正法から離れる人
People who stay away from the true teachings, Dharma
2024-06-28 21:00:40
The Lotus Sutra, Chapter 2: Expedient Means, states that there were five thousand people who, unable to accept the supremely correct teachings, deliberately departed.
They are said to have left the true teachings, and therefore, it is taught that they will never attain Buddhahood.
Why do such practitioners arise?
It is likely because they do not understand that progressing in Buddhist practice is none other than accumulating merit.
This is because the Lotus Sutra teaches that hearing the expedient teachings and bringing sentient beings closer to enlightenment (liberation) accumulates immeasurable merit.
Furthermore, other Mahayana sutras also expound on the benefits of teaching various expedient means to sentient beings, and the fundamental principle of accumulating merit is consistent across these texts.
However, it may be difficult for sentient beings to understand that conveying these expedient teachings is a way to accumulate merit.
Especially in the case of the Lotus Sutra, it claims that telling parables, which resemble childish fairy tales, serves as a way of conveying expedient teachings, making it hard to believe that this is the essence of Buddhist practice.
Nonetheless, these parables can indeed be said to embody the very wisdom of the Buddha.
Yet, sentient beings cannot grasp their greatness.
This misunderstanding symbolizes the difficulty of accumulating merit.
Nevertheless, the most intelligent individuals, while half in doubt, may convey the expedient teachings to others.
In doing so, they actually accumulate great merit and eventually attain Buddhahood.
To explain this subtlety, the same sutra presents a parable known as the Origin of Bodhisattva Never Disparaging, but even then, it seems difficult to grasp the true intent of the Buddha.
Only those who have previously accumulated merit can understand this true intent.
This is why merit begets further merit.
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