Chanting Growers Group (2013-∞)

“Many Gakkai members began to practice Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism because they were suffering from illness, financial troubles, family problems, or other personal difficulties. In other words, they started practising for their own sakes. But the Daishonin writes: ‘You must not only persevere yourself; you must also teach others' (WND-1, 386). In addition to striving in faith ourselves, he says, it is important that we also help others do the same. Basically, it is by working for kosen-rufu out of a wish for the happiness of others that we ourselves become truly happy. This is the fusion of practice for self and practice for others. Our own struggles and earthly desires become the driving force for the ultimate bodhisattva practice that is kosen-rufu.

"As we do our best for the welfare of others, we break out of our narrow lesser self that is focused only on personal concerns, and gradually expand and elevate our life state. The commitment to others’ well-being is what propels us to transform our life state and carry out our human revolution.

"The lives of Soka Gakkai members, who pray wholeheartedly for the happiness of their friends and earnestly share the Daishonin’s teachings with others, brim with joy, courage, and hope. Though we may be struggling with various health, financial, or other problems, we can overcome them confidently, like an accomplished surfer who enjoys riding big waves.

"The true great benefit of faith is this fundamental inner transformation and human revolution. According to the principle of the oneness of life and its environment, when our life state changes, we are able to change our environment as well, and thereby solve all of our problems.”

SGI Newsletter No. 9185, The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, Part 2: Human Revolution, Chapter 7: What Is Human Revolution? 7.5 The True Benefit of Faith Is Human Revolution. Adapted from The New Human Revolution, volume 19, “Rainbow of Hope” published in Japanese in November 2008. From the January 2015 issue of the Daibyakurenge. Translation re-released Jan. 26th, 2015.

WE need your Daimoku!

WE need your Daimoku!

Chant for G-man! I suddenly cannot reach him!!!!!!!

Bowing in humble obeisance,

T

Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!

Nam myoho renge kyo

"Living beings and their environments are not separate. They are one and indivisible. This is the source of the principle that the transformation of the individual leads to the transformation of the land and society.

"From the Buddhist perspective of the true aspect of all phenomena, all the many and varied phenomena of the universe are a single living entity. Happiness for the individual alone is impossible, and peace in terms of the environment alone is impossible. There can be no happiness exclusively for the self, nor unhappiness exclusively for others. The happier we make others, the happier we are, and as long as a single miserable person exists, our own happiness cannot be complete. This is the meaning of the true aspect of all phenomena. Hence, the heart of this teaching is a never-ending effort to transform reality.

“Describing his motivation for composing the treatise ‘On Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land,' Nichiren Daishonin writes: 'I say all this solely for the sake of the nation, for the sake of the Law, for the sake of others, not for my own sake' (WND-1, 164). The fiercest storms of persecution could not extinguish the flame of the Daishonin’s passionate commitment to relieve all people of suffering.”

SGI Newsletter No. 9185, The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, Part 2: Human Revolution, Chapter 7: What Is Human Revolution? 7.6 Human Revolution Is a Never-ending Effort to Transform Reality. The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra, vol. 1, published in Japanese in March 1996. From the January 2015 issue of the Daibyakurenge. Translation re-released Jan. 26th, 2015.

"However, even a stranger, if you open up your heart to him, may be willing to lay down his life for you."

(On Rebuking Slander of the Law and Eradicating Sins - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 444)

Let’s give our all in encouraging
those members who are not able
to attend meetings for various different reasons.
Every single person is important
with a unique and noble mission for kosen-rufu.
Let's support each other so that all of us,
leaving no one behind,
can become a champion in life!

Daisaku Ikeda

Point Four, the passage “The Dharma King, destroyer of being, / when he appears in the world / accords with the desires of living beings, / preaching the Law in a variety of ways.”

The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings says: “Being” (u)2 refers to those who slander the Law. “Destroyer of” (ha) refers to shakubuku, or refutation of the slander. “The Dharma King” means the votary of the Lotus Sutra. “The world” refers to the country of Japan.

Again we may say that the word “destroyer” stands for non-substantiality; “being” stands for temporary existence; and the p.66Dharma King stands for the Middle Way. Since this is so, this passage is describing the seeds that lead to the state of the Thus Come One Shakyamuni. In fact, the appearance in the world of all the Buddhas of the three existences of past, present, and future comes about through this passage.

