When a wise man who mastered the Lotus Sūtra conducts a service for the remains of the dead, the dead man’s human body becomes the Dharma Body. This is what is meant by “with one’s present body.” It is possible for a wise man of the Lotus Sūtra to recover the spirit that left the dead person, put it back into the remains and convert it into the Buddha mind. This is the so-called attainment of Buddhahood.

The term “with one’s present body” is the physical aspect while the “attainment of Buddhahood” is the spiritual aspect. Therefore, it is possible to convert the dead person’s physical and spiritual aspects into the state of enlightenment that lasts forever from the eternal past. This is called the attainment of Buddhahood with one’s present body. Therefore, it is stated in the “Expedients” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “The reality of all things consists of appearance (body of the dead), nature (his mind), substance (his body and mind), etc.”

Mokue Nizō Kaigen no Koto, Opening the Eyes of Buddhist Images, Wooden Statues or Portraits, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 98

The bodhisattvas described in the fifteenth chapter, “Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground,” who have sprung out of the great earth, as numerous as the number of dust-particles of 1,000 worlds, are followers of the Original Buddha Śākyamuni who resides within our minds.

They are like T’ai-kung-wang and Duke of Chou, retainers of King Wu of the Chou dynasty in ancient China, who at the same time served the King’s young son, King Ch’eng; or Takeuchi no Sukune of ancient Japan, a leading minister to Empress Jingu, who concurrently served her son, Prince Nintoku. Just like them Bodhisattvas Superior Practice (Jōgyō), Limitless Practice (Muhengyō), Pure Practice (Jōgyō), and Steadily Established Practice (Anryūgyō), the four leaders of these bodhisattvas sprung from the earth, are simultaneously followers of the Original Buddha and bodhisattvas who reside in the minds of us, ordinary people.

Therefore, Grand Master Miao-lê has declared in his Annotations on the Mo-ho chih-kuan (Mo-ho chih-kuan fu-hsing-chiian hungchiieh): “You should know that both our bodies and the land on which we live are a part of the 3,000 modes of existence which exist in our minds. Consequently, upon our attainment of Buddhahood, we are in complete agreement with the truth of ‘3,000 existences contained in one thought,’ and our single body and single thought permeate through all the worlds in the universe.”

Kanjin Honzon-shō, A Treatise Revealing the Spiritual Contemplation and the Most Venerable One, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 145

Those who intend to spread Buddhism must correctly understand the five principles for propagation in order to disseminate the True Dharma. They are: (1) the teaching, (2) the capacity of the people, (3) the time, (4) the country, and (5) the sequence of spreading the Buddha’s teachings.

Ken Hōbō-shō, A Clarification of Slandering the True Dharma, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 113.

Śākyamuni Buddha is quoted to have declared in the third chapter on “A Parable” of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 2, “This triple world is My domain.” It means that the Buddha Śākyamuni has the virtue of being our master, the king and the most respectable in the world. His words, “All living beings therein are My children,” means that the Buddha has the virtue of our parent; and “There are many sufferings in this world; only I can save all living beings” points out His virtue of being our teacher. In the sixteenth chapter on “The Life Span of the Buddha” of the Lotus Sūtra, the Buddha is quoted to have declared, “I am the father of the world.” …

Grand Master Miao-lê declares in his Five Hundred Questions and Answers (Wu-pai wén-lun): “A man who does not know the long life of his father is like a man who wanders around the country governed by his father. Such a man cannot be a son of a man no matter how talented he is;” and “Even though his talent is as great as that of all the people in the country put together, he is nothing but a fool if he does not know how old his parents are.” Precept Master Tao-hsüan (Dōsen) of the Fen-te-ssu Temple at Chung-nan-shan in T’ang China mentions in his Ancient and Modern Disputes between Buddhism and Taoism (Ku-chin fu-tao lun-hêng), “Before the time of the Three Emperors (Fu Hsi, Shen Nung and Yellow Emperor) in ancient China, they had no characters for writing; they knew who their mother was but did not know their father. They acted as if they were birds and beasts.” These are words that Priest Hui-yüan (Eon) of Sui China uttered when he admonished the Emperor Wu of Northern Chou against his persecuting Buddhists.

Hasshū Imoku-shō, A Treatise on the Differences of the Lotus Sect from Eight Other Sects, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 16

It is predicted in the Lotus Sūtra, in the 13th chapter “Encouragement for Upholding This Sūtra,” that 2000 years after the Buddha’s extinction, in the Latter Age of Degeneration, three kinds of enemies will appear against those who spread the Lotus Sūtra. The time at hand matches exactly the Latter Age of Degeneration preached in the Lotus Sūtra as the “fifth 500-year period” after the death of the Buddha. As I, Nichiren, contemplate whether or not the Buddha’s words have proved to be true, three kinds of enemies surely exist today. If I deny the existence of the three enemies and spread the Lotus Sūtra in a manner so as to avoid persecution, I cannot claim to be a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra. On the other hand, if I spread the sūtra in such a way that I am persecuted by enemies, I certainly will lose my life.

Kyōki Jikoku-shō, Treatise on the Teaching, Capacity, Time and Country, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Page 95-96

Nāgārjuna and Vasubandhu were great commentators who wrote one thousand commentaries. However, they commented only on provisional Mahāyāna sūtras, and even though they inwardly grasped the Lotus Sūtra, they did not outwardly speak of it. (There is an oral transmission about this). T’ien-t’ai and Dengyō spread the Lotus Sūtra but they did not reveal the Most Venerable One of the essential section, the four bodhisattvas guided by the Original True Buddha, precept dais of the essential section, and the five characters of “Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō.” Their reasons were, first of all they did not receive the teaching from the Buddha. Secondly the time was not right to spread the teaching. The time has now arrived, however, and the four bodhisattvas guided by the Original True Buddha will appear in this world to spread the True Dharma according to the sūtra. I, Nichiren, have known this for a while. During the time of Emperor Wu in Han China a blue bird flew from the West signaled the omen of Hsi-wang-mu’s coming or a magpie sang as the omen of a visiting guest. My disciples should think this through seriously. You should not abandon your faith in the Lotus Sūtra even at the risk of your life.

