The Parable of the Bright Jewel in the Topknot
Okyobi Sermon, December, 2005
Reverend Shogu Kimura
Today, I will talk about the Parable of the Bright Jewel in the Topknot (keichu myoju no tatoe). This is one of the seven parables in the Lotus Sutra and is found in the Peaceful Practices (Anrakugyo; fourteenth) chapter.
Before I explain the parable, I would like to discuss a basic issue regarding Buddhism. Many people ask why there are so many different Buddhist teachings and denominations in the world, and why these Buddhist denominations have different doctrines and practices. Some of you may already know the answers. These are common questions for those who are unfamiliar with Buddhism. As you do shakubuku, there will be times when you will need to answer questions like these.
First, I would like to introduce a story from Greek mythology, which is similar to a basic Buddhist teaching.
Long ago, a monster came onto the beach in Thebes, Greece. It had a fair face like a young girl, a strong body like a lion, and a big wing. The people called it Sphinx. The Sphinx gave a riddle to those who passed in front of it. Those who could not solve the riddle were caught by the Sphinx and thrown into the ocean. The riddle was, "What animal has one voice, but walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?" For a long time, nobody could answer correctly. Therefore, many people died, since all who could not answer the riddle were strangled by the monster and tossed into the ocean.
Finally, a person appeared who could solve the riddle. He was Oedipus, a philosopher. He answered that it is Man. Defeated, the Sphinx dove into the ocean and never again came back onto the beach. This is the famous story in Greek mythology called, “The Riddle of the Sphinx.”
Do you know why the answer is Man? In childhood, man crawls on his hands and knees, as he matures, he walks erect, and in old age he needs the aid of a staff. In short, the life of human beings is compared to morning, daytime and night. It is easy to solve a riddle if we know the answer. This riddle, composed by the Greeks, who love philosophy, points out the essence of human life, does it not? Buddhism teaches the doctrine of the Four Sufferings of birth, old age, sickness and death. I believe that the riddle of the Sphinx is similar to the Four Sufferings.
Now, let’s go back to the initial question. Why are there so many different denominations and teachings in Buddhism? This subject may be a mystery that even surpasses the riddle of the Sphinx.
Some people might think that the Buddhist teachings are inconsistent. Others might surmise that people would respect Buddhism if the teachings were difficult to understand, and believe that many Buddhist teachings were added, little by little, by scholars of later ages. Shakyamuni Buddha answered this question by teaching the Parable of the Bright Jewel in the Topknot in the Peaceful Practices (Anrakugyo; fourteenth) chapter of the Lotus Sutra.
In the various sutras, the Wheel-Turning King appeared. He had thirty-two distinguishing features and seven treasures, and ruled the four directions of the world with justice. The Peaceful Practices (Anrakugyo; fourteenth) chapter of the Lotus Sutra states that when the Wheel-Turning King ruled the various countries with his power, he rewarded his distinguished soldiers with fields, houses, towns and villages. He also gave them clothing and various kinds of precious objects such as gold, silver, lapis lazuli, seashell, agate, coral or amber, or elephants, horses, and carriages.
The Wheel-Turning King, however, never gave away the Bright Jewel in his topknot. If he were to give away this Bright Jewel, his family and relations would be shocked and would doubt him. One day, however, he finally gave the Bright Jewel from his topknot to a soldier who had performed glorious deeds.
The Buddha, just like the Wheel-Turning King, is the great king of the Law who leads all people to enlightenment with his great mercy. The people, however, cannot easily escape from their sufferings because evils appear and hinder them. The Buddha relieved their sufferings by explaining the karmic bonds and the parables when he preached the Pre-Lotus Sutra teachings. This is the same strategy used by the Wheel-Turning King when he rewarded his soldiers, giving them towns and villages, or clothing and various kinds of precious objects.
The people were able to obtain the power of practice. They fought their obstacles and came to understand the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha observed the capacity of the people, and finally, he taught Myoho-Renge-Kyo. Just as the Wheel-Turning King, in the end, presented the Bright Jewel from his topknot, the Buddha finally taught Myoho-Renge-Kyo, the deepest teaching in all of his sutras.
This is the Parable of the Bright Jewel in the Topknot expounded in the Peaceful Practices (Anrakugyo; fourteenth) chapter of the Lotus Sutra. This Parable demonstrates the principle, “True Mahayana is superior to provisional Mahayana,” expounded in the doctrine of the Fivefold Comparison in Nichiren Daishonin’s teachings.
T’ien-t’ai the Great explained in his Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra (Hokke mongu) that the Wheel-Turning King’s act of untying his topknot signified, “Opening the Provisional Teachings” (kaigon), and the act of presenting the Bright Jewel meant, “Revealing the Lotus Sutra” (kenjitsu). “Opening the provisional teachings,” means that the Buddha refuted the various Pre-Lotus Sutra doctrines as Expedient Means. “Revealing the Lotus Sutra” signifies that the Buddha finally taught the Lotus Sutra and revealed the true teaching.
Shakyamuni Buddha preached innumerable doctrines known as the Eighty-four thousand Teachings. In the Pre-Lotus Sutra teachings, the Buddha preached the Law in response to the capacities of the people, because their desires were different and the causes of their sufferings were various. After Shakyamuni Buddha passed away, these teachings were collected as the numerous sutras.
