Daimoku

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Nam Myōhō Renge Kyō (南無妙法蓮華經, also Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō in some schools; To Honour/devote oneself to the Wonderful Law of the Lotus Flower Sutra) is a mantra that is chanted as the central practice of all forms of Nichiren Buddhism. The mantra is referred to as Daimoku (題目, title; also, in some schools, O-daimoku: お題目) and was first revealed by the Japanese Buddhist teacher Nichiren on the 28th day of the fourth lunar month of AD 1253 at Seichō-ji (also called Kiyosumi-dera) near Kominato in current-day Chiba, Japan. The practice of chanting the daimoku is called shōdai (唱題). The purpose of chanting daimoku is to attain perfect and complete awakening (enlightenment).

Meaning

As Nichiren explained the mantra in his Ongi Kuden (御義口傳), a transcription of his lectures on the Lotus Sutra, Nam(u) (南無) derives from the Sanskrit "namas", and Myōhō Renge Kyō is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese title of the Lotus Sutra in the translation by Kumārajīva (hence, daimoku)^[1].

Nam(u) is used in Buddhism as a prefix expressing the taking of refuge in a Buddha or similar object of veneration. In Nam(u) Myōhō Renge Kyō, it represents devotion or conviction in the Mystic Law of Life as expounded in the Lotus Sutra, not merely as one of many scriptures, but as the ultimate teaching of Buddhism, particularly with regard to Nichiren's interpretation. The use of Nam vs. Namu is, amongst traditional Nichiren schools, a linguistic but not necessarily a dogmatic issue^[2], since u is devoiced in many varieties of Japanese.

The Lotus Sutra is held by Nichiren Buddhists, as well as practitioners of the Chinese Tiantai (T'ien-t'ai) and corresponding Japanese Tendai sects, to be the culmination of Shakyamuni Buddha's 50 years of teaching. However, followers of Nichiren Buddhism consider Myōhō Renge Kyō to be the name of the ultimate law permeating the universe, and the human being is at one, fundamentally with this Law and can manifest realization, or Buddha Wisdom, through Buddhist Practice.

Broken down, Myōhō Renge Kyō consists of:

• Myō (妙) meaning 'wonderful' or 'mystic',
• Hō (法) meaning 'Law' or 'Dharma',
• Ren (蓮) meaning 'Lotus',
• Ge (華) meaning 'Flower' and
• Kyō (經) meaning 'Sutra' or 'Teaching'.

The seven characters na-mu-myō-hō-ren-ge-kyō are written down the centre of the Gohonzon, the mandala venerated by most Nichiren Buddhists.

Precise interpretations of Nam(u)-Myōhō-Renge-Kyō, how it is pronounced, and its position in Buddhist practice differ slightly among the numerous schools and sub-sects of Nichiren Buddhism, but "I take refuge in (devote or submit myself to) the Wonderful Law of the Lotus Flower Sutra" might serve as a universal translation.

References

1. ^ Http://www.AmericanGongyo.org is a free site that offers a complete audio tutorial for Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and the Lotus Sutra (2nd and 16th chapters) in perfect Japanese pronunciation, rhythm and tone. This one of the basic practices of SGI USA Nichiren Buddhists. This site also contains text pronunciation guides for American English and Spanish.
2. ^ Nam or Namu? Does it really matter?: [1]

http://www.sgi-usa.org

http://www.sgilibrary.org/view.php?page=3

External links

http://www.sgi.org