Tag: Devadatta

• Three Revolutionary Ideas from a 13th-Century Buddhist Monk About Human Potential

  

  Introduction: The Challenge of Unlocking Our Full Potential In our daily lives, we constantly fall into the habit of placing limiting labels on people, including ourselves. We categorize others as “good” or “bad,” “smart” or “stupid,” or decide that certain individuals are simply lost causes, incapable of meaningful change. This tendency to see human potential…

  William Altig

  September 27, 2025

  Nichiren

  Arhatship, arrogance, Buddha-nature, Buddhahood, Compassion, daimoku, Devadatta, Dragon King’s daughter, ekayāna (one vehicle), Icchantika (incorrigible unbeliever), Ichinen Sanzen, Kamakura period, Latter Day of the Law (*Mappō*), Latter Day of the Law (Mappō), Lotus Sutra, Mutual Possession of the Ten Worlds, Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō, Nichiren Daishonin, Persecution, Pure Land Buddhism, Shō Hokke Daimoku-shō, Three Great Secret Laws, universal salvation, women’s enlightenment

• 5 Radical Ideas from an Ancient Buddhist Text That Will Change How You See the World

  

  Have you ever stumbled upon an ancient idea that feels shockingly modern? It’s a common experience when exploring the world’s great spiritual texts—finding concepts that resonate with a contemporary urgency, challenging our assumptions about reality, potential, and purpose. Hidden within complex philosophies are often profoundly simple and radical truths. The Lotus Sūtra is one such…

  William Altig

  September 23, 2025

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

  Altruism, attainment in the remote past, Avalokiteśvara, Bodhicitta, Bodhisattva Ideal, Bodhisattvas of the Earth, Buddhist humanism, Chapter 14, Chapter 19, Devadatta, Dharma Master, Dharma Relic, egalitarian philosophy, Eternal Buddha, Five Practices of a Dharma Teacher, Great Compassion (Mahākaruṇā), Inherent Buddhahood, interconnectedness, Kumārajīva, Lotus Sūtra, Mahāyāna, Merits of the Six Senses, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, Nichiren Buddhism, Non-duality of Form and Mind (shiki-shin funi), One Vehicle (Ekayāna), peaceful practices, Pratyekabuddha, Provisional Teachings, purification of senses, skilled physician parable, Skillful means (Upāya), three carts and the burning house parable, three carts vs. four carts controversy, Tiantai Buddhism, transformation of perception, Universal Enlightenment, Śrāvaka, Śākyamuni Buddha

• The Lotus Sūtra: Joyful Perseverance and the Unwavering Path

  

  I. Executive Summary This briefing document examines the core teachings of the Lotus Sūtra, focusing on the apparent paradox between the promise of “non-returning” and the Bodhisattva’s commitment to “returning” to the world for the benefit of all beings. It elucidates how the Lotus Sūtra reinterprets “non-returning” not as an escape from saṃsāra, but as…

  William Altig

  August 30, 2025

  Chapter 3, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  Anāgāmin, Avinivartaniya (Non-Regression), Bodhisattva Path, Bodhisattva vow, Buddhahood, Devadatta, Dragon King’s Daughter, Joyful Resolve, Lotus Sutra, Mahayana Buddhism, Non-Duality, Non-Returning, One Vehicle (Ekayana), Parable of the Burning House, Perseverance (Virya), Saha world, Skillful Means (Upaya), Spiritual Maturation, Theravada Buddhism, Universal Liberation, Śāriputra

• Buddhas Live in the Lotus Sutra

  

  This briefing document reviews the core themes and essential ideas presented in “Buddhas Live in the Lotus Sutra: A Reflective Essay,” focusing on Nichiren Daishonin’s profound insights into the unique status of the Lotus Sutra. Main Themes and Most Important Ideas/Facts: 1. The Lotus Sutra as the Essential “Environment” for Buddhas Core Idea: Nichiren Daishonin…

