On ActionsOn the eighteenth day of the first intercalary month of the fifth year of Bun'ei (1268), an official announcement arrived from the great Mongol Empire in which those barbarians of the west declared their intention to attack Japan. My prediction in the "Rissho Ankoku Ron, " which I wrote in the first year of Bun'o (1260), cyclical sign kanoesaru, had been fulfilled to the letter. My admonitions have surpassed even those set forth in the yueh-fu poems of Po Chu-i, or the prophecies of Shakyamuni Buddha. Can there be anything more wondrous in this latter age? If our land were governed by a wise king or sage ruler, then the highest honors in Japan would be bestowed upon me and I would be awarded the title of Great Teacher while still alive. I had expected to be consulted [about the Mongols], invited to the war council, and asked to defeat them through the power of prayer. Since that did not happen, however, I sent letters of warning to eleven of our country's leaders in the tenth month of the same year.
If there were a wise leader in this country, he would immediately think, "What a wonder! This is surely no ordinary matter. The deities Tensho Daijin and Hachiman must intend to enter into this priest as a means to save Japan." In actuality, however, the government officials slandered and deceived my messengers. They ignored or refused to reply to my letters, and even when they did reply, they deliberately neglected to report the content of my letters to the Regent. Their behavior was highly irregular. Even if the letters concerned only some personal matter of mine, the ruler should nevertheless pay them due attention were they reported to him, this being the proper way of government. But in this