DALAI LAMA ON THE SELF

In a dharma talk from Dharamsala, India, on December 19-20, 2011, the Dalai Lama talked about the nature of the self.  "Who do we mean when we say 'I?'" he asked.  For instance, the "I" we are as a baby is not the same "I" we are as an adult.

He went on to present the well-known analogy of a cart, pointing out that a cart is made of parts, the wheels, the box, the pull bar, and so forth.  In the same way, a person, an "I," is made up of components.  They are called "skandhas" in Buddhism.  These are (1) the body, (2) the sense-perception, (3) the feelings, (4) the "sankharas" (difficult to translate but meaning approximately the instincts and the subconscious), (5) the faculty of reason.   It is the union of these "skandhas" that constitutes an individual. 

As long as the "skandhas" are held together the individual functions as a single being, lives, and has a history, even as each component is in perpetual flux.  The body changes from day to day only a little less conspicuously than the mental states. 

At death the union is dissolved, the "skandhas" dispersed, and the individual, the "I," ceases to exist.  In this way, then, the "I" is merely an appearance, and as only an appearance it certainly does not carry on after death.  This is the Buddhist doctrine of "anatta," no-self.

The result of this understanding is compassion, the ideal of Mahayana Buddhism.

MUDRA

A mudra is a symbolic hand gesture meant to aid in concentrating the mind.  It is found in Hinduism and Buddhism.

While some mudras involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands and fingers only. In Hinduism, they are employed statically in meditation and dynamically in classical dance.

Mudras are used in yoga practice.  A famous book published by the Bihar School of Yoga is called Asana, Pranayama, Mudra, Bandha.  Asana are body postures.  Pranayama are breathing exercises.  Mudra are, again, symbolic hand gestures.  Bandha are "body locks," i.e. the way a participant holds the body postures in place.

As for Buddhism, common mudras are:

The Abhaya mudra represents protection, peace, benevolence, and the dispelling of fear.

The Bhumisparsha Mudra calls upon the earth to witness Shakyamuni Buddha's enlightenment at Bodh Gaya. 

The Dharmacakra mudra represents a central moment in the life of Buddha when he preached his first sermon after his Enlightenment.  In general, only Gautama Buddha is shown making this mudra.  It signifies the turning of the wheel of the Dharma.

The Dhyana mudra is the gesture of meditation, of the concentration of the Good Law and the sangha, i.e. the monastic order of monks.

The Varada mudra signifies offering, welcome, charity, giving, compassion and sincerity.

The Vajra and Jnana mudras are gestures of knowledge.

The Vitarka mudra is the gesture of discussion and transmission of Buddhist teaching.

The Karana mudra is the mudra which expels demons and removes obstacles such as sickness or negative thoughts.

In Tibetan Buddhism, mudras are believed to establish actual contact with gods.   These mudras are directed to thirty-five or more Tantric deities, great and minor, and run in sequences which often require thirty to fifty hand patterns in each sequence.  They are believed to not only attract the presence of the benevolent powers but also to drive off the evil ones.

OM

In Vedanta, OM (pronounced, and sometimes spelled as, AUM) is the eternal, mystical syllable.  It is the mantra of Brahman.

Swami Vivekananda described the mantra this way:  "The first letter, A, is the root sound, the key, pronounced without touching any part of the tongue or palate; M represents the last sound in the series, being produced by the closed lips; and the U ( in the middle) rolls from the very root to the end of the sounding-board of the mouth.  Thus, OM represents the whole phenomenon of sound producing."  All sounds are contained within it.

The sound A-U-M comprises a triangle, the symbol of three in one.  Specifically, it is the three ages contained in the Soul, that is, time past, time present, and the eternal future.  It is the three divine powers:  creation, preservation, and transformation.  And it is the three essences:  immortality, omniscience, and joy in Brahman.

Repetition of OM while meditating on its meaning is a powerful spiritual practice in Vedanta.

In Tibetan Buddhism, OM represents pure spirit, and is found in the mantra OM man-ni pad-me hum, which translates as "OM!  The jewel in the lotus!  Hum!" 

OM man-ni pad-me hum has manifold esoteric interpretations having to do with liberation.  For instance, each syllable of the mantra has a specific significance:  OM closes the door to rebirth among the gods; MA, to rebirth among demons; NI, among mankind; PAD, among subhuman creatures; ME, among unhappy ghosts; HUM, among inhabitants of hell.

