As for the role of women
QUOTE [pg. 24**]:
Good men, the person who upholds this sutra will be like this. The buddhas, who are the king, and the sutra, which is the queen, join together in harmony to give birth to this bodhisattva son.
:UNQUOTE.
In the days of the Buddha in ancient India, kings were considered superior to queens who weren't considered to be much more than kings' wives. However, the Buddha preached a doctrine about all things being equal. E could have said (above): "The buddhas, who are the queen, and the sutra, which is the king..." For that matter, E could have also said, "...to give birth to this bodhisattva daughter (or child)."
But the Buddha didn't say either. Why? My best guess, such a change would have been too much for the Great Assembly to hear. It would have run against the grain of their own prejudices.
That same reason applies to this quote:
QUOTE [pg. 26**]:
Suppose, for example, there is a prince who, although still just a boy, is entrusted with the management of affairs of state because the king is abroad on a journey or has been seized by illness.
:UNQUOTE.
Why should a prince, "although still just a boy," be entrusted instead of the queen, an adult? Anti-female prejudice ran so deep (and still does) that the disciples could more easily believe that a boy (because of his penis) is superior to a woman.
QUOTE [pg. 225**]:
Bodhisattva Wisdom Accumulated questioned [Bodhisattva] Manjushri, saying, "...Are there perhaps any living beings who, by earnestly and diligently practicing this [Lotus] sutra, have been able to attain buddhahood quickly?"
Manjushri replied, "There is the daughter of the dragon king Sagara, who has just turned eight...."
:UNQUOTE.
Out of the countless living beings most recently converted by Manjushri, E cites one. However, I am left wondering, "What about Manjushri Eself who was still (just) a bodhisattva? How is it that an eight-year-old girl attains 'buddhahood quickly,' but Manjushri hadn't yet managed that accomplishment?"
More to the point, regarding females in Buddhism, why did this girl have to change into a man in order to complete the practices necessary for the attainment of enlightenment? In my view, E didn't but only did so (in E's capacity as a shapeshifter) simply because E knew the Great Assembly wasn't ready to accept that a being in female form could become a Buddha.
The Three Refuges
QUOTE (pg 414**):
three refuges: To take refuge in the three treasures of the Buddha, the Law, and the Order, i.e., to believe in and give allegiance to the three treasures. The formula "I take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Law, I take refuge in the Order [congregation of believers]" was recited as a profession of faith by monks and laypersons from very early times....
:UNQUOTE.
I too accept the three refuges, but in a rearranged fashion:
"I take refuge in the Law, I take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Order."
In other words, I put the Law first. To the casual observer, this might not seem like such a big deal. However, there are Buddhists out there - possibly all of them - who would profoundly disagree with me. Frankly? I don't care. Each of the three refuges is vitally important. However, the Buddha is not always in the world to teach us and members of the Order are often few and far between. But the Law is always here. Furthermore, without the Law, the very idea of a Buddha and the Order would be meaningless.
I have reduced the three refuges to a three-word chant, which I've included in my Buddhist practice: "Lotus, Buddha, Samgha [another word for Order]." This chant is meant to replace all others - including the Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo of Nichiren's followers. "Lotus" refers to the Lotus Sutra, which the Buddha defined as his most profound teaching. "Buddha" might seem to be self-explanatory, but the Lotus Sutra speaks of devils (and well-intended, shapeshifting bodhisattvas) pretending to be a buddha. So if push comes to shove, we're responsible for using our own enlightened nature to properly identify a Buddha, should one enter our lives in person.
I do not, however, hold the "Lotus, Buddha, Samgha" chant as the superior practice. Even though the Nichiren sects' believers assert that chanting N-M-R-K is the superior practice, I steadfastly believe that reading and reciting the Lotus Sutra is the greatest practice. The Buddha himself said so.
As for the Order, I consider everybody - Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike - to be part of the Order. Even a Muslim, Jew, Christian or atheist was, in a previous lifetime, exposed to Buddhist teachings and carries that wisdom with E in this current lifetime. E might express that wisdom in the terminology of E's current faith, and E's understanding might flawed, but E'll still have something to offer which will be useful to a currently-practicing Buddhist.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Steven Searle, just another member of the
Virtual Samgha of the Lotus and
former candidate for President of the USA (in 2008 & 2012)
Contact me at bpa_cinc@yahoo.com
Footnotes:
Eself* - This means "himself or herself." On occasion, in my essays I use upper-case E in place of the personal pronouns he/she/his/hers/I/me. This usage makes my sentences gender neutral. Why E? E is the most common sound one hears when reciting the English-language alphabet, so I use that commonality as a device to embrace all beings without discrimination.
** - All page numbers indicated above are from one source:
The Lotus Sutra and its opening and closing sutras [known as the three-fold Lotus Sutra]
Translated by Burton Watson
Published by 2009 by Soka Gakkai
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