With regard to being, there are twenty-five realms of being or existence in the threefold world. To destroy means to destroy one’s attachment to these realms of being. The Dharma King is the mind-dharma of the living beings of the Ten Worlds. The word King means mind-dharma. When one gains enlightenment into the true aspect of all phenomena, this is what is meant by “the Dharma King, destroyer of being.”

Now when Nichiren and his followers chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, they are putting an end to the attachment to being, or slander of the Law, and becoming [Buddhas like] Shakyamuni, the Dharma King. These two words “destroyer [of] being” are the seeds that lead to one’s becoming [a Buddha like] the Thus Come One Shakyamuni.

Again we may say that the “being” stands for the realm of earthly desires and of birth and death. The essence of the provisional teachings and the provisional doctrines is that one must cast aside the realm of earthly desires and of birth and death and enter a different realm, which is that of enlightenment and nirvana. But the essence of the present sutra, the Lotus, is that, while remaining right here in the realm of earthly desires and of birth and death, one can achieve a state of enlightenment and nirvana. This is what is termed “destroyer.”

“Being” represents earthly desires, and that which destroys it is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Being is that which is destroyed, and the destroyer is that which is capable of destroying it. Both the destroyer and the destroyed participate in the single principle of the true aspect of all phenomena.

The “Introduction” chapter of the Lotus Sutra speaks of those who “had put an end to the bonds of existence (u, or being)”; the present chapter speaks of “the Dharma King, destroyer of being”; p.67and the “Simile and Parable” chapter states that “this threefold world / is all my domain (u).”

For more on this passage ---> http://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/ott/PART-1/5

HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HEARD FROM OUR FRIEND! KEEP CHANTING!

HE WAS THANKED TODAY BY A MAN WHO'S LIFE HE SAVED.

THAT'S WHO I KNOW HIM TO BE AND HE DESERVES OUR COMPASSION.

WITHOUT HIM, WOULD WE BE HERE? WOULD WE BE WHO WE ARE NOW IF NOT???

HOW CAN WE ACHIEVE ANYTHING LESS THAN VICTORY?

I HOPE WE CAN ALL TRY TO BE UNIFED IN THAT APPRECIATION.

WITHOUT ICMAG THERE IS NO CCG.

I BOW IN HUMBLE OBEISANCE TO YOU ALL AND ASK FOR THE LIONS ROAR.

THE TIME HAS COME FOR A BRIGHT LIGHT TO SUDDENLY PIERCE THE NIGHT SKY….

CHANT FOR G TO BE FREE

T

“From the perspective of the true aspect of all phenomena, here and now constitute the eternal and original, the true and fundamental, stage of our lives. The Daishonin makes this point clearly when he affirms: ‘It is not that he [the Buddha] leaves his present place and goes to some other place' (OTT, 192).

"Even if the place or sphere of activity where we find ourselves is so challenging that it feels like it is some kind of karmic retribution, it is actually the perfect place for us to fulfil our original mission. In that sense, those who awaken to the wisdom of the true aspect of all phenomena will lead lives in which any negative karma is transformed into brilliant mission.

"Once we are certain of this, we are filled with hope. Every person and situation we encounter becomes a precious treasure.”

SGI Newsletter No. 9185, The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, Part 2: Human Revolution, Chapter 7: What Is Human Revolution? 7.6 Human Revolution Is a Never-ending Effort to Transform Reality. The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra, vol. 1, published in Japanese in March 1996. From the January 2015 issue of the Daibyakurenge. Translation re-released Jan. 26th, 2015.

"The Buddha wrote that one should become the master of one’s mind rather than let one’s mind master oneself. This is what I mean when I emphatically urge you to give up even your body, and never begrudge even your life for the sake of the Lotus Sutra.”

(Letter to Gijō-bō - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 390)

Point Five, on the words “I look upon all things / as being universally equal, / I have no mind to favor this or that, / to love one or hate another. / I am without greed or attachment / and without limitation or hindrance.”