MANTRA

A mantra is a sacred saying, usually pronounced silently, mentally.  The word mantra means "thought form."  A mantra may be only a single syllable, such as Om, Srim, Aim, Hrim, etc., or be several syllables, or many. 

Each deity is represented by its own mantra.  Only the correct enunciation of the correct mantra will result in a deity entering its image where it will respond to a devotee.  As the word form of one's personal god, a mantra has considerable potency.   A mantra may even represent the Divine Being Itself, Brahman.  Brahman's mantra is OM, and typically is verbalized. 

Rishi's, or seers, were the original receivers of mantras, who then passed them down to their devotees via their gurus.  The devotee must keep his mantra secret, saying it silently as part of his regular worship.  Other mantras, such as OM, are openly known.  Repetition of the mantra (japa), performed regularly and reverently, will result in purification of the mind and ultimately in God-realization.

NATURE OF ATMAN

The Atman has been likened to a blank screen, an aware blank screen.  It just watches, witnesses.  It is neither happy nor sad. It is pure consciousness only. Pure consciousness is bliss.

MANDALA

Mandala is a Sanskrit word that means "circle."  In the Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions their sacred art often takes the form of a mandala.

The basic form of most Buddhist and Hindu mandalas is a square with four gates containing a circle with a center point (bindu). Each gate is in the shape of a T. 

Mandalas, concentric diagrams, have spiritual and ritual significance in both Buddhism and Hinduism.  They are images of the universe and are employed for the focusing of cosmic and psychic energies.

The term "mandala" is of Hindu origin and appears in the Rig Veda as the name of the sections of the work, but is also used in other Indian religions, particularly in Buddhism. In the Tibetan branch of Vajrayana Buddhism, for example, mandalas have been developed into sandpainting. They are also a key part of Anuttarayoga Tantra meditation practices.

A mandala may be as small as a drawing, or as large as a temple enclosure.  The world itself is considered a type of mandala.

Similar to a mandala is a yantra.  The yantra, however, embodies but a single devata (god, guardian spirit), while a mandala may enclose an infinite number.

YANTRA

Yantra is the Sanskrit word for "instrument" or "machine."  Traditionally such symbols are used in Eastern mysticism to balance the mind or focus it on spiritual concepts.

The act of wearing, depicting, enacting and/or concentrating on a yantra is held to have spiritual or astrological or magical benefits in the Tantric traditions of the Indian religions.

Many yantras seem like nothing more than an interwoven complex of geometrical designs centered upon a point (bindu).  A yantra, though, is a complex of stored imagery of sight and sound--yantras often have an accompanying mantra--and psychic and mystical content. 

Though two-dimensional, yantras are conceived as having depth and full dimension.  They may be drawn or painted on any material, out of any substance.  A yantra is often enclosed by a square, signifying the cosmic dynamics and the four corners of the universe.  Yantras are thus worshiped as containing divine presence.

The yantra is sometimes confused with a mandala, the former appropriate to a specific devata (god, or guardian spirit), the latter implying any devata.

BINDU

Bindu literally means a drop or a point.  It is sometimes likened to a pearl or a seed.  A standard religious symbol throughout the world, it often is found in the center of a yantra or a mandala representing a cosmic axis. 

The bindu is an all-pervading spatial concept, the limit of manifestation.  When something exists yet does not exist, it is represented by the bindu. When the universe collapses into dissolution, it culminates into a point--bindu--ultimately to re-form from it.

There is a stage of yoga meditation in which all experiences collapse into a point from which all experiences arose in the first place.  From there, from that bindu, one travels beyond or transcends the mind and its content, finishing at the doorway to the Absolute.

ATTACHMENTS

The extent to which we are attached to this existence is the extent to which we remain bound to it.

Most notable among the attachments, chains that bind, or fetters as they are known in Buddhism, is attachment to the self, as if the self were real.  The self is an illusion.

Another common shackle is possessions.  What we own is who we are, we feel.  Without our possessions we are nothing.  Possessions define us. 

We are attached to our loved ones and to our friends.  We can't imagine living without them.

Other ways we are bound to this world, assuring our rebirth, is food, alcohol, drugs, and sex, i.e. things that give us physical pleasure, and to which we become attached.

The Buddha taught that the way we break free of these attachments is to understand that they are not permanent.  They are fleeting, a moving target.  As long as we are attached to them, he said, we will suffer (dukkha) and be reborn to them.

