The Lotus Sutra and the Four Noble Truths
Dr. Dominick Scarangello
International Advisor to Rissho Kosei-kai
Practicing the Truth of Extinguishment
In this final installment of “Practicing the Dharma in the Here and Now,” we’ll consider the Truth of Extinguishment, which in the way we are considering the Four Noble Truths from the standpoint of practice in daily life, is the culmination, or result, of putting the Truth of the Path into practice.
Our first task is to understand what is meant by “extinguishment.”
“Extinguishment” is a translation of the Sanskrit word “nirvana.” This term is sometimes used to mean the passing of someone, especially someone who is deeply awakened, like a buddha. By extension, in polite or honorific speech in East Asian languages, it can be a euphemism for death. However, in our usage, we do not mean the “extinguishment of life,” but the extinguishment of suffering to achieve a state of peace. As Founder Niwano explains, “Realizing the Truth of Extinguishment severs the bonds of all forms of suffering and brings one to comprehend that, as the Threefold Lotus Sutra teaches, this world is, just as it is, a realm of tranquil light” (Buddhism for Today 67).
This is certainly what the realization of the Truth of Extinguishment ultimately means, but must we wait until we are buddhas to realize the Truth of Extinguishment? I don’t think so. Certainly, we can experience various dimensions of extinguishment and attain a glimpse of the realm of tranquil light in the here and now through our practice.
Going back to the example I gave in previous columns of suffering in a traffic jam, there are several dimensions of extinguishment I can experience in that situation.
First, if I catch myself when I am about to act out in anger and stop myself, I can extinguish the suffering an angry outburst would have caused. But I can experience extinguishment on a deeper level. If, through practice, I nurture bodhisattva compassion in my heart, I can come to see those stuck with me in inconvenient situations like the traffic jam not as enemies but as people who are also suffering the discomfort of inconvenience. That will not only prevent angry outbursts and the resultant suffering, but those feelings of compassion will counteract the stirrings of anger in my heart and cool its flames.
I can say that I’ve experienced the first dimension of extinguishment above—an extinguishment of suffering through the absence of angry outbursts—to a very significant degree, and while I feel my empathy for others is still inadequate, in the moment I can often give rise to a feeling of compassion that cools the embers of anger in my heart, allowing me to experience the second dimension of extinguishment. Although I’m far from “severing all bonds,” I’ve been in many situations that could have escalated but didn’t, and I can keep a calm mind and a level head more often. This improvement in my quality of life may be more of a “conjured city” than the severance of the bonds of all forms of suffering, but nevertheless, it is a step forward on the road to buddhahood.
But the insight that my anger and bad behavior are actually an unskillful expression of the compassionate aspiration to escape suffering for myself is perhaps the most liberating realization. For me, this is an affirmation of the Lotus Sutra’s teaching of the mutual inclusion of the ten realms. Even within the suffering of the realm of anger (asuras), the realms of awakening and liberation—the hearts and minds of the shravakas, bodhisattvas, and Buddha—are always there. My anger, too, has their hearts, and is calling me to face it, recognize it, and heal it. And when I do, the realms of awakening will manifest themselves. Put even more simply, we can find buddha nature in everything if we only see things the way they really are.
In the Lotus Sutra, we learn that “Only when we attain the supreme wisdom of a buddha / Do we have true extinguishment” (The Threefold Lotus Sutra 199). I certainly have far to go on the “perilous road” to the “place of treasures” that is the wisdom of a buddha. But when I catch a glimpse of the realms of awakening inside me, and within others, it is an experience of “faith and understanding.” That understanding is a momentary taste of a buddha’s wisdom, and it strengthens my faith—my confidence—in the Buddha’s assurance that we are all children of the Buddha.
I think faith and understanding is a way of participating in the Buddha’s true extinguishment, of seeing a glimmer of the “tranquil light,” and this is the greatest merit we can receive from practice, even if we still struggle with issues in our lives. The wisdom of a buddha may be difficult to grasp for ordinary people like me, but I would like to keep in mind what the Buddha tells us in chapter 2, “Skillful Means,” of the Lotus Sutra.
This Dharma is inexpressible;
It exhausts the capacity of words.
Among all other living beings,
None can comprehend it
Except those in the assembly of bodhisattvas
Firm in the strength of faith. (The Threefold Lotus Sutra 59)
