Tulip Fields, Netherlands

“Appearing Buddha” – continued

  To those curious about “Buddhism” as it teaches attaining enlightenment in this lifetime, it’s suggested first we should (as in chapter 10 of the Lotus Sutra) “Think of the Buddha, let them be patient.”

  “Think of the Buddha; let them be patient.
  In thousands of myriads of countless lands,
  I appear with pure imperishable bodies,
  and in infinite countless kalpas
  preach the Law for all the living.”

We can reword the above:

  “Think of the Buddha, let them be patient.
  During centuries following my extinction,
  in thousands of myriads of countless lands,
  and in infinite countless kalpas, great teachers of the Law
  with pure imperishable minds will appear,
  and in infinite countless kalpas
  preach the Law for all the living.”

“I shall be Buddha, though under different names . . .” (Parable of the Magic City)

  In the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha declares his “appearance in the world” within all the living, before and after he becomes extinct. Note again, he presents this “appearing Buddha” as an existing presence within us, an essence of the vibrant, all-pervading universal force that causes everything to live, immanent in us and all phenomena of the material world.

  In a word, in the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha teaches us how to celebrate life—this life, here and now.