Issues | Buddhism | sgi | Ikeda | Nikken | Yamazaki
Nichiren writes:
The Buddha and Devadatta are like a form and its shadow-in lifetime after lifetime, they are never separated. Prince Shotoku and his archenemy Moriya appeared at the same time, like the blossom and the calyx of the lotus. If there exists a votary of the Lotus Sutra, then the three types of enemies are bound to exist as well.1
Nichiren refers to the Lotus Sutra, which in turn refers to a character from Buddhist lore and Legend named Devadatta. To too many of us, the "Devadatta" archetype is as real as yesterdays paper. Devadatta was the enemy of the Buddha who tried to oppose Shakyamuni and caused suffering for those he touched. For some people, "devadatta" is also their enemy of choice. They think of the "devil" as a real entity and imagine him possessing their opponants like the "devil" in the story the "Exorcist." If only evil were that easy to identify or that easy to fight!
But the truth is, that the only real enemy of the Buddha is "Fundamental Darkness". The Buddha never really saw Devadatta as much of an opponant individually. Indeed, the Sutras and legends teach a lot of different versions of the story of Devadatta, but in none of them does it ever show that the Buddha ever reacted much personally from him. Yet "Personal" approaches abound in Buddhist circles.
There are various stories of who Devadatta was. Most of the stories agree on the essentials. According to one version of the story 2
Devadatta, was "the son of Suprabuddha, the Shakyan noble who had been swallowed by the earth in Kapilavistu. Devadatta's mother was an aunt of the Buddha's. He was thus both the Blessed One's cousin and his brother-in-law."
According to another he was the son of King Dronadana (this could be a translation thing)3
Nagarjuna's version of the story goes on:4
This principle (that affection for offerings endangers the spirital life) is exemplified by a case which began when the Buddha first roamed to the state of Kapilavastu. He went together with 1,250 bhikshus, all of whom had the physical appearance of brahmacaarins. Because they had previously been involved in making offerings to fire, their form and appearance were haggard. Because they had previously been engaged in the ascetic practice of fasting, their skin and flesh were emaciated and black. King Shuddhodana thought to himself,
"Although my son's retinue is pure in mind and pure in conduct they are utterly lacking as regards their appearance. I should select from among those families with many sons and grandsons and have each send one man to be a disciple of the Buddha."After he had this thought he issued an edict throughout the country so as to be able to select from among the sons of the Shakyan nobility. Those who came forth in response to the official declaration were all ordered to leave the home life.
Devadatta appears to have been a cousin of Shakyamuni's, who entered into Religion along with Shakyamuni's relatives. Ananda appears to have been one of his relatives as well.
Cherab Kodzin Kohn recounts5:
It will be recalled that he entered homelessness along with the Shakyan princes who came to the Buddha with their barber, Upali. Unlike the others, he had never attained any of the stages of realization. Nevertheless, he was genial and charming and an exemplary bhikshu, a well-liked person with an extensive following within the Sangha. Moreover, though unable to attain a clear vision of dependent arising and the Four Noble Truths, he had become proficient in the exercise of supernormal powers.
All of the versions of the story agree that Devadattas human flaws coupled with a desire for fame and later for revenge, were his undoing. But initially he at least appeared to be sincere in studying Buddhism. Nagarjuna's version of the story puts it this way that he:
..."studied the Way and memorized the 60,000-section Dharma collection. He was vigorous in his cultivation for a full twelve years. Afterwards, for the sake of the benefit of offerings, he came to the place where the Buddha was and sought to study the superknowledges (abhij~naa). The Buddha told him,
"Gautama, if you contemplate the impermanence of the five aggregates you can succeed in gaining the Way and will also gain the superknowledges."6Nagarjuna's version of the story says that the Buddha wouldn't instruct him in the meaning of the "superknowledges" until he had mastered the "five aggregates." Charles Patton has a nice web page with a description of these aggregates at this location. Basically they are the elements (Skandhas) of human existence: "material organism (ruupa); sensation (vedanaa); conception (sa~nj~naa); volition (sam.skaara); and consciousness (vij~nana).7"
By not mastering the "five Skandas" Devadatta was also not mastering his "mind." If you look at the root of crazy or bad behavior, in all cases it is generally caused by people who are not in control of their desires, suffering from delusions, and are thus living lives of unbridled selfishness and delusion. Nagarjuna is thus telling us that had Devadatta mastered the five skandhas before seeking the "superknowledges" he might not have developed the sort of arrogance and presumption that later led to his downfall. The other versions of the story give differing reasons for Devadatta's errors but they amount to the same thing.
