Hi,
I have read with great interest the threads how several religions look at
breastfeeding.
I thought you all might be interested on a Buddhist perspective on
breastfeeding. Rather than raising the issue of length of time to
breastfeeding, Nichiren Daishonin (a 13th century Japanese Monk) had this to
say about the metaphor of breastfeeding and faith
(the titles in bold print are the names of the Gosho-letters to his
followers):
letter to Horen p 512
And these blessings enjoyed by the Buddha can be transferred by him to
people who put their faith in the Lotus Sutra. It is like the food eaten by
a loving mother, which turns into milk for the nourishment of her baby. For
the Buddha has said, "Now this threefold world is all my domain, and the
living beings in it are all my children."
Shakyamuni, the lord of teachings, takes these blessings and, in the form
of the words that make up the Lotus Sutra, brings them to the mouths of all
living beings for them to taste. A baby does not know the difference between
water and fire, and cannot distinguish medicine from poison. But when the
baby sucks milk, its life is nourished and sustained.
On the four stages of faith p 788
Question: If a person simply chants Nam-myoho-renge-kyo with no
understanding of its meaning, are the benefits of understanding thereby
included?
Answer: When a baby drinks milk, it has no understanding of its taste,
and yet its body is naturally nourished. Who ever took the wonderful
medicines of Jivaka knowing of what they were compounded? Water has no
intent, and yet it can put out fire. Fire consumes things, and yet how can
we say that it does so consciously? This is the explanation of both
Nagarjuna and T'ien-t'ai, and I am restating it here.
These Gosho can be found from "The Major Writings of Nichiren Daishonin,"
Soka Gakkai, 1999.
Pierrette Mimi Poinsett, MD FAAP
Modesto CA
(a practicing Buddhist for the last 12 years)
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