The Parable of the Phantom City

In the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha expounds the truth to which he awakened. In “Expedient Means,” the second chapter, only his disciple Shariputra understands the Buddha’s explanation. Shakyamuni in the next few chapters conveys various similes and parables, and his voice-hearer disciples respond with their own parable to affirm their understanding. In the seventh chapter, to awaken even more people to the truth, Shakyamuni shares the well-known Parable of the Phantom City, which goes like this:

A group of travelers go on a journey to search for a place with rare treasures. Their wise, experienced leader knows the route well. But halfway through the long, treacherous journey, the travelers lose heart and want to turn back. Seeing this, the leader conjures a city where they can rest and regain their spirits. Once everyone is refreshed, the leader wipes out the city and encourages them to continue on to the treasure land.

In this parable:

• wise, experienced leader = the Buddha

• travelers = the Buddha’s disciples

• phantom city = the expedient means the Buddha uses to lead people to Buddhahood

• treasure land = the one true vehicle of Buddhahood

This parable illustrates how the Buddha uses expedient means of the three vehicles to lead people to the one vehicle of Buddhahood, also known as “replacing the three vehicles with the one vehicle.”