  William Altig

  August 12, 2025

  Nichiren

  Anicca, Attain Buddhahood, Birds, Buddha-nature, Buddha’s robe of compassion, Buddha’s true heirs, Buddhahood, Buddhism, Call to action, Chapter 16, Compassion, Constant guidance, Dependent existence, Devadatta, Dragon King’s daughter, Dukkha, Enlightenment, Essential environment, Eternal Buddha, Everlasting Dharma, faith, Fish, Frogs, Full enlightenment, Good karma, Gosho, Impermanence, Indian lizard, Inner stability, joy, kṛkalāsa, King Rinda, King Wonderful Adornment, Letter from Sado, Life Span Chapter, Living presence of Buddhahood, Lotus Jewels, Lotus Sutra, Medium for Buddhahood, Nam-myōhō-renge-kyō, Nichiren, Nichiren Daishonin, Nichiren Shu News, On Practicing the Buddha’s Teachings, One Vehicle, One-eyed turtle parable, peaceful practices, Persecution, perseverance, Philosophy, Provisional sutras, Rare opportunity, Religion, Reply to the Mother of Lord Ueno, Riches of the Law, Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra, Scaffolding metaphor, Shakyamuni Buddha, Slander, Spirituality, Supreme teaching, The One-eyed Turtle and the Floating Log, The Selection of the Time, The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Transitory attachments, True Dharma, Udumbara flower, Ultimate reality, Ultimate Teaching, votary of the Lotus Sutra, wisdom, Wonderful Dharma

• The Dragon Girl’s Enlightenment: A Briefing on Universal Buddhahood and the Challenge to Tradition in the Lotus Sūtra

  

  Date: August 8, 2024 Subject: Analysis of the Dragon Girl’s Narrative in the Lotus Sūtra‘s Chapter Twelve Purpose: This briefing provides a detailed review of the main themes and most important ideas presented in the provided sources regarding the Dragon Girl’s story in the Lotus Sūtra, highlighting its significance for Mahāyāna Buddhist doctrine, particularly concerning…

  William Altig

  August 8, 2025

  Chapter 12, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  Avalokiteśvara, Bodhi, Bodhisattva Mañjuśrī, Buddhism, Buddhist art, Chapter Twelve, Devadatta, Dharma, Dragon Girl, Dragon King Sāgara, East Asian Buddhism, Emptiness (Śūnyatā), Enlightenment, Expedient Means (Upāya), Female Buddhahood, Five Obstacles, Gender Transformation, Guanyin, Henjō Nanshi, Instantaneous Enlightenment, Lotus Sūtra, Mahāyāna Buddhism, Meditation, Nichiren Buddhism, Nichiren Daishonin, Nāga, One Vehicle (Ekayāna), Patriarchal Prejudices, Philosophy, Precious Jewel, Religion, Sokushin Jōbutsu, Spiritual Equality, Spirituality, Spotless World of the South, Subitism, Sudden Enlightenment, Sudhana, Three Thousand Realms in a Single Moment of Life (Ichinen Sanzen), Tiantai School, universal salvation, Wisdom Accumulated, Zhiyi, Śāriputra

• Devadatta’s Enlightenment in the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren’s Philosophy

  

  1. Executive Summary This briefing examines the paradoxical concept of Devadatta’s enlightenment, a central tenet in the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren’s philosophy. Devadatta, cousin and notorious adversary of Shakyamuni Buddha, committed two of the five “Anantarika-karma” (grave offenses) and was traditionally condemned to the Avīci Hell, a realm of incessant suffering. However, the Lotus Sutra,…

  William Altig

  August 7, 2025

  Chapter 12, Nichiren, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  Adversaries as Teachers, Arhatship, Avici Hell, Bodhisattva Ideal, Buddha, Buddhahood, Buddhism, Changing Poison into Medicine, compassion., Devadatta, Dharma, Dragon King’s Daughter, Enlightenment, Ethical Implications, Final Dharma Age, Five Anantarika-karma, Grave Offenses, Heavenly King Buddha, Hell of Incessant Suffering, Ichinen Sanzen, Inherent Buddha-nature, Instantaneous Enlightenment, karma, Karmic Retribution, Kitō-shō, Lotus Sutra, Mahayana Buddhism, Mappo, Meditation, Nichiren, Non-dualistic Perspective, Philosophy, Religion, Schism in Sangha, Shakyamuni Buddha, Soteriology, Spiritual Growth, Theravada Buddhism, Treatise on Prayers, Universal Buddhahood, universal salvation

• The Unveiling of Universal Wisdom in the Lotus Sūtra

  

  I. Introduction: The Lotus Sūtra and the Bodhisattva Ideal The Lotus Sūtra (Saddharmapundarika-sutra) is a foundational and highly influential text in East Asian Buddhism, composed between the 1st century BCE and 2nd century CE. It is widely considered the final and complete teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha, aiming for the enlightenment of all sentient beings and…

