Soka Gakkai Nichiren Buddhism Library

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  • The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin I/II
    • Volume I
    • Volume II
  • The Lotus Sutra and Its Opening and Closing Sutras
  • The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings
  • The Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism

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purpose of one’s advent | Dictionary of Buddhism | Nichiren Buddhism Library
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  • pagoda

    [塔] ( tō)

  • Pai-lien-she

    [白蓮社] (PY Bailianshe;  Byakuren-sha)

  • Pai-ma-ssu

    [白馬寺] (PY Baimasi;  Hakuba-ji)

  • Painfully Acquired

    [苦得] ( Kutoku)

  • Pakudha Kacchāyana

    [迦羅鳩駄迦旃延] (Pali;  Karakuda-kasennen)

  • pāpīyas

    [波旬] (;  hajun)

  • parable of the blind men and the elephant

    [群盲評象の譬] ( gummō-hyōzō-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the bright jewel in the topknot

    [髻中明珠の譬] ( keichū-myōju-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the burning house

    [火宅の譬] ( kataku-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the jewel in the robe

    [衣裏珠の譬] ( eriju-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the medicinal herbs

    [薬草喩] ( yakusō-yu)

  • “Parable of the Medicinal Herbs” chapter

    [薬草喩品] ( Yakusōyu-hon)

  • parable of the phantom city

    [化城喩] ( kejō-yu)

  • parable of the phantom city and the treasure land

    [化城宝処の譬] ( kejō-hōsho-no-tatoe)

  • “Parable of the Phantom City” chapter

    [化城喩品] ( Kejōyu-hon)

  • parable of the skilled physician and his sick children

    [良医病子の譬] ( rōi-byōshi-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the three carts and the burning house

    [三車火宅の譬] ( sansha-kataku-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the three kinds of medicinal herbs and two kinds of trees

    [三草二木の譬] ( sansō-nimoku-no-tatoe)

  • parable of the wealthy man and his poor son

    [長者窮子の譬] ( chōja-gūji-no-tatoe)

  • pārājika

    [波羅夷] (, Pali;  harai)

  • Paramārtha

    [真諦] (499–569) (;  Shindai)

  • pāramitā

    [波羅蜜] (, Pali;  haramitsu)

  • parinirvāna

    [般涅槃・涅槃] (; Pali parinibbāna;  hatsu-nehan or nehan)

  • Parinirvāna Sutra

    [般泥洹経] ( Hatsu-naion-gyō)

  • Pārshva

    [脇比丘・脇尊者] (n.d.) (;  Kyō-biku or Kyō-sonja)

  • Parthia

    [安息国] ( Ansoku-koku)

  • Pasenadi

    [波斯匿王] (Pali;  Hashinoku-ō)

  • Pātaliputra

    [華氏城] (; Pali Pātaliputta;  Keshi-jō)

  • path

    [趣・道] (, Pali gati;  shu or dō)

  • path of insight

    [見道] ( ken-dō)

  • pātra

    [鉢] (;  hachi or hatsu)

  • patriarchal Zen

    [祖師禅] ( soshi-zen)

  • pattra

    [貝多羅] (;  baitara)

  • Peace and Delight

    [安楽世界] ( Sukhāvatī;  Anraku-sekai)

  • Peace and Sustenance

    [安養国] ( Sukhāvatī;  An’yō-koku or Annyō-koku)

  • “Peaceful Practices” chapter

    [安楽行品] ( Anraku-gyō-hon)

  • peak stage

    [頂位・頂法] ( chō-i or chō-hō)

  • Perceiver of Sounds

    [観音菩薩] ( Kannon-bosatsu)

  • Perceiver of the World’s Sounds

    [観世音菩薩] ( Avalokitasvara or Avalokiteshvara;  Kanzeon-bosatsu)

  • “Perceiver of the World’s Sounds” chapter

    [観音品] ( Kannon-bon)

  • Perceiver of the World’s Sounds Sutra

    [観音経] (Chin Kuan-yin-ching;  Kannon-gyō)

