Seven Courses, Thirty-Seven Ways, Metaphors of Great Ships
Songs of the Seven Departments and Thirty-Seven Dohons
“For example, in the June of summer, when a large ship floating on the seashore gets caught in a storm, the wisteria vines that bind the ship are cut off.Disciples, if you practice diligently and succeed in your training, If you do so, you can be liberated from all bondage and earthly desires.
Why?
Because you practice properly.
What will you practice?
He is the one who practices the so-called Four Thought Treatments, Four Correct Laws, Four Rui Foot Laws, Five Root Laws, Five Power Laws, Seven Awakening Subdharma, and Eightfold Path.”
That’s what the Buddha preached. After receiving this sermon, 60 monks were able to free themselves from all earthly desires and attain liberation. When the Buddha finished preaching this sutra, the disciples who were listening were overjoyed and devoted themselves to their training.
The parable described here is famous as the “Parable of the Great Ship.” In the original text, this “parable of the great ship” is preceded by “the parable of the craftsman’s village,” but its meaning is almost the same as that of the “parable of the great ship,” so we omit it here. I will do it.
First of all, a large ship is anchored on the beach. The ship was moored with a wisteria, or something similar to a wisteria. This was in India more than 2,000 years ago, so ropes probably didn’t exist. However, Fujimu is very solid.
However, in June, the sea becomes rough. Therefore, a storm like a typhoon will occur. Then, while being tossed by the waves, the wisteria was torn and the ship was washed out to sea, and eventually the ship itself became too strong.
The wind and waves cause it to become a small tree.
In the same way, no matter what kind of earthly desires we have, no matter how strong our bad karma may be, if we repeat the Dharma to attain Buddhahood over and over again, the threads of karma that bind us will eventually disappear. Shakyamuni Buddha is saying that you will break free and finally attain Buddhahood.
Bondage…These are all other names for earthly desires. Earthly desires cling to humans and never leave them. He is called Kara. In addition, earthly desires are called bondage because they bind people and do not allow them to be free. Furthermore, human beings are used as they please by earthly desires, so earthly desires are used as messengers.
However, if you diligently practice this method of attaining Buddhahood, no matter how strong your bad karma or earthly desires may be, you will be able to break them down and eventually attain Buddhahood. Therefore, this is also “documentary evidence.”
In this short sutra, the Buddha repeats over and over again the seven disciplines and thirty-seven ways of attaining Buddhahood. He has taught us over and over again, with great care and compassion, that unless we practice this, we will not be able to attain Buddhahood.
However, Japanese Buddhism did not incorporate this method of attaining Buddhahood. And he has imposed his created sutras, which do not have the method of attaining Buddhahood, on innocent believers who do not know anything about them.
As a result, I, my followers, and my disciples all suffer without attaining Buddhahood. A famous psychic once said, “All the great monks and famous monks who are said to be the founders of the sect had fallen into hell and had a spiritual vision of him suffering on a chariot of fire. I was surprised. How could this be him?
