' '
.
,. .."Su.. .
.,;.. e,., the:;gpund
,When the skies'are cleari:
e know~~f~&':i26tfis
. ,.,,.
eanins;bf
2
W h e the
~ Sun Bladdahood Rises in Our Hearts,
f the Darkness sf the Fundamental Ignorance Vanishes
3j
ichiren Daishonin completed this
work during his exile at Ichinosawa
II
4 on the island of Sado. It was addressed
specifically to Toki Jonin, a leading
disciple who lived in Shimosa Province.
At that point in time, Japan suffered from
frequent natural disasters including major
earthquakes. Each time a calamity struck,
the Japanese suffered and trembled in fear,
not knowing what the future held for them.
With regard to this condition, the
Daishonin says in the preceding portion of
this passage that these calamities including
great earthquakes are signs that foretell the
widespread propagation of the Mystic Law
to save humanity and also the appearance
of the Bodhisattva of the Earth (cf WND-
1, p 376) to fulfill this noble mission of
II propagation. In this way, the Daishonin
%I displayed his profound wisdom to perceive
the truth and essence of worldly matters
based on Buddhism. He further teaches that
one who perceives that essence of Buddhism
understands the meaning of all worldly
affairs.
We can interpret this passage to mean
that as long as One in and chant
daimoku to the Gohonzon, one will be able
1I CL August 2008
~. . .."':"
;5 :. .
:<,?;,>J*:. ,.;I
is illuminafed.
;
Sutra, one understands
..;;C.
a//?2~':..:',,;~~.~
wo</d/y
<. affaiis.
.-
to manifest the wisdom to perceive the truth
of all worldly affairs in reality and with this,
one can achieve victory in life.
In this lecture series on the Gosho, "On
Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime",
SGI President Ikeda states, "When we chant
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo,the sun of the world
of Buddhahood rises in our hearts. The
ignorance and illusion that had shrouded
the sun like heavy clouds are swept away.
When the sun of Buddhahood comes to
shine within us, the darkness of ignorance
vanishes."
Many a times in the course of our lives, we
find ourselves in a situation where our lives
seem to be shrouded by endless darkness
and there appears no hope of overcoming
our problems or suffering. However, as long
as we continue to chant with doubt-free
faith, we will be able to dispel this darkness
in our lives and even be able to summon
forth the power from within to help the
people around us do the same.
This was exactly how Mrs Miwako
Daihachi (WD chief of Okayama prefecture)
CL August 2008
46 Gosho In Daily Life
m%SYii%
and her husband lived out their lives,
dedicating their entire beings to the kosen-
rufu (peace and happiness for all people)
movement in Okayama.
Miwako's maternal family took up faith
in Nichiren Buddhism in 1959. The family
first savoured the wonderful power of
faith when Miwako's sickly father, who was
suffering from tuberculosis, regained his
health to the extent that he could go back
to work. With immense joy, Miwako and
her family deeply committed themselves
to the practice of faith.
However, in the spring of 1967, Miwako
lost her mother and five-year-old brother
in a traffic accident. At that time Miwako
was only a secondary one student and she
simply could not accept the death of her two
beloved family members. Her father, a man
of few words, became increasingly reserved
and kept to himself more than ever.
That summer, SGI President Ikeda
invited Miwako's father to the Soka Gakkai
CL August 2008
Headquarters in Tokyo and together,
President Ikeda offered solemn prayers
for Miwako's mother and brother. As he
was doing gongyo by the side of President
Ikeda, Miwako's father could not stop
his tears from flowing as he was choked
with profound gratitude and emotions for
President Ikeda's kindness. On top of this,
President Ikeda also offered prayers for
them during the special memorial prayer
session held later that day.
From that day onwards, Miwako's father
was a changed man. He made it a point to
bring Miwako to the monthly discussion
meeting and he also began delivering the
Seikyo Shimbun, the daily organ paper of
the Soka Gakkai, every morning. Looking at
the complete transformation of her father,
Miwako thought to herself, "President
Ikeda must a be a great man."
President Ikeda's tremendous life force
was like a sun that ignited the faith of her
father and helped to dispel the darkness
4

48 Gosho In Dally L ~ f e
BffSPB

I
i
Key points of the Gosho passage:

1. Buddhism teaches that everything is subjected to workings of the

Mystic Law. Thus, with wisdom based on Buddhism, one can perceive the
innate workings of the Mystic Law behind all worldly affairs. For example,
based on the law of cause and effect, Nichiren Daishonin was able to foretell
the future effect based on the cause that was being created.

2. This wisdom is not about one's intellect. It is developed and activated

by our faith, practice and study. The Daishonin teaches that as long as one
believes in and chant dnimoku to the Gohonron, one will be able to manifest
. ,-
8 the wisdom to perceive the truth of all worldly affairs in reality and with this
ig1 d wisdom, one can achieve victory in life.
IP
1# 3. President Ikeda explains that this wisdom, which comes from our life-
11 state of Buddhahood, is like the sun that illuminates the darkness (delusions)
and enables us to see everything clearly and truthfully, without being misled
by our delusions. Thus the Daishonon states, "When the sun of Buddhahood
comes to shine within us, the darkness of ignorance vanishes."