  • perception of the truth of the birthlessness of all phenomena

    [無生法忍] ( mushō-bōnin)

  • perception stage

    [忍位・忍法] ( nin-i or nin-pō)

  • Perfect Bliss

    [極楽] ( Sukhāvatī;  Gokuraku)

  • perfect enlightenment

    [妙覚・円覚] ( myōgaku or engaku)

  • Perfect Enlightenment Sutra

    [円覚経] (Chin Yüan-chüeh-ching;  Engaku-kyō)

  • Perfection of Wisdom sutras

    [般若波羅蜜経] ( Hannya-haramitsu-kyō)

  • perfect precepts

    [円戒] ( en-kai)

  • perfect teaching

    [円教] ( en-gyō)

  • persons of incorrigible disbelief

    [一闡提] ( issendai)

  • phantom city

    [化城] ( kejō)

  • Pilindavatsa

    [畢陵伽婆蹉] (;  Hitsuryōgabasha)

  • Pindolabhāradvāja

    [賓頭盧] (, Pali;  Binzuru)

  • Pingala

    [青目・賓伽羅] (n.d.) (;  Shōmoku or Bingara)

  • pipal tree

    [インドボダイジュ] ( pippala;  Indo-bodaiju)

  • pippala tree

    [畢鉢羅樹] (;  hippara-ju)

  • Pippalī Cave

    [畢鉢羅窟] (;  Hippara-kutsu)

  • pishācha

    [毘舎闍] (;  bishaja)

  • P’i-t’an school

    [毘曇宗] (PY Pitanzong;  Bidon-shū)

  • pit of fire

    [火坑] ( kakyō or kakō)

  • place of practice

    [道場] ( dōjō)

  • planting the seeds of Buddhahood

    [下種] ( geshu)

  • Platform Sutra, The

    [壇経] ( Dan-kyō)

  • Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, The

    [六祖壇経] (Chin Liu-tsu-t’an-ching;  Rokuso-dan-kyō)

  • Po Fa-tsu

    [帛法祖] (PY Bo Fazu;  Haku-hōso)

  • poison-drum relationship

    [毒鼓の縁] ( dokku-no-en)

  • poshadha

    [布薩] (;  fusatsu)

  • Possessor of Virtue

    [有徳王] ( Utoku-ō)

  • Potalaka, Mount

    [補陀落山] (;  Fudaraku-sen)

  • power of another

    [他力] ( tariki)

  • power of self

    [自力] ( jiriki)

  • Po-yüan

    [帛遠] (PY Boyuan;  Hakuon)

  • practice for oneself and others

    [自行化他] ( jigyō-keta)

  • Praising Rebirth in the Pure Land

    [往生礼讃] (Chin Wang-sheng-li-tsan;  Ōjō-raisan)

  • Praising the Buddha’s Deeds

    [仏所行讃] ( Buddhacharita; Chin Fo-so-hsing-tsan;  Busshogyō-san)

  • Praising the Profundity of the Lotus Sutra

    [法華玄賛] (Chin Fa-hua-hsüan-tsan;  Hokke-genzan)

  • prajnā

    [般若] (;  hannya)

  • Prajnā

    [般若] (b. 734) (;  Hannya)

  • prajnā-pāramitā

    [般若波羅蜜] (;  hannya-haramitsu)

  • Prajnāpāramitā sutras

    [般若経] (;  Hannya-kyō)

  • Prajnāruchi

    [般若流支] (n.d.) (;  Hannyarushi)

  • pranidhāna

    [誓願] (;  seigan)

  • Prāsangika school

    [帰謬論証派] (;  Kibyūronshō-ha)

  • Prasenajit

    [波斯匿王] (; Pali Pasenadi;  Hashinoku-ō)

  • pratigha

    [瞋恚・瞋] (;  shinni or shin)

  • pratītya-samutpāda

    [縁起・因縁] (;  engi or innen)

  • pratyekabuddha

    [縁覚・独覚・辟支仏] (;  engaku, dokkaku, or byakushibutsu)

