A lot of non-Buddhists are curious about our faith, especially Christians, who want to know if we believe in God or the Devil.
Do Nichiren Buddhists believe in a God or gods?
No. Buddha was a great man called Siddhartha Gautama who lived in India and taught people how to achieve a state of indestructible happiness within their lives. He became the first recorded Buddha (known as Shakyamuni Buddha) but he was a spiritual leader not a God.
As Nichiren Buddhists we also follow the guidance of Nichiren Daishonin, a 13th century Japanese monk who realized that the Lotus Sutra was the ultimate teaching of Shakyamuni Buddha. He is the founder of Nichiren Buddhism but is not a god, and as Soka Gakkai International members we are supported in our daily faith by our current leader, President Ikeda, but he is not a god either.
The closest thing we have to “gods” is the mystic functions
in life and in the environment that serve to protect us. This refers to forces in our lives and in
nature which can’t be seen or explained scientifically, but are believed to
offer protection to Buddhists.
So what do you believe in?
We believe in our innate Buddhahood. We believe that all of us – Buddhists and non-Buddhists - have the power within us (Buddhahood) to realize a life of eternal happiness.
We believe that chanting “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo”
connects us to our Buddha wisdom and the wisdom of the universe.
We believe in continually studying to prove that we
are following the correct religion and we believe in personal development and self-improvement
to become better people within ourselves, within our families and within our
communities.
Finally we believe that everyone has the right to
attain happiness in this lifetime and so we want to share our faith with them.
Do you believe in the Devil?
Yes and no! We
don’t believe in one all-encompassing evil entity, but we believe that there
are three devils that come from within and one that comes from without. These four devils try to hinder our practice
and Buddhist faith and manifest themselves in our own negativity, doubts and
confusion.
The first devil is our earthly desires – negative thoughts
such as ignorance or stupidity that stop us from realizing the greatness of
Nichiren Buddhism, greed for personal benefit and pride that makes us think we
know better and don’t need this religion and other emotions such as laziness
that sap our motivation to practice or attend meetings.
The second devil is illness. All of us become ill from time to time and we
usually shake it off, but this devil manifests itself when that illness affects
our faith. It may make us doubt our
faith because we, or our loved ones, are not being protected or it can stop us
from attending meetings.
Third is the devil of death – or more specifically the
feelings we have in response to death that make us doubt our faith. This can be especially strong when someone we
love dies or when a child or good person is taken too soon.
Finally, the fourth devil, which some may see as the
closest to the Christian image of the devil, and involves the many
manifestations in life and in the hearts of others which can deeply challenge
our faith.
Natural phenomena such as earthquakes and tsunami
that destroy countless lives and the evil behaviour of people that inflict
pain, suffering and death on others are included here and cause us to doubt the
benefit of our practice, especially when we, or those we love are directly
affected by them.
This fourth devil also manifests itself within people
that implicitly want us to stop practising and can be a great challenge – it could
be persecution on our religion or on our members by politicians, other
religions or by the media or it could be closer to home, such as a family
member or university teacher discouraging us in our Buddhist practice.
Even if there is no direct persecution, this fourth
devil can cause confusion and raise doubts by entering the hearts of members and leaders. Nichiren Buddhists who have become "possessed" by this fourth devil may start or spread gossip or rumours about other members or leaders or become corrupting with arrogance,
sexual misconduct, embezzlement, etc. These people can cause us to doubt the validity of our faith
if our leaders or other members can behave in such a way.
(See also http://nichirenbuddhist.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/the-devil-and-buddha.html)
(See also http://nichirenbuddhist.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/the-devil-and-buddha.html)
Thank you for writing this article. I am about to receive Gohonzon and was told thatI will be challenged by negative forces once I decide to fully commit to Nichiren Buddhism.
ReplyDeleteDoes Buddhism offer any wisdom of the universe and how it got here since you believe chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo connects you to your Buddha wisdom and the wisdom of the universe? Also I've been to buddhist meeting where quotes were read referring to Nicherin mentioning "gods". Email address lav8u@yahoo.com. Please responf
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ReplyDeleteCan one believe in the christian God/source and still practice nichiren Buddhism? Can one consider the "protective forces" the universe/ aka God instead of the 10 bodhisattvas of the ten directions (aka ten demon daughters)?
ReplyDeleteYes and no. I do not see God as an old man, old woman, or creator. I see God and all the positive energies as "the universe" and with them are functions of energy that are negative also. The use of demon daughters was meant to demonstrate that women could play a vital role in Buddhism as well as to show that even demons realize the of the Lotus Sutra and vow to protect the votary of this Sutra. It may be hard to grasp, but if you practice you will come to see many times how you are "protected" because of your practice.
DeleteIs comfort one the devils?
ReplyDeleteNot automatically, but it could be! For example, if you get too "used to" you comfort zone, and stop or refrain from challenging yourself, comfort could be a negative function or a "devil." Again, devils are functions that cause doubt and/or try to stop or derail your practice. Be aware of this and use the organization and members to maintain and strengthen your Buddhahood. Chant with friends and members and consider this from Nichiren:
DeleteWorthy persons deserve to be called so because they are not carried away by the eight winds: prosperity, decline, disgrace, honor, praise, censure, suffering, and pleasure. They are neither elated by prosperity nor grieved by decline. The heavenly gods will surely protect one who is unbending before the eight winds.
"The Eight Winds" (WND, 794)