Concerning this way of being a bodhisattva, the last verse section of chapter 15 includes the phrase, “. . . and [they] are untainted by worldly things, just as the lotus flower in the water emerges from the earth.” The lotus grows only in muddy water, yet its beautiful flowers bloom without being tainted by the muddy water. Thus, a bodhisattva should live in this actual world without being tainted by the mud of the world, like beautiful flowers blooming with truth.

This is the gist of chapter 15: The most important thing in it is that the chapter praises this Sahā world—that is, it praises those who make great efforts while enduring suffering in this actual human world. They are the true disciples of the Buddha. The chapter is critical of those immediate disciples of the Buddha who preach the bodhisattva practice of enduring suffering in this world while separating themselves completely from the actual world.

Also, we should not neglect the idea that these bodhisattvas live in the empty sky under the Sahā world. I have already pointed out that the term “empty sky” also means “unlimited,” and is used in a way parallel to “emptiness.” That is to say, living in the emptiness in the Sahā world means to be in the midst of the swirl of the world of desire, without being dragged down by it, constantly maintaining a stance of unattached freedom.

In chapter 15, “Springing Up from the Earth,” a group of bodhisattvas led by four, such as Bodhisattva Superior Practice, emerge from this Sahā world and reveal themselves to be direct disciples of the Buddha. They are described as ones who, having been entrusted by him to do so, will disseminate the Dharma after the Buddha is gone. This may be an indication that those who struggle within actual society are especially authentic Buddhists.

It is explained that these bodhisattvas dwell below, in an empty space under this Sahā world. As we have seen earlier, this “empty space” is another name for emptiness, and the two terms are often used interchangeably. Thus, we can interpret “living in an empty space below this Sahā world” to mean that being grounded in an experience of emptiness, they remain in this Sahā world without clinging to it. In other words, chapter 15 criticizes the way of the holy ones, the shravakas, for transcending actual reality in order to stagnate in emptiness, thereby falling into nihilism. Instead, it highly values the figure of the ordinary person, the bodhisattva, who lives in the actual world, the temporal world, without getting bogged down in it, and works diligently, with emptiness in the background behind the scenes, to bring about the realization of truth and the reformation of the world. Such empty space (emptiness) and actual reality (the temporal) express the true Buddha way—that is, the dialectical dynamic of the bodhisattva way of duality in nonduality, and nonduality in duality. A verse in chapter 15 says:

They have learned the bodhisattva way well,
And are untainted by worldly things,
Just as the lotus flower in the water
Emerges from the earth.

In other words, they emerged from the earth like a lotus flower untainted by water, coming together in the here and now, untainted by worldly things. Here the bodhisattva way is explained through the symbolism of the lotus. That is, the idea that the lotus flower can only grow in muddy water, but also blossom there into a beautiful flower, is applied to the image of the bodhisattva. Moreover, it is taken from the title of the Lotus Sutra.

A Bodhisattva will be peaceful,
And free from timidity
If he stays in a quiet room
For some time,
Recollects the Dharma correctly,
Understands the Dharma
According to the meanings of it,
And then emerges
From his dhyāna-concentration,
And leads kings, princes,
Common people and brahmanas
By expounding this sūtra to them.

Another interesting thing is the fact that, in chapter 4 of the Commentary on the Lotus Sutra attributed to Prince Shotoku (574-622), commenting on the phrase “always preferring meditation (zazen) in a quiet place, he should improve and quiet his mind,” the author questions how bodhisattvas can find the time to spread the sutra in the world if they always like to meditate in secluded mountains. So he read the passage in a different way, such that it meant that one should not get close to or be friendly with Small Vehicle Buddhists who like meditation. In other words, he interpreted it as saying “Do not get close or friendly with Small Vehicle zen masters who always like to be doing meditation.” When the author of that commentary read this text in this way or simply ignored it, he would mention it, saying such things as “I interpret it a little differently” or “I don’t need this now.” Strangely enough, this was an impetus for the advent of practical-minded Japanese thought. At least it provides good material for understanding the Japanese adoption of Buddhism.

Chapter 14 contains the parable of the jewel in the topknot. A powerful king rewards his soldiers for their achievements. The precious jewel in the topknot of his hair is the only thing he does not give to anyone, reserving it for a soldier of especially great merit. Just as the Buddha, who is king of the truth, has preached the Dharma in various ways, the Lotus Sutra is reserved for those who will practice the bodhisattva way in the future.

