Bringing About Dynamic Changes in One's Life and the World!
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Good afternoon all leaders and members. From this month of March onwards, our discussion meeting will include a new segment — Buddhist Concept.
This month we will be learning about the buddhist concept of "oneness of life and the environment"
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The full explanation is published on the February 2023 issue of Soka Times
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One's life and the environment are often viewed as being completely distinct, but from the comprehensive viewpoint of Buddhist philosophy, they are one and inseparable.
{One's Life and the Environment Is Inseparable}
Having ushered in a brand new year, we might initially be filled with renewed determination to start afresh but when the routine of daily life began, that determination may be beginning to wane....
Well, I'm quite sure we are not alone in feeling this way.
It is a common human tendency to have our feelings and actions easily influenced by the circumstances surrounding us.
The Buddhist term for "life" or "a living being" in Japanese is shoho (正报) while its"environment" is eho (依报).
[Slide 4]
Ho (报) of shöhö and eho means "reward or effect".
It indicates that "life" constitutes a subjective self that experiences the effects of its past actions (both positive and negative), and
"its environment" is an objective realm in which individuals' karmic rewards find expression.
[Slide 5]
Simply put, it means that what we experience as the day-to-day reality of our lives is the workings of the law of cause and effect, or karma, spanning past, present and future.
Our actions and responses in each moment create latent karmic or energetic potentials;
when these are activated by external stimuli, they manifest as effects - the events and experiences of our lives.
Because no living being can exist apart from an environment, karmic effects are expressed within that environment too.
Here the word "environment" does not mean the overall context in which all life occurs.
Rather, it refers to the fact that each living being exists within its own unique set of circumstances in which the effects of its individual karma appear.
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What is the relationship between life and its environment?
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Nichiren Daishonin teaches us in his writings, "The ten directions are the 'environment', and living beings are life'. To illustrate, environment is like the shadow, and life, the body. Without the body, no shadow can exist, and without life, no environment. In the same way, life is shaped by its environment." ("On Omens",WND-1, p. 644)
As stated here, "without life". "no environment can exist" and that "life is shaped by its environment".
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In this way, the relationship between "life" and "its environment" is interconnected and inseparable.
As such, Nichiren Buddhism teaches that one's life and its environment are essentially non-dual or one.
This relationship between life and its environment is expounded in the Buddhist principle of the "oneness of life and its environment"
Forging a Life State that Is Not Controlled by Our Environment
What is this concept of "non-duality" or "oneness"?
[Slide 9]
The concept of "oneness" or "non-duality" originates from the term funi (不二) literally meaning "not two". It is short for (而二不二). which means "two (in phenomena) but not two (in essence)".
That is to say, though life and its environment are two seemingly distinct phenomena, they are essentially non-dual.
In other words, a living being and its environment are a single integrated dynamic.
[Slide 10]
Since our life and the environment are one, we cannot conveniently "blame our circumstances" for our sufferings since the cause originates within our lives.
That's the crux of the matter!
And that's the most crucial perspective!
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It is a common human tendency to blame our problems and sufferings on things outside ourselves –- other people circumstances beyond our control.
In addition, when we are swayed and controlled by our environment, we feel absolutely helpless.
However, Nichiren Buddhism teaches us how we can avoid being entrapped in such a situation by clarifying the path to Buddhahood whereby we can forge a life state of absolute happiness that remains invincible no matter what happens.
{Let's Strive to Chant Resounding Daimoku}
What is the key factor that empowers us to remain undefeated by our environment?
Though two individuals may be in identical situations or circumstances, one's life state can make a complete difference.
The Daishonin explains this point in his writings, "On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime".
[Slide 12]
"If the minds of living beings are impure, their land is also impure, but if their minds are pure, so is their land. There are not two lands, pure or impure in themselves. The difference lies solely in the good or evil of our minds." (WND-1, p. 4)
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The Daishonin teaches us here that whether we perceive the land in which we are living is a "pure land" where the Buddha dwells or an "impure land" filled with hardships and sufferings depends solely in "the good or evil of our minds" in this way, everything is perceived through the self and alters according to the individual's inner state of life.
Thus, if we transform our lives, our circumstances will also inevitably change from an impure land filled with suffering to the pure land of Buddhahood.
The Daishonin explains that when people's heart change, the land or their external environment can also change.
This is the quintessence of this hope-filled principle of the "oneness of life and its environment".
The concept of the oneness of life and its environment clarifies that individuals can influence and reform their environments through inner change or through the elevation of their basic life state. It tells us that our inner state of life will be simultaneously manifested in our surroundings.
If we are experiencing a hellish internal life state, this will be reflected in our surroundings and in how we respond to events.
Likewise, when we are full of joy, the environment reflects this reality.
[Slide 14]
When we base ourselves on this principle of the oneness of life and its environment, we are able to perceive that the causes of our joy and sorrow originate within us. We are able to see our environment as a reflection of our inner life.
As such, we are able to take full responsibility for our lives and in this way become empowered to solve our problems and create positive outcomes in the situations in which we find ourselves.
[Slide 15]
What is the practice that makes it possible for us to transform our external reality?
[Slide 16]
In the paragraph following the passage quoted earlier from the Gosho, "On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime" the Daishonin states: "This is similar to a tarnished mirror that will shine like a jewel when polished. A mind now clouded by the illusions of the innate darkness of life is like a tarnished mirror, but when polished, it is sure to become like a clear mirror, reflecting the essential nature of phenomena [i.e., the Dharma nature] and the true aspect of reality. Arouse deep faith, and diligently polish your mirror day and night. How should you polish it? Only by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo." (On Attaining Buddhahood In This Lifetime", WND-1, p. 4)
In this way, the Daishonin uses the metaphor of a "mirror" to illustrate the life state of an ordinary being and teaches that the only way to polish this "mirror" is to chant the daimoku of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
[Slide 17]
The Daishonin further teaches: "All beings and environments in the Ten Worlds, from hell, the lowest, to Buddhahood, the highest, are without exception manifestations of Myoho-renge-kvo." ("The True Aspect of All Phenomena", WND-1, p. 383)
In other words, the Daishonin is saying that all living beings and their environment are without exception manifestations of the fundamental Law of Nam-Myoho-renge-kyo.
Cherishing this profound conviction in our lives, let's strive to continue chanting resounding daimoku at all times to manifest the inherent Buddhahood from within our lives and transform the circumstances surrounding us!
(Translated and adapted from the Jan 19, 2019 issue of the Seikyo Shimbun.)
Let me conclude with sensei's guidances…
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