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Nichiren Daishonin
SGI members strive to enact daily the teachings of Nichiren
Daishonin, a Buddhist monk who lived in thirteenth-century Japan.
Nichiren's teachings provide a way for anybody to readily draw out
the enlightened wisdom and energy of Buddhahood from within their
lives, regardless of their individual circumstances. Each person
has the power to overcome all of life's challenges, to live a life
of value and become a positive influence in their community,
society and the world.
In Search of the Solution to Human Suffering
Nichiren was born in 1222 in Japan, a time rife with social
unrest and natural disasters. The common people, especially,
suffered enormously. Nichiren wondered why the Buddhist teachings
had lost their power to enable people to lead happy, empowered
lives. While a young priest, he set out to find an answer to the
suffering and chaos that surrounded him. His intensive study of the
Buddhist sutras convinced him that the Lotus Sutra,
Shakyamuni's essential teaching, contained the essence of the
Buddha's enlightenment and that it held the key to transforming
people's suffering and enabling society to flourish.
The Essence of Buddhism
The Lotus Sutra affirms that all people, regardless of
gender, capacity or social standing, inherently possess the
qualities of a Buddha, and are therefore equally worthy of the
utmost respect.
Based on his study of the sutra Nichiren established the
invocation (chant) of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo as a universal practice
to enable people to manifest the Buddhahood inherent in their lives
and gain the strength and wisdom to challenge and overcome any
adverse circumstances. Nichiren saw the Lotus Sutra as a vehicle
for people's empowerment--stressing that everyone can attain
enlightenment and enjoy happiness while they are alive.
Persecution
Nichiren was critical of the established schools of Buddhism
that relied on state patronage and merely served the interests of
the powerful while encouraging passivity in the suffering masses.
He called the feudal authorities to task, insisting that the
leaders bear responsibility for the suffering of the population and
act to remedy it. His stance, that the state exists for the sake of
the people, was revolutionary for its time.
Nichiren's claims invited an onslaught of often-violent
persecutions from the military government and the established
Buddhist schools. Throughout, he refused to compromise his
principles to appease those in authority.
Nichiren's legacy lies in his unrelenting struggle for people's
happiness and the desire to transform society into one which
respects the dignity and potential of each individual life. |