PRINCIPAL CAUSE

The principal cause of suffering is impermanence, or transitoriness (annica).  Everything in existence is in a state of flux, changing, ever changing. The Pali word "anicca" literally means "inconstant." 

Impermanence has implications.  For instance, we identify with our empirical or egoic self, saying that this is "me," "mine," "my story."  "I am this one thing."  But since all is transient, there is no such "one thing" as this.  There is no permanent, unchanging, substantial, undeniable self. The Buddhist term for this is anatta, no-self.  A socially-conditioned, relative, temporary self exists, but this is all. 

This is frustrating because, to state a further implication, the person we remember ourselves to be is not the same person who exists in the present moment.  We recall feeling a certain way, happy, sad, angry, etc., back in high school, for instance, but the recollection is meaningless now.  This is to say, when we are happy, sad, angry, etc. now, it is not the same happy, sad, angry, etc. that we experienced back then.  This devalues our memories. 

In the same way, we cannot relate to ourselves in the future, anticipating, for example, how we will feel when we finally retire.  Again, we might be happy, we might be sad, we might be angry, etc., but there's no way to know.

It is all like grabbing a handful of water.  It just runs away.

HEART OF BUDDHISM

You may not be suffering at this moment, but you have suffered in the past and you will suffer in the future.  The suffering may be major or it may be minor.  It may be intermittent or it may be constant.  But one thing is certain:  you will not escape it.

Be aware that everyone, from your parents to your siblings to your Aunt Tilly and Uncle Charley to your coworkers to your spouse to Steve your barber or Shirley your hairdresser to the presidents of the country, and of all countries, to the Pope and all his cardinals, is suffering.  Do not say that you do not relate to their suffering, because you do.

SRI SRI RAMAKRISHNA KATHAMRITA

Famously known as "M" and Master Mahashay, Mahendranath Gupta (1854-1932) was a householder-disciple of the 19th Century Bengali mystic Ramakrishna.  He  first met Ramakrishna in 1882, and, attracted by his teachings, maintained a stenographic record of Ramakrishna's conversations and actions in his diary.  This diary eventually took the form of a book, Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita, translated as The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna.  In the beginning, M had no plans of publication.

After the death of Ramakrishna in 1886, the growing public recognition of Ramakrishna encouraged M to make his diary public. Indeed, he thought that his was an important medium for public dissemination of Ramakrishna's ideas. He also sought the assessment of Sarada Devi, Ramakrishna's wife, before publication.

The first volume was preceded by a small booklet in English called A Leaf from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna (1897).    Between 1898 to 1902, excerpts from his diary were published in leading Bengali journals, such as Bangadarshan, Udbodhan, Hindu Patrika, Shaitya Patrika and Janmabhumi. 

Volumes one through four were published in 1902, 1904, 1908 and 1910 respectively, and the fifth volume in 1932, delayed because of M's health problems.  At the time of M's death in 1932, he was contemplating at least one, if not two, additional volumes after which he hoped to rearrange the entire material chronologically.

It should be remembered that the Kathamrita was published from 15 to 50 years after M's sessions with Ramakrishna, and covers a total of only 186 days spread over the last four and a half years of the saint's life.

The full text of the original diary, which is said to contain enough material for another half dozen volumes, has never been made available publicly.  However, according to Dipak Gupta, M's great-grandson, scholars can, and have, seen all the material.  The diary belongs solely to M's descendants, not to the Ramakrishna Order.

MAHENDRANATH GUPTA

Mahendranath Gupta (1854-1932) was a householder-disciple of Sri Ramakrishna.  After some time working for the government and a merchant house, he began teaching English, psychology, and economics at various colleges.  Eventually he became headmaster of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar Secondary School.  There he was called "Master Mahashay," just as he was often addressed in Ramakrishna's circle, where he was also referred to simply as "M."  He came to Dakshineswar in 1882. 

From his diaries, M compiled the Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita, translated as The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, which is an almost stenographic record of many of Ramakrishna's conversations and activities.  It is a five-volume work published consecutively in the years 1902, 1904, 1908, 1910 and 1932. The Kathamrita is regarded as a classic and revered among the followers of Ramakrishna as a sacred scripture.