Continuing Nagarjna's version of the the story,8
Once, when he was meditating along in retreat, with no apparent antecedent the idea arose in him of gaining fame and power. Instead of letting the idea pass by, Devadatta nurtured it and began to scheme how he might achieve this goal. He hit upon the idea of winning the devotion of Prince Ajatashatru, King Bimbisara's son and heir. So he took the form of a naked child garlanded about with coiling snakes and appeared in Prince Ajatashatru's lap. The prince was struck with mortal terror, but Devadatta spoke to him soothingly. "Calm yourself, my prince," he said "Do you know who I am? I am Devadatta." Then he showed himself in his own form, wearing his robes and carrying his begging bowl.
The astonished prince conceived a kind of worship for Devadatta. He attended daily upon the ambitious monk and had him lavishly supplied with the finest food, which was carried to him by trains of richly liveried servants. With the prince making this great show of discipleship, Devadatta quickly grew in fame and prestige among the people of Rajagriha. He gloried in this new power, and even greater ambitions came to process his mind. He thought now of displacing the Buddha and taking over for himself the leadership of the Sangha.
The story of Devadatta takes on different forms, but in all the versions I have read, he journeys to Rajagriha and teaches Dharma there, seeking to convince the people there that he was equal to Shakyamuni.
But Nagarjuna says:
But as these thoughts took shape in Devadatta's mind and firmed into an intention, his supernormal powers vanished as though as they had never been.According to a more traditional version9:
Soon afterwards the Blessed One himself came to Rajagaha and stayed at the Veluvana vihara. Devadatta called on the Blessed One, requesting him to sanction his rules of greater stringency, by which a greater holiness might be procured.
"The body," he said, consists of its thirty-two parts and has no divine attributes. It is conceived in sin and born in corruption. Its attributes are liability to pain and dissolution, for it is impermanent. It is the receptacle of karma which is the curse of our former existences; it is the dwelling place of sin and diseases and its organs constantly discharge disgusting secretions. Its end is death and its goal the charnel house. Such being the condition of the body it behooves us to treat it as a carcass full of abomination and to clothe it in such rags only as have been gathered in cemeteries or upon dung-hills."
The Blessed One said:
"Truly, the body is full of impurity and its end is the charnel house, for it is impermanent and destined to be dissolved into its elements. But being the receptacle of karma, it lies in our power to make it a vessel of truth and not of evil. It is not good to indulge in the pleasures of the body, but neither is it good to neglect our bodily needs and to heap filth upon impurities. The lamp that is not cleansed and not filled with oil will be extinguished, and a body that is unkempt, unwashed, and weakened by penance will not be a fit receptacle for the light of truth. Attend to your body and its needs as you would treat a wound which you care for without loving it. Severe rules will not lead the disciples on the middle path which I have taught. Certainly, no one can be prevented from keeping more stringent rules, if he sees fit to do so but they should not be imposed upon any one, for they are unnecessary."To me the point of these stories is to demonstrate the difference between genuine wisdom about impermanence, and a negative (nihilist) worldview. Even in Theravada teachings, Buddhism was never a nihilist religion, though to outside observers or people who really hadn't done the "work" of internal liberation thoroughly it would seem so. It is simply the observation that the world is real, that our part in it is limited, and that our very consciousness is informed by illusions growing out of our limited existence. For Devadatta, the body seemed an "abomination" and with that view the tendancy would be to either totally debase it, or to revel in such debauchery. By not meditating and mastering the "Five Skandhas" people are failing to detach themselves from their delusory attitudes. For such people their knowledge of spiritual things is still not completely liberating.
The narrative continues:
Thus the Tathagata refused Devadatta's proposal; and Devadatta left the Buddha and went into the vihara speaking evil of the Lord's path of salvation as too lenient and altogether insufficient. When the Blessed One heard of Devadatta's intrigues, he said:
"Among men there is no one who is not blamed. People blame him who sits silent and him who speaks, they also blame the man who preaches the middle path."Now this seems to have been one of the incidents that occured during the time when Devadatta was trying to build his own group. In another version of the story Devadatta lost his transcendent powers after trying to use them to impress prince Sudarsana. In that story, Sudarsana says10:
..."Venerable master, I would like to see the mandarava blossom."
