The Ten Worlds

The following excerpt is from "The Buddha in Daily Life, An Introduction to the Buddhis of Nichiren Daishonin", by Richard Causton, Rider Ebury Press, Random House, Copyright 1995

Daisaku Ikeda wrote, "Society is complex and harsh, demanding that you struggle hard to survive. No one can make you happy. Everything depends on you as to whether or not you attain happiness... A human being is destined to a life of great suffering if he is weak and vulnerable to his external surroundings." Nichiren wrote, "Only by defeating a powerful enemy can one prove his real strength."

The Japanese word for Hell is jigoku, written with two characters meaning 'the lowest' and 'to be bound or imprisoned'. undoubtedly, one of the characteristic aspects of the state of Hell is the lack of ability to think freely, a result of the dramatic reduction of one's life-force, the vital energy of life itself, which is expressed both physically in one's bodily mechanisms and functions, and spiritually on one's thoughts, hopes and emotions. In this state, it is 'like being already dead'. The world of Hunger is one in which our desires are dominant. As its name suggests, the world of Animality is that in which we behave like animals. The person in the state of Anger cannot bear to lose. As its name suggest, Tranquillity, the fifth of the Ten Worlds, is the state of being at peace or at rest; one of the major functions of Tranquillity is to restore energy. This state is also called the world of Humanity. The world of Rapture is what we experience when our desires are fulfilled. It is an intense and exhilarating state in which we feel glad to be alive and in which everything is bathed in the glow of our own well-being. The world of Learning applies to the Buddha's disciples who try to attain enlightenment by following his teachings, in Japanese the word shomon, means 'voice-hearers' or 'men of Learning' who originally heard the 'voice' of Shakyamini Buddha when he was preaching. In a more general sense, however, it applies to that aspect of our consciousness which can learn from the realizations of others and apply what we have learned to our own lives. It corresponds to intelligence and is concerned with existing knowledge. The world of Realization corresponds to wisdom or insight, the state which enables us to come to an understanding directly from our own observations experience and reflection. This understanding may be as grand as the workings of the universe, or as humble as how to wire a plug. What matters in the world of Realization is that we come to that understanding largely through our own efforts. The Japanese word for Realization, engaku, refers to those who try to reach enlightenment without encountering a Buddha or his teachings, and whose enlightenment in therefore partial or incomplete. The world of Bodhisattva is characterized by the spirit of jihi which is the desire to replace suffering in others with happiness.

So...What is Buddhahood? Perhaps it would be easier to begin by saying what it is not. Buddhahood is not a supernatural quality which enables you to perform superhuman or magical feats like levitation; neither is it a transcendental state, divorced from the everyday reality of this world, in which you experience mental bliss and peace. Buddhahood exists and can be only be manifested, here and now, through the actions of real people in this real world. Nichiren says, "The real meaning of the Lord Shakyamini Buddha's appearance in this world lay in his behaviour as a human being. How profound!" Shakyamuni was not a god but a man, and Buddhahood, although the highest state of life, is one that is attainable by all people. Thus, there is no fundamental difference between a Buddha and an ordinary person: a Buddha is simply an ordinary person 'awakened' to the true nature of life. As Nichiren further explains, "While deluded, one is called a common mortal, but once enlightened, he is called a Buddha."