Mappō

Mappō
Japanese
Buddhism
Ichijoji Kasai13bs4272.jpg
Schools
Hosso • Kegon • Ritsu • Tendai • Shingon • Pure Land • Zen • Nichiren
Founders
Saichō • Kūkai • Hōnen • Shinran • Dōgen • Eisai • Ingen • Nichiren
Sacred Texts
Glossary of
Japanese Buddhism
Three Ages of Buddhism. Mappō or Mofa (末法 Cn: mòfǎ; Jp: mappō), which is also translated as the Age of Dharma Decline, is the "degenerate" Third Age of Buddhism.

Tradition

Traditionally, this age is supposed to begin 2,000 years after Sakyamuni Buddha's passing and last for "10,000 years". (The first two ages are the Age of Right Dharma (正法 Cn: zhèngfǎ; Jp: shōbō), followed by the Age of Semblance Dharma (像法 Cn: xiàngfǎ; Jp: zōbō).[1]) During this degenerate third age, it is believed that people will be unable to attain enlightenment through the word of Sakyamuni Buddha, and society will become morally corrupt. In Buddhist thought, during the Age of Dharma Decline the teachings of the Buddha will still be correct, but people will no longer be capable of following them. Buddhist temporal cosmology assumes a cyclical pattern of ages, and even when the current Buddha's teachings fall into disregard, a new Buddha will be born to ensure the continuity of Buddhism. In the Lotus Sutra, Bodhisattva Superior Practices is entrusted to spread Buddhist law in this age and save mankind and the earth. He and countless other Bodhisattvas, specifically called Bodhisattvas of the Earth (of which he is the leader), vow to be reborn in a latter day to re-create Buddhist law, thus turning the degenerate age into a flourishing paradise. Shakyamuni entrusts them instead of his more commonly known major disciples with this task since the Bodhisattvas of the Earth have had a karmic connection with Shakyamuni since the beginning of time, meaning that they are aware of the Superior Practice which is the essence of Buddhism or the Dharma in its original, pure form. Ksitigarbha is also known for his vow to take responsibility for the instruction of all beings in the six worlds, in the era between the death of Gautama (Shakyamuni) Buddha and the rise of Maitreya Buddha.[2][clarification needed]

Teachings of different groups

The teaching appeared early.[3][4] References to the decline of the Dharma over time can be found in such Mahayana Buddhist texts as the Diamond Sutra and the Lotus Sutra, but also to a lesser degree in some texts in the Pali Canon such as the Cullavagga of the Vinaya Pitaka. Huisi was an early monk who taught about it.[5]

Traditional sects were aware of it.[6]

The Three Stages Sect (三階教) was an early sect that taught about Mappō. It taught to respect every sutra and all sentient life.[7][8]

Late Buddhism in Central Asia taught the building of auspicious signs or miraculous Buddhist images.[9][10][11][12]

The Pure Land schools of Buddhism in China and Japan believe we are now in this latter age of "degenerate Dharma". Pure Land followers therefore attempt to attain rebirth into the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha, where they can practice the Dharma more readily.[13][14][15][16]

Nichiren Buddhism has taught that its teaching is the most suitable for the recent Mappō period.[17]

Vajrayana Buddhism has taught that its teaching would be popular when "iron birds are upon the sky" before its decline.[18][19][20] The Kalachakra Tantra contains a prophecy of a holy war in which a Buddhist king will win.

Theravada Buddhists taught that Buddhism would decline in five thousand years.[21]

Some monks such as Dōgen and Hsu Yun thought that there is no mappō or that mappō is not inevitable.[22]

Some Chinese folk religious movements taught that the three ages were the teaching period of the three Buddhas Dipankara, Sakyamuni and Maitreya (now).[23][24][25]

References

  1. ^ Hattori, Sho-on (2001). A Raft from the Other Shore : Honen and the Way of Pure Land Buddhism. Jodo Shu Press. pp. 15, 16. ISBN 4883633292. 
  2. ^ The Earth Store (Treasury) Sutra
  3. ^ 初期大乘佛教之起源與開展20
  4. ^ 中國末法思想探微
  5. ^ 佛教末法思想在中國之受容與開展
  6. ^ 文殊菩薩與兩界曼荼羅—末法時代的文殊信仰與圖像
  7. ^ 佛教末法觀之我思
  8. ^ 再論三階教的歷史定位
  9. ^ 敦煌所见于阗牛头山圣迹及瑞像
  10. ^ 釋迦牟尼如來像法滅盡之記
  11. ^ 圣容瑞像之谜
  12. ^ 刘萨诃与凉州瑞像信仰的末法观
  13. ^ “末法时期，净土成就”佛经出处考
  14. ^ 道綽的末法觀念與淨土門的創立
  15. ^ 「末法」與「淨土念佛得度」考－－由道綽《安樂集》衍生的重要觀念之檢討
  16. ^ 仏教の「末法」キリスト教の「終末」
  17. ^ 日莲心目中的《法华经》
  18. ^ 上师阿弥陀佛修法极乐捷径讲记
  19. ^ 晉美講記(上)
  20. ^ 蓮師預言警世函 ( 附註解 ) 貝諾法王鑑定....
  21. ^ 上座部佛教止观禅法
  22. ^ 佛教末法观的现代意义
  23. ^ 清代教门惑众手法
  24. ^ 清代“邪教”与清朝政府- 正气网 清代“邪教”与清朝政府
  25. ^ 了道金船 三佛通书

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  • Mappo — Mappō Mòfǎ 末法 (chinois), mappō まっぽう (japonais), « fin du dharma » ou « fin du bouddhisme », est la dernière des trois ères qui composent un cycle de la cosmologie bouddhiste. Durant cette période, dont la durée peut varier de… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Mappō — Mòfǎ 末法 (chinois), mappō まっぽう (japonais), « fin du dharma » ou « fin du bouddhisme », est la dernière des trois ères qui composent un cycle de la cosmologie bouddhiste. Durant cette période, dont la durée peut varier de cinq… …   Wikipédia en Français

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  • mappō — In Japanese Buddhism, the age in which the Buddha s law will degenerate. The period following the death of the Buddha is divided into three ages: the age of the true law, the age of the copied law, and the age of the latter law, or the… …   Universalium

  • Mappō — En este artículo se detectaron los siguientes problemas: Carece de fuentes o referencias que aparezcan en una fuente acreditada. Parece ser una traducción defectuosa. Por favor …   Wikipedia Español

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  • Nichiren — 日蓮 Religieux japonais Époque de Kamakura  Japon, XIIIe siècle …   Wikipédia en Français

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