Initially when M began writing the diaries, he had no plans of publication.  Regarding his methodology, he said, "I wrote everything from memory after I returned home. Sometimes I had to keep awake the whole night.  Sometimes I would keep on writing the events of one sitting for seven days, recollect the songs that were sung, and the order in which they were sung, and the samadhi and so on."  In each of his Kathamrita entries, M records the time and place of the conversation or activity.  

In 1932, when the fifth volume of the Kathamrita was at the printers, M died at his home, now called Kathamrita Bhavan.  He was seventy-eight years old.  The home is located near the Thanthania Kali Temple in Calcutta.  Kathamrita Bhavan is a place of pilgrimage for followers of Ramakrishna due to the many visits there by Ramakrishna and Sarada Devi.  Several relics associated with their lives are there as well.

SARADA DEVI

Sarada Devi (1853-1920) was the wife and spiritual counterpart of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, the nineteenth century mystic of Bengal. She was reverentially addressed as the Holy Mother (Sri Maa) by the followers of the Ramakrishna monastic order. She played an important role in the growth of the Ramakrishna Movement.

Sarada was born Saradamani Mukhopadhyaya in Jayrambati, a village in West Bengal. At the age of five she was betrothed to Ramakrishna.  Ramakrishna was twenty-three at the time, the age difference not unusual in nineteenth century rural Bengal.  She joined him at Dakshineswar, at the Kali temple, when she was eighteen years old.

Sarada's days began at 3:00 a.m. After finishing her ablutions in the Ganges, she would practice japa and meditation until daybreak. Ramakrishna taught her the sacred mantras, and instructed her how to initiate people and guide them in spiritual life.  Sarada is considered to be Ramakrishna's first disciple.  Except for her hours of meditation, she spent most of her time cooking for Ramakrishna and the growing number of his devotees.

It is interesting how Ramakrishna, a mystic and holy man, came to take a wife in the first place.  Rumors had spread that he had become unstable as a result of his spiritual exercises at Dakshineswar. His mother and his elder brother, Rameswar, decided to get him married, thinking that marriage would be a good steadying influence upon him.  It would force him to accept responsibility and to keep his attention on normal affairs rather than his spiritual practices and visions.

According to Sarada Devi's traditional biographers, both lived lives of unbroken continence, the ideal of the monastic way of life. After Ramakrishna's death, Sarada Devi stayed most of the time either at Jayrambati or at the Udbodhan office, Calcutta. The disciples of Ramakrishna regarded her as their own mother, and after their guru's passing looked to her for advice and encouragement. She outlived Ramakrishna by thirty-four years.

ANANDAMAYI MA

Anandamayi Ma (1896-1982) was a Hindu spiritual teacher and guru from Bengal.  She was considered a saint by many and hailed as one of the prominent mystics of the 20th century.

"Anandamayi" means "bliss-permeated mother," a name given her by her disciples in the 1920s to describe what they saw as her constant state of divine bliss. During her life, she attracted thousands of followers who saw her not only as a teacher and guru but as a manifestation of God, a devi.  Precognition, healing and other miracles were attributed to her by her devotees.

The central theme of her teaching, in endless variation, was that "the supreme calling of every human being is to aspire to self-realization. All other obligations are secondary.  Also, only actions that kindle Man's divine nature are worthy to be called actions." However she did not ask everyone to become a renunciate. "Everyone is right from his or her own standpoint," she said.

She taught how to live a God-centered life in the world and provided the living inspiration to enable thousands to aspire to this most noble ideal. 

In addition, she advocated spiritual equality for women.  For example, the sacred thread ritual had been performed by men only for centuries, but she opened it up to women. Her style of teaching included songs, jokes, and instructions on everyday life, but then also long discourses, meditation, and reading of scriptures.

VEDANTA AND GOD

According to Vedanta, God is infinite existence, infinite consciousness, and infinite bliss (Sanskrit: sat-chit-ananda). This impersonal, transcendent reality is called Brahman, the divine ground of being. Yet Vedanta also maintains that God can be personal as well, assuming human form in every age.

Most significantly, God dwells within our own hearts as the divine Self or Atman. The Atman is never born nor will it ever die. Neither tainted by our failings nor affected by the fluctuations of the body or mind, the Atman is not subject to our grief or despair or disease or ignorance. Pure, perfect, free from limitations, the Atman, Vedanta states, is one with Brahman.

Vedanta further asserts that the goal of human life is to realize our divinity.  Our goal is to know that the Atman is Brahman. Not only is this possible, it is inevitable. God-realization is our birthright. Sooner or later, we will all realize our divinity, either in this or in future lives. The greatest truth of our existence is our own divine nature, Atman/Brahman.