Upon hearing these words, Devadatta immediately ascended to the Heaven of Thirty-three Devas and sought a blossom from the devas. But because his good merit had been exhausted, there was none who could give him one.
Still unable to obtain the flower, he considered,
"The mandarava has no sense of 'I' or 'mine'; there will surely be no crime in picking one myself."As he went to pick a blossom, he immediately lost his transcendent powers, and when he came to himself, he was back in Rajagrha. Full of shame, he found it impossible to see Prince Sudarsana again.
Further, he thought,
"I will go to the Tathagata now and ask for the sangha. If the Buddha commits it to me, I will give instruction as I please and make Sariputra and the others obey me."11
Shakyamuni Rebukes Devadatta
In one version of the story, told in the first person:
Then Devadatta came to me and said,
"I ask, O Tathagata, that you entrust the sangha to me. I will instruct them in the many teachings, convert them, and make them discipline themselves."I replied to the foolish man,
"Sariputra and the others have heard the great wisdom, and they are trusted and venerated by the world. Still, I would not give them charge of the sangha. Much less, then, would I entrust it to an abject fool and lickspittle like you."The version of this story quoted by Shinran has the Buddha saying harsh things to Devadatta. In other versions he is less direct. What seems to have happened is that Devadatta thought he was qualified to lead the Sangha. In another version of the same story Devadatta is said to have said:
"The Blessed One is now old, aged, advanced in years, in the last stage of life, nearing the end. The Blessed One should rest now. The Blessed One should have respite from his work and spend his days in blissful contemplation of the Dharma. For that reason, let the Blessed One hand over leadership of the Sangha to me. I will lead the Sangha well."
The Buddha replied
"Abandon this idea, Devadatta," said the Buddha. "Do not aspire to lead the Sangha."One sourceDevadatta ignored the Buddha's answer and loudly repeated his own words. The Buddha met them with the same response. Yet a third time Devadatta uttered his brazen formula. A third time the Buddha replied,
"I would not give over the leadership of the Sangha even to the great bhikshus Shariputra and Maudgalyayana. Why then would I give it over to you, who are like sounding bad-tasting in the mouth that needs to be spit out?"11This was a bitter humiliation for Devadatta. The Buddha had praised Shariputra and Maudgalyayana and degraded him in the same breath. Yet he preserved the appearance of respect for the Tathagata by bowing to him with palms together and turning his right side in departing.
All versions of the story pretty much agree that it was all downhill from there. The version quoted by Shinran says next:
Then Devadatta all the more conceived evil intentions against me, and said, "Gautama, now you lead the sangha, but your strength will not last long. It will fade and disintegrate before my eyes."
According to the Mahayana version of the story it was after his efforts to take over the Sangha from within were rebuked that he began to encourage the King Ajatashatru to actually try to kill the Buddha.
Nichiren writes:
Devadatta felt as though a poison arrow had been shot into his breast, and he cried out in anger, declaring, "Gautama is no Buddha! I am the eldest son of King Dronodana, the elder brother of the Venerable Ananda and kin to Gautama. No matter what kind of evil conduct I might be guilty of, he ought to admonish me in private for it. But to publicly and outrageously accuse me of faults in front of this great assembly of human and heavenly beings � is this the behavior appropriate to a great man or a Buddha? He showed himself to be my enemy in the past when he stole the woman I intended to marry,153 and he has shown himself my enemy at this gathering today. From this day forward, I will look upon him as my archenemy for lifetime after lifetime and age after age to come!"11After that incident (or before, the accounts vary) Devadatta turned the prince Ajatashatru into an enemy of his own father, King Bimbisara. He then tried to kill the Buddha, evidently seeking to take over the Sangha from him by this means. When he tried to have the king kill the Buddha this is one version of what happened:
The new king listened to the evil advice of Devadatta, and he gave orders to take the life of the Tathagata. However, the murderers sent out to kill the Lord could not perform their wicked deed, and became converted as soon as they saw him and listened to his preaching. The rock hurled down from a precipice upon the great Master split in twain, and the two pieces passed by on either side without doing any harm. Nalagiri, the wild elephant let loose to destroy the Lord, became gentle in his presence; and Ajatasattu, suffering greatly from the pangs of his conscience, went to the Blessed One and sought peace in his distress.12
According to one beautiful version of what happened with the Elephant, the Buddha calmed the upset and angry elephant with loving kindness:
....The Buddha reached up with his right hand and stroked Nalagiri between the eyes. Then he spoke to him softly in a kind of croon: "O great tusker, do not kill another tusker, a bull elephant, a tathagata. Such an act would bring you an endless destiny of unhappiness. Give up your conceit and madness, great elephant. Tread the path that will bring you future happiness." After the Buddha had spoken to him for a few moments in this way, Nalagiri gathered up dust from about the Tathagata's feet with his trunk and placed it on top of his own head. Then he withdrew, walking backward. Only far down the street did he turn and trot back to the stable. There he stood peacefully in his stall.
