QUESTION: Which is superior, the Lotus Sūtra or the Nirvana Sūtra?

ANSWER: The Lotus Sūtra is.

QUESTION: Why do you say that?

ANSWER: In the Nirvana Sūtra the Buddha Himself declared, “Eight thousand śrāvaka were guaranteed to be future Buddhas in the Lotus Sūtra. It is as though a great harvest was reaped in autumn and stored in the warehouse for winter, leaving nothing else to be done in the Nirvana Sūtra.” Again, it is said in the “Teacher of the Dharma” chapter in the Lotus Sūtra that the sūtras to be preached, like the Nirvana Sūtra, are not as difficult to believe and understand as the Lotus Sūtra is. This means that the Nirvana Sūtra is not as truthful as the Lotus Sūtra.

Shugo Kokka-ron, Treatise on Protecting the Nation, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 10-11

It is preached in the Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “The scriptures that I, the Buddha, expound are all for the purpose of emancipating all living beings. For this purpose I guide them in various ways, sometimes speaking of myself, sometime of others. Sometimes I present myself, sometimes others. Sometimes I show my own actions, sometimes those of others.”

Accordingly, who among the great beings — Zentoku Buddha of the World Without Worry to the east; the Great Sun Buddha in the center of the universe; various Buddhas in the worlds throughout the universe; the past seven Buddhas who appeared in this world; various Buddhas in the past, present, and future; the direct disciples of the Original Buddha who emerged from the earth such as Bodhisattva Superior Practice; bodhisattvas of theoretical teachings, such as Mañjuśrī, Śrāvaka disciples such as Śāriputra, the King of the Mahābrahman Heaven who controls the triple world; the King of Devils who lives in the Sixth Heaven in the realm of desire; Indra who controls the Trāyastriṃsá Heaven; or Sun Deity, Moon Deity, Deity of the Stars, innumerable stars such as the Great Bear, twenty-eight stars, Five Stars, Seven Stars and 84,000 Stars; those who occupy the headship of various places throughout the world such as the King of asura demons, god of the heavens, god of the earth, god of the mountains, god of the ocean, god of the house, and god of the village — is not a manifestation of the Lord Teacher Śākyamuni Buddha?

Nichigen-nyo Sakabutsu Kuyōji, Construction of a Statue of Śākyamuni by Lady Nichigen, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 123-124

Once upon a time when Śākyamuni Buddha was seeking the dharma as a bodhisattva, a leper approached him and said, “I know the right dharma which consists of 20 characters. If you will hug my body and massage it and lick it and give me three to four pounds of meat every day, I will share the teaching with you.” The bodhisattva did what he was told to do, and became a Buddha by hearing the dharma: “A Buddha achieves emancipation and forever extinguishes the sufferings of birth and death. If one listens to this teaching with heartfelt sincerity, the utmost peace of mind can be achieved.”

Nichimyō Shōnin Gosho, A Letter to Nichimyō Shōnin, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 137

It is stated in the “Parable” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “Seeing those who read, recite, copy, and uphold this sūtra, some will despise, hate, envy, and bear grudges against them; in the “Teacher of the Dharma” chapter, “Many will feel resentment and envy even during the lifetime of the Buddha, even more so after His death;” in the “Encouragement for Upholding This Sūtra” chapter, “(Such a person) will be killed by a sword, beaten by a stick, or exiled often;” in the “Peaceful Practices” chapter, “All the people throughout the world will feel resentment at the Lotus Sūtra and not believe in it.” These scriptural statements are the prediction of the Buddha, but they do not specify in what ages such difficulties will take place. We can say that such sages as Never Despising Bodhisattva and Monk Virtue Consciousness in the past actually practiced what is stated in these scriptural passages. However, when we limit the scope of consideration to the present Sahā World, putting aside the 2,000 year Ages of the True and Semblance Dharmas for now, I, Nichiren, am the only person who has proven the prediction of the Buddha now in the Latter Age of Degeneration, is it not so?

Tenjū Kyōju Hōmon, Lightening the Karmic Retribution, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers I, Volume 6, Page 31

Now, when you decide to convert your faith to the Lotus Sūtra, you may be puzzled whether you should abandon the pre-Lotus sūtras preached in the first forty years or so, or whether you should still keep them and continue to chant the name of the Buddha of Infinite Life. We ordinary people should not decide this issue on our own. We should follow what our father Śākyamuni Buddha tells us. He declares in the “Expedients” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “Having abandoned all expedient teachings, I will expound only the unsurpassed way (Lotus Sūtra).” Expedient teachings here means the expedient means mentioned in the Sūtra of Infinite Meaning stating, “The truth has not been revealed for forty years or so as an expedient means.” All words of all sūtras such as the triple Pure Land sūtras are included in the word ‘expedient’ defined by Śākyamuni Buddha.

Therefore, those who do not abandon the various sūtras preached during some forty years or so and convert themselves to the Lotus Sūtra must be called the most impious in Buddhism, no matter how proud they may be in secular society. This is the reason why it is preached in the “Parable” chapter of the second fascicle of the Lotus Sūtra, “This triple world is My domain, where all living beings are My children. There are many sufferings in this world and only I can save all living beings. Although I taught and told this to all living beings, they did not believe in me because they are at a loss.” Those who refuse to abandon the provisional sūtras preached during forty years or so or practice them along with the Lotus Sūtra do not follow the wishes of the ruler, teacher, and parent. The word ‘taught’ in the citation from the “Parable” chapter means what is taught by a teacher or a parent, and the word ‘told’ means what is ordered by the emperor. The Buddha is the wisest king, the most venerable teacher, and the smartest father in the world. Therefore, those who do not convert themselves to the Lotus Sūtra by abandoning the various sūtras preached during the forty years or so or those who do not abandon the provisional sūtras even after converting themselves to the Lotus Sūtra are those who do not follow the instructions of our father Śākyamuni Buddha, who has the three virtues of the ruler, teacher, and parent. They should not live in this world.

Hōmon Mōsaru-beki-yō no Koto, The Way to Refute the Evil Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Biography and Desciples, Volume 5, Page 147

QUESTION: How should we comprehend the statement in the chapter 3, “A Parable,” of the Lotus Sūtra, “You should not expound this sūtra to ignorant people”?

ANSWER: This applies to wise masters, who are able to discern the capacity of people, not to ordinary masters in the Latter Age of Degeneration.

We should also solely expound the Lotus Sūtra to those who slander the Dharma. This would establish the connection of a poisonous drum between the unfaithful people and the Lotus Sūtra as it is said that the sound of a drum smeared with poison kills a man who hears them. It is like the practice of Never-Despising Bodhisattva preached in the “Never-Despising Bodhisattva” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra.

If a person has the capacity of a wise man, though, we should teach him the Hinayāna sūtras first of all, then the provisional Mahāyāna sūtras, and finally the true Mahāyāna sūtra, the Lotus Sūtra. If a man is deemed ignorant, however, we should teach him the true Mahāyāna sūtra from the start, as it can plant the seed of Buddhahood in both believers and slanderers.

Kyōki Jikoku-Shō, Treatise on the Teaching, Capacity, Time and Country, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Page 90-91

Āgama (Hinayana) sūtras were preached following the Flower Garland Sūtra. … Regarding what sūtras were preached after the Flower Garland Sūtra, the “Introductory” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra states, “To those who suffer, hating old age, sickness and death, the Buddha preaches the teaching of Nirvana, showing ignorant people the way to tranquility and extinction of worldly passions.” In the “Expedients” chapter of the same sūtra, it states, “The Buddha went to the Deer Park in Bārāṇasī Kingdom . . . and preached the dharma to five monks.” It is also stated in the Nirvana Sūtra, “The Buddha preached on the Middle Way in the Deer Park of the Bārāṇasī Kingdom. ” This indicates what sūtras were preached after the Flower Garland Sūtra. According to these scriptural statements, it seems clear that it was the Āgama sūtras for śrāvaka disciples which were expounded after the Flower Garland Sūtra for great bodhisattvas.

Shugo Kokka-ron, Treatise on Protecting the Nation, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 6-7

There once lived a man named Gyōbō Bonji. He visited numerous countries over the course of 12 years seeking the Buddha’s dharma. However, as the Buddha had not yet appeared in this world, neither His teaching nor any priest spreading the dharma was to be found. Nevertheless, Bonji sought the teaching of the Buddha just as a thirsty man seeks water or a hungry man searches for food.

One day he met a Brahman who told him, “I know a verse of a sacred teaching. If you are really eager to seek the Buddha’s teaching, I will teach it to you.” Bonji replied, “Yes, please.” The Brahman then said, “If you are so anxious to learn it, first peel off your own skin to make a sheet of paper, sharpen your own bone to use as a pen, grind your own marrow to use as ink and draw your own blood to use as water to write it down, then I will teach it to you.” Bonji was glad for the opportunity to hear the dharma and did what he was told to do. The Brahman, however, suddenly disappeared. Looking up at the sky then lying face down on the ground, Bonji bewailed his fate.

The Buddha pitied this man and emerged from underground to preach this verse: “Practice the right dharma, not the wicked dharma. By doing so one will live peacefully both in this life and the life to come.” Bonji attained Buddhahood immediately after hearing this. The words of the Buddha that led Bonji to attain Buddhahood consisted of merely 20 Chinese characters.

Nichimyō Shōnin Gosho, A Letter to Nichimyō Shōnin, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 136-137

As for what should be done to refute the Pure Land teaching, before criticizing what Hōnen says in his Collection of Passages on the Nembutsu and the Original Vows, one should affirm first of all that Śākyamuni Buddha is the very father of all of us by revealing the scriptural statement, “This triple world is My property, where all living beings are My children” in the “Parable” chapter in the second fascicle of the Lotus Sūtra. Which Buddha other than Śākyamuni can also be our parent? More than 3,000 fascicles of Confucianism and Taoism teach loyalty and filial piety in the long run. They also teach that loyalty starts with filial piety. Therefore, Confucianism and Taoism are the first gates to enter Buddhism, the teaching of which is also based on filial piety. In short, though there is a difference in status, those who show piety to their parents are the most honorable in Buddhism as well as non-Buddhist teachings regardless of status.

Hōmon Mōsaru-beki-yō no Koto, The Way to Refute the Evil Teaching, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Biography and Disciples, Volume 5, Page 145-146

[T]he sin of not believing in and slandering the Lotus Sūtra is explained in detail in the “Parable” chapter. The sin of slandering the upholders of the Lotus Sūtra is preached in the “Teacher of the Dharma” chapter. The merits of those who believe in the Lotus Sūtra is expounded in the “Variety of Merits” and “Merits of Rejoicing at Hearing This Sūtra” chapters. Slandering the dharma means going against the teaching and rejoicing at hearing the dharma means to be obedient to the teaching. Do you think those who understand the preciousness of the Lotus Sūtra even for a moment without quite understanding its meaning are going against the teaching or being obedient to it? Aren’t the merits of ignorant people in the Latter Age of Degeneration holding a religious service in honor of or rejoicing at hearing the Lotus Sūtra even for a moment preached in scriptures? Besides, according to the interpretations of T’ien-t’ai and Miao-lê, it was an act of slandering the True Dharma when Buddhist masters of other schools regarded such Lotus practices as a child building a sand Stupa for play, rejoicing at hearing a verse or phrase of the sūtra, or the person rejoicing at hearing the sūtra equal to the practices for sages and wise people preached in the pre-Lotus sūtras.

Shō Hokke Daimoku-shō, Treastise on Chanting the Daimoku of the Lotus Sūtra, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 7