What is 十仏名 (Ju-butsumyo)?: Resonating with Buddhas and Bodhisattvas through Zen Buddhist Chanting

十仏名 (Ju-Butsumyo): A Chanting Practice to Become a Buddha or Bodhisattva Yourself

Key Point: In Zen, people aim to become Buddhas and Bodhisattvas themselves.

What is 十仏名 (Ju-Butsumyo)?: It is a chanting practice that recites ten Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and teachings

十仏名 (Ju-Butsumyo) is a chanting practice that recites ten Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and teachings. It is chanted at funerals. It is also chanted in Zen training halls during meals in the zendo and during chanting services. The pronunciation used in Japan today comes from the Song Dynasty of China. For this reason, these words may sound unusual to Japanese people. This is because Chinese characters had already been introduced to Japan by the time Zen Buddhism came to Japan(Reference: How Kanji Characters Are Pronounced (this blog)).

Ju-Butsumyo is usually chanted without a melody. However, this version is chanted with a melody. This style is very rare. I plan to publish the usual version without a melody together with other sutras in the future.

• The Pure Dharmakaya Vairocana Buddha (毘盧舎那仏): Purity means a state without desires or attachments. Dharmakaya means the universal truth of the universe itself. Vairocana Buddha is the Buddha who represents that universal truth.
• The Perfect Sambhogakaya Rocana Buddha (盧遮那仏): Perfection means a state in which practice and merit are fully completed. Sambhogakaya means the body gained through the results of practice. Rocana Buddha is the form in which immeasurable merit shines brightly.
• The Sakyamuni (釈迦牟尼仏) Buddha, the Transformation Body of Hundreds of Billions: A transformation body means appearing in countless forms according to the abilities and situations of living beings. Sakyamuni Buddha is the manifestation of Rocana Buddha and Vairocana Buddha in the human world.
• The Venerable Maitreya Buddha (弥勒尊仏), Who Will Descend in the Future: To descend in the future means to come down to this world in a future age. Maitreya Buddha continues practice in a heavenly realm and will bring future salvation.
• All Buddhas of the Ten Directions and the Three Times (十方三世諸仏): The Ten Directions means all directions of the universe, including east, west, south, north, the four intermediate directions, above, and below. The Three Times means the past, present, and future. All Buddhas refers to the countless Buddhas who fill all space and time.
• The Mahayana Lotus Sutra (妙法蓮華経): Mahayana is a teaching that places importance on helping others. The Lotus Sutra is a scripture that teaches that all beings can become Buddhas and live in society while following this path.
• The Great Sage Manjusri Bodhisattva (文殊師利菩薩): A great sage is one who has removed all delusion. Manjusri Bodhisattva represents the perfection of wisdom.
• The Great Practice Samantabhadra Bodhisattva (普賢菩薩): Great practice means continuing good actions without stopping. Samantabhadra Bodhisattva represents the practice of wisdom.
• The Great Compassion Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva (観世音菩薩): Great compassion means the wish to remove the suffering of others. Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva hears the suffering of living beings, shares it, and tries every possible way to help them.
• All Noble Mahasattva Bodhisattvas (菩薩): These are the Bodhisattvas who embody the ideal of Mahayana Buddhism and carry out great practices for the benefit of all beings.
• The Great Prajna Paramita: Prajna Paramita is the ultimate wisdom that leads to enlightenment (般若波羅蜜).

Ju-Butsumyo can be divided into two parts.

Part One: Reciting the Buddhas

Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and Nirmanakaya (Transformation Body) are together called the Three Bodies. They are used to describe the body of a Buddha.

As an example, Dharmakaya is the thing itself. Sambhogakaya is its light or appearance. Nirmanakaya is the effect that comes from that light. We can use the sun as an example. If the sun is Dharmakaya, its light is Sambhogakaya. The warmth that the sunlight gives to people is Nirmanakaya.

Rocana Buddha and Vairocana Buddha are symbolic beings. Shakyamuni Buddha appeared in the real world as a historical person. Maitreya Buddha does not yet exist in the world in this form. However, he has the potential to appear in the world as Shakyamuni Buddha did. There are countless Buddhas who have attained enlightenment.

Part Two: Reciting the Bodhisattvas

Here, the Lotus Sutra appears. In general, the Lotus Sutra teaches that all beings can become Buddhas. It is a sutra that teaches salvation while living in society.

Then, Bodhisattvas appear. They work for the salvation of people instead of becoming Buddhas immediately. A Bodhisattva is a being who continues practice and puts the salvation of others before personal enlightenment. Manjushri Bodhisattva cuts through delusion with wisdom. Samantabhadra Bodhisattva puts wisdom into practice through good actions. Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva tries to save people by every possible means. However, Zen does not always view Bodhisattvas in this way. In Zen, a Bodhisattva is also oneself.

I understand Ju-Butsumyo not only as a chanting practice for praying to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. I also see it as a chanting practice for resonating with them and embodying their way of life through my own practice. This chanting ends by praising the many Bodhisattvas who possess wisdom, cross the world of delusion, and bring their practice to completion.

The Core

• In Zen, it is important to embody Buddhas and Bodhisattvas through one’s own practice.
• I see Ju-Butsumyo as a vow to become a Buddha or Bodhisattva oneself.
• Ju-Butsumyo is a chanting practice that recites ten Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and teachings.

My Experience: The Tension Between Zen and the Lotus Sutra

Key Point: I feel a tension between Zen practice and the Lotus Sutra, yet Zen Buddhism continues to chant and praise the Lotus Sutra. I believe that Zen and other Buddhist schools may understand the Lotus Sutra in different ways.

Mahayana Buddhism places importance on seeking enlightenment together with others in society. It focuses on the salvation of other people. The Lotus Sutra is one of the best-known teachings about this ideal of salvation. However, Zen places strong emphasis on attaining enlightenment through one’s own practice and effort. Because of this, I feel that this way of thinking is in tension with the Lotus Sutra.

Even so, Zen training halls chant the Lotus Sutra. They also praise it in chants such as Ju-Butsumyo. Why is this so? Why does the Shobogenzo: Ango by Dogen remove the part about 大乗妙法蓮華経(The Lotus Sutra)? I have long had questions about the Lotus Sutra. I think that Zen and other Buddhist schools may read and understand the Lotus Sutra in different ways. I hope to find an opportunity to study this subject more deeply in the future (Reference: Dogen (1926). Shobogenzo: Ango [Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Summer Retreat]. Komeisha.).