Soon a jingle was waking the rounds of the streets:
- Some tamers tame with whips,
- With sticks and goads others go,
- But the Buddha has a tusker tamed
- And never struck a blow.
Anyone who has seen the movie the "Horsewhisperer" knows that this story might even be literally true.13 In the Mahayana version of the story Nalagiri becomes an entire herd of Elephants. But I like this version of the story because it is closer to the notion of what a "true Buddha" should be like than a hero with magical powers. I also like this story because of a connection with another story about Shakyamuni leaving a dispute between groups within the Sangha to live with Nalagiri and the rest of his herd in a forest.(see elephant) In Nichiren's version of the story (From the Gosho "The Workings of Bonten and Taishaku":
A king named Bimbisara was a wise ruler and the greatest patron of the Buddha within the continent of Jambudvipa. Moreover, he reigned over Magadha, the state where the Buddha intended to preach the Lotus Sutra. Since the king and the Buddha were thus united in mind, it seemed certain that the Lotus Sutra would be expounded in Magadha. A man named Devadatta wished to prevent this by any means possible, but all his attempts ended in failure. After much thought, he spent several years befriending King Bimbisara�s son, Prince Ajatashatru, and gradually obtained his confidence. Then he set out to estrange father and son. He deceived the prince into killing his own father, King Bimbisara.
Now that Ajatashatru, the new king, had become of the same mind as Devadatta and the two had banded together, Brahmans and evil people from all five regions of India swarmed like clouds or mist gathering into Magadha. Ajatashatru flattered them and won them over by giving them land and treasures. Thus the king of the state became an archenemy of the Buddha.
Seeing this, the Devil of the Sixth Heaven, who dwells atop the world of desire, descended with his innumerable minions to Magadha and possessed the bodies of Devadatta, Ajatashatru and the six ministers. Therefore, although these people were human in appearance, they wielded the power of the Devil of the Sixth Heaven. They were more boisterous, frightful and alarming than a high wind flattening the grasses and trees, a gale agitating the surface of the sea, a great temblor jolting the earth, or a conflagration devouring one house after another.Workings of Bonten and Taishaku
As you can see, this story has been reworked by many on the basis of metahorical, allegorical and also "reading into" methods (See pardes.html for more on this subject).
Next Devadatta is said to have attempted to waylay the Buddha with a large boulder. According to one version of the story, after the attack with a boulder which hurt the Buddha's foot, the Buddha confronted him with his intention and he admitted to intentionally dividing the sangha. At that time the Buddha said:
"Creating a schism in the Sangha is a very grave thing," he told him, "but reuniting it brings much merit."
When all that failed, Devadatta, who must have maintained the pretense of being the Buddha's genuine disciple up until the moment when he was rebuked by him, or perhaps even after, recruited 500 disciples. According to most legends it was over the above "issue" of the appropriate rules for disciples. Devadatta convinced "newbies" who were naive about Buddhism that his strict rules were better than those of his mentor. The Buddha and his other disciples were worried about these people. So Maudgalyana and Shariputra went to visit Devadatta in order to deal with the situation.
