Illness and the Lotus Sutra 1
''This good excellent medicine now I leave here. You should take and swallow it. Do not worry that you will not be cured.''(Lotus Sutra, Chapter 16)
''This Sutra then is the Excellent medicine for the sick people of Jambudvipa. If there shall be sick people who are able to hear this Sutra, the sickness shall at once dissipate and they shall not die before they grow old.'' (Lotus Sutra, Chapter 23)
Nichiren Dashonin writes in the Two Kind of Illness:
THE illnesses of human beings may be divided into two general categories, the first of which is illness of the body. Physical diseases comprise one hundred and one disorders of the earth element, one hundred and one of the water element, one hundred and one of the fire element, and one hundred and one of the wind element, for a total of four hundred and four maladies. These illnesses can be cured with the medicines prescribed by skilled physicians such as Water Holder, Water Carrier, Jivaka, and Pien Ch’üeh.
The second category is illness of the mind. These are the three poisons and the eighty-four thousand illnesses. Only a Buddha can cure them; thus they are beyond the healing powers of the two deities and the three ascetics, not to mention those of Shen Nung and Huang Ti.
Illnesses of the mind differ greatly in severity. The three poisons and the eighty-four thousand illnesses that afflict ordinary people of the six paths can be treated by the Buddha of the Dharma Analysis Treasury, Establishment of Truth, and Precepts schools, which derive from the Tripitaka teaching of Hinayana. However, if one tries to use the Hinayana teachings to cure the three poisons and eighty thousand illnesses that arise from slandering the Mahayana sutras, such as the Flower Garland, Wisdom, and Mahavairochana sutras, these illnesses will merely become worse and never be cured. They can be treated only with the Mahayana teachings. Moreover, if one attempts to use the Flower Garland, Wisdom, and Mahavairochana sutras, or the teachings of the True Word and Three Treatises schools to cure the three poisons and eighty thousand illnesses that arise when the practitioners of the various Mahayana sutras oppose the Lotus Sutra, those sicknesses will become all the more serious. To illustrate, the flames emitted by burning wood or coal can easily be extinguished by water, but if one pours water over a fire produced by burning oil, it will only burn more intensely, the flames mounting still higher.
The epidemics that have been raging in Japan since last year cannot be categorized within the four hundred and four illnesses of the body. Thus they are beyond the healing powers of Hua T’o and Pien Ch’üeh. Nor do they correspond to any of the eighty-four thousand diseases that can be treated with the Hinayana or provisional Mahayana teachings. For this reason, the prayers offered by the priests of the schools based on those teachings not only fail to end the epidemics, but rather aggravate them all the more. Even if the epidemics should subside this year, they will surely break out again in years to come. Probably they will come to an end only after something dreadful has happened.
The Lotus Sutra says, “Though he might practice the art of medicine and by its methods cure someone’s disease, the person would grow sicker from some other malady and perhaps in the end would die. . . . it would only make his condition worse.”(LS, Ch. 3) The Nirvana Sutra states: “At that time King Ajatashatru of Rajagriha . . . boils broke out over his entire body. . . . [The king said to his mother], ‘These boils have their origin in the mind; they do not arise from the four elements. Though people say that there is a physician who can cure them, that could not possibly be.’ ” Miao-lo said, “Wise men can perceive the cause of things, as snakes know the way of snakes.”
The present epidemics are like the virulent boils of King Ajatashatru that could not be cured by anyone but the Buddha. They can only be eliminated by the Lotus Sutra.
I developed diarrhea on the thirtieth day of the twelfth month of last year, and up until the third or fourth day of the sixth month of this year, it grew more frequent by the day and more severe by the month. Just when I was thinking that it must be my immutable karma, you sent me good medicine. Since taking it, my complaint has diminished steadily and is now a mere one-hundredth fraction of its former intensity. I wonder if Shakyamuni Buddha has entered into your body to help me, or perhaps the Bodhisattvas of the Earth have bestowed upon me the good medicine of Myoho-renge-kyo. Chikugo-bo10 will explain all this to you in more detail. Postscript: Your messenger arrived at the hour of the dog (7:00–9:00 P.M.) on the twenty-fifth day of this month. The things you have sent me are beyond counting. Please convey my appreciation to Toki for his offering of a summer robe. Also please tell your wife how saddened I am at the passing of her grandfather."
