Good Medicine

Reverend Koho Takata

I would like to share with you one of stories in the Lotus Sutra.  There was a skilled physician who was wise and understanding and knew how to compound medicines to effectively cure all kinds of diseases.  He had many sons, perhaps ten, twenty, or even a hundred.  He went off to some other land far away to see about a certain affair.  After he had gone, the children drank some kind of poison that made them troubled with pain and they fell down to the ground.

At that time, the father returned home and found that his children had drunk poison.  Some were completely out of their minds, while others were not.  Seeing their father from far off, all were overjoyed and kneeled down and pleaded him, saying "How fine that you have returned safely.  We were stupid and by mistake drank some poison.  We beg you to cure us and let us live out our lives!"                            

When the father saw his children suffering like this, he followed various prescriptions.  He gathered fine medical herbs that met all the requirements of color, fragrance, and flavor.  He grinded, shifted, and mixed them together.  He gave a dose of these to his children, and he told them, "This is a highly effective medicine, meeting all the requirements of color, fragrance, and flavor.  Take it and you will quickly be relived of your sufferings and will be free of all illness."

Those children who had not lost their senses could see that this was a good medicine, outstanding in both color and fragrance, so they took it immediately and were completely cured of their sickness.  Those who were out of their minds were equally delighted to see their father returned and begged him to cure their sickness, but when they were given the medicine, they refused to take it.  Why?  Because the poison had penetrated deeply and their minds were no longer functioning as before.  So although the medicine was of excellent color and fragrance, they did not regard it as good.

The father thought to himself, "My poor children.  Because of the poison in them, their minds are completely confused.  Although they are happy to see me and ask me to cure them, they refuse to take this excellent medicine.  I must now resort to some expedient means to induce them to take the medicine."  So he said to them, "You should know that I am now old and worn out, and the time of my death has come.  I will leave this good medicine here.  You should take it and not doubt its efficacy."  Having given these instructions, he then went off to another land, where he sent a messenger home to announce, "Your father is dead."

At that time, the children, hearing that their father had left them and died, were filled with great grief and confusion and thought to themselves, "If our father was alive, he would have pity on us and see that we are protected.  But now he has abandoned us and died in some other country far away.  We have no one to rely on."

Constantly considering such feelings of grief, they at last came to their senses and realized that the medicine was in fact excellent in color, fragrance, and flavor, and so they took it and healed of all the effects of the poison.  The father, hearing that his children were all cured, immediately returned home and appeared to them all once more.  The story ends here.

You may realize that the skilled physician and the father is the same person and he is Syakyamuni Buddha.  This is why he has many sons.  And the good medicine is the teachings of the Shakyamuni Buddha. 

Now, are you a person whether you take the good medicine or refuse to take it when the father gives you?  In other words, are you a person whether you are listening to the teachings of the Buddha or not? 

We always forget to take the good medicine which will be cure our sickness.  This is why we are always suffering with poisons.  We tend to think that the good medicine is like money, fame, health, love, and other kinds of our desires.  We believe that as long as we have those, we can enjoy our life forever.  However, no matter how much we rely upon those things, when the death comes to us, they will not help us at all.  What is the good medicine which will cure our sufferings is the Buddha’s teachings.  This story reminds us of the importance of listening to the teachings of the Buddha.  Let us realize what the good medicine toward the poisons is and make a right effort to listen to the teachings of the Buddha in our daily lives.    

"It is simply Shinjin that is inconceivable, inexplicable, and indescribable.  It is like the medicine that eradicates all poisons.  The medicine of the Tathagata's Vow destroys the poisons of our wisdom and foolishness."   (The Collected Works of Shinran, P 107)                                            

Namo-Amidabutsu