When the two great disciples of the Buddha arrived in Gayashirsha, Devadatta was sitting teaching the doctrine to the full assembly of his followers. He saw the two foremost disciples of the Buddha coming and said to those around him,
"See there. I have proclaimed the Dharma well. Even Shariputra and Maudgalyayana have come to join us."Devadatta's chief advisor bent over to whisper in his ear.
"Send them away, lord. Their intentions toward us are evil.""Abandon such cowardly thoughts, my friend," Devadatta replied. "Welcome them, for they have come to support my doctrine and leadership."
When the two disciples were in speaking range, Devadatta called out to Shariputra and invited him to come forward and share his seat. Shariputra politely declined. The two disciples sat down off to one side. Then Devadatta resumed his teaching. He talked long into the night, occasionally making use of one or another of the Buddha's characteristic gestures, and he waxed eloquent on various details of the doctrine. Sometime after the beginning of the second watch, he paused in his teaching and spoke to the Buddha's disciple.
"Shariputra," he said, "the Sangha is still free from fatigue and drowsiness. Perhaps some words of Dharma might come to your mind. I have some pain in my back, so I will rest awhile.""As you say, friend," said Shariputra.
Then Devadatta folded his outer robe in four and lay down on his right side in the lion's pose, with one hand under his head and one foot slightly overlapping the other. But Devadatta was tired. His attention lapsed, and he fell fast asleep. Shariputra began teaching the assembly, giving progressive instruction. With his subtle perception of the real meaning behind the words of teaching, he was able to speak a direct message that removed the veils from the understanding of the new bhikshus. After he had taught them for a time, Maudgalyayana took the teacher's seat and taught them in his turn. Easily reading the minds of the assembled, he attuned his message to what they were thinking. Before the end of the second watch, between the two of them, the two great disciples were able to bring most of those five hundred new bhikshus to a pure vision of the Dharma in which they saw that whatever is subject to arising is subject to cessation. Then the two disciples of the Buddha stood up, and Shariputra said,
"We are returning now to the Blessed One. Let all those who are follower's of the Buddha's Dharma come with us."Then the whole assembly joined Shariputra and Maudgalyayana without hesitation, and they followed them to the Venuvana where the Buddha was staying.14
Retaliation and Revenge
Apparantly after this, Devadatta retaliated directly against Shariputra and Maudgalyana. Though the Mahayana Sutras have them present at the Lotus Sutra after these events were over, other accounts show that they were later murdered. Whether directly or indirectly the accounts say they were murdered as part of a persecution, more than likely instigated with the blessing of King Ajatashatru and Devadatta. Ajatashatru didn't repent until after Devadatta's death and continued to persecute the Buddha. The Nirvana sutra concerns itself with him. He even incited a rival clan of the Shakya's, under the king "Virudhaka" to try to commit Genocide against the Shakya clan. As Nichiren says (in the same Gosho Workings of Bonten):
A king named Virudhaka, incited by Ajatashatru, put hundreds of people of Shakyamuni Buddha�s clan to the sword. King Ajatashatru unleashed a herd of drunken elephants and let them trample to death countless disciples of the Buddha. He also had many other disciples killed by concealing his soldiers in ambush at the roadside, defiling well water with excrement, or persuading women to bring false charges against them. Shariputra and Maudgalyayana were severely persecuted. Kalodayin was buried in horse dung. The Buddha was forced to survive for ninety days, one whole summer, on horse fodder.
Devadatta's arrogance and hubris had caused him to fail to realize that his "pretense" could not be the same thing as that of the real thing. The point is made when Devadatta is described as:
Devadatta's body possessed thirty of the marks of a great man and yet he was unable to resist and overcome his own mind. For the sake of the benefits of offerings he created great offenses and entered the hells while still alive. It is for this reason that it is said that the wounds inflicted by offerings go deep, breaking through the skin and reaching to the marrow.15
The Buddha explains the reason for Devadatta's "fall into hell" as follows:
After that the Blessed One addressed the assembled Sangha:
"Once, bhikshus, there were some elephants living near a big poad in a forest. They would go into the pond and pull up lotus stalks with their trunks; and when they had washed them quite clean, they could chew them up and swallow them free from mud. That was good for both their looks and their health, and they incurred no death or deadly suffering because of that. Then some young calves, uninstructed by those elephants, went into the pond and pulled up lotus stalks with their trunks; but instead of washing them quite clean, they chewed them up and swallowed them along with the mud. That was not good for either their looks or their health, and they incurred death and deadly suffering because of that. So too, bhikshus, Devadatta will die miserably through imitating me."16
- "Aping me wretchedly he dies
- Like the calf that also eats the mud
- Trying to copy the Tusker eating lotus
- Watchful in the river
- Shaking off soil."
