Quotes From the Lotus Sutra, Vol. 1
“In all the Buddha-lands in the ten directions,
There is only the Dharma of the single vehicle,
Not a second or a third,
Except what Buddhas teach by skillful means.
Buddhas use provisional expressions
To lead and guide sentient beings.
They all appear in this world
To teach the Buddha’s wisdom.
Only this is real.
The other two are not.
Buddhas do not ultimately liberate sentient beings
Through a lesser vehicle….
Buddhas themselves abide in the Great Vehicle
In accordance with the Dharma they have attained.
Adorned with concentration, wisdom, and powers,
They liberate sentient beings with the Great Vehicle.
Buddhas have self-realized the unsurpassed path,
The impartial Dharma of the Great Vehicle.
If I used a lesser vehicle to liberate
Even one person,
Thus would I begrudge—
And this could never happen.”
Reference:Reeves, G. (2008) The Lotus Sutra: A Contemporary
Translation of a Buddhist Classics, pp. 88-89
Excerpts From A Discourse on The Lotus Sutra
Venerable Xiao Pingshi
The aforementioned verses clearly state that the essence of the Buddha-lands in the ten directions is the one and only Great Vehicle: the Buddha Vehicle. Given that it is named Buddha Vehicle, it is certainly not the sound hearer vehicle or the solitary realizer vehicle, and it certainly would not lead only to the fruition of arhatship or pratyekabuddhahood. In the same vein, when we talk about the Buddha Dharma, we are not talking about the dharma for the sound hearers or solitary realizers. If it is the Buddha Dharma that we are cultivating, this Dharma understandably leads to the attainment of Buddhahood as it is the Dharma realized by all buddhas. If the dharma we cultivate can make us attain the fruition and wisdom only of sound hearers or solitary realizers, this dharma cannot be called Buddha Dharma. It can only be called the sravaka dharma or the pratyekabuddha dharma.
A Discourse on the Lotus Sutra, Vol. 3, p.59