IS BUDDHISM ATHEISTIC?

The historical Buddha taught that believing in God or gods was not helpful to a person seeking enlightenment. He rejected metaphysical speculation, focusing instead on the practical ways to end suffering.

God, in this way, is unnecessary in Buddhism. For this reason, Buddhism is more accurately called nontheistic than atheistic.

The Buddha also plainly said that he himself was not a god but simply "awakened."  Throughout Asia, though, it is common to find people praying to the Buddha or to the many clearly mythical figures that populate Buddhist iconography. Stupas that are said to hold relics of the Buddha are crowded with pilgrims.

Even in Theravada or Zen, considered nondevotional schools, there are rituals that involve bowing and offering food, flowers and incense to a Buddha figure on an altar.  But these activities are more gestures of respect than the worshipping  of a god or God.  In the case of Zen, it may also be a way of making a philosophical point.  The monks will point to the Buddha on the altar and say, "That is you up there. When you bow, you are bowing to yourself."  Everyone, in other words, is a buddha potentially.

Again, Buddhism is more correctly termed nontheistic than atheistic.

VIPASSANA

Vipassana is one of the world's oldest techniques of meditation, the rediscovery of which is credited to the Buddha.  In English, vipassana is often referred to simply as "insight meditation."  The purpose of vipassana is seeing reality as it truly is.

By focusing on body, feelings, mind, and objects of mind, noting how they change from moment to moment, indeed how all of existence seems coming and going constantly, one sees that what he considers to be himself, and the world, is an illusion.  With this realization arises the not-self, so-called, a state of consciousness only, experienced as bliss.

Vipassanā is one of two categories of Buddhist meditation, the other being samatha.  Samatha is a focusing, pacifying, and calming of the body and mind, common to many traditions in the world, notably yoga. It is used as a preparation for vipassanā, steadying the mind and strengthening the concentration, which allows the real work of insight to proceed.  In Buddhist practice it is said that while samatha can calm the mind, only insight can reveal how the mind was disturbed to start with.

PURE LAND BUDDHISM

Nirvana is no longer practical or possible to attain in our present day.  This is the central teaching of Pure Land Buddhism.  Because of this, one should focus on devotion to Amitabha (Amida in Japanese), one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas, and his Pure Land paradise called Sukhavati.  Devotion to Amida will gain one enough karmic merit to go to the Pure Land. The Pure Land is not an eternal destination, but a pleasant place in which all karma disappears and nirvana is simple to attain.

Most Pure Land Buddhists focus on chanting or repeating a mantra of devotion to Amida.  This mantra is usually "namu Amida butsu," which one repeats as often as possible.  This reinforces a proper and sincere state of mind, gaining one admission to the Pure Land at death. This simple form of religious practice has contributed greatly to its popularity, especially in Japan.

Jodo is the oldest school of Pure Land Buddhism in Japan. Its founder was Honen (1133-1212), a Tendai monk who converted to Pure Land teachings at the age of 43. Honen taught that anyone can be reborn in Amida's Pure Land simply by reciting the nembutsu mantra.  He insisted that Pure Land be considered a separate sect of Japanese Buddhism. Honen's followers included Shinran, who founded the Jodo Shin-shu school, and Ippen (1239-89), who founded the Ji school.

Jōdo Shin-shū ("True Pure Land School"), also known as Shin or Shin-shu Buddhism, is a branch of Pure Land Buddhism which was founded, again, by the monk Shinran (1173-1262).  It was organized by Rennyo (1414-99). Shin-shu is a lay movement with no monks or monasteries and is based on simple but absolute devotion to Amida. In Shin-shu, the nembutsu is an act of gratitude, not one of supplication or trust.

The founder of the Ji-shu sect of Pure Land Buddhism was, once more, the monk Ippen.  He was on a pilgrimage to Kumano when the kami deity enshrined there revealed to him that enlightenment was determined by Amida Buddha and that he should devote himself to preaching the importance of reciting the name of Amida, i.e. the mantra nembutsu. He and a band of followers then travelled throughout the country proselytizing with their ecstatic nembutsu dance (nembutsu odori), winning a wide following among common people. Other practices associated with the Ji-shu sect include scheduled sessions of chanting (hence the name time-sect), the handing out of slips of paper with the nembutsu written on them, and keeping a register of the converted.