Devadatta grew sick after his disciples departed. According to all versions of the story he then asked to be reconciled to the Buddha. According to one version of the story he had grown so evil that he sought to poison him with a handshake. According to another version he repented, but it was too late for him. In any case all the stories agree that he died enroute. One story describes him stepping off of his palanquin in impatience. All of them describe his fall into the hell of Incessent suffering
President Ikeda recounts this story:
"Once there was a poor man in the state of Haranasshi, which is near present day Benares in the middle reaches of the Ganges River (North- Central India). He eked out a meager existence as a wood-cutter."
"One day he was cutting down a tree when along came a Tiger. He ran away frantically and then in his great fear climbed a tree in haste. Taking a deep breath he looked up and there was a bear in the tree with him! He turned pale and began to tremble. The bear had a kind soul and took pity on him and said "You don't have to be afraid of me." Out of compassion the bear actually held the woodcutter and took him to an even safer place near the top of the tree."
"Looking up the Tiger shouted at the bear, 'that man is an ungrateful human. Even if you bother to help him, he will cause you trouble in the end! Why do you protect him? Throw him down. I won't leave here until I've eaten him anyway.'"
"The Bear refused to leave. 'I refuse to abandon anybody who comes to me for help.'"
"Despite these words the Tiger refused to give up. He waited patiently at the bottom of the tree with his empty stomach growling. After a while the Bear said to the wood cutter. 'I'm exhausted from holding you, I need to sleep now. While I'm sleeping please keep watch.'"
"The bear fell asleep, still thinking of how to get the both of them out of their predicament. No sooner than he was asleep the Tiger shouted to the Human, "Hey, Human! You don't know how long you can stay at the top of the tree. Push the bear off so I can eat him. Then I'll spare you. I will let you go home.'"
"Listening to the Tiger's suggestions, the woodcutter thought, 'Indeed the Tiger might be right. I really don't know how long I can stay here. It's clever to look to my own safety.' He pushed the bear out of the tree. The Tiger ate the bear and left."
"However the woodcutter eventually went crazy. Why? He definately deviated from the solemn law of life....The Buddha explained that the woodcutter was Devadatta in a past life and he was the Bear."
Ikeda went on to observe that "Shakyamuni repeatedly taught his disciples about such Karmic relationships. He showed how ingratitude was deeply rooted in the life of Devadatta. Furthermore he serenely talked about his endless journey of Buddhist Practice." Shakyamuni used these stories not to slam or demean Devadatta, but to illustrate the Buddhist truths of Causality, dependent origination, and "emptiness."17
At that time the Buddha addressed the bodhisattvas, the heavenly and human beings, and the four kinds of believers saying:
"Immeasurable kalpas in the past, I sought the Lotus Sutra without ever flagging. During those many kalpas, I constantly appeared as the ruler of a kingdom who made a vow to seek the unsurpassed bodhi. His mind never wavered or turned aside, and in his desire to fulfill the six paramitas he diligently distributed alms, never stinting in heart, whether the gift was elephants or horses, the seven rare articles, countries, cities, wife, children, maidservants, or his own head, eyes, marrow and brain, his own flesh and limbs. He did not begrudge even his own being and life. At that period the human life span was immeasurably long. But for the sake of the Law this king abandoned his kingdom and throne, delegated the government to the crown prince, sounded drums and sent out proclamations, seeking the Law in four directions and saying,'Who can expound the Great Vehicle for me? To the end of my life I will be his provider and servant!'""At that time there was a seer who came to the king and said,
"I have a Great Vehicle text called the Sutra of the Wonderful Law. If you will never disobey me, I will expound it for you.'"When the king heard these words of the seer, he danced for joy. At once he accompanied the seer, providing him with whatever he needed, picking fruit, drawing water, gathering firewood, setting out meals, even offering his own body as a couch and seat, never stinting in body or mind. He served the seer in this manner for a thousand years, all for the sake of the Law, working diligently acting as a provider and seeing to it that the seer lacked for nothing."
