Hi everyone,
Below is a repost of something I send in response to posts in the
taiten yahoo group. I hope that people here might be interested as
well:
Some people have remarked upon how less constricting the practice of
Nichiren Buddhism can be outside of certain narrow and dogmatic
approaches taken by some groups. On the other hand, even in the big
tent which is Nichiren Shu the focus is on the Odaimoku and there
are certain parameteres within which we do our practice. So I think
this idea of expanding our practice is something which should be
explored further. Let me begin by sharing my own experience.
When I first ran into Nichiren Shu it was in L.A. and I went to the
temple and got to participate in Shodaigyo. That was a real eye-
opener. I am so happy that my sensei, the Ven. Ryusho Matsuda, was
agreeable several years ago to the request of several members of the
San Jose temple to make Shodaigyo part of our regular monthly
schedule.
In fact, when I first went to San Jose, my sensei was conducing the
regular first Sunday of the month sitting practice. I was astounded
and afterwords said to him: "I was surprised you do sitting
meditation here. I thought Nichiren Buddhists only chanted?" He
looked quite taken aback and said "Of course we meditate. All
Buddhists meditate." That was when I knew I was at the right place.
Some may wonder why I would have been surprised since I already knew
about Shodaigyo - but Shodaigyo is primarily about chanting Odaimoku
with periods of silent sitting before and after. This was just
silent sitting with Odaimoku chanted three times before and after.
Having stuck with Nichiren Shu and gone so far as to train as a
minister (my not so subtle strategy for getting as close as possible
to the core of Nichiren Shu so I could find out for myself what it
is all about) I have learned quite a lot both doctrinally and
experientially.
One thing I discovered was that for me - I really do need to focus
on the Odaimoku above all. I even coined the phrase the "sole
efficacy of Odaimoku" in explaning this to myself and subsequently
others. What I mean by "sole efficacy" is that the Odaimoku by
itself contains the benefits of other practices like tranquilitiy
and insight meditation or koan study or shikan taza or more esoteric
practices. But my experience and understanding is that this only
happens when approached correctly, otherwise it is just "babbling in
Sino-Japanese" (another phrase I use to explain things to myself). I
think Nichiren himself realized this when he wrote in one
gosho "There are those who praise the Lotus Sutra with their lips
but slander it in their hearts." and in his admonitions against the
14 slanders which undercut our practice.
Anyway, I think there is immense wisdom and benefit in focusing our
practice on that one point. But at the same time, that one point
becomes the place out of which radiates many other good habits and
even supporting practices - like ethical conduct, developing and/or
strengthening our integrity, becoming more compassionat and
generous, and even doing things like Shodaigyo, silent sitting,
dharanis, reciting the sutra, studying the sutra, copying the sutra,
copying images of the Buddha, delving into the insights of the many
teachings of the Buddha and his followers through the ages to see
what they have to say to us. All of this and more has become part of
my practice since joining Nichiren Shu. As my sensei told me, our
practice should be like a top - it spins and that action is like the
way in which our lives can revolve around the eightfold path and the
six perfections insofar as our actions and conduct in daily life is
concerned but it is able to spin in a stable way if it is resting on
one point - and that point is Odaimoku in terms of our practice.
When I was at Shingyo Dojo, I ended up following a way of life very
close to that of traditional monastics. It was a very strict,
simple, and demanding regime that included not only the following of
certain precepts (though most were unspoken or just part of the
system of training), but also Shodaigyo, sutra recital, sutra
copying, dharanis, shomyo, walking (or hiking) Odaimoku, and other
things. And what I found was that following such a regimine did not
in and of itself make me a better person or a better Buddhist. But
it did free me to focus on the Odaimoku without any other extraneous
concerns and all the various practices helped keep me motivated and
interested in deepening the practice of Odaimoku. And the Odaimoku
itself could lead to a concentration of mind and an openess to
growth and insight in my own life.
So anyway, this is how I see my own practice - as focused on the
Odaimoku and not fractured among many different practices. But at
the same time, my Odaimoku encompasses many other supporting
practices including the cultivation of good habits and the
curtailing of bad ones in terms of my daily life.
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo,
Ryuei