The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings says: The six lines of verse that make up this passage refer to the five levels of consciousness. The words “I look upon all things / as being universally equal” represent the ninth consciousness. The words “I have no mind to favor this or that” concern the eighth consciousness. The words “[I have no mind] to love one or hate another” concern the seventh consciousness. The words “I am without greed or attachment” concern the sixth consciousness. And the words “[I am] without limitation or hindrance” concern the other five consciousnesses. These five levels of consciousness constitute the basic nature of the way in which we living beings view things.

Now Nichiren and his followers, who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, are practicing the ninth consciousness, that is, “I look upon all things / as being universally equal,” are they not? And because they do so, they have no mind “to favor this or that,” have they? They have no mind “to love one or hate another,” have they? They are “without greed or attachment,” are they not? They are “without limitation or hindrance,” are they not?

Notes

1. From the perspective that, in terms of the Ten Worlds, cause represents the nine worlds and effect represents Buddhahood, Nichiren refers to two kinds of teachings: those that view things from the standpoint of “cause to effect” (Jpn jūin-shika) and those that approach things from the standpoint of “effect to cause” (jūka-kōin). The former indicates Shakyamuni’s teachings, by which ordinary people carry out Buddhist practice (cause) aiming at the goal of Buddhahood (effect). In contrast, the latter indicates Nichiren’s teaching, in which ordinary people manifest their inherent Buddhahood (effect), and go out among the people of the nine worlds (cause) to lead them to Buddhahood.

2. “Being” (existence) in Buddhism is regarded as illusion, for the true nature of all things is emptiness or non-substantiality. Thus the Dharma King is called “destroyer of being,” or destroyer of illusion.

Nam myoho renge kyo
Like the roar of the lion !!

The Daimoku of the Lotus Sutra

Nichiren, follower of the Great Teacher Kompon [Dengyō]

NAM-MYOHO-RENGE-KYO.

Question: Is it possible, without understanding the meaning of the Lotus Sutra, but merely by chanting the five or seven characters of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo once a day, once a month, or simply once a year, once a decade, or once in a lifetime, to avoid being drawn into trivial or serious acts of evil, to escape falling into the four evil paths, and instead to eventually reach the stage of non-regression?

Answer: Yes, it is.

Question: You may talk about fire, but unless you put your hand in a flame, you will never burn yourself. You may say “water, water!” but unless you actually drink it, you will never satisfy your thirst. Then how, just by chanting the daimoku of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo without understanding what it means, can you escape from the evil paths of existence?

Answer: They say that, if you play a koto strung with a lion’s sinews, then all the other kinds of strings will snap. And if you so much as hear the words “pickled plum,” your mouth will begin to water. Even in everyday life there are such wonders, so how much greater are the wonders of the Lotus Sutra!

We are told that parrots, simply by twittering the four noble truths of the Hinayana teachings, were able to be reborn in heaven,1 and that men, simply by respecting the three treasures, were able to escape being swallowed by a huge fish.2 How much more effective, then, is the daimoku of the Lotus Sutra, which is the very heart of all the eighty thousand sacred teachings of Buddhism and the eye of all the Buddhas! How can you doubt that by chanting it you can escape from the four evil paths?

The Lotus Sutra, wherein the Buddha honestly discarded expedient means, says that one can “gain entrance through faith alone.”3 And the Nirvana Sutra, which the Buddha preached in the grove of sal trees on the last day of his life, states, “Although there are innumerable practices that lead to enlightenment, if one teaches faith, then that includes all those practices.”

“Although I and my disciples may encounter various difficulties, if we do not harbour doubts in our hearts, we will as a matter of course attain Buddhahood. Do not have doubts simply because heaven does not lend you protection. Do not be discouraged because you do not enjoy an easy and secure existence in this life.”

(The Opening of the Eyes - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol. 1, page 283)

"You should always talk with each other to free yourselves from the sufferings of birth and death and attain the pure land of Eagle Peak, where you will nod to each other and speak in one mind." - “Flowering and Bearing Grain", WND-I, page 909

"Nothing is more noble than trying to come up with ways to actualise and expand kosen-rufu in our communities. Without such practical efforts, kosen-rufu is just an empty abstraction, a mere ideal.