  • pravārana

    [自恣] (; Pali pavāranā;  jishi)

  • prayer beads

    [数珠] ( juzu)

  • Prayer for Rain Sutra

    [請雨経] (Chin Ch’ing-yü-ching;  Shōu-kyō)

  • preaching in accordance with one’s own mind

    [随自意] ( zuijii)

  • preaching in accordance with the minds of others

    [随他意] ( zuitai)

  • precept for benefiting sentient beings

    [饒益有情戒・摂衆生戒] ( nyōyaku-ujō-kai or shō-shujō-kai)

  • precept of adapting to local customs

    [随方毘尼] ( zuihō-bini)

  • precept of the diamond chalice

    [金剛宝器戒] ( kongō-hōki-kai)

  • precepts

    [戒] ( shīla; Pali sīla;  kai)

  • precepts, meditation, and wisdom

    [戒定慧] ( kai-jō-e)

  • precepts of perfect and immediate enlightenment

    [円頓戒] ( endon-kai)

  • Precepts school

    [律宗] (Chin Lü-tsung;  Risshū)

  • precept that encompasses all good deeds

    [摂善法戒] ( shō-zembō-kai)

  • precept that encompasses all living beings

    [摂衆生戒] ( shō-shujō-kai)

  • Precious Key to the Secret Treasury, The

    [秘蔵宝鑰] ( Hizō-hōyaku)

  • pre-Lotus Sutra teachings

    [爾前教] ( nizen-kyō)

  • preparation section

    [序分] ( jo-bun)

  • preta

    [餓鬼・薜茘・薜茘多] (;  gaki, heirei, or heireita)

  • preventing error and putting an end to evil

    [防非止悪] ( bōhi-shiaku)

  • Principle of Wisdom Sutra

    [理趣経] ( Ārya-prajnāpāramitā-naya-shatapanchashatikā; Chin Li-ch’ü-ching;  Rishu-kyō)

  • Profound Meaning of the Four Mahayana Treatises, The

    [大乗四論玄義] (Chin Ta-ch’eng-ssu-lun-hsüan-i;  Daijō-shiron-gengi)

  • Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra, The

    [法華玄義] (Chin Fa-hua-hsüan-i;  Hokke-gengi)

  • Profound Meaning of the “Perceiver of the World’s Sounds” Chapter, The

    [観音玄義] (Chin Kuan-yin-hsüan-i;  Kannon-gengi)

  • Profound Meaning of the Three Treatises, The

    [三論玄義] (Chin San-lun-hsüan-i;  Sanron-gengi)

  • Profound Secrets Sutra

    [深密経] ( Jimmitsu-kyō)

  • Pronunciation and Meaning in the Buddhist Scriptures

    [一切経音義] (Chin I-ch’ieh-ching-yin-i;  Issaikyō-ongi)

  • Propagation of Zen for the Protection of the Country, The

    [興禅護国論] ( Kōzen-gokoku-ron)

  • “Prophecies” chapter

    [人記品] ( Ninki-hon)

  • “Prophecies Conferred on Learners and Adepts” chapter

    [授学無学人記品] ( Jugaku-mugaku-ninki-hon)

  • “Prophecy of Enlightenment for Five Hundred Disciples” chapter

    [五百弟子受記品] ( Gohyaku-deshi-juki-hon)

  • prophecy of future enlightenment

    [授記・記別・和伽羅那] ( vyākarana; Pali veyyākarana;  juki, kibetsu, or wagarana)

  • Protection of the Sovereign of the Nation Sutra

    [守護国界経] (Chin Shou-hu-kuo-chieh-ching;  Shugo-kokkai-kyō)

  • Protection Sutra

    [守護経] ( Shugo-kyō)

  • protuberant knot of flesh

    [肉髻相] ( nikkei-sō)

  • provincial temples

    [国分寺] ( kokubun-ji)

  • provincial temples for nuns

    [国分尼寺] ( kokubun-niji)

