《瑜伽師地論》=Yogācārabhūmi-śastra (Discourse on the Stages of Yogic Practice); 三一權實論爭=Sanichigonjitsu no shoron (controversy between triyāna and eka-yāna); 一乘和會=integration of eka-yana; 藏俊=Zoshun; 《法華玄贊文集》=Hokke Gensan Bunshuu (Collected Works of Praise to Lotus Sūtra)
This lecture is mainly to introduce the dimension of Buddhist Thought study in Japan. The content relates to the history of Dharma Characteristics’ School, which highly connects to the development of Consciousness-only Thought, and especially the development of Dharma Characteristics’ teaching idea toward the controversy with Tiantai School. For the controversy of which is true between tri-yāna and eka-yāna, Zoshun (1104-1180 A.D.) of the Heian period wrote Hokke Gensan Bunshuu (Collected Works of Praise to Lotus Sūtra) and severely criticized Tiantai School’s claim from Ichijo Yoketsu (Key of eka-yāna). Zoshun thought Tiantai School was too inflexible in the doctrine of taking eka-yāna as the one and only Buddha yāna (vehicle). Later, Chuuzan of Dharma Characteristics’ School and Ryogen of Tiantai School started the Owa Shuron (Debate in the Owa era). In which Ryogen interpreted Lotus Sūtra’s “none will fail to become a Buddha” as “everyone can become a Buddha”, yet Chuuzan interpreted it as “having none of Buddha’s nature will fail to become a Buddha”. In Zoshun’s Hokke Gensan Bunshuu, he emphasized Yogācārabhūmi- śastra (Discourse on the Stages of Yogic Practice) as the “ultimate teaching of all Buddha’s teaching”. However, the Tiantai School thought Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra (Sūtra of the Explanation of the Profound Secrets) and Yogācārabhūmi-śastra were expedient teachings; and that Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra (Lotus Sūtra) and Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra (Nirvāṇa Sūtra) are sutras of true teachings. Under the influence of eka-yāna Buddhism such as Tiantai School and Huayan School, Yogācārabhūmi-śastra had been taken as expedient teaching. Nevertheless, Zoshun sought to raise his question that eka-yāna Buddhism did not follow Buddha’s teaching originally from India. Tiantai School bourght up the doctrine of “Five Periods & Eight Teachings”; and comparatively Zoshun quoted (one of Dharmapala’s students) Jinaputra’s Commentary on Yogācārabhūmi-śastra. Since Yogācārabhūmi-śastra provides theses like principle & fact, textual meaning, practice and enlightment, it is positioned higher than Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra and Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvānā Sūtra for its wide concept comparing with Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra which only stressed on tri-yāna. Zoshun also stood up for the view that there were people with none of Buddha nature. He pointed out that Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra followed eka-yāna in the theory, but held tri-yāna and pañca-gotrāṇi as the truth if one analyzes its actual practice. Therefore he proposed the theory of integration of eka-yāna. In connection with this controversy between tri-yāna and eka-yāna (Sanichigonjitsu no shoron), Genshin of Tiantai School took eka-yāna as the truth, but Zoshun and Joukei of Dharma Characteristics’ School thought both of them were true. In the end, Joukei thought “Faith” is the basic that leads to increase practice for enlightenment. From Mahāyāna’s ground that thought highly of Faith, discipline and heritage, he built his point on “abiding of awakening operation”, the first abiding of the Ten Abidings in Dharma Characteristics’ teaching. The feature of his