"Ultimately, the most important thing is to chant daimoku and bring forth your creativity and wisdom in your actual efforts for kosen-rufu. Please take personal responsibility, unite together with your fellow members, and forge on with firm determination.

"Decide to win in the place where you are, chant, rack your brains, and struggle to make kosen-rufu advance in your community. That’s the mark of a real champion. The heavenly deities will not fail to protect such a person.”

SGI Newsletter No. 9197, Humanistic Teachings for Victory, Blaze New Trails Where None Have Existed Before, Make the New Era Begin in Your Own Community, from 16th Oct., 2013, issue of the Soka Shimpo, translation released 5th Feb., 2015

42 On Practicing the Buddha’s Teachings

Question: Then it would be wrong to say that faith in any sutra or any Buddha of the expedient and provisional teachings equals faith in the Lotus Sutra. But what of those who believe only in the Lotus Sutra and carry out the five practices set forth in the sutra or follow the practices described in the “Peaceful Practices” p.394chapter? Could we not say that their practice accords with the Buddha’s teachings?

Answer: Anyone who practices Buddhism should first understand the two types of practice—shōju and shakubuku. All the sutras and treatises fall into one or the other of these two categories. Though scholars in this country may have studied Buddhism extensively, they do not know which practice accords with the time. The four seasons continually repeat themselves, each in turn manifesting its own characteristics. In summer it is hot; in winter, cold. Flowers blossom in spring, and fruit ripens in autumn. Therefore, it is only natural to sow seeds in spring and reap the harvest in fall. If one sowed in autumn, could one harvest in spring? Heavy clothing is useful in bitter cold, but of what use is it in sweltering heat? A cool breeze is pleasant in summer, but what good is it in winter? Buddhism works in the same way. There is a time when the Hinayana teachings are disseminated for the benefit of humanity, a time when the provisional Mahayana doctrines are disseminated for the benefit of humanity, and a time when the true Mahayana teaching is spread to enable people to obtain the fruit of Buddhahood. The two millennia of the Former and Middle Days of the Law required the spread of the Hinayana and provisional Mahayana teachings, but the first five hundred years of the Latter Day call for only the Lotus Sutra, the pure and perfect teaching of the one vehicle of Buddhahood, to be spread abroad widely. As predicted by the Buddha, now is the age of quarrels and disputes when the pure Law becomes obscured and lost, and the provisional and true teachings are hopelessly confused.

When one must face enemies, one needs a sword, a stick, or a bow and arrows. When one has no enemies, however, such weapons are of no use at all. In this age, the provisional teachings have turned into enemies of the true teaching. When the time is right to propagate the teaching of the one vehicle, the provisional teachings become enemies. When they are a source of confusion, they must be thoroughly refuted from the standpoint of the true teaching. Of the two types of practice, this is shakubuku, the practice of the Lotus Sutra. With good reason T’ien-t’ai stated, “The Lotus Sutra is the teaching of shakubuku, the refutation of the provisional doctrines.”

The four peaceful practices18 [in the “Peaceful Practices” chapter] correspond to shōju. To carry them out in this age would be as foolish as sowing seeds in winter and expecting to reap the harvest in spring. It is natural for a rooster to crow at dawn, but strange for him to crow at dusk. Now, when the true and the provisional teachings are utterly confused, it would be equally unnatural for one to seclude oneself in the mountain forests and carry out the peaceful practice of shōju without refuting the enemies of the Lotus Sutra. One would lose the chance to practice the Lotus Sutra.

Now, in the Latter Day of the Law, who is carrying out the practice of shakubuku in strict accordance with the Lotus Sutra? Suppose someone, no matter who, should unrelentingly proclaim that the Lotus Sutra alone can lead people to Buddhahood, and that all other sutras, far from enabling them to attain the way, only drive them into hell. Observe what happens should that person thus try to refute the teachers and the doctrines of all the other schools. The three powerful enemies will arise without fail.