Nichiren Daishonin stated in “Reply to the Mother of Lord Ueno.”
Suppose that one is building a great pagoda. In addition to the lumber to be used in the pagoda itself, one gathers together a large quantity of small timbers and uses them to build a scaffolding ten or twenty feet in height. After one has done this, one uses the original lumber to construct the pagoda. And when the pagoda is completed, one then removes the scaffolding and discards it, leaving the pagoda in place. Now the scaffolding represents the various other sutras, and the great pagoda, the Lotus Sutra. When the Buddha preached the other sutras, he was in effect erecting a scaffolding in preparation for the preaching of the Lotus Sutra. …When one is preparing to build a great pagoda, the scaffolding is of great importance. But once the pagoda is completed, then the scaffolding is removed and thrown away. (Gosho, p. 1509; MW-7 p. 242)
The Daishonin compared the difference between the Lotus Sutra and the Pre-Lotus Sutras to the relationship between the pagoda and the scaffolding. In view of these teachings, let us think about the Buddhist temples other than Nichiren Shoshu. Many other Buddhist temples enshrine gold statues of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas as their objects of worship and recite the provisional sutras. Their practices and doctrines are different from the teachings of the Lotus Sutra. We can see that provisional teachings are being spread all over the world. This is a fact of Buddhist history spanning over two thousand years up to the present.
Some people may criticize this explanation, saying, “If the Lotus Sutra was such a valuable teaching, why didn’t the Buddha teach only the Lotus Sutra from the very beginning?” This seems like a logical question. To answer, let’s start by saying that we can understand the importance of the world of Buddhahood if we experience the suffering of the world of Hell. How much must we endure in this Saha world where we reside? We are able to understand the Saha world if we grasp the idea of the perfect Buddha land that the Buddha taught as a provisional teaching.
Myoho-Renge-Kyo is the basic and fundamental Law in Buddhism. It is the life and soul of Buddhism. However, if we, common mortals, were only taught the conclusion, it would be like bypassing the process of solving a difficult mathematical equation by only being given the answer. If the Buddha taught Myoho-Renge-Kyo from the very beginning, the people would never understand how precious it is.
There are elaborate and difficult doctrines, such as those expounded in the Flower Garland Sutra, a Pre Lotus Sutra teaching. In Hinayana Buddhism, there are difficult doctrinal treatises, such as Analyses of a Treasury of the Law (Kusha-ron) and On the Establishment of the Truth (Jojitsu-ron). A great scholar could not understand their entire contents, even if he studied them throughout his life.
Shakyamuni Buddha taught the Lotus Sutra and revealed Myoho-Renge-Kyo, which goes beyond the doctrines of Hinayana and provisional Mahayana Buddhism. Therefore, we, common mortals, are able to understand how precious Myoho-Renge-Kyo is. If we view the provisional teachings in this way, we can understand that the provisional sutras needed to be taught. The Pre-Lotus Sutras are expedient teachings that lead people to the Lotus Sutra. Shakyamuni Buddha preached them as partial truths of the Mystic Law. It is important that we understand the true significance of the Pre-Lotus Sutra teachings in Buddhism.
However, if we attach ourselves only to the provisional teachings like the other Buddhists who believe in them, we lose the essence of Buddhism. The people who believe in the provisional teachings actually prove this point. If we view the provisional sutras through the correct viewpoint of Myoho-Renge-Kyo, we are able to see their value. This is the principle of hokke-kaie, the provisional sutras are opened up by the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sutra makes all the other sutras valuable and useful.
Nichiren Daishonin quoted passages from the provisional sutras in many Goshos. One example is, “On Securing the Peace of the Land through the Propagation of True Buddhism” (Rissho Ankoku-ron). In this treatise, the Daishonin urged the people to believe in the Lotus Sutra. He stated:
Therefore you must quickly reform the tenets that you hold in your heart and embrace the one true vehicle, the single good doctrine of the Lotus Sutra. (Gosho, p. 250; MW-2, p. 45)
If Nichiren Daishonin wrote the “Rissho ankoku-ron” to refute the Pre Lotus Sutra teachings, why did he quote passages from sutras such as the Sutra of the Golden Light (Konkomyo-kyo), the Sutra of the Great Assembly (Daishik-kyo), and the Sutra of the Benevolent King (Ninno-kyo)? In short, he taught the Law based on the Lotus Sutra; therefore, various teachings in the provisional sutras had a valuable function in the “Rissho ankoku-ron.”
We use all of the sutras from the viewpoint of the truth of the Lotus Sutra, the fundamental teaching in Buddhism. Furthermore, in the Latter Day of the Law, we must use all the sutras based on the Three Great Secret Laws taught by Nichiren Daishonin.
The Buddhist teachings must be judged logically. Heretical Buddhist sects arbitrarily embrace the provisional sutras as their fundamental beliefs, and therefore, they make grave mistakes. Let’s shakubuku those people who have strayed onto an incorrect path.
I sincerely pray that this lecture has contributed to your understanding of Buddhism.