As I contemplate my own life, I, Nichiren, have studied Buddhism ever since I was a child. Our life is uncertain, as exhaling one’s breath one moment does not guarantee drawing it the next; it is as transient as dew before the wind and its end occurs suddenly to everyone, the wise and the ignorant, the aged and the young. I thought I should study the matter of the last moment of life first of all, before studying anything else. In this endeavor I collected commentaries and interpretations of the holy teachings of the Buddha written by commentators and Buddhist masters. Using them as a spotless mirror, I collated all their thoughts upon death and after death, I found no discrepancy.

Myōhō-ama Gozen Gohenji, A Reply to My Lady, the Nun Myōhō, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 141

All the bodhisattvas tried in vain to attain Buddhahood during the first 40 years or so of the Buddha’s preaching, beginning with the Flower Garland Sūtra, Therefore when the “concise replacement of the Three Vehicles with the One Vehicle” doctrine was preached in the “Expedients” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “80,000 bodhisattvas who wished to become Buddhas as well as the Wheel-turning Noble Kings gathered from tens of thousands and millions of lands pressed their palms together in the form of gasshō to show respect to the Buddha, wishing to hear the perfect way.” Thereupon the Buddha expounded the “expanded replacement of the Three Vehicles with the One Vehicle” doctrine. “Listening to this doctrine, those bodhisattvas’ doubts all melted away,” says the sūtra.

Thereafter bodhisattvas from this and other lands as numerous as stars in the sky came together like clouds to listen to the Buddha expound the Lotus Sūtra. When the “Appearance of a Stupa of Treasures” chapter was preached, Buddhas of the worlds throughout the universe each leading limitless number of bodhisattvas gathered together; at the time of the “Devadatta” chapter, Bodhisattva Mañjuśrī emerged from the sea leading numerous bodhisattvas; and at the time of the “Encouragement for Keeping This Sūtra” chapter, there were 800 thousands million nayuta bodhisattvas. Moreover, there were bodhisattvas more numerous than the sands of eight times the Ganges River and also bodhisattvas as many as the number of dust-particles of 1,000 worlds emerged from the great earth (“Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground” chapter); bodhisattvas as numerous as the sands of 6,800,000 million nayuta times the Ganges River; bodhisattvas 1,000 times it in number; bodhisattvas as many as the number of the dust-particles of a world; of the “triple-thousand great one-thousand worlds,” of two middle-size lands; of 1,000 minor lands; of four times the “fourcontinents;” of three times the “four continents;” of two times the “four continents;” and of the “four continents;” and living beings as numerous as the number of dust-particles of eight worlds (in the “Variety of Merits” chapter). Besides, the 84,000 bodhisattvas mentioned in the “Medicine King Bodhisattva” chapter, the 84,000 bodhisattvas and 42,000 sons of gods in the “Wonderful Voice Bodhisattva” chapter, the 84,000 persons in the “Avalokiteśvara” chapter, the 68,000 persons in the “Dhārāṇi” chapter, the 84,000 persons in the “King Wonderful Adornment” chapter, and the bodhisattvas as many as the number of sands in the Ganges River and those as many as the dust-particles of the “triple-thousand great one-thousand world” mentioned in the “Encouragement of Universal Sage Bodhisattva” chapter were present. When we add up all these bodhisattvas, they are as numerous as the dust-particles of all the worlds in the universe. They are as numerous as the number of all the plants, all the stars and drops of all the rains in the worlds throughout the universe. These incalculable bodhisattvas all became Buddhas, thanks to the Lotus Sūtra, and reside above in the “triple-thousand great one-thousand world,” or under the earth or in the sky.

Kitō Shō, Treatise on Prayers, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 61-62

Śākyamuni Buddha preached an important principle about the three venerables: lord, master and parents, in the third chapter on the “Parable” of the Lotus Sūtra.

This is the essence of the sūtra. In this sūtra it is said: “Now this Sahā World is all My domain, where all the people are My children. However, this world is full of various sufferings, and it is I, Śākyamuni Buddha, alone who can save them.” To those against the Lotus Sūtra, it preaches: “Those who do not listen to the Buddha when He taught and tried to persuade them that they are slanderers of the dharmas will all fall into the Hell of Incessant Suffering without fail.”