Our teacher, the Thus Come One Shakyamuni, practiced shakubuku during the last eight years of his lifetime, the Great Teacher T’ien-t’ai for more than thirty years, and the Great Teacher p.395Dengyō for more than twenty. I have been refuting the provisional doctrines for more than twenty years, and the great persecutions I have suffered during this period are beyond number. I do not know whether they are equal to the nine great persecutions suffered by the Buddha, but surely neither T’ien-t’ai nor Dengyō ever faced persecutions as great as mine for the sake of the Lotus Sutra. They encountered only hatred, envy, and slander, whereas I twice incurred the wrath of the rulers and was exiled to remote provinces. Furthermore, I was nearly beheaded at Tatsunokuchi, wounded on the forehead [at Komatsubara], and slandered time and again. My disciples have also been exiled and thrown into prison, and my lay supporters have been evicted and had their fiefs confiscated. How can the persecutions faced by Nāgārjuna, T’ien-t’ai, or Dengyō possibly compare with these? Understand then that the votary who practices the Lotus Sutra exactly as the Buddha teaches will without fail be attacked by the three powerful enemies.

In the more than two thousand years that have passed since the Buddha’s advent, Shakyamuni himself, T’ien-t’ai, and Dengyō were the only three who perfectly carried out the Buddha’s teachings. Now in the Latter Day of the Law, Nichiren and his disciples and lay believers are just such practitioners. If we cannot be called votaries faithful to the Buddha’s teachings, then neither can Shakyamuni, T’ien-t’ai, or Dengyō. Could Devadatta, Kokālika, Sunakshatra, Kōbō, Jikaku, Chishō, Shan-tao, Hōnen, Ryōkan, and others like them be called votaries of the Lotus Sutra? Could Shakyamuni Buddha, T’ien-t’ai, Dengyō, or Nichiren and his disciples and lay believers be the practitioners of the Nembutsu, True Word, Zen, Precepts, or other schools? Could the Lotus Sutra be called an expedient and provisional teaching, and the sutras of the Nembutsu and other schools be the Lotus Sutra? None of this could ever be possible, even if east were to become west and west become east; even if the earth and all its trees and plants were to fly up and become the heavens, and the sun, the moon, and the stars were to tumble down and become the earth.

What a great pity it is that all the Japanese people are delighted to see Nichiren and his disciples and lay believers suffer at the hands of the three powerful enemies! What befell another yesterday may befall oneself today. Nichiren and his followers have but a short time to endure—merely the time it takes for frost or dew to vanish in the morning sun. When our prayers for Buddhahood are answered and we are dwelling in the true land of Tranquil Light where we will experience the boundless joy of the Law, what pity we will feel for those who sink to the bottom of the great citadel of the Avīchi hell and meet extreme suffering there! How they will envy us then!

Life flashes by in but a moment. No matter how many terrible enemies you may encounter, banish all fears and never think of backsliding. Even if someone were to cut off our heads with a saw, impale our bodies with lances, or shackle our feet and bore them through with a gimlet, as long as we are alive, we must keep chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Then, if we chant until the very moment of death, Shakyamuni, Many Treasures, and the Buddhas of the ten directions will come to us instantly, exactly as they promised during the ceremony at Eagle Peak. Taking our hands and bearing us on their shoulders, they will carry us to Eagle Peak. The two sages,19 the two heavenly kings,20 and the ten demon daughters will guard us, while all the heavenly gods and benevolent deities will raise a canopy over our heads and unfurl p.396banners on high. They will escort us under their protection to the treasure land of Tranquil Light. How can such joy possibly be described!

Nichiren

The fifth month of the tenth year of Bun’ei (1273), cyclical sign mizunoto-tori

To all my followers


Keep this letter with you at all times and read it over and over.

Thanks Weird
Nam myoho renge kyo

WND I: 130 The One-eyed Turtle and the Floating Log

Background

THE “Peaceful Practices” chapter in the fifth volume of the Lotus Sutra states, “Manjushrī, as for this Lotus Sutra, throughout immeasurable numbers of lands one cannot even hear its name.”

This passage means that we living beings, transmigrating through the six paths of the threefold world, have been born sometimes in the world of heavenly beings, other times in the world of human beings, and still other times in the worlds of hell, hungry spirits, and animals. Thus we have been born in immeasurable numbers of lands where we have undergone innumerable sufferings and occasionally enjoyed pleasures, but have never once been born in a land where the Lotus Sutra has spread. Or even if we happened to have been born in such a land, we did not chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. We never dreamed of chanting it, nor did we ever hear others chant it.