He says in Embracing the Lotus Sutra:
"One should understand once and for all that even the medicine of the teachings offered by the Flower Garland, Correct and Equal, and Larger Wisdom sutras cannot cure the grave illness that afflicts persons of the two vehicles. Moreover, in the sutras preached before the Lotus Sutra, even guilty persons who are condemned to inhabit the three evil paths are regarded as bodhisattvas and therefore able to attain Buddhahood, but no such recognition is accorded to the persons of the two vehicles.
With regard to this point, the Great Teacher Miao-lo stated: “In the various sutras, it is sometimes taught that beings in all other paths are led to the true [path of Buddhahood], but there is absolutely no such hope offered to the two vehicles. Therefore, [in the Lotus Sutra] beings in the six paths are grouped with bodhisattvas [as being assured of Buddhahood], and the power of the sutra is set forth with respect to those of the two vehicles for whom Buddhahood is the most difficult to achieve.” Indeed, T’ien-t’ai established that the attainment of Buddhahood by persons of the two vehicles is proof that all living beings without exception can become Buddhas."
In the Opening of the eyes, we read:
"The passage also says, “It is due to the blessings obtained by protecting the Law that they can diminish in this lifetime their suffering and retribution.” The fifth volume of Great Concentration and Insight has this to say on the subject: “The feeble merits produced by a mind only half intent on the practice cannot alter [the realm of karma]. But if one carries out the practice of concentration and insight so as to observe ‘health’ and ‘illness,’216 then one can alter the cycle of birth and death [in the realm of karma].” It also says, “[As practice progresses and understanding grows], the three obstacles and four devils emerge in confusing form, vying with one another to interfere.”
From the Selection of Time"
"If one does not understand the origin of an illness, though one may try to treat the sick person, the treatment will surely fail and the patient will die."
Reply to the Lay Priest Takahashi reads:
"I am much distressed to hear that your illness has become so serious. Swords exist to cut down enemies, however, and medicine exists to cure sickness. King Ajatashatru murdered his father and made himself an enemy of the Buddha. But after foul sores broke out on his body, he converted to the Buddha’s teachings and embraced the Lotus Sutra, whereupon his sores healed and he prolonged his life by forty years.
Moreover, the Lotus Sutra states that it is “good medicine for the ills of the people of Jambudvipa.” The people of this world of Jambudvipa are suffering from illness, but they have the medicine of the Lotus Sutra. Now in your case, the three requirements are already present, so how could you fail to recover? But if you have doubts, I am powerless to help you. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo."
On Curing Karmic Disease states:
I SEE from your letter that you have been stricken with a painful affliction. On the one hand, knowing that you are in agony grieves me, but on the other, I am delighted. The Vimalakirti Sutra states: “At that time the wealthy Vimalakirti thought to himself, ‘I am ill, lying on my bed, [yet why does the World-Honored One, man of great compassion, not take pity on me]?’ . . . At that time the Buddha said to Manjushri, ‘Go visit Vimalakirti, and inquire after his illness.’ ” The Nirvana Sutra says, “At that time the Thus Come One . . . assumed the appearance of one who is ill in body and lay on his right side like a sick man.” The Lotus Sutra states, “[The Thus Come One is well and happy], with few ills and few worries.”1 The eighth volume of Great Concentration and Insight states: “Vimalakirti lay on his sickbed in Vaishali, making his illness a pretext to promote the teachings . . . Through his death, the Thus Come One taught the eternity [of life], and through illness, the power [of Buddhism].” It also says: “There are six causes of illness: (1) disharmony of the four elements; (2) improper eating or drinking; (3) inappropriate practice of seated meditation; (4) attack by demons; (5) the work of devils; and (6) the effects of karma.”
The Nirvana Sutra reads: “There are three types of people whose illness is
extremely difficult to cure. The first is those who slander the great vehicle; the second, those who commit the five cardinal sins; and the third, icchantikas, or persons of incorrigible disbelief. These three categories of illness are the gravest in the world.”
