Lectures on 
Basic Study 
Materials (10)
from Dai-Byakuho, issue no. 374

The Six Paramitas
The Bodhisattva Practices of Compassion and Wisdom 

What are the Six Paramitas?
The Six Paramitas, called "six crossings" or Rokudo in Chinese, are the 
six kinds of virtuous practice required in Shakyamuni's Mahayana 
teachings for the attainment of enlightenment of those in the world 
of Bodhisattva. These practices include: Fuse, or making offerings; 
Jikai, or keeping the precepts; Ninniku, or enduring insult and 
persecution without anger; Shojin, or ceaseless effort; Zenjo, or focus, 
control of mind, and; Chie, or wisdom.
The word "paramita" transliterates into Japanese as haramitsu, but 
comes from Sanskrit, and means "perfection" or "accomplished". Also 
translated as "reaching the other shore", the six paramitas are known 
as the practices by which "to escape this shore of delusion and reach 
the other shore of enlightenment".

Merits of the Six Paramitas
Depending on people's capacity to understand, Shakyamuni 
expounded the Four Noble Truths for people of Learning, the Twelve-
linked Chain of Causation for people of Realization, and the Six 
Paramitas for people in the world of Bodhisattva. While the Four 
Noble Truths and Twelve-linked Chain of Causation were practices 
through which people of the two vehicles of Learning and Realization 
could attain Hinayana enlightenment, the Six Paramitas were 
indicated as the Bodhisattva practice that aimed for Mahayana 
enlightenment.
Whereas the Hinayana training sought only the practitioner's own 
salvation, the Six Paramitas, and especially the two practices of 
making offerings and enduring insult and persecution without anger, 
stressed the Mahayana spirit of the compassion to bring 
emancipation to others, as well as to oneself. Further, the provisional 
Mahayana Hannya Sutra explains that, of the Six Paramitas, the 
paramita of wisdom expressly serves to support and guide the other 
five paramitas. We can thus recognize the Six Paramitas' merit as a 
Mahayana Bodhisattva practice, because they adhere to a spirit of 
compassion and wisdom.

Explanation of the Six Paramitas
There is also a Hinayana Bodhisattva practice of the Six Paramitas, 
but we will give an explanation based on the Mahayana Bodhisattva 
practice here.

The Paramita of Making Offerings (Fuse)
Fuse are acts of offering to others, and include the following: Zaise 
(material offerings), Hose (offerings of Buddhist canon),  Muise (the 
taking away of fear), and Shinse (offering through self-sacrifice). 
Material offerings include the giving of such physical wealth as 
money and property, while offerings of Buddhist canon are the 
giving of explanations on the Buddha's teachings. The taking away of 
fear refers to the allaying of another's rears and giving peace of 
mind, and offerings through self-sacrifice imply service to others 
without counting the cost to oneself. Although Bodhisattvas in 
Mahayana Buddhism practiced the making of such offerings, 
Shakyamuni teaches that such practice must not be carried out with 
hearts that are attached to the act of giving. Bodhisattvas are taught 
to be attached to neither the giver, the receiver nor the object given, 
because originally, all three existences are viewed as inseparable or 
non-substantial. This teaching is known as "Offering of the Pure 
Three-fold Wheel" (tranquil emptiness) Bodhisattvas accomplish this 
merciful practice of Fuse with the wisdom of non-attachment.

The Paramita of Keeping the Precepts (Jikai)
Keeping the precepts means to obey established rules to the letter of 
the law, and further indicates a voluntary decision to observe the 
precepts. The various groups of precepts included either five or eight 
precepts for lay people, two hundred and fifty precepts for priests, 
and three hundred and fifty precepts for nuns. Although these 
precepts were used mainly in Hinayana Buddhism, the paramita of 
keeping the precepts expounds Bodhisattva precepts that are based 
on the Mahayana spirit of compassion. There are also three kinds of 
conduct, included within these Bodhisattva precepts, which 
incorporate the staving off evil. They are called either the "Three 
Comprehensive Precepts" or the "Three Pure Precepts", and include 
refraining from evil, doing good and having compassion. Within the 
"Three Pure Precepts", there is a special feature „ a spirit of benefit 
both for oneself and for others. Incorporated within this spirit is the 
idea that if one looks up, he endlessly pursues enlightenment, and if 
he looks down, there are countless living beings to be saved.

