Oko Sermon August 12, 2007
Reverend Shogu Kimura
“The Eight Winds”
A truly wise man will not be carried away by any of the eight winds: prosperity, decline, disgrace, honor, praise, censure, suffering, and pleasure. He is neither elated by prosperity nor grieved by decline. The heavenly gods will surely protect one who does not bend before the eight winds. But if you nurse an unreasonable grudge against your lord, they will not protect you, not for all your prayers.(Shimpen, p. 1117; MWND-1, p. 205)
Good morning everyone. Today, on this occasion of the July Oko sermon in our expression of gratitude to our master Nichiren Daishonin, I have sincerely recited the sutras and chanted Daimoku together with you. Moreover, I have sincerely prayed for you to eliminate your sins and negative karma from this and infinite past lifetimes; for you to redouble your faith; for you to enjoy a safe and long life; for peace and harmony to reign in your home; for all matters to proceed forth smoothly; and for the successful achievement of all your great objectives in this and future existences. I am certain that the Daishonin would be truly pleased to see so many of you in attendance today.
This gosho represents a letter written in the 4th month of the 3rd year of Kenji (1277) to Shijo Kingo from Nichiren Daishonin, who was 56 years of age.
In this letter, the Daishonin instructs us to strive forth to establish a strong attitude in our daily faith and practice, in which we are not influenced by the eight winds.
At the time this gosho was written, Shijo Kingo, the recipient, was at odds with his sovereign on matters of faith, and many others were resentful of him. His peers criticized him unfairly as being disloyal to his lord. He found himself in a true predicament. As he experienced these circumstances, he received this gosho, “The Eight Winds” (Happu sho), from the Daishonin. In it, the Daishonin explained that Shijo Kingo and his family and relations received various debts of gratitude from their lord. Furthermore, he stated that, even if Shijo Kingo and his kin no longer received any favors in the future, they must not despise their lord.
What Shijo Kingo experienced at the time is directly applicable to our daily existence today. There are times when we tend to blame our environment, other people, and even the Buddha, when our various attempts are unsuccessful and things do not go the way we desire.
However, when we look upon our world, even from a secular perspective, those who are respected in companies and society and those who are revered in history are usually individuals who seek to take personal responsibility for circumstances and actions.
In the many years of history, we find that those who blamed the environment or others inevitably brought ruin to themselves without fail. By contrast, people who took responsibility for their own lives would find ultimate success and would be respected by many. Our Honorable Retired High Priest Nikken Shonin stated:
Although people seem to enjoy their lives as they freely engage in various pursuits, they will, as the Buddha taught, without fail, experience the Four Processes of Existence: emergence, continuance, transformation, and dissolution, and the Four or Eight Sufferings including “birth, old age, sickness, and death,” becoming miserable in various ways. The Eight Winds of prosperity, decline, disgrace, honor, praise, censure, suffering, and pleasure are also taught in the Gosho. When people encounter these difficulties, if they do not know the True Law, they cannot be secure in their own existences and become simply bewildered. As a consequence, they end up living superficial lives and descending into the three evil paths.(“40th Study Meeting on Practice and Study,” Dai Nichiren, Vol. 71, p. 59-60)
In other words, when changes occur in the environment or when incidents take place, the hearts of people who do not know about True Buddhism and who do not have a solid base in their lives are easily overwhelmed by the eight winds, since they do not possess a firm standard of evaluation.
What, then, are these eight winds, consisting of prosperity, decline, disgrace, honor, praise, censure, suffering, and pleasure.
- The first type of wind is prosperity (uruoi). This refers to the ability to achieve financial wealth and social position as one pleases.
- The second type is decline (otoroe). This represents the opposite condition of the prosperity described previously. It indicates conditions in which one’s objectives cannot be successfully achieved and circumstances do not proceed as planned.
- The third type of wind is disgrace (yabure). It signifies being targeted for malicious gossip or receiving hidden opposition.
- The fourth type is honor (homare). This denotes admiration and praise that is secretly uttered about someone.
