It is preached in the Lotus Sūtra that we must uphold it and propagate it in the seventeenth and eleventh chapters respectively. What does propagating this sūtra mean? As it is said in the fourteenth chapter that the Lotus Sūtra is supreme of all sūtras, only those who insist that the Lotus Sūtra is superior to such sūtras as the Great Sun Buddha, Flower Garland, Nirvana, and Wisdom, are true practicers of the Lotus Sūtra. If this is so, practicers of the Lotus Sūtra except for Grand Master Dengyō and I, Nichiren, have not existed for more than 700 years since Buddhism was introduced to Japan. I have been wondering then why those who abuse and speak ill of me, a true practicer of the Lotus Sūtra, are left unpunished. I now know, however, why their “heads have not been split into seven pieces” or their “mouths have not been sealed” as predicted in the twenty-sixth and fourteenth chapters of the sūtra. Such punishments are relatively light and concern only a few people.

Nichiren is the prime practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in the whole world. Those who abuse me, hate me, and others who side with such people, should suffer from the severest calamities in the world. The great earthquake of the Shōka Era that shook entire Japan and the great comet of the Bun’ei Era that ran across the sky were such punishments. Think on this carefully! Many have harmed practicers of Buddhism after the death of Śākyamuni Buddha, but calamities as severe as the ones we have now never occurred before. This means that never before has there been a person admonishing all the people to recite “Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō.” Is there anyone in the whole world who can see eye to eye, and stand shoulder to shoulder with me, to evaluate the merits of spreading the Lotus Sūtra?

Senji-shō, Selecting the Right time: A Tract by Nichiren, the Buddha’s Disciple, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 206-207

Many sūtras other than the Lotus preach variously according to the caliber of listeners. For instance the “five precepts” are preached for those in the human realm, the “ten good acts” for those in the realm of heaven, compassion and charity for the King of the Brahma Heaven, equal alms-giving among priests for the king of devils, 250 precepts for monks, 500 precepts for nuns, the four noble truths for men of śrāvaka, the 12 links of cause and effect for men of pratyekabuddha, and the six pāramitā for bodhisattvas. It is like water taking its shape according to the container or an elephant exerting its strength according to the enemy.

This is not the case with the Lotus Sūtra, in which the same Lotus Sūtra is preached for all the eight kinds of protectors of the Lotus Sūtra and four kinds of devotees. It is as if a ruler straightening a curved line or a lion exerting his full power regardless of the strength of its prey.

Shokyō to Hokekyō to Nan’I no Koto, The Difficulty and Easiness in Understanding the Lotus Sūtra and Other Sūtras, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 284

How pathetic it is that all the people in Japan today are delighted to see me, Nichiren, and my disciples and lay followers confronted by three types of powerful enemies and suffering from severe persecution. However, as it is said, “Today the fate of another, tomorrow mine,” their lives are as fragile as those of Nichiren and his disciples and lay followers. It is just like frost and dew lasting only until the sun rises. When, I, Nichiren, and my disciples and lay followers attain Buddhahood enjoying supreme happiness in the Pure Land of Tranquil Light, they will suffer in the bottom of the Hell of Incessant Suffering. Then what pity we shall feel for them, and how envious they shall be of us!

Nyosetsu Shugyō-shō, True Way of Practicing the Teaching of the Buddha, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 87

The Lotus Sūtra in the 13th chapter on the “Encouragement for Upholding This Sūtra” states, “Evil monks of the defiled world who do not know that the Buddha used expedient and provisional teachings will slander and scowl at practicers of the Lotus Sūtra. We will often be chased out of monasteries.”

It is also preached in the Nirvana Sūtra, “After My extinction, there will be hundreds, thousands, and many more besides, who do not believe in the Great Nirvana Sūtra and slander it. (…) The three kinds of Buddhists practicing the teachings for śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha, and bodhisattvas will likewise hate this supreme Great Nirvana Sūtra.”

Monk Valued Opinion fell into the three evil realms (hell, realm of hungry spirits, and that of beasts and birds) because of his sin of slandering Bodhisattva Happy Root; and Thinking-of-Buddha and others suffered in the Hell of Incessant Suffering because of their sin of beating Never-Despising Bodhisattva. They all erred from not being able to distinguish between the Mahāyāna and Hinayāna and provisional and true teachings in Buddhism. As even the ignorant know that the ten evil acts and the five rebellious sins are grave crimes, they will hardly cause national destruction or the ruin of Buddhism. Consequently, it is stated in the Sūtra of the Benevolent King, “Unable to distinguish right from wrong, the king will put his faith in their (evil priests’) teachings.” It is also stated in the Nirvana Sūtra, “Those who commit the four major sins (killing, stealing, adultery and lying) and the five rebellious sins, with full knowledge of the seriousness of the sins they commit, have no abhorrence and repentance of their sins from the beginning, and no intention of confessing them.”

These scriptural passages show that slanderers of the True Dharma, themselves as well as those who believe in them, do not know the meaning of slandering, so they commit this grave sin, destroying the country and ruining Buddhism.

Sainan Taiji-shō, Treatise on the Elimination of Calamities, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Pages 94-95

QUESTION: What is the sense of knowing which sūtras were preached according to the Buddha’s own mind or not, and which sūtras are easy or difficult to understand and believe?

ANSWER: This doctrine proving the Lotus Sūtra to be the ultimate teaching of all sūtras is the lamp that shines in the darkness of the long night in the world of illusions through life and death, and it is the sharp sword that cuts off the root of spiritual ignorance.

