by Masuo Nezu

Two years after China's first participation in the WCRP, Mr. Zhao again welcomed Rev. Niwano to China, saying, "When WCRP III was held at Princeton, we were indebted to you. Please now enjoy our spring here in Beijing."

At that time, Rev. Niwano was invited to address the audience gathered at the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Hall. "The spirit of the WCRP," he said, "is shown clearly in the worship practices of the Bodhisattva Never-Disrespectful."

It is taught in chapter 20 of the Lotus Sutra that Bodhisattva Never-Disrespectful concentrated on just one practice--namely, worshiping the buddha-nature in others--and he thus attained the enlightenment of a buddha himself, as well as guiding many others to similar enlightenment.

Mr. Zhao recognized the profundity of this view, and saw it represented in Rev. Niwano's unshakable determination and patience, as well as in his positive stance--always seeing the better side of things--and always believing that the best is possible. Mr. Zhao concluded his lecture following Rev. Niwano's address with these words: "If religious people all over the world can put forth their best efforts in this spirit, then world peace will surely be achieved. Rev. Niwano, who taught us so, is my elder brother." Incidentally, Mr. Zhao was one year younger than Rev. Niwano.

Having observed the latter's devotion to the WCRP over the years, Mr. Zhao once said, "It is amazing to see Rev. Niwano's foresight and his remarkable power to implement what he envisions."

On May 4, 1982, Rev. Niwano spent some free time in the nearby wheat fields after he visited Mount Tiantai in Zhejiang Province, the birthplace of Chinese Tiantai Buddhism.

Year by year their friendship, based on trust, deepened as their mutual visits continued. In the summer of 1987, Rev. Niwano invited Mr. Zhao to tour Japan after attending the Religious Summit Meeting on Mount Hiei near Kyoto. It was an occasion for world religionists to pray for peace succeeding in the spirit of the Day of Prayer for World Peace advocated by Pope John Paul II in 1986 at Assisi, Italy.

At a Rissho Kosei-kai retreat facility in Hotaka, Nagano Prefecture, Rev. Niwano, Mr. Zhao, and Ven. Etai Yamada, 253d head priest of the Tendai Buddhist denomination (the host of the religious summit), engaged in a three-way dialogue. It covered varied topics, ranging from interreligious cooperation and the road to peace, to the spirit of the Lotus Sutra.

During their dialogue, Mr. Zhao happened to notice the Rissho Kosei-kai's Member's Vow. He asked his interpreter to explain it. Given a quick oral translation, Mr. Zhao said to the interpreter, "What wonderful words those are! You had better copy the vow precisely and translate it correctly into Chinese. I want to bring it back to China with me." He was deeply impressed with the content of the vow since it shows clearly how to practice Buddhism.

Explaining his robust health, Mr. Zhao said that he practiced taijiquan--a traditional kind of Chinese "shadowboxing"--every morning with his wife. And he slowly demonstrated it. In response, Rev. Niwano showed Mr. Zhao his own way of exercising--sitting on the floor with his legs spread out in front of him, then bending his upper body forward until his chest touched the floor. As they watched the two men exercise, the people around them were surprised at the suppleness of their bodies.

Mr. Zhao was a noted calligrapher of his day. And it is said that he was the leading poet of Hanpai (Chinese haiku). During his stay in Japan he was continually brush-writing his daily reflections in verse. He later edited them and presented a small volume of poems to Rev. Niwano.

In China there is a saying: "When drinking water from a well, think about the labor of those who dug it." Mr. Zhao's sensitivity seems thus reflective of the Chinese national character. By the same token, Rev. Niwano reminisced, "When I first met Mr. Zhao, I repented all that Japan had done during the Sino-Japanese war. He responded, 'Friendship between China and Japan has a history of 2,000 years. A single war is like a quarrel between a husband and wife.' I was quite impressed with the large-mindedness of that big country."

"Listening together to Shakyamuni Buddha's sermon on Vulture Peak"

The following year, 1989, the Fifth World Assembly of the WCRP was held in Melbourne, Australia. The three religious leaders--two from Japan and one from China--attended together. In the busy conference schedule, a three-way talk again was planned.

This time Mr. Zhao said, "In our former lives, we would have been listening together to Shakyamuni Buddha's preaching of the Dharma on Vulture Peak in ancient India, wouldn't we?" Rev. Niwano responded, "It must have been so. And such a relationship continues into our present lives, doesn't it?"

In Chinese, yi-yi dai shui refers to "close neighbors separated only by a narrow strip of water," and xin-xin xiang yin means "kindred spirits with a mutual affinity." Years later, Mr. Zhao wrote an article in The People's Daily newspaper in China headlined "Buddhist Exchange between China and Japan: Prospect and Retrospect," which contained those two phrases. He mentioned both Rev. Nikkyo Niwano and Ven. Etai Yamada in it by name, and wrote, "Through the efforts of these friends, a 'big tree' of friendship between China and Japan has flourished and grown."

This series of articles was originally published in Japanese in 2000 under the title Kaiso Zuimonki: Egao no Ushirosugata.