To illustrate the extreme rarity of encountering this sutra, the Buddha likened it to the difficulty of a one-eyed turtle encountering a floating sandalwood log with a hollow in it. The essence of this analogy is as follows. Eighty thousand yojanas down, on the bottom of the ocean, lives a large sea-creature called a turtle. He has neither limbs nor flippers. His belly is as hot as heated iron, but the shell on his back is as cold as the Snow Mountains. What this turtle yearns for day and night, morning and evening—the desire he utters at each moment—is to cool his belly and warm the shell on his back.

The red sandalwood tree is regarded as sacred and is like a sage among people. All other trees are regarded as ordinary trees and are like foolish people. The wood of this sandalwood tree has the power to cool the turtle’s belly. The turtle longs with all his might to climb onto a sandalwood log and place his belly in a hollow there in order to cool it, while exposing the shell on his back to the sun in order to warm it. According to the laws of nature, however, he can rise to the ocean’s surface once every thousand years. But even then it is difficult for him to find a sandalwood log. The ocean is vast, while the turtle is small, and floating logs are few. Even if he finds some floating logs, he seldom encounters one of sandalwood. And even when he is fortunate enough to find a sandalwood log, it rarely has a hollow the size of his belly. If [the hollow is too large and] he falls into it, he cannot warm the shell on his back, and no one will be there to pull him out. If the hollow is too small and he cannot place his belly in it, the waves will wash him away, and he will sink back to the ocean’s floor.

p.958Even when, against all odds, the turtle comes across a floating sandalwood log with a hollow of the right size, having only one eye, his vision is distorted, and he sees the log as drifting eastward when it is actually drifting westward. Thus the harder he swims in his hurry to climb onto the log, the farther away he goes. When it drifts eastward, he sees it as drifting westward, and in the same way, he mistakes south for north. Thus he always moves away from the log, never approaches it.

In this way, the Buddha explained how difficult it is for a one-eyed turtle to find a floating sandalwood log with a suitable hollow, even after immeasurable, boundless kalpas. He employed this analogy to illustrate the rarity of encountering the Lotus Sutra. One should be aware, however, that, even if one should encounter the floating sandalwood log of the Lotus Sutra, it is rarer still to find the hollow of the Mystic Law of the daimoku, which is difficult to chant.

The ocean represents the sea of the sufferings of birth and death, and the turtle symbolizes us living beings. His limbless state indicates that we are poorly endowed with roots of goodness. The heat of his belly represents the eight hot hells of anger and resentment, and the cold of the shell on his back, the eight cold hells of covetousness and greed. His remaining at the bottom of the ocean for a thousand years means that we fall into the three evil paths and find it hard to emerge. His rising to the surface once every thousand years illustrates how difficult it is to be born as a human being from the three evil paths once in immeasurable kalpas at a time when Shakyamuni Buddha has appeared in the world.

Other floating logs, such as those of pine or cypress, are easy to find, but a sandalwood log is difficult to encounter. This illustrates that it is easy to encounter all the other sutras, but difficult to encounter the Lotus Sutra. And even if the turtle should come across a floating sandalwood log, finding one with a suitable hollow is difficult. This means that, even if one should encounter the Lotus Sutra, it is difficult to chant the five characters of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo that are its essence.

The turtle mistakes east for west and north for south. Similarly, though we flaunt our knowledge and act as if we were wise, we ordinary people regard superior teachings as inferior and inferior teachings as superior. We regard powerless teachings as ones that lead to enlightenment, and declare teachings inappropriate for the people’s capacity to be appropriate for them. Thus we believe that the teaching of the True Word school is superior and the Lotus Sutra is inferior, and that the former suits the people’s capacity, but the latter does not.

So consider well what I have just related. The Buddha made his advent in India and preached various sacred teachings during his lifetime. In his forty-third year of preaching he began to expound the Lotus Sutra. For eight years thereafter, all his disciples embraced the Lotus Sutra, which is like a wish-granting jewel. But Japan is separated from India by two hundred thousand ri of mountains and seas, so that the people here could not even hear the name of the Lotus Sutra.

