One of the special concepts of the Lotus Sutra is that a place where the Lotus Sutra is expounded is itself the Place of Enlightenment. This means that anywhere we accept, believe, recite, and practice the Lotus Sutra is the Place of Enlightenment. It is not necessary for us to erect temples, fine buildings, or monuments in select holy places.

[Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma,] opens with Sakyamuni speaking to a Bodhisattva named Medicine-King in the presence of eighty thousand great beings:

Medicine-King! Do you see the many human beings, nonhuman beings, monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen in this congregation, who are seeking the goals for Sravakahood and Pratyekabuddhahood or the enlightenment of the Buddha? If any of them rejoice in my presence, even for one moment’s thought, at hearing a verse or a phrase of the Lotus Sutra, I can assure them all of their future Buddhahood. Even after my extinction, if they rejoice for one moment’s thought at hearing a verse or a phrase of the Lotus Sutra, I can assure them all of their future attainment of supreme-perfect-enlightenment. Moreover, if anyone keeps, reads, recites, expounds, and copies even a verse or a phrase of the Sutra, and respects a scroll of the Sutra just as he respects me, and makes offerings to it, he or she should be considered to have already made offerings to ten billion Buddhas in a previous existence, and will surely become a Buddha in a future life.

These words of the Buddha introduce a new development in the teachings of the Lotus Sutra. Up until Chapter 10, only “hearers” had been assured of their future Buddhahood. This statement, on the other hand, indicates that not only the “hearers,” but all other people in the congregation are also assured of future Buddhahood. What is more, the account goes on to say that even after the Buddha’s extinction, anyone who rejoices at hearing the Sutra will be assured of his or her future Buddhahood. Furthermore, these words tell us that after the Buddha’s extinction, the Lotus Sutra should be written on a scroll, and we should respect it and make offerings to it.

The studies conducted over so many centuries made possible a deeper understanding of the Lotus Sutra, and methodological standards for its interpretation were established. One example is called Kamon. It is a classification of the twenty-eight chapters into several sets for a systematic explanation of their meaning.

The major Kamon is the “Three Parts of Each of the Two Divisions of the Lotus Sutra” which was established by Great Master Chih-i. Most commentators since his time have accepted his guidelines. …

[T]he “Three Parts of Each of the Two Divisions of the Lotus Sutra” refers to the division of the Sutra into two main sections: the first half, consisting of Chapters One through Fourteen, and the second half, consisting of Chapters Fifteen through Twenty-eight. Kamon gives a detailed explanation of the reason for this division. The first half is named Shakumon, literally “imprinted gate.” Its main purpose is to teach how “hearers” and Pratyekabuddhas can attain Buddhahood in the One Vehicle. The second half is called Hommon, which means “Primal Gate” or “Primal Mystery.” This part reveals Sakyamuni to be the infinite, absolute Buddha, the Buddha who attained enlightenment in the remotest past but still leads living beings in the present. These two points are considered the fundamental ideas of the Lotus Sutra.

Sakyamuni’s prophetic statements on religious practices in the future, or after his extinction, are the major characteristics of the Lotus Sutra, and cannot be found in any other sutra. In a time when Sakyamuni no longer exists physically, Bodhisattvas are to play the leading role in his place. … Bodhisattvas have the heart of the Buddha, and their deeds manifest his will. This is why the Lotus Sutra entitles Bodhisattvas to be the teachers of the Dharma. In this sense, Bodhisattvas, or the teachers of the Dharma, can be considered as substitutes for the Buddha. What is more, their role can be considered even more important than that of the Buddha himself after his extinction. Sakyamuni stresses this in his … statement to Bodhisattva Medicine-King:

Medicine-King! If after my extinction, anyone expounds even a single verse or phrase of this Sutra to even one person, he or she should be considered to be my messenger, sent by me to do my work. Needless to say, those who expound the Sutra in public are also great Bodhisattvas. Even if an evil person speaks ill of me or slanders me in my presence, he is not as sinful as the person who reproaches laymen or monks for reading and reciting the Lotus Sutra (p. 172).

Since the physical body of the Buddha no longer exists after his extinction, the direct object of our worship should then become his teachings, whose substance is preserved in the form of the Sutra or a scroll of the Sutra. The Sutra is the spirit of the Buddha, or another form of his manifestation. If we focus on the time after the Buddha’s extinction, the Sutra or a scroll of the Sutra replaces his physical manifestation. In this sense, respecting and making offerings to the Sutra or a scroll of the Sutra is exactly the same as respecting and making offerings to the Buddha himself. Indeed, when we believe, worship, and make offerings to the Lotus Sutra, we in fact believe, worship, and make offerings to the living Buddha. Furthermore, through these practices, we are considered to be worshiping the Original Buddha of Eternal Existence. [Chapter 10: The Teacher of the Dharma] and those which follow will gradually clarify what we mean by this.