It also states: “One who creates evil karma in this life . . . will surely suffer in hell. . . . But by making offerings to the three treasures, one avoids falling into hell and receives the retribution in this life, in the form of afflictions of the head, eye, or back.” Great Concentration and Insight states, “Even if one has committed grave offenses . . . the retribution can be lessened in this life. Thus, illness occurs when evil karma is about to be dissipated.” In his Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom, Bodhisattva Nagarjuna says: “Question: . . . [Answer]: If that is so, then none of the sutras, from the Flower Garland to the Wisdom sutras, is a secret teaching, but the Lotus Sutra is secret. . . . [The Lotus Sutra is] like a great physician who can change poison into medicine.” T’ien-t’ai explained the quotation further, saying: “This can be likened to a skilled physician who can change poison into medicine. . . . That persons of the two vehicles were given the prophecy of their enlightenment in this sutra means that it can change poison into medicine. This is what Great Perfection of Wisdom
In light of the above quotations, it would seem that your illness cannot have originated in anything other than the six causes of disease. I will set aside the first five causes for the moment. Illnesses of the sixth, which result from karma, are the most difficult to cure. They vary in severity, and one cannot make any fixed pronouncements, but we know that the gravest illnesses result from the karma created by slandering the Lotus Sutra. Even Shen Nung, Huang Ti, Hua T’o, and Pien Ch’ü eh threw up their hands, and Water Holder, Water Carrier, Jivaka, and Vimalakirti likewise kept silent. Such illnesses can only be cured by the good medicine of the one Buddha Shakyamuni’s Lotus Sutra, as that sutra itself explains."
From another standpoint:
"Thus, illness occurs when evil karma is about to be dissipated."(Ibid.)
Nichiren writes in the Bow and Arrow"
"My greatest concern now is your illness. Fully convinced that you will recover your health, you should continue moxibustion treatment for three years, as regularly as if you had just begun. Even those who are free from illness cannot escape the transience of life, but you are not yet old, and because you are a votary of the Lotus Sutra, you will not meet an untimely death. Your illness is surely not due to karma, but even if it were, you could rely on the power of the Lotus Sutra to cure it."
"It is possible that her illness was due at least in part to the exhausting effort of caring for her mother-in-law."(Ibid.)
In Letter to Konichi-bo we find:
"In this respect, sorrow is like illness: no matter what malady one may suffer from, as it worsens, one will think that no illness could be more dreadful."
In the Blessings of the Lotus Sutra we read:
"A skilled physician, for example, may discern the causes of all kinds of illnesses as well as the relative efficacy of various medicines, but nevertheless refrains from indiscriminately applying the most powerful medicine and instead employs other medicines, depending upon the nature of the illness. Thus perhaps it was because, during the two thousand years of the Former and Middle Days of the Law following the Buddha’s passing, the sickness of delusion had not yet become critical, and therefore no one urged that the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo, the finest medicine in all the Buddha’s lifetime of teachings, be applied. But now we have entered the Latter Day of the Law, and people are all suffering from grave illness. This illness can hardly be cured by such minor medicines as invocations to Amida, Mahavairochana, or Shakyamuni."
Referring to the Lotus Sutra in Repaying Debts of Gratitude, Nichiren States:
"Or, to give another example, even though one may not know what is in the medicine, if one takes a dose of it, one’s illness can be cured.
and
"To give an analogy, a mild illness can be cured with ordinary medicine, but a severe illness requires an elixir."
To the samurai and physician Shijo Kingo in The Three Kinds of treasure:
"Since your faith is profound, however, the ten demon daughters must have come to your aid and caused your lord’s illness."
and
"If those sons of the Hojo clan or the wives of those in power should inquire about your lord’s illness, no matter who the person may be, get down on your knees, place your hands properly, and reply thus: “His malady is entirely beyond my poor skill to cure."(Ibid)
To the samurai and physician Shijo Kingo in A Warning on not Begrudging One's Feif:
"You must in no way behave in a servile fashion toward the magistrate. Tell him, “These fiefs were not bestowed upon me by my lord. They were awarded to me because I saved his life with the medicine of the Lotus Sutra when he was seriously ill. If he takes them from me, his illness will surely return. At that time, even if he should apologize to me, I will not accept it.” Having said so, take your leave in an abrupt manner."
From the Two Kinds of Faith:
"Is it true that there is illness in your family? If so, it cannot be the work of demons. Probably the ten demon daughters are testing the strength of your faith. No demon worthy of the of the name would even think of troubling a votary of the sutra and having its head broken. Persist in your faith with the firm conviction that both Shakyamuni Buddha and the Lotus Sutra are free from any falsehood."