  • provisional Buddha

    [迹仏] ( shakubutsu)

  • provisional Mahayana teachings

    [権大乗教] ( gon-daijō-kyō)

  • provisional manifestation

    [権化] ( gonge)

  • provisional sutras

    [権経] ( gon-kyō)

  • provisional teachings

    [権教] ( gon-kyō)

  • P’u-kuang

    [普光] (n.d.) (PY Puguang;  Fukō)

  • Pu-k’ung

    [不空] (705–774) (PY Bukong;  Amoghavajra;  Fukū)

  • punya

    [功徳・福徳] (;  kudoku or fukutoku)

  • Punyatāra

    [弗若多羅] (n.d.) (;  Futsunyatara)

  • Punyayashas

    [富那奢] (n.d.) (;  Funasha)

  • Pūrana Kassapa

    [富蘭那迦葉] (Pali;  Furanna-kashō)

  • pure and far-reaching voice

    [梵音声] ( brahma-svara;  bonnonjō)

  • Pure Emerald World

    [浄瑠璃世界] ( Jōruri-sekai)

  • Pure Eye

    [浄眼] ( Vimalanetra;  Jōgen)

  • pure land

    [浄土] ( jōdo)

  • Pure Land of Perfect Bliss

    [極楽浄土] ( Gokuraku-jōdo)

  • Pure Land of Secret Solemnity

    [密厳浄土] ( Mitsugon-jōdo)

  • Pure Land school

    (1) [浄土門・浄土教・浄土宗] ( Jōdo-mon, Jōdo-kyō, or Jōdo-shū); (2) [浄土宗] ( Jōdo-shū)

  • Pure Land teachings

    [浄土門・浄土教] ( Jōdo-mon or Jōdo-kyō)

  • pure Law

    [白法] ( byakuhō)

  • Pure Practices

    [浄行菩薩] ( Vishuddhachāritra;  Jōgyō-bosatsu)

  • Pure Storehouse

    [浄蔵] ( Vimalagarbha;  Jōzō)

  • Pure Virtue

    [浄徳] ( Vimaladattā;  Jōtoku)

  • purification of the six sense organs

    [六根清浄] ( rokkon-shōjō)

  • Pūrna

    [富楼那] (; Pali Punna;  Furuna)

  • purpose of one’s advent

    [出世の本懐] ( shusse-no-honkai)

  • Pūrvavideha

    [弗婆提・勝身洲] (;  Hotsubadai or Shōshin-shū)

  • Pushyamitra

    [弗沙弥多羅王] (n.d.) (;  Hosshamittara-ō)

  • pūtana

    [富単那] (;  futanna)