Chapter 14 teaches that bodhisattvas who devote themselves to the social application of the truth should develop the habit of self-reflection. Whereas the previous chapter has the so-called stern, “break and subdue” method of conversion, this chapter has the mild, “embrace and accept” method of leading others. It discusses ways of admonishing oneself and controlling one’s behavior, speech, attitudes, and will. These are called the four kinds of trouble-free or “safe and easy” practice.

The chapter also advises against such things as getting too close to kings, ministers, other high officials, and the like, smiling or laughing or having a covetous attitude while preaching to women, and putting others down or abusing them with talk about their likes and dislikes or good and bad points. It gives detailed instructions on such things as not forgetting to be compassionate and respectful to others, or praying that all will be saved. Even though we are in this world, the emptiness of all things should not be forgotten. And bodhisattvas should dwell “as peacefully and unmoved as Mount Sumeru.

[T]he bodhisattva way of chapter 14, “Safe and Easy Practices,” is quiet and passive when compared to the previous chapter. For this reason some have seen it as being different in quality, and as having been inserted at a later time. From early times it has been interpreted as being inferior and taught for beginner bodhisattvas who cannot follow the difficult practices of martyrdom and self-sacrifice found in chapter 13. But the audience for this chapter was none other than bodhisattvas. Furthermore, the first part of the chapter advocates bodhisattva practice in the latter age. So it could well be thought of as a kind of follow-up to chapter 13. It teaches a quiet and passive bodhisattva practice because it advocates that followers of the bodhisattva way engage in self-reflection on practical knowledge and missions, perhaps as a way of maintaining individual self-identity. It makes sense if we understand it in such a way.

Chapter 13, the martyrdom chapter, tells of the consciousness-raising of bodhisattvas, in which they become envoys of the Buddha by pledging to take the Buddha’s orders seriously as they undergo suffering by working for the realization of truth. These bodhisattvas promised:

Though many ignorant people
Will curse and abuse us
Or attack us with swords and sticks,
We will endure it all.

In an evil age of a muddied eon,
Full of dreadful things,
Evil spirits will take possession of others
To curse, abuse, and insult us.

But, revering and trusting in the Buddha,
We will wear an armor of patient endurance.
We will cherish neither our bodies nor our lives,
But care only for the unexcelled way.

Repeatedly we will be driven out
And exiled far from stupas and monasteries.
Remembering the Buddha’s orders,
We will endure all such evils.
We will go there and teach the Dharma Entrusted to us by the Buddha.

We are emissaries of the World-Honored One.
Facing multitudes without fear,
We will teach the Dharma well.

This section was very moving to Nichiren, who read it as something to be taken to heart and put into practice.

Chapter 13, “Encouragement to Uphold the Sutra,” also teaches entrusting to bodhisattvas the mission of disseminating the Dharma in the evil age, and especially emphasizes the practice of martyrdom by bodhisattvas who are so entrusted. The chapter closes with bodhisattvas vowing to disseminate the Dharma despite intolerable suffering. Nichiren, who suffered many hardships in his life, and his followers, who were also believers in the Lotus Sutra, were encouraged and supported by this exaltation of the spirit of martyrdom, and by the teaching of “the apostles of the Tathagata” found in chapter 10. These teachings also gave them a sense of being among the religious elite and helped create strong bonds of communal friendship. Some contemporary scholars comment that this bodhisattva sense of being an apostle or a martyr is unique within Buddhism.

Because the Lotus Sutra generates such a bodhisattva spirit, some suspect that a distinct group produced it. Even if such a group did exist, since there is no concrete evidence for it, the idea that it existed is no more than conjecture. Rather, the bodhisattva spirit that the Lotus Sutra emphasizes was a radical version of the idea of the bodhisattva way that is generally found in Mahayana Buddhism. So it seems that we need not treat the Lotus Sutra as a special case.

Chapter 12 tells about the future becoming a buddha of Devadatta, the extremely evil one who rebelled against Shakyamuni, and the sudden awakening of an eight-year-old dragon girl. This chapter has been revered since ancient times as an expression of the awakening of evil people and women. While the esoteric Shingon school often uses the term “becoming a buddha in one’s present” it was first used when Zhanran, the sixth patriarch of the Chinese Tiantai school, interpreted chapter 12. The chapter may have been inserted into the Lotus Sutra later and does not form a natural part of the narrative line of the sutra as a whole. Yet, for the reason mentioned above, it is still revered and recited.
Yoshiro Tamura, "Introduction to the Lotus Sutra", p77