The Paramita of Enduring Insult and Persecution Without Anger 
(Ninniku)
Enduring insult and persecution without anger means to patiently 
tolerate all sorts of contempt and oppression while causing 
compassion to well up in one's own heart. There are two kinds of 
endurance, mental (shonin) and physical (honin). Examples of mental 
endurance include not becoming arrogant when praised, or filled 
with anger or hatred when oppressed. Physical endurance includes 
not being disturbed by  such discomforts as cold, heat, hunger or 
illness. This paramita of endurance expounds that through 
enlightened wisdom, one can give up attachments to views of the 
substantiality of a self, or of any other physical object, and come to 
the knowledge that all existence is non-substantial.

The Paramita of Ceaseless Effort (Shojin)
The words "ceaseless effort" may be used in everyday language, but 
in this context, they refer to untiring practice on the Buddhist path, 
and have both physical and mental implications. This two-front 
effort entails physical and mental devotion to, as well as relentless 
perseverance in, one's practice of the other five paramitas. In short, 
while physical endurance refers to the making of offerings and the 
keeping of the precepts, mental endurance connotes devotion to the 
practices of endurance, ceaseless effort and wisdom. Ceaseless effort 
that is not guided by wisdom is blind effort, and is not the true effort 
contained in this paramita.

The Paramita of Focus of the Mind (Zenjo)
Focus of the mind, as it is called, is the practice through which the 
mind becomes tranquilly unified and the truth is perceived. Through 
the practice of focusing the mind, mental and physical vacillations 
are eliminated and composure is achieved.
There were originally three types of virtuous discipline that a 
student of Buddhism was supposed to study. These are known as the 
"Three Types of Study" and include precepts, meditation and wisdom. 
The second, meditation, is equivalent to focus of the mind. Because 
Shakyamuni gave up both pleasure and asceticism, and attained 
enlightenment through his deepening of correct meditation, it can be 
said that originally, wisdom and meditation are inseparable. 
Buddhism warns that meditation separate from wisdom is heretical.

The Paramita of Wisdom (Chie)
The Hannya Sutra clarifies the importance of the paramita of 
wisdom, illuminates the fact that the true nature of all things is non-
substantial and therefore equal, and gives various insights that 
perfect the wisdom of that enlightenment Mahayana Bodhisattvas 
gain wisdom about the non-substantiality of all things through 
enlightenment. That wisdom is a wisdom of equality, which dismisses 
all kinds of distinctions and discriminations, and discerns that all 
things that exist are equal. But there is no tranquillity of life for a 
Mahayana Bodhisattva if his wisdom is based merely on that wisdom 
of equality. In short, although deep-seated delusions about general 
reality are wiped away through wisdom based on non-substantiality, 
turning one's eyes once again to the real world through compassion 
leads to true discriminatory wisdom. Thus, a true practice of the six 
paramitas can only be effected in the real world when wisdom about 
equality and discriminatory wisdom are gained proportionately.

The Lotus Sutra and the Six Paramitas
In this way, Mahayana Bodhisattvas can gain Mahayana 
enlightenment by practicing the compassion and wisdom-lined six 
paramitas. The Hannya Sutra explains that the wisdom concerning 
the non-substantiality of all existence is the important function 
served by the six paramitas, but when compared to the Lotus Sutra's 
harmoniously unified and fully endowed Buddha wisdom of the 
Middle Way, the wisdom of the six paramitas is partial and therefore 
inferior. For that reason, the Lotus Sutra points out that it is the 
Lotus Sutra itself, and not the provisional Mahayana teaching of the 
six paramitas, that is the perfect teaching for attaining Buddhahood. 
The Lotus Sutra further shows that the Bodhisattva practice based on 
the Lotus Sutra is the true Buddhist Path.
The Muryogi Sutra states: "[If you embrace this sutra,] you will 
naturally receive the benefits of the six paramitas without having to 
practice them." This passage explains that the practice and benefit of 
the six paramitas is contained within the Lotus Sutra. In "The True 
Object of Worship", the Daishonin further states:
Shakyamuni's practices and the virtues he consequently attained are 
all contained within the single phrase, Myoho-Renge-Kyo. If we 
believe in that phrase, we shall naturally be granted the same 
benefits as he was. (M.W., Vol. I, p. 64)
By embracing the Gohonzon, the seed of Buddhahood hidden in the 
depths of the Lotus Sutra, we in the Latter Day of the Law can 
naturally attain the benefits of having practiced the six paramitas, as 
well as the great fortune of Buddhahood.


©1995 Nichiren Shoshu Monthly