purpose of one’s advent [出世の本懐] ( shusse-no-honkai): A person’s ultimate purpose for being born into this world.
  In the “Expedient Means” chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha states, “The Buddhas, the world-honored ones, appear in the world for one great reason alone.” Shakyamuni continues, “The Buddhas, the world-honored ones, wish to open the door of Buddha wisdom to all living beings, to allow them to attain purity. That is why they appear in the world. They wish to show the Buddha wisdom to living beings, and therefore they appear in the world. They wish to cause living beings to awaken to the Buddha wisdom, and therefore they appear in the world. They wish to induce living beings to enter the path of Buddha wisdom, and therefore they appear in the world.”
  Shakyamuni reveals that the purpose for which all Buddhas appear in this world is, by preaching the Lotus Sutra, to teach that all people originally possess within them the Buddha wisdom, and to show them the way to cultivate that wisdom and realize the life state of a Buddha.
  Shakyamuni goes on to say, “Shāriputra, you should know that at the start I took a vow, hoping to make all persons equal to me, without any distinction between us, and what I long ago hoped for has now been fulfilled.” The vow Shakyamuni made as a bodhisattva many kalpas in the past was to enable all people to achieve Buddhahood. And now, he says, he has been able to fulfill that original vow by preaching the Lotus Sutra.
  In the “Life Span” chapter of the essential teaching of the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni explains that upon fulfilling this original vow, he has completed all of the work he set out to do in this world and will pass into nirvana. But even his entry into nirvana would be an expedient means, a method of teaching, for the same chapter reveals that he will remain always and eternally present in this sahā world. His lifespan as a bodhisattva who had made the vow and as the Buddha who attained the way in the remote past is described as inexhaustible. This means that the vow of a bodhisattva and the great desire of a Buddha are the same—to enable all living beings to attain Buddhahood—and that the power and function of the eternal Buddha to realize this goal are always present in this world.
  The Great Teacher T’ien-t’ai (Chih-i) of China and the Great Teacher Dengyō (Saichō) of Japan overcame various obstacles to promote Buddhist faith and practice founded on the Lotus Sutra. Nichiren, basing himself on the teachings of the Lotus Sutra, described the purposes of their advent as follows: For T’ien-t’ai, who was active in China in the Middle Day of the Law, it was his work Great Concentration and Insight, in which he expounded the doctrine of “three thousand realms in a single moment of life” and established the practice of “observing the mind.” And for Dengyō, active in Japan at the end of the Middle Day of the Law, his purpose was realized through the establishment of a sanctuary for administering the precepts of perfect and immediate enlightenment based upon the Lotus Sutra.
  For Nichiren, who appeared in the Latter Day of the Law when Shakyamuni’s teachings had lost their power to benefit people, the purpose of his advent was to establish the way by which all people of this age can attain Buddhahood. He expounded the teaching that people could study and practice and thereby attain Buddhahood. Nichiren revealed that that teaching is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, and that it is the seed of Buddhahood hidden deep in the text of the essential teaching of the Lotus Sutra.
  This Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo was embodied in the form of the Three Great Secret Laws: the object of devotion of the essential teaching, the sanctuary of the essential teaching, and the daimoku of the essential teaching. Together they compose the essential teaching of the Latter Day of the Law.
  The Three Great Secret Laws correspond to the three types of learning—three fundamentals of Buddhist practice that all Buddhists are supposed to master. They are the precepts, meditation, and wisdom.
  The object of devotion of the essential teaching is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the Law which brings about Buddhahood, that Nichiren discovered within his own life and then expressed in a mandala endowed with all of the Ten Worlds. Nichiren says that the benefit of embracing this object of devotion, called the Gohonzon, includes that of observing the mind. Among the three types of learning, this corresponds to meditation in Nichiren Buddhism.
  The daimoku of the essential teaching means to believe in the object of devotion and chant the daimoku, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Because the Buddha wisdom emerges within one’s own life through this practice, the daimoku corresponds to wisdom among the three types of learning.
  The sanctuary of the essential teaching indicates the place where the object of devotion of the essential teaching is enshrined and where one carries out faith and practice based upon it. One can thus extinguish the evil that has accumulated in one’s life and in its place cultivate the ultimate good that is the world of Buddhahood. For this reason, the benefit of embracing this object of devotion includes that of observing the precepts, and corresponds to the precepts among the three types of learning.
  As described above, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of the Three Great Secret Laws includes the three types of learning appropriate for the Latter Day of the Law that can enable all people to attain Buddhahood. Nichiren’s establishment of these Three Great Secret Laws is regarded as the purpose of his advent in this world.
  Nichiren refers to the purpose of his advent in a letter titled On Persecutions Befalling the Sage, which he wrote on the first day of the tenth month in the second year of the Kōan era (1279). At the time, followers of Nichiren among the farmers in the Fuji area in Suruga province (present-day Shizuoka Prefecture) were subjected to severe persecution by religious and political authorities, which came to be known as the Atsuhara Persecution. Nevertheless, these farmers persisted in upholding their faith. Nichiren regarded their practice as a model for all, for such selfless devotion would make possible the wide propagation of his teachings. Nichiren’s fundamental vow, and the purpose of his advent, was to spread Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of the Three Great Secret Laws widely, to realize the attainment of Buddhahood by all people and to establish peace and prosperity throughout the world.


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