- The fifth type of wind is praise (tatae). This refers to receiving direct praise; it means being commended in front of others.
- The sixth type of wind is censure (soshiri). This signifies direct criticism, condemnation, and opposition to one’s face.
- The seventh type is suffering (kurushimi). This represents conditions that bring physical and mental hardships and suffering. Buddhism expounds the principle of the four suffering (shi ku), consisting of birth, old age, sickness, and death.
- The eighth type of wind is pleasure (tanoshimi). It denotes conditions in which there are joyful occurrences that promote physical and mental comfort and happiness.
These eight winds are divided into two groups. The four winds of prosperity, honor, praise, and pleasure occur when conditions proceed forth smoothly (junpu), and many people seek to achieve them. The other group consists of decline, disgrace, censure, and suffering. By contrast to the first group, these winds occur under adverse conditions and most people try to avoid them.
The eight winds are constantly blowing in our lives and try to influence us spiritually and physically. They seek to take away our presence of mind. At times, these eight winds cause people to renounce their faith or lose the trust of those around them in society.
In this letter, the Daishonin wrote:
He is neither elated by prosperity nor grieved by decline. The heavenly gods will surely protect one who does not bend before the eight winds.
In other words, those who uphold True Buddhism never get carried away when circumstances go smoothly as planned and they feel pleased about the situation. However, even if matters do not proceed as they would like and they encounter hardships, they do not grieve and groan. They do not resent those who treat them coldly. Thus, the Daishonin indicates that, when people live wisely – uninfluenced by the eight winds – they will receive the constant protection of the heavenly gods.
Then, what could we do to achieve such a condition? Our daily gongyo and Daimoku and our shakubuku efforts will enable us to achieve this condition. Even if we attempt to remain uninfluenced by the eight winds, if we do not perform gongyo and Daimoku, we would encounter a wall of obstacles without fail. In fact, we would completely be at the whim of the eight winds. In the same way, if we are not mindful about doing shakubuku, we would also live a life at the mercy of the eight winds.
As priests and lay believers of Nichiren Shoshu, we must never blame the environment, culture, or other individuals in any situation, whether it pertains to secular matters or Buddhist issues. We must understand that everything is defined by our own way of life and our own attitude. Based on this understanding, we must advance forth with great devotion to cultivate unshakable faith, to achieve the ultimate propagation of True Buddhism through kosenrufu.
The trust and credibility that we gain from others, based on upholding true faith, would ultimately enable us to change our environment. Our ability to do this, in itself, would lead us to be successful in our shakubuku efforts.
Our High Priest Nichinyo Shonin stated the following at a Kosenrufu Shodai-kai (Daimoku Meeting) in November of last year:
In theory, most people understand what is correct, but in practice, they are easily swayed by the slightest desires and evil influences, and they seek out momentary pleasures, fame, and fortune. As a result, many people waste their precious time and, ultimately, they live their lives in vain.
The one and only way to transform a life characterized by laziness into one that is strong and resolute is through the True Buddhism of the Daishonin. By upholding the true Gohonzon and believing with great conviction in the five characters of the Mystic Law (Myoho), you will receive the vast and infinite benefits of the Gohonzon. Then, without eliminating your earthly desires and without separating yourself from the five desires, you will be able to transform the negative desires into those that are positive and correct. While you may have been frantically seeking out trivial pleasures and fame and fortune – as transient as foam on water – you will then begin to direct your desire towards achieving ultimate world peace through kosenrufu and achieving your own happiness and that of many others. (Summarized)
We are now entering the second half of this year. Let us live a life of no regrets in the remaining half of the year, as we follow the directions of our High Priest and perform gongyo and Daimoku without ever missing a day. Let us uphold strong, unshakable faith and advance forth together to successfully achieve the doubling of the number of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth who will congregate at the great assembly at the 750th Anniversary of Revealing the Truth and Upholding Justice through the Submission of the Rissho ankoku-ron.
Thank you for taking time in your busy schedule to attend this sermon today.