天台宗について

Activities of the Tendai Denomination

Dengyō Daishi aimed to propagate the Ichijō teachings as the righteous teachings to allow all living beings to become Buddhas and at the same time he sought to cleanse the hearts of all sentient beings. For that purpose, Saichō endeavored to nurture the talent of those who could benefit others without seeking to benefit themselves. Towards this end, he developed for his monks on Mt. Hiei a program of twelve years of secluded study and practice of Tendai teachings. How can Dengyō Daishi’s will be put into practice in the present society? The Tendai Denomination today is developing various campaigns and activities to follow in his footsteps.

The campaign for administering the Endon-Bosatsu (Perfect-Sudden Bodhisattva) precepts

The Endon-Bosatsu precepts are the Mahāyāna precepts for the salvation all sentient beings. The most important ideals of the Endon-Bosatsu precepts are the three ideals of a bodhisattva called Sanju-jōkai (the three collections of pure precepts). Specifically, these are the Shō-ritsugi-kai (not to do any evil deeds), the Shō-zenhō-kai (to practice all virtuous deeds), and the Shō-shujō-kai (to work for the happiness of others). The ritual for conferring the Endon-Bosatsu precepts is a sacred ceremony in which one receives the precepts from the Buddhas directly. Anyone can become aware of their Buddha-nature through receiving the precepts from the Buddhas. Dengyō Daishi vowed to introduce this ceremony to Japan and to propagate the spirit of the Mahāyāna ideals throughout this world. Anyone can be a genuine disciple of the Buddha by receiving these precepts and then engaging in the practices of a bodhisattva by seeking to work for others with a merciful heart. Today, the ceremony for conferring the Endon-Bosatsu precepts is held throughout the country in commemoration of the 1,200th anniversary of the founding of the Tendai Denomination.

The Ichigū-wo-Terasu (Light Up Your Corner) Movement

The Light Up Your Corner Movement, is one of several projects for Buddhist edification in which all human beings are asked to endeavor to be a person who, through their bodhisattva practices, lights up their corner of the world. This movement is based on the following words of Dengyō Daishi which appeared in the beginning of his work the Sange-gakushō-shiki (Rokujō-shiki): “What is the treasure of a nation? The treasure is a strong will to achieve enlightenment. Thus those who have this religious nature are the true treasure of a nation. A wise man of olden times said that ten large peals are not the treasure of a nation, but he who lights up a corner of a nation is the true treasure of a nation.”

Let us endeavor to be the treasure of a nation shining in the world by receiving the Endon Bosatsu precepts! Let us make lights of our minds by being awakened to our own Buddha-nature!

The Light Up Your Corner Movement has three main objectives: Life (let us thank to all living beings!), Service (let us practice, with gratitude, one’s services for others with the spirit of fuse [offering] and the ideal of freedom!), and Coexisting (let us live gently with the earth!). Concretely, the followings are the activities of this movement: (1) supporting the work of UNICEF, (2) supporting the work of the Duang Prateep Foundation which is registered as an NGO in Thailand, (3) supporting the building and keeping of the children’s house by the Pannya-Metta Association which is registered as an NGO in India, (4) building schools in remote places where few or no schools exist in Laos P.D.R., (5) assisting with domestic disaster relief and support operations, (6) supporting programs to provide educational opportunities for low-income children, (7) carrying out street-level fund-raising campaigns in all parts of Japan, (8) promoting the hand copying of sūtras, and (9) the Light Up Your Corner Day which is to practice something individually in line with the three goals of this movement on the 4th of every month.

Interfaith dialogue between the religions of the world

Today, there still exist many conflicts around the world that stem from religion, ethnic identity, etc. Our Tendai Denomination’s basic ideal is that “Anyone who has compassion in their mind is the same as a Buddha.” This is the firm belief that all sentient beings are the children of the Buddha even if our nationality, ethnicity, race, religion, culture, thinking or sexuality are different each other.

Based on this belief, on the 3rd and 4th of August 1987, on the occasion of celebrating the 1,200th anniversary of founding the Hieizanji Temple on Mt. Hiei, the “Religious Summit Meeting on Mt. Hiei” was held. Representatives of religions from around the world, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Islamic, Hindu, Sikh, Baha’i, and Buddhist gathered on Mt. Hiei to pray for world peace and promote mutual understanding. This was done in keeping with the spirit of “the Day of the Prayer for World Peace” held in Assisi, Italy. On this occasion, “The First Mt. Hiei Message” was adopted.

Excerpts of a Message from Mt. Hiei
Since we held the Religious Summit Meeting on Mt. Hiei, the Interreligious Gathering of Prayer for World Peace has been held on August 4 annually.