Oeshiki Ceremony Address
October 9, 2005
Reverend Shogu Kimura
Today, on this day of the Oeshiki Ceremony for our master Nichiren Daishonin, I have recited the sutras and chanted Daimoku together with you, in our expression of gratitude to the Dai-Gohonzon. It is due to none other than your continuing daily faith and practice and your sincere spirit to repay your debts of gratitude to the Gohonzon that we have been able to so solemnly and magnificently perform this Oeshiki Ceremony. I am convinced that the Daishonin is looking upon us approvingly.
Thanks to your cooperation once again, I have been able to perform this Oeshiki Ceremony this year. I am particularly pleased to see all the believers from the outlying areas, who have traveled long distances to attend this ceremony today. I am convinced that you will all receive boundless benefits for attending this precious occasion of the Oeshiki Ceremony, which is held only once a year.
The Oeshiki Ceremony is performed around the 13th day of the 10th month, the date when our master Nichiren Daishonin peacefully entered into nirvana at Ikegami in Musashi Province. It is the most important ceremony for both priests and lay believers in Nichiren Shoshu. Accordingly, this ceremony is performed without fail not only at the Head Temple but also in all the temples throughout the world.
As you know, the Daishonin is the True Buddha of the Buddhism of the sowing, possessing a profound karmic bond with the Latter Day of the Law. He is the supreme teacher of the entire world. He is none other than the absolute Buddha, constantly residing in the three existences, who illuminates the darkness of the ten-thousand years and eternity of the Latter Day of the Law and who will save all mankind in this world of evil and confusion. If he were, indeed, the Buddha who resided in the three existences and is absolute and immortal for the eternal future, why did he enter into nirvana?
The following passage is from “The Life Span of the Buddha” chapter (Nyorai juryo bon) of the Lotus Sutra:
Now, however, although in fact I do not actually enter into extinction, I announce that I am going to adopt the course of extinction. This is an expedient means which the Buddha uses to teach and convert living beings.
Thus, although the Buddha’s life is eternal, if people become accustomed to the fact that he is constantly present on this earth and exists in close proximity to them, they would all feel relieved and comfortable and they would lose their seeking spirit in faith.
In an attempt to teach people the rarity and preciousness of encountering the Buddha and in an attempt to teach them the significance of a seeking spirit in faith, the Daishonin chose to manifest his mortal form, as an expedient, and entered into nirvana.
In order to prepare the people, the Daishonin first set forth the entity of the Law – of the treasure of the Law of True Buddhism, the object of worship characterized by the oneness of the Person and the Law of the Daishonin – in the form of the Dai-Gohonzon of the High Sanctuary of True Buddhism, on the 12th day of the 10th month of the 2nd year of Kōan (1279). He then transferred his internal enlightenment, the doctrines, the precepts, his pledge, his attitude in practice, and his will to achieve kosenrufu – all as the lifeblood of the Law – to Nikko Shonin, the great leader of the propagation of the True Law.
Thereafter, on the 13th day of the 10th month of the 5th year of Koan (1282), the Daishonin entered into the Buddha’s nirvana, while maintaining the form of a common mortal priest – a Buddha in the form of a common mortal. Thus, he manifested the absolute and eternal form of the True Buddha of the eternal past of kuon.
At the time the Daishonin entered into nirvana, the great earth suddenly shook and the cherry blossoms bloomed out of season. This showed that the Daishonin’s life was completely one with the universe that encompassed the heavens, the earth, and space. It further showed that the Daishonin’s life was a great life entity characterized by the principle of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds and by Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of actual ichinen sanzen. Moreover, it is apparent that all life in the world expressed their regret at the passing of the True Buddha into nirvana and that they celebrated the Buddha’s profound life condition that transcended mortality and immortality.
For this reason, we decorate the altar sanctuary with paper cherry blossoms during the Oeshiki Ceremony. The way in which the cherry blossoms spread widely on the altar symbolizes the extensive propagation of True Buddhism.
Accordingly, the Oeshiki Ceremony is not a mere memorial service to mark the passing of the Daishonin.
The Oeshiki Ceremony commemorates the Daishonin’s entry into nirvana. It is a ritual that celebrates the Daishonin’s great life force, which transcends the three existences, and it further celebrates his tremendous life condition of infinite compassion. At the same time, the Rissho ankoku ron (“On Securing the Peace of the Land through the Propagation of True Buddhism”) and the remonstrations documented against the nation by the successive High Priests are also read before the altar. The Oeshiki represents a great ceremony in which we pledge to strictly and eternally uphold the spirit of the Daishonin to endure persecutions to propagate the Law and to advance forth to achieve kosenrufu.
Today, I would like to briefly talk to you about the title of the Rissho ankoku ron (“On Securing the Peace of the Land through the Propagation of True Buddhism”). Our 26th High Priest Nichikan Shonin stated:
The two characters for “rissho” (literally, “securing the truth”) contain the essence of the Three Great Secret Laws. (Mondan, p. 6)
Let me explain this. First, in terms of the object of worship of True Buddhism (hommon no honzon), the character for “sho” (“truth”) in “rissho” denotes Myo (“mystic”) in Myoho-renge-kyo. In other words, Myoho-renge-kyo represents the object of worship of True Buddhism. The character for “ritsu” (“establish”) means to establish or secure. Thus, together, the characters refer to “the establishment of the object of worship of True Buddhism.”
