Tag: Buddha Dharma

• Beyond Merit and Miracles: A 13th-Century Monk’s Radical Guide to True Power and Purpose

  

  What if a lifetime of accumulated good deeds didn’t guarantee you a life of ease and privilege? Most spiritual traditions suggest a direct link between merit and reward, but the profound wisdom of an unlikely figure—the 13th-century Japanese monk Nichiren—offers a far more challenging and insightful perspective. Though centuries old, his teachings contain revolutionary takeaways…

  William Altig

  December 15, 2025

  Nichiren

  Accumulated causes and conditions, Buddha Dharma, Hokke Shōmyō-shō, Lotus Sutra, Nanjō Tokimitsu, Nichiren, Saving all beings, slandering the Dharma, Treatise on the Testimony of the Lotus Sutra, universal compassion, Wonderful Dharma

• An Ancient Monk’s Warning: Why Rejecting Old Wisdom Could Unravel Society

  

  If there’s one piece of modern spiritual advice, it’s this: find your own truth. Question authority, discard the old books, and listen to the voice within. This approach feels empowering and authentic, a way to cast off rigid dogma and connect with something real and immediate. But what if this rejection of structured wisdom, even…

  William Altig

  November 26, 2025

  Nichiren, Uncategorized

  Buddha Dharma, Buddha’s Teachings, Buddhist dogma, Enlightenment, Latter Age of Degeneration, Mind is extinguished, Nichiren, Peril of confusion, Rejecting the Buddha’s teachings, selfish desires, Shō Hokke Daimoku-shō, Societal survival, Sutras, Treatise on Chanting the Great Title of the Lotus Sūtra, Truth beyond language

• The Gospel Truth

  

  In the tradition of grounded blues and folk, this song offers a heartfelt meditation on universal salvation and the liberating message of the Lotus Sūtra. Drawing inspiration from the teachings of Nichiren, it challenges the notion that enlightenment is reserved for a select few. Through the lens of storytelling and a soulful, fingerpicked guitar, the…

  William Altig

  September 27, 2025

  music

  acoustic folk, Buddha Dharma, Compassion, Enlightenment, Grounded folk, Houston music, Lotus Sutra, Nichiren Buddhism, Padmaprabha, Singer-Songwriter, spiritual blues, Spiritual Music, Storytelling, universal salvation, William Daugherty

• The Quest for Enlightenment: An Analysis of the Brahma King’s Verses in the Lotus Sūtra

  

  I. Introduction The Lotus Sūtra, revered as one of the most influential texts in Mahayana Buddhism, is celebrated for its profound teachings on the inherent potential for Buddhahood in all beings and its skillful use of parables to illuminate complex Buddhist principles.1 Central to its message is the concept of expedient means (upaya), where the…

  William Altig

  April 14, 2025

  Chapter 7

  arhats, Avalokiteśvara, Bodhi, Brahma King Great Compassion, Brahma Kings, Brahma Sahampati, Brahmaloka, Buddha, Buddha Dharma, Buddha Great-Penetrating-Wisdom-Victory, Buddhism, Buddhist cosmology, Buddhist deities, Buddhist meditation, buddhist parables, Buddhist Philosophy, Buddhist Symbolism, Chapter Seven, Compassion, Dharma, Dharmapala, Eightfold Path, Enlightenment, ethical conduct, expedient means, Four Noble Truths, Great Compassion, Guanshiyin, hinduism, Ichinen Sanzen, Jhanas, Lotus Sutra, Lotus Sūtra, Magic City Parable, Mahayana Buddhism, Nichiren Buddhism, Nirvana, one-eyed turtle analogy, Parable of the Magic City, Pratyekabuddhas, rare encounter with Buddha, religious study, Samsara, Samyaksambuddhas, Spiritual Journey, Spiritual Liberation, three thousand worlds, trichiliocosm, Upaya

• Daily Dharma Study

  

  He will be able to recognize All the sounds and voices Inside and outside the one thousand million Sumeru-worlds, [Each being composed of the six regions] Down to the Avīci Hell and up to the Highest Heaven. And yet his organ of hearing will not be destroyed. He will be able to recognize everything by…

  William Altig

  March 15, 2025

  Chapter 19, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  active participation, Avīci Hell, Bodhisattva Path, Buddha, Buddha Dharma, Buddhism, Buddhist cosmology, Chapter Nineteen, Compassion, cosmic empathy, engagement with the world, enlightenment for all, guiding others, heightened awareness, Highest Heaven, Mahayana Buddhism, Meditation, Never Disparaging, peace and happiness, Religion, right practice, sharp ears, six regions, Spiritual Practice, Spirituality, Sumeru-worlds, teacher of the law, transforming suffering, universal awareness