SHINGON BUDDHISM

Shingon Buddhism was founded in Japan early in the 9th century by the monk Kukai (774-835). It is based on a form of tantric Buddhism called Chen Yen, or True Word, that Kukai studied in China.  It remains one of the largest schools of Buddhism in Japan.

"Shingon" means "school of the true word," which refers to the importance of mantras in Shingon practice. Shingon is also known for its use of mandalas and other artistic representations of the dharma. Many of the teachings and rituals of Shingon are esoteric, passed orally from teacher to student and not made public. Shingon's historic "home" is Mount Koya, or Koyasan, a monastery about 50 miles south of Kyoto.

Shingon is syncretic, incorporating aspects, including deities, of Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto, and other forms of Buddhism. Since it is esoteric, the inner knowledge, so-called, is not written in books where the uninitiate can read it. 

A considerable emphasis is placed on the use of painting so that the obscurities of the esoteric can be better grasped.  Kukai himself was a superb artist and a patron of art.  As Kukai put it, "The various attitudes (appearances) and mudras (hand gestures) of the holy images all have their sources in Buddha's love, and one can attain buddhahood at the sight of them.  Thus the secrets of the sutras and commentaries can be depicted in art, and the essential truths of esoteric teaching are all set forth in them...Art is what reveals to us the state of perfection."

Shingon was seriously challenged by the Zen sects, but it is still one of the major players in Japanese Buddhism.

NICHIREN BUDDHISM

Nichiren (1222-1282) began as a Japanese Tendai monk.  He believed that the Lotus Sutra contained all the true teachings of the Buddha.  He also believed that the other sects of Buddhism in Japan, Shingon, Pure Land, and Zen in particular, were corrupted and no longer taught the true dharma.  Nichiren felt that it was his mission in life to prepare the way for true Buddhism to spread throughout the world.

By its focus on the Lotus Sutra, Nichiren Buddhism holds that all people have an innate Buddha-nature and are therefore inherently capable of attaining enlightenment in their current form and present lifetime.

Nichiren Buddhism includes:

Daimoku. Daily chanting of the mantra Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, or sometimes Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. This chant may be repeated for a fixed number of times, keeping count with a mala, or rosary. The chant may also be for a fixed amount of time.

Gohonzon. The use of a mandala created by Nichiren that represents Buddha-nature and which is an object of veneration. The Gohonzon often is inscribed on a hanging scroll and kept in the center of an altar.

Gongyo. The chanting of some part of the Lotus Sutra in a formal service. The precise sections of the sutra that are chanted vary by sect.

Kaidan. The establishing of a sacred place of ordination or a seat of institutional authority. The precise meaning of kaidan in Nichiren Buddhism is a point of doctrinal disagreement. Kaidan might be the place from which true Buddhism will spread to the world, which could be all of Japan, or it might be wherever in the world Nichiren Buddhism is sincerely practiced.

Today a number of schools of Buddhism are based on Nichiren's teaching.  The most prominent are:

Nichiren Shu
Nichiren Shoshu
Rissho-kosei-kai
Soka Gakki

TENDAI BUDDHISM

Tendai is a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism, a descendant of the Chinese Tiantai or Lotus Sutra school.  In time, it became the dominant form of mainstream Buddhism in Japan, and gave rise to most of the developments in later Japanese Buddhism. Nichiren, Hōnen, Shinran, and Dōgen, all famous thinkers in non-Tendai schools, were all initially trained as Tendai monks. Japanese Buddhism was dominated by the Tendai school to a much greater degree than Chinese Buddhism was by its forebearer, the Tiantai.

Tendai has been a syncretistic movement, embracing other Buddhist schools, from Vinaya to Shingon and Zen, as well as Shinto, the indigenous Japanese tradition.  Its distinctive focus, though, continues to be the teachings of the Lotus Sutra.  The Lotus Sutra teaches the way to salvation, meaning the attaining of buddhahood. It presents itself as the true and complete teaching of the Buddha, who is described as more of a cosmic being than an historical figure. The Buddha of the Lotus Sutra is "a transcendent, eternal being, preaching to myriad arhats (saints), gods, bodhisattvas (buddhas-to-be), and other figures using all sorts of sermons, lectures, imaginative parables, and miracles. "

Tendai's influence in Japan is pervasive and powerful to this day, though its lay membership is not so great as is that of some of the other Buddhist sects.