http://www.sgi-usa.org/buddhism/library/Buddhism/LotusSutra/text/Chap12.htm
He then repeats the same story in verse form, and says:
"The king at that time was I myself, and this seer was the man who is now Devadatta. All because Devadatta was a good friend to me, I was able to become fully endowed with this six paramitas, pity, compassion, joy, and indifference, with the thirty-two features, the eighty characteristics, the purple-tinged golden color, the ten powers, the four kinds of fearlessness, the four methods of winning people, the eighteen unshared properties, and the transcendental powers and the power of the way. The fact that I have attained impartial and correct enlightenment and can save living beings on a broad scale is all due to Devadatta who was a good friend."
Then the Buddha said to the four kinds of believers:
"Devadatta, after immeasurable kalpas have past, will attain Buddhahood. He will be called Heavenly King Thus Come One, worthy of offerings of right and universal knowledge, perfect parity and conduct, well gone, understanding the world, on itself worthy, trainer of people, teacher of heavenly and human beings, Buddha, World-Honored One. This world will be called Heavenly Way, and at the same time Heavenly King Buddha will abide in the world for twenty medium kalpas, broadly preaching the Wonderful Law for the sake of living beings. Living beings numerous as Ganges sands will attain the fruit of arhatship. Immeasurable numbers of living beings will conceive that desire to become pratyekabuddhas, living beings numerous as Ganges sands will conceive a desire for the unsurpassed way, will gain that truth of birthless-ness, and will never regress. After Heavenly King Buddha enters parinirvana, his Correct Law will endure in the world for twenty medium kalpas. The relics from his whole body will be housed in a tower built of the seven treasures, sixty yojanas in height and forty yojanas in width and depth. All the heavenly and human beings will take assorted flowers, powdered incense, incense for burning, paste incense, clothing, necklaces, steamers and banners, jeweled canopies, music and songs of praise that offer them with obeisance to the wonderful seven- jeweled tower. Immeasurable numbers of living beings will attain the fruits of arhatship, numerous living beings will become enlightened as pratyekabuddhas, and unimaginable numbers of living beings will conceive a desire for bodhi and will in reach the level of no regression."The Buddha said to the monks:
"In future ages if there are good men or good women who, on hearing the Devadatta Chapter of the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law, believe and revere it with pure hearts and harbor no doubts or perplexities, they will never fall into hell or the realm of hungry spirits or of beasts, but will be born in the presence of the Buddhas of the ten directions, and in the place where they are born they will constantly hear this sutra. If they are born among human or heavenly beings, they will enjoy exceedingly wonderful delights, and if they are born in the presence of the Buddha, they will be born by transformation from lotus flowers."From this passage of the Lotus Sutra comes the notion that even men of evil can achieve enlightenment, which is part of the wonderful notion of Ichinen Sanzen, which teaches that all living states and beings interpolate and that "transmigration" occurs constantly and before our very eyes.
The founder of Nichiren Buddhism saw parrallels between the behavior of Devadatta and his own disciple Sanmibo Nichijo and others who turned against him at Atsuhara. He often explained his own situation using the simile of Devadatta's actions. He taught that Devadatta's real purpose was to try to prevent the exposition of the Lotus Sutra and thus by "inverse relationship" to help the Buddha teach teachings that lead up to it. If you look at it his point was that the Buddha didn't teach the Lotus Sutra until after Devadatta died, and part of the reason is that he couldn't teach the enlightenment of Devadatta without Devadatta's example.
The Gakkai and Nichiren Shoshu have traded barbs, each personalizing their conflict, insisting that the leaders of it's opponent group are representatives of the King Devil of the Sixth Heaven. Thus for Nikken Shonin leader of nst Ikeda is a Devadatta type character. And for Ikeda,
Yet as you can see from the story as it is told by most Buddhist. A true Buddhist shouldn't have much to fear from the Devadatta's of the world. On the other hand, people both within and outside of organizations are often driven by the motives of revenge, anger, jealousy, or rivalry -- which stem from the three poisons of hunger, stupidity, and anger. For more on this visit the page yamazaki.html. The Devadatta's of the world are only to be feared because of the political power they wield, and dealing with that allows us to transform ourselves and the world around us.