  William Altig

  July 31, 2025

  Chapter 24

  Adorned with Pure Light, Bodhisattva, Buddha, Buddhism, Cloud Thunder Sound King, Compassion, Devadatta, Dragon King’s Daughter, Eagle Peak, Ekayāna, Enlightenment, God Narayana, Great Compassion, Humanism, Land of Eternally Tranquil Light, Lotus Sūtra, Mahayana Buddhism, Mahākaruṇā, Meditation, Mutual Possession of the Ten Worlds, Myoho-renge-kyo, Nichiren, Nirvana, One Vehicle, Philosophy, Pure Flower Constellation King Wisdom, Pāramitās, Religion, Sahā-World, Samadhi of Revelation of All Forms, Samadhi of Understanding the Speech of all Living Beings, Shakyamuni Buddha, Six Moral Perfections, Skillful Means, Spiritual Authority, Ten Worlds, Tendai, Tiantai, True Aspect of All Phenomena, Universal Buddhahood, Upaya, Wise King of Pure and Gorgeous Constellation Tathagata, Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva, World of Endurance

• The Lotus Sutra’s Paradox: Rarity vs. Eternal Buddha

  

  1. Introduction: The Dynamic Revelations of Truth in the Lotus Sūtra The Lotus Sūtra (Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtram) is a foundational and highly influential text in Mahāyāna Buddhism, particularly in East Asia. It presents key Mahāyāna tenets such as the One Vehicle (ekayāna), the distinction between expedient and ultimate teachings, and the revolutionary concept of the…

  William Altig

  July 26, 2025

  Chapter 16, Chapter 2, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law, Uncategorized

  air analogy, antithesis, apparent Nirvāṇa, apparent paradox, arrogance, aspiration for enlightenment, Bodhicitta, Buddha wisdom, Buddha’s immeasurable lifespan, Buddhism, casting off the transient and revealing the true, Chapter Sixteen, Chapter Two, complacency, cultivating recognition, Devadatta, Dharmakāya, dialectical framework, difficulty of encounter, dust particle kalpas, Ekayāna, equality, Eternal Lifespan of the Tathāgata, expedient teachings, faith, false views, far distant past, feigned death, five thousand Bhikshus, Great Vehicle Dharma, historical Shakyamuni Buddha, human inability, immanence of Dharma, inconceivable Dharma, infrequent appearance, Inherent Buddhahood, interconnectedness, Lotus Sūtra, Mahāyāna Buddhism, Meditation, Nirmāṇakāya, Nishyanda Buddha, non-dualistic realization, non-judgmental compassion, objective reality, obstruction of sense organs, One Vehicle, original enlightenment, Parable of the Plants, Parable of the Skilled Physician, pedagogical strategy., pervasive Dharma, Philosophy, potential for Buddhahood, practice, preciousness, prejudice, profound Dharma, Provisional Teachings, provisional to the real, rarity vs. eternal presence, Religion, reverence, Sambhogakāya, shallow merits, Skillful Means, Small Vehicle Dharma, spiritual readiness, spiritual truths, Spirituality, subjective experience, synthesis, thesis, Three Bodies of the Buddha, three vehicles, Trikāya, true entity of all phenomena, Udumbara flower, ultimate teachings, Universal Buddhahood, unsurpassed Way, upāya, urgency, Vairochana Buddha, virtuous roots, Wonderful Dharma

• Chapter 12–The Future Enlightenment of Devadatta

  

  So, monks, what do you think? Was it someone else who was the king at that time? You must not believe that, for I was the King then. And what about the Seer? Do you think it was someone else who was the Seer at that time? No, you must not believe that either, for…

  William Altig

  December 20, 2023

  Chapter 12, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  Buddhist art, Buddhist Philosophy, Buddhist teachings, Compassion, Devadatta, Dharma Teachings, Enlightenment, enlightenment path, Ethereal Realms, Ethical Living, Kalpas, Lotus Sutra, Meditation, Mindfulness, Pāramitās, Rebirth, Sacred Texts, Serene Illustrations, Six Perfect Virtues, Spiritual Aspiration, spiritual awakening, Spiritual Journey, Spiritual Purity, Spiritual Transformation, Stairs of the Gods, Stūpa, Sutra Study, Tathāgata Devarāja, Universal Truths, wisdom