Next, in terms of the Daimoku of True Buddhism (hommon no Daimoku), the daily practice of chanting Daimoku directly signifies the character for “sho” (“truth”). This Daimoku contains the two principles of faith and practice. In short, it means that when we truly or correctly uphold faith, we will manifest the true entity of practice. Here, “rissho” (“establishing the truth”) refers to establishing true or correct faith and practice. Conversely, we can say that concentrating on practice alone is insufficient.
Next, in terms of the high sanctuary of True Buddhism (hommon no kaidan), a two-fold explanation can be presented for the character “sho” (“truth”). This is difficult to explain without writing the actual character. The character for “sho” (“truth”) signifies “to stop at one.” What does “one” represent? Here, “one” refers to the Dai-Gohonzon of the high sanctuary, characterized by the principles of “singular and indivisible” (yuiitsu muni) and the One Great Secret Law (ichi dai hiho). “Stopping” represents the notion of “conclusive location.” Here, it denotes the high sanctuary of True Buddhism. Thus, here, “rissho” (“establishing the truth”) signifies the establishment of the high sanctuary.
This may have been slightly difficult to understand, but I hope that you now have a general idea of the meaning of the characters for “rissho” (“establishing the truth”).
Let us move on to the meaning of “an-koku” (“peace of the land”). Here, “an-koku” represents the result that is manifested through the performance of the previously mentioned “rissho” (“establishment of the truth”). In other words, it refers to the peace and tranquility that permeates a nation through the ultimate propagation (kosenrufu) of the True Buddhism of the Three Great Secret Laws. The nation that was referred to here, in the lifetime of the Daishonin, was Japan. The following excerpt describes the future condition of the entire world:
The threefold world will all become the Buddha land, and how could a Buddha land ever decline? The regions in the ten directions will all become treasure realms, and how could a treasure realm ever suffer harm?
Finally, the character “ron” can be directly translated as “treatise.” However, here, it does not signify a mere treatise. It represents the teaching expounded by the Buddha. It refers to the teaching propounded by Nichiren Daishonin, the True Buddha from the infinite past of kuon-ganjo.
Let us now focus on the gosho passage for this month. It is an excerpt from the initial section of the Rissho ankoku ron.
First, the passage reads: “I have pondered the matter carefully with what limited resources I possess and have searched rather widely in the scriptures for an answer.” The passage in the original Japanese figuratively refers to a thin cylindrical tube. It describes how peering through this tube makes it impossible for one to have an expansive view. It is a reference to the shallow vision of foolish common mortals. This is followed by: “The people of today all turn their backs upon what is right; to a man, they give their allegiance to evil.” This explained how the disasters in the nation were occurring because people in society turned their backs on True Buddhism and upheld evil doctrines. In other words, people apply their shallow perspectives on the world and rarely study the scriptures, individuals in society have all turned their backs on True Buddhism, and they all uphold evil teachings. The Daishonin lamented the confusion and disorder that had befallen the nation.
Next, the Daishonin wrote: “That is the reason why the benevolent deities have abandoned the nation, why sages leave and do not return.” The benevolent deities refer to the protective gods, Dai-bon-ten (Mahabrahman) and Taishaku-ten. Sages represent those who were able to hear the heavenly voices that people, in general, were unable to hear. In society, sages are idealistic figures who are extremely intelligent and well-learned and who are highly capable in all matters. Needless to say, in this passage, the sages refer to the Buddhist sages. Even if sages, as referred to in society, left this world, their departure would cause great confusion. The chaotic effects would be greatly magnified if the Buddhist sages took leave of this world.
In the next segment, the Daishonin wrote: “And in their stead come devils and demons, disasters and calamities that arise one after another.” Devils refer to various phenomena that function to take human lives, destroy happiness in the lives of people, and cause illness. The demons represent the functions of the world of Hunger, one of the three evil paths. These demons cause illnesses in humans and calamities in nations.
Take a minute to think of the current conditions in our world. There is world-wide concern and anxiety about the availability of oil. To make matters worse, there have been terrible casualties caused by hurricanes in areas of the south in the United States. This led to public unrest and a great hike in the price of gas. Diseases were widespread. The disasters that we have encountered in current times are too numerous to list here.
As heresy spreads, the benevolent deities will abandon the nation, and the sages will take their departure. Such are the conditions that prevail in our world today.
Given these current conditions, the only thing that we can do is to perform the ultimate practice of the bodhisattva – that is, we must propagate the Daishonin’s True Buddhism to as many people as possible on this earth. There is no other way to save our world today.
I sincerely pray that you will all understand the profound significance of the Rissho ankoku ron and advance forth everyday for the ultimate propagation of True Buddhism through kosenrufu. Let us all unite and proceed forth together to achieve our objective of doubling the number of the bodhisattvas of the earth, as we move ahead towards the 750th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Truth through the Writing of the Rissho ankoku ron. Before this milestone, we are planning to attend the “4th Overseas Believers’ General Tozan Pilgrimage,” scheduled for next summer. Currently, the goal of Myoshin-ji Chapter is to have 108 or more believers to attend this pilgrimage.
If you give up and decide not to go on a tozan pilgrimage because you have no money or you have health problems, you will never be able to go. During your morning and evening gongyo and Daimoku, you must offer sincere prayers, asking the Gohonzon to enable you, without fail, to go on tozan. I am convinced that, when you do so, you will be able to overcome the various obstacles that you encounter and go to worship the Dai-Gohonzon without fail. I ask you all to try your best, so that as many people as possible will be able to participate in this tozan pilgrimage. With this, I would like to conclude my brief address for today.