Twelve hundred and more years after the passing of Shakyamuni Buddha, the Lotus Sutra had been brought to China, but still had not been transmitted to Japan. Fifteen hundred and more years after his passing, Buddhism was introduced for the first time to Japan from the Korean kingdom of Paekche during the reign of Emperor Kimmei, Japan’s thirtieth ruler. Moreover, in the seven hundred years that have passed since Prince Jōgū first had Buddhism p.959introduced from China, the Lotus Sutra and all the other sutras have been propagated widely, so that, from the ruler on down to the common people, those who are perceptive have come to embrace either the entirety, one volume, or one chapter of the Lotus Sutra in order to repay their debt to their parents. Thus they believe that they are truly embracing the Lotus Sutra. But they have never chanted Nam-myoho-renge-kyo aloud, and though they appear to believe in the Lotus Sutra, in fact, they are far from believing in it.

It is as if the one-eyed turtle, having found the sacred sandalwood that is difficult to encounter, were to fail to put his belly into the hollow. If he were to fail to do so, he would have encountered the sandalwood to no purpose, and he would instantly sink back to the bottom of the ocean.

In these more than seven hundred years, the Lotus Sutra has spread widely in our country, and those who read, teach, make offerings to, or embrace this sutra are more numerous than rice and hemp seedlings or bamboo plants and rushes. None of them, however, ever chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in the same way that they call on the name of the Buddha Amida, nor do any of them urge others to chant it. To read the various sutras or call upon the names of the various Buddhas is like the turtle encountering a log of ordinary wood. As long as it is not sandalwood, it fails to cool the turtle’s belly. As long as it is not the sun, it fails to warm the shell on his back. Such teachings merely please the eye and gladden the heart, but bring no benefit. They are like plants that blossom but bear no fruit, or words that are never put into practice.

I alone first chanted Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in Japan. In the more than twenty years since the summer of the fifth year of the Kenchō era (1253),1 I alone have been chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo day and night, morning and evening. Those who chant the Nembutsu number ten million. I have no support from anyone in authority, while the allies of the Nembutsu have power and are of noble birth. However, when a lion roars all the other beasts are silenced, and a dog is terrified by a tiger’s shadow. When the sun rises in the eastern sky, the light of all the stars fades completely.

The invocation of Amida Buddha’s name has exerted influence where the Lotus Sutra has not spread. But once the invocation of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo has been raised, the Nembutsu will become like a dog cowering before a lion, or the light of the stars paling before the sun. The daimoku and the Nembutsu are as unalike as a hawk and a pheasant. That is why the four kinds of Buddhists all view me with jealousy, and why everyone, both high and low, feels hatred for me. Those who make groundless accusations against me fill the country, and the wicked abound in the land. Therefore, people choose what is inferior and detest what is superior. It is as though one were to assert that a dog is braver than a lion, or that the stars appear brighter than the sun. Thus my bad reputation as a man of erroneous views has spread far and wide, so that in one way or another I have been falsely accused, vilified, attacked by swords and staves, and exiled repeatedly. All these persecutions coincide perfectly with the passage in the fifth volume of the Lotus Sutra.2 For that reason, tears spring to my eyes and joy fills my entire body.

Here I have neither clothing sufficient to cover my body nor provisions enough to survive. I live like Su Wu, who sustained himself by eating snow while he lived among the northern barbarians, or like Po I, who subsisted on ferns while living on Mount Shou-yang. Who other than my parents would trouble to visit me in such a p.960place? Were it not for the protection of the three treasures, how could I sustain my life for a single day, or even for a moment? I can only marvel that you so frequently send a messenger to me, when we have never even met. The fourth volume of the Lotus Sutra states that Shakyamuni Buddha will assume the form of an ordinary person in order to make offerings to the votary of the Lotus Sutra.3 Could it be that Shakyamuni Buddha has taken possession of your body, or were your roots of goodness from the past aroused?

A woman known as the dragon king’s daughter achieved Buddhahood through faith in the Lotus Sutra; she therefore pledged to protect women who embrace this sutra in the latter age. Could it be that you are related to her? How admirable!

Nichiren

The twenty-sixth day of the third month in the second year of Kōan (1279), cyclical sign tsuchinoto-u

Reply to the wife of the late Lord Matsuno

http://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/wnd-1/Content/130