Shimoyama Goshōsoku, The Shimoyama Letter, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 5, Page 91-92

Heavenly beings without fail protect those who observe the precepts and practice the virtuous deeds. This is because if human beings do not observe the precepts and practice the virtuous deeds, many of them will be reborn in the realm of asura upon death. If those in the realm of asura increase in population, they will grow so arrogant that they will certainly invade the realm of heavenly beings. When human beings observe precepts and practice the virtuous conducts, they will be reborn in the realm of heaven upon death. If the realm of heavenly beings increases in population, asura demons become frightened of the heavenly realm and will not dare to invade it. This is the reason why heavenly beings never fail to protect those who keep precepts and perform good deeds. How much more so with the Two Vehicles, who are superior in dignity and wiser in wisdom to those in the lower six realms! How can they abandon practicers of the Lotus Sūtra, as it was the sūtra through which they were able to attain Buddhahood?

Kitō Shō, Treatise on Prayers, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 59-60

How lucky I am to be able to extinguish within one life my sin of slandering the True Dharma ever since the eternal past! How glad I feel to be able to wait on Lord Śākyamuni Buddha, whom I have never seen yet!

May I guide first of all those rulers of this land who have persecuted me. May I tell Śākyamuni Buddha about my disciples who have assisted me. May I present this great merit to my parents, who gave birth to me, before I die.

Kembutsu Mirai-ki, Testimony to the Prediction of the Buddha, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 178

Your offering of barley is more precious than an offering of gold or precious stones. The grain of barley left by Sage Rita transformed into a golden man. How is it possible that the barley donated by Tokimitsu this time does not change itself into the letters of the Lotus Sūtra?

May the letters of the Lotus Sūtra transform into Śākyamuni Buddha, and then into the two wings of your late father, Lord Hyōeshichirō, flying to the Pure Land of Mt. Sacred Eagle. May he then return to Japan to embrace your body and protect you!

Tokimitsu-dono Gohenji, Reply to Lord Tokimitsu, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 7, Followers II, Pages 26

It is stated in the Great Wisdom Discourse by Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna, “If this is so, isn’t it correct to say that the Flower Garland Sūtra and other Wisdom Sūtras are not the secret dharma, but that instead the Lotus Sūtra, which expounds the doctrine of attaining Buddhahood by the Two Vehicles, is the secret dharma? The Lotus Sūtra is like a great medicine master who can transform poison into medicine.” Commenting on this, Grand Master T’ien-t’ai states, “As a good physician can change poison into medicine, the Two Vehicles, who are considered incapable of attaining Buddhahood, were guaranteed by the Lotus Sūtra to become Buddhas in the future. This is indeed the transformation of poison into medicine. Therefore, it is stated in the Great Wisdom Discourse that no other sūtras but the Lotus Sūtra is the secret dharma.” The Great Concentration and Insight again states, “The Lotus Sūtra is called “myō (wonderful)” because it can remedy the mind of the Two Vehicles which no other sūtra can.” Grand Master Miao-lê says, “The Lotus Sūtra is said to be ‘myō’ as it can cure what is difficult to be cured.”

Ōta Nyūdō-dono Gohenji, A Reply to Lay Priest Lord Ōta, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 33-34

The 11,037 Buddhist temples in Japan, 66 provinces and two islands (Iki and Tsushima), all enshrine Buddhas consisting of portraits and wooden statues. Some temples existed before the introduction of Shingon Buddhism to Japan while others were established after. At any rate, these Buddhas have become Buddhas enlightened by the Lotus Sūtra, hence their eyes all should be eyes of the Lotus Sūtra as it is preached in the Sūtra of Meditation on the Universal Sage Bodhisattva cited above: “This hōdō (Mahāyāna) sūtra is the eyes of Buddhas.” Grand Master Miao-lê also states in his Annotations on the Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sūtra: “This Lotus Sūtra makes the eternal presence of the Buddha-nature the throat, the practice of the One Vehicle teaching the eye, revival of the Two Vehicles the heart, and revealing the eternal life of the True Buddha, the life.”

Kangyō Hachiman-shō, Remonstration with Bodhisattva Hachiman, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 268-269