Hokke Gyōja Chinan-ji, Difficulty of the Practicer of the Lotus Sūtra, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Biography and Disciples, Volume 5, Pages 16

[T]he eleventh chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “Appearance of the Stupa of Treasures,” states: “Those who uphold the teaching of this sūtra are deemed to serve Me, Śākyamuni, and the Buddha of Many Treasures. They also serve Buddhas in manifestation here who adorn and glorify their respective worlds.” This means that Śākyamuni Buddha, the Buddha of Many Treasures, and all the Buddhas in manifestation are in our minds, and that we, upholders of the Lotus Sūtra, will follow their steps and inherit all the merits of those Buddhas.

This is the meaning of the passage in the tenth chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “The Teacher of the Dharma,” which reads: “Those who hear of this Lotus Sūtra even for a moment, will instantly attain Perfect Enlightenment.”

Kanjin Honzon-shō, A Treatise Revealing the Spiritual Contemplation and the Most Venerable One, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 144-145

[B]eginning with Śākyamuni Buddha, such Buddhas as the Buddha of Infinite Life, Medicine Master Buddha, and the Buddha of Many Treasures as well as such bodhisattvas as Avalokiteśvara, Mahāsthāmaprāpta, Samantabhadra, and Mañjuśrī are compassionate parents to us. You should not forget that the ultimate doctrine of compassion with which these Buddhas and bodhisattvas guide the people is solely in the Lotus Sūtra. You should remember that the secret doctrine to save the evil, the stupid, women, and those without Buddha-nature is not revealed in sūtras other than the Lotus Sūtra. This is the very reason why the Lotus Sūtra is superior to all other Buddhist scriptures.

Shō Hokke Daimoku-shō, Treastise on Chanting the Daimoku of the Lotus Sūtra, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 15

When Queen Māyā became pregnant with her child, the future Śākyamuni Buddha, the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven saw through her womb and said: “The queen is pregnant with a sharp sword called the Lotus Sūtra, which is our sworn enemy. How can we eliminate it before it is born?” Pretending to be a great doctor, the Demon entered the palace of King Śuddhodana and talked the queen into drinking poison, saying it was medicine effective for easy childbirth. At the very moment when the Buddha was born, the Demon King caused a rain of stones to fall and mixed the baby’s milk with poison. When Prince Siddhārtha left the palace to become a monk, the Demon King, this time, pretended to be a black poisonous snake blocking the prince’s way. Furthermore, the Demon King entered the bodies of Devadatta, Kokālika, King Virūḍhaka, and King Ajātaśatru, making them throw huge rocks at the Buddha to draw blood or to kill members of the Śākya people and Buddha’s disciples. These almost fatal obstacles to the Buddha were the work of the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven to stop the Buddha from preaching the Lotus Sūtra. They are what is referred to when the Lotus Sūtra, chapter 10 on “The Teacher of the Dharma,” mentions, “Many people hate it with jealousy even in My lifetime.” These were the difficulties the Buddha experienced quite early in His lifetime, and many terrible difficulties awaited Him later. Since Śāriputra, Maudgalyāyana, and the other great bodhisattvas could not believe in the Lotus Sūtra, they, in spite of living close to the Buddha, were the worst enemies in the forty or so years before the Lotus Sūtra was preached.

These things happened in the Buddha’s lifetime, and in the future, more horrible difficulties will probably occur as predicted in the chapter which says: “It will be worse after I die.” How can ordinary people bear those difficulties while even the Buddha could hardly bear them? How much more so, as the difficulties we are to face are said to be more tremendous than those that the Buddha had encountered! No difficulties seem more horrible than Devadatta’s attempted murder of the Buddha with a huge rock thirty feet long and sixteen feet wide or King Ajatasatru’s attempt to hurt the Buddha by releasing a drunken elephant. Nevertheless, according to the sūtra, we shall encounter difficulties greater than those. One who often encounters such difficulties, through no fault of his own, must be a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra after the Buddha’s death.

Hōon-jō, Essay on Gratitude, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 7-8.

The distinct teaching is a Mahāyāna doctrine that expounds the Three Learnings: Buddhist precepts, meditation, and wisdom. The Buddhist precepts in this teaching, different from those of the Tripiṭaka or Common teaching, are the Diamond Treasure Precepts, which will never be broken.

Bodhisattvas of the distinct teaching are not intimidated by the Three Evil Realms of hell, nor are they afraid of the realms of hungry souls and beasts. Instead, they fear the practices of the Two Vehicles, regarding them as the true Three Evil Realms. For in the Three Evil Realms the seed of Buddhahood will not die out, while in the Vehicles practices of śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha the seed of Buddhahood will vanish. As it is written in the Commentary on Adornment of the Mahāyāna Teachings, “Though being always in hell is not the obstacle against attaining the great Buddhahood, it would be an obstacle if one seeks self-interest.” This means that the true evil realm lies in the burning pit of the three unchanging principles of Hinayāna Buddhism, and that the truly evil ones are the men of the Two Vehicles. Therefore, it is preached that it is preferable to commit evil acts than to keep the precepts of the Two Vehicles.

Ichidai Shōgyō Tai-I, Outline of All the Holy Teachings of the Buddha, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin,
Doctrine 3, Page 70