The Unity of All Three Buddha Bodies

The Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha represents the unity of all three bodies (Sanskrit, trikaya) of a Buddha: the universal Dharma-body (Sanskrit, Dhannakaya), the idealized enjoyment-body (Sanskrit, sambhogakaya), and the historical transformation-body (Sanskrit, nirmanakaya). … Only the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha accompanied by the four leaders of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth represents all three bodies at once, the unity of the universal, ideal, and historical aspects of Buddhahood. All the other Buddhas are merely his emanations or aspects of him. For this reason the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha is considered to be the Buddha who is most worthy of reverence.

Lotus World: An Illustrated Guide to the Gohonzon