Shokyō to Hokekyō to Nan’I no Koto, The Difficulty and Easiness in Understanding the Lotus Sūtra and Other Sūtras, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 283

[W]hat karma made you put faith in the Lotus Sūtra? As your late son had faith in the Lotus Sūtra, is it at his urging that you became a follower of the Lotus Sūtra? Due to the great merit of having faith in this sūtra, I have no doubt that you will meet your son upon visiting the Pure Land of Mt. Sacred Eagle.

In the past a calligrapher named Wu-lung in China fell into hell for slandering the Lotus Sūtra, but he became a Buddha when his son Yi-lung copied the sūtra, offering its merits to his late father. Also, King Wonderful Adornment was an evil ruler, but was led by his two sons, Pure Store and Pure Eyes, in practicing the Lotus Sūtra becoming the Śāla Tree King Buddha. These are some examples in which parents attained the status of Buddhas through their children’s faith in the Lotus Sūtra.

This is especially true with a mother and her children. The reason why it is so is that children’s flesh is mother’s flesh. A mother’s bones are the same as her child’s bones. It is said that when a pine tree grows thick, an oak tree is delighted. When a turf grass dies, an orchid cries. Even among plants, which do not possess minds, joy and sorrow are shared between them. How much more so between a mother and her child! A mother gives birth to her child after nurturing the baby in her womb for nine months and raises her child for years after that. It is only natural for a mother to hope that at death her own children will carry her coffin and bury her. How does a mother feel if her children precede her in death? What can she do with the shame of seeing her child’s funeral and the anxiety about her future life?

Buddhist sūtras cite such tales as a mother pheasant which refused to escape a brush fire and kept on sitting on her eggs till she was burnt to death and a poor woman who refused to take her hands off her baby while swept away by a swift current of the Ganges River. The pheasant then is Bodhisattva Maitreya today, while the woman who was drowned in the Ganges was reborn as the King of the Mahābrahman Heaven, not to speak of yourself who has become Kōnichi Shōnin (Rev. Kōnichi), a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra, due to your deep love for your son. I am sure that you and your son together will visit the Pure Land of Mt. Sacred Eagle. How happy for you two to see each other there! How delightful for you both!

Kōnichi Shōnin Gohenji, A Reply to Rev. Kōnichi, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 155-156

With gratitude I have received one koku of soybeans and respectfully made a report of this at the altar of the Lotus Sūtra. It is said that a drop of water thrown into an ocean will never be lost even when the three calamities strike and a single flower offered to the Heaven of Pure Inhabitants (Jōgo-ten) will not wither even in the “kalpa-fire” at the end of the world. Likewise, a grain of soybean offered to the Lotus Sūtra will become lotus flowers beautifying the entire Dharma-realm.

Daizu Gosho, A Letter on Soybeans, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers I, Volume 6, Page 173

It is a blessing that not only the Four Heavenly Kings of this world but also the Four Heavenly Kings, stars, the sun, the moon, Indra and the King of the Brahma Heaven of all the worlds protect us. Moreover, all of the Hinayāna sages called Two Vehicles (śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha), all bodhisattvas, Bodhisattva Maitreya in the Inner Palace of the Tuṣita Heaven, Bodhisattva Kisitigarbha of Mt. Kharādiya, Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva of Mt. Potalaka and Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva of Mt. Ch’ing-liang, together with their respective groups of followers, would all protect us, believers in the Lotus Sūtra. It is the greatest blessing beyond expression that Śākyamuni Buddha, the Buddha of Many Treasures and the Buddha from all over the universe themselves come to protect us day and night.

Ueno-dono Haha-ama Gozen Gohenji, A Response to My Lady the Nun, Mother of Lord Ueno, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 180

It is just as how the rays of various stars will be lost before the sun; pieces of iron will be drawn by a magnet; a great sword will be useless when heated by a small fire; milk of cows or donkeys will be like water when compared with milk of the queen of lions; foxes will lose their magic power when they see a dog; and how seeing a small tiger, dogs change their color.

Chanting “Namu Myōhōrengekyō” swallows up the functions of “Namu Amidabutsu (Buddha of Infinite Life),” “Namu Dainichi shingon (Great Sun Buddha’s mantras),” and “Namu Kanzeon bosatsu (Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva)” as well as of all the Buddhas, sūtras, and bodhisattvas. All these will be of no use without the functions of the Lotus Sūtra. This can be seen by everyone, for it has been realized in front of everyone. I, Nichiren, recite “Namu Myōhōrengekyō,” the function of “Namu Amidabutsu (Buddha of Infinite Life)” disappears just as the moon wanes, the tide ebbs, grasses in autumn and winter wither and ice melts under the sun.

Hōon-jō, Essay on Gratitude, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 53.

QUESTION: Why is the Lotus Sūtra difficult to believe and understand while other sūtras are easy to believe and understand?

ANSWER: Various sūtras other than the Lotus are easy to believe and understand because Śākyamuni preached them to suit the capacity of the people to understand without revealing His true intention. On the other hand, in the Lotus Sūtra, Śākyamuni directly revealed His state of mind without compromising with people’s ability for comprehension. Clearly it is the true teaching, which is not easily understood and believed by ordinary people.

Shokyō to Hokekyō to Nan’I no Koto, The Difficulty and Easiness in Understanding the Lotus Sūtra and Other Sūtras, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 282