In this scene from The Human Revolution, Josei Toda speaks at the first memorial service for founding Soka Gakkai President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, reflecting on his mentor’s towering spirit and his own determination to carry out kosen-rufu on his behalf.
“The Bodhisattvas of the Earth exist nowhere but here; we are, in fact, the Bodhisattvas of the Earth. Knowing this, I can declare here and now that I, [Josei] Toda, will carry out kosen-rufu, even if I have to do it alone.
“I offer my deepest apologies to my deceased mentor. Mr. Makiguchi, as your true disciple, I will dedicate my entire being to spreading the Law before returning to your side. From today on, please rest at ease.”
Each of Toda’s words jolted his listeners like an electric shock. For a moment, they sat stunned, but the next instant, a murmuring arose. Some sighed, while others began whispering to their neighbors. Several gazed down to hide their smirks, no doubt thinking, There goes Toda boasting again. Still others looked at him with unconcealed malice, offended by what seemed to them his arrogance. Their reactions lasted but a split second, but nevertheless revealed their honest feelings.
The sun had already quietly set on the autumn day. Outside was dark, and the street lamps were lit.
The group that included Terakawa and Miyajima bid a hasty farewell to the Makiguchi family and headed for the door. The others, too, slipped out one by one, as though making an escape. Toda waited until the end to respectfully see off the Makiguchi family. Only he and a few others remained in the main hall.
“Please take good care of yourself, Mr. Toda,” said [chief priest Taiei] Horigome, who then withdrew into the priests’ quarters.
Toda stood in the empty main hall. He was forced to face the fact that not a single person had understood his true intent. Again, a surge of loneliness washed over him.
He left for the station, accompanied by a few others. He felt inexplicably irritated. Though the businessmen occasionally tried to draw him into conversation, he didn’t respond. The chilly autumn night made him brace himself even tighter and feel even more resolved.
Finally, as they approached the station, Toda spoke up.
“I hope that you will all practice this Buddhist faith without regrets. Your faith in the next two or three years will determine whether or not you make a name for yourselves as practitioners of the Lotus Sutra. Nichiren Daishonin states: ‘Buddhism is like the body, and society like the shadow. When the body bends, so does the shadow’ (“A Comparison of the Lotus and Other Sutras,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 1039). In that sense, our faith is the body and our businesses the shadow. Basing ourselves on faith, let’s pray for the growth of both the [Soka] Gakkai and our businesses alike.”
For some reason, Toda suddenly found himself encouraging the businessmen. As he walked, firmly determined and looking toward the future, he quietly sang the lyrics of a song he had composed:
I now receive the Buddha’s decree
and stand up alone,
proudly upholding the great vow
to spread the Mystic Law.
Allies are few, enemies many.
Depending on no one,
I strive onward.
My spirit strong and resolute,
fierce winds blow over our vast field of struggle.
I will give my all,
never begrudging my life.
I do not begrudge my life,
but where are the young flag bearers?
Can you not see Mount Fuji’s summit?
Rally now, quickly, in growing numbers!
As he sang these lyrics, he experienced an uncontrollable emotion he had never felt before. He trembled with an overwhelming passion, conviction and determination.
Suddenly, these words came to him: “A lion seeks no companion.”
The strange sense of loneliness that had troubled him had stemmed from his unconscious hunger for companionship. It was, perhaps, a manifestation of his weakness.
But a lion seeks no companion. When it does, it forfeits its place as the king of beasts. Lions are never lonely. Companions come to them without being sought. Carrying out kosen-rufu is a lion’s work. If he must be a lion, he should not seek out companions. If he were a true lion, companions would seek out and follow him. What it all comes down to is whether one is a true lion—whether one is a true Bodhisattva of the Earth.
“I must become a lion,” he thought. “A lion, not some ordinary beast.”
At that moment, he experienced an awakening.
He said reassuringly to the small group accompanying him: “Well now, my friends, let’s call it a night. Next Nov. 18, on the second anniversary of Mr. Makiguchi’s passing, we’ll hold a grand ceremony for him. Let’s persevere for another year. We’ll hold a [Soka] Gakkai general meeting then, too.”
The men couldn’t help feeling there was something unusual about Toda this evening, and looked at him searchingly. But Toda just smiled back at them warmly, his face glowing.
Of all those who had attended the memorial service that day, Toda alone had stood up to take the lead in spreading the Mystic Law.
It was a historic night, when Josei Toda first declared that he would achieve kosen-rufu. But at that time, no one realized how deep his resolve was. They just wanted to get home, feeling virtuous at having fulfilled their obligations in attending the memorial service.
The autumn night sky was as clear as Toda’s mind. The stars shone brightly as if applauding his future victory.
From time to time, icy gusts foreshadowing winter rustled the leaves of the trees and rattled the lighted windowpanes.
The German poet Schiller once wrote: “The strong [person] is strongest when acting alone.”[1]
This updated translation was published by the SGI Newsletter on July 24, 2017.
October 11, 2024, World Tribune, p. 10
References
- See Friedrich von Schiller, Wilhelm Tell, translated and edited by William F. Mainland (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1973), p. 24. ↩︎
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