A priest of the Ryūkaiji Temple of the Heguri District of Yamato Province was devoted to the Hokekyō and had recited it for years. His daily activities included reciting the sūtra, learning the meaning of the words, and lecturing on a chapter of the sūtra.

A dragon heard the priest’s recitation and was impressed with the noble lectures on the sūtra. He transformed himself into a man, came to the temple garden, and listened to the daily recitation for three years. Recognizing the dragon’s true faith, the priest developed a sincere friendship with the dragon. Soon their association became widely known among the public.

There was a drought in the country at that time. The plants of the five cereals were dying from lack of rain. The lamenting people appealed to the emperor. The emperor summoned the priest of the Ryūkaiji and said, “I hear that when you recite and lecture on the Hokekyō, a dragon comes and listens. Tell the dragon to cause rain. If you fail, you will be expelled from this country of Japan.”

With the imperial command, the lamenting priest returned to his place and explained his predicament to the dragon. The dragon said, “Thanks to listening to your recitation of the Hokekyō, I no longer suffer from my bad karma and now enjoy the benefits. I would like to repay your favor at the cost of my life. However, this drought has nothing to do with me but is caused by the Bonten Ō, the Great Deva King, who wishes to end evil in this country, and has caused the rains to cease. If I go and open the Gates of Rain, I will be killed immediately. Yet I would like to cause rain for three days and sacrifice my life to serve the Law.

I beg you to bury my corpse and to build a temple on the site of my death. Temples should be built at each of four places where I will appear and should be regarded as sacred to the Buddha. As the dragon finished, he parted from the priest who immediately reported all this to the emperor.

When the promised day arrived, the sky suddenly became cloudy, the thunder rolled and a torrential rain continuously fell for three days and nights. The land became fully irrigated and the revived plants became abundant. The pleased emperor invited the priest and had him offer lectures on the Hokekyō.

As agreed with the dragon, a temple named Ryūkaiji, Dragon Sea Temples was built. More temples, including the Dragon Gate Temple, Ryūmonji, Dragon Heaven Temple, Ryütenji, and Dragon King Temple, Ryūōji, were constructed. The priest spent the remainder of his life lecturing on the Law. Many other extraordinary things which happened during his life are not recorded. (Page 89-90)