes by exhorting the
unenlightened man to maintain faith throughout life, without wavering in his
resolve.
