The Lotus Sutra's Incorrigible

The Lotus Sutra is renowned for the virtues it promotes. The Buddhist values found within the text have attracted followers for centuries. Furthermore, the cultural importance of the text can be seen in literature such as Royal Tyler’s Japanese Tales. One tale in particular, entitled “Incorrigible,” serves as a reference for the importance of a virtuous life. For the most part, “Incorrigible” follows the protagonist, poet and calligrapher Toshiyuki, on his journey through the afterlife and back. However, what should have been in learning experience for the protagonist is ultimately wasted on him due to his character flaws. The greatest lesson one can learn from this tale is the value of honest intent, the rejection false beauty, and importance …show more content…
Therefore, the protagonist’s lack of honest intent in doing so is the first transgression to note within this tale. Although Toshiyuki copies the Lotus Sutra repeatedly, he fails to embody its significance and neglects his own purification in the process (“Incorrigible” 210). He conducts what is the equivalent of a mass production of Sutra, where quantity of writing equates to little to no value. In the underworld, his transgression is described as “eating fish and enjoying women all the time you did your copying. You never purified yourself” (“Incorrigible” 210). His negligence and dishonesty are significant factors contributing to his punishment. Truly, the tale illustrates that the importance of the Lotus Sutra derives not from the mere act of engaging with the words of the text, but internalizing the message it reads. Though Toshiyuki proceeds commit a series of “holy” acts for other people, his intent is not selfless benevolence motivated by his inner desire to save others via Buddhism. This behavior is similar to that of a character in another familiar …show more content…
Much time passes before his death, and yet in that time he fails to write a single sutra with sincerity. This can only be attributed to his lack of perseverance and self-control, thus warranting his ultimate punishment. It is curious as to why a fiend would even relay information to him concerning the Sutra of Golden Light, but it is undeniably a stroke of good fortune that the protagonist neglects (“Incorrigible” 210). One may argue that, unlike the old woman in “The Sparrow’s Gift,” Toshiyuki does not necessarily have ill will in his actions. He does in fact copy sutras for many people who wish to be saved. Nevertheless, his actions still harm others; in this case, it is not a bird that is injured, but several hundred people forced into hellish suffering (“Incorrigible” 211). Though the action of copying the sutra was not in itself selfish, his mindset during his work—his lust for women—was self-indulgent desire. This is in defiance of Buddhist teachings (“Incorrigible”