Question:

 

What understanding can we have of causality (cause and effect) in the doctrine of ichinen sanzen? The perfect, absolute understanding.

 

Answer:

 

Buddhism teaches that every existing phenomenon is the result of a previous cause and that every future effect depends on the present cause. This notion is called the "Law of Causality" or "Principle of Karma" (karma meaning "act"). According to Buddhism, our actions (physical, verbal and mental) have consequences that determine our future. The Law of Causality enables people to understand how actions and thoughts create their own reality and how they can work to improve their future existence.

 

In his Abhidharmakośa sastra, Vasubandhu speaks of 'acquired cause' and 'acquired effect', indicating a continuity between different causes and their effects. An earlier moment of each psychic state is a similar cause of later moments of that psychic state, in the same way that wheat causes wheat and not rice.

 

In the Notes on the Meanings of the Lotus Sutra (Hokke giki) Fa-Yün writes:

 

"The bad cause, good cause or neutral cause generated in one thought continues as is in the next thought, becoming good effect, bad effect or neutral effect.

 

In his Treatise on the Transmission of the Three Secret Teachings, in the chapter on Quantitative Definition of One Thought Three Thousand, Nichikan Shōnin explains the Ten as follows:

 

"The ten thus are aspect, nature, substance, energy, production, cause, condition, effect and retribution.

 

"Thus is the aspect" (Nyoze sō), evokes the manifestation of each world, with, for example, an unhealthy air at the supreme moment (death) representing hell and a radiant look representing the heavens.

 

"Thus is nature" (Nyoze shō), indicates the good or bad nature of the ten worlds. Nature is inscribed in the innermost thoughts of a person and remains unchanged until the next life.

 

It is important to note that "So is nature" refers to the way in which the nature, benign or maleficent, of the ten worlds is deeply embedded in the mind of each being, representing properties and characteristics passed on not only in this life, but also in lives to come, remaining unchanging.

 

"Thus is the substance (Nyoze tai), representing the body itself of each of the ten worlds, its root, its essence.

 

"Thus is the energy" (Nyoze riki), represents the capacity to act of each of the ten worlds, its intrinsic competence.

 

"Thus and production" (Nyoze sa), represents the good or bad actions performed through our three forms of acts".

 

 

This passage means that "So is the production" represents good or bad actions performed physically, verbally and mentally.

 

"There are acquired causes and acquired effects in good and evil. The previous thought is the cause, the next thought is the effect".

 

In short, "learned causes" are the result of actions and thoughts that are repeated so often that they become an integral part of our being to the point of becoming a deeply ingrained habit in our body and mind. Thus, as a result, we see a regular and uninterrupted effect of these acquired causes.

 

Thus, for every good or bad thing we may feel, there is a cause that has become a habit embedded in us, as well as an effect that flows from that habit. The thoughts and feelings that drive us to act come from these acquired causes, which are deeply rooted in us. Thus, these causes and effects are inseparable and it is by understanding this process of learned causes influencing our lives that we can hope to change the effects we experience.

 

"Accordingly, it may be said that pernicious thoughts give rise to evil, while beneficial thoughts give rise to good. The thoughts that come afterwards, whether good or bad, are the fruit of previous thoughts. Thus the first thought is the acquired cause, which, as the axiom says, 'Thus is the cause', while the thoughts that follow it are the acquired effects, which, in the same way, are expressed by the axiom 'Thus is the effect'.

 

In other words, it can be said that bad thoughts and feelings produce bad effects, while good thoughts and feelings produce good effects. The thoughts and feelings that arise later, whether good or bad, are caused by the thoughts and feelings that preceded the action.

 

Thus, the thoughts and feelings that precede the action are considered "So is the cause", having taken root in our mind and body and become an acquired cause, while the thoughts and feelings that arise from the effect of the action are called "the acquired effect" and are described as "So is the effect".

 

"The condition that enriches the substance of good and bad acts is "Thus is the condition".

 

The condition that mediates, reinforcing cause and effect, is known as "Thus is the condition".

 

"As a consequence of karmic acts, resulting from acquired causes and acquired effects, the just reward, whether beneficial or pernicious, is called "Thus is the retribution".

 

The beneficial or pernicious reward, which arises from virtuous or evil deeds, caused by the effects born of the acquired causes embedded in the body and mind, is known as "Thus is the retribution".

 

 

"Consider the first (Thus) 'aspect' as the origin, and the last, 'retribution' as the end. The substance of this origin and end, which is the true aspect of the Middle Way, is called 'total equality from origin to end' (Honma'ku kyō tō)."

 

This means that from "Thus is the aspect" to "Thus is the retribution", all of these are contained and maintained in one thought, whether it is an activity, behaviour or appearance, and they are all in perfect harmony and consistency.

 

In his commentaries, the 59th great patriarch Nichikō Shōnin stated:

 

"As for "Nyoze" (Thus), "Nyo" possesses the meaning of "Emptiness" and "Truth". "Ze" has the meaning of "conditioned" and "phenomenal". If we merge the two ideograms "Nyoze", we obtain the meaning of the middle.

 

Constituting the threefold truth of Emptiness, Conditionality and Midway, the aspect, nature, substance and all ten Thus represent the true aspect of Emptiness, Conditionality and the Midway.

 

Appearance" is that which is visible from the outside, i.e. appearance.

Nature" is what is inside and cannot be seen, i.e. the unchanging nature.

Substance" is the support of the body, composed of the external appearance and the internal nature, like two sides of the same coin.

Energy" is the driving force and "production" is the manifestation of energy.

The "cause" is the main cause, the "condition" is the auxiliary cause.

In the relationship between 'effect' and 'reward', the effect is the inevitable result and the reward is the inevitable reward.

The difference between the notion of "effect" and "retribution" is that "effect" is manifested earlier, while "retribution" comes later. The "effect" is latent (insidious, hiding from view) while the "retribution" is manifest (obvious and understandable).

 

Moreover, "the retribution" is composed of two distinct elements: "the retribution of the principal", representing the sentient beings who inhabit the ten worlds, and "the retribution of the support", which is the non-sentient environment in which the sentient beings live. Sentient beings themselves are subdivided into two categories: us, consisting of the five aggregates (form, perception, conceptualisation, reaction and consciousness) and other beings. Therefore, it can be said that "retribution" is made up of three distinct domains: the five aggregates, the beings and the non-sentient environment. Finally, these elements are an integral part of the doctrine of "One Thought Three Thousand", so that it can be said that everything, including ourselves and our environment, exist only from the moment we become aware of them, and not outside our "One Thought".

 

In the Gosho On Omens, Nichiren Daishōnin writes on this subject:

 

"The ten directions represent the reward of the support; the beings represent the reward of the principal. The reward of the support is like the shadow; the reward of the principal is like the body. Without the body, there can be no shadow; without the reward of the principal, there is no reward of the support. Moreover, the payment of the principal also creates the payment of the support.

 

This last sentence "the retribution of the principal also creates the retribution of the support" is the proof that what we perceive and believe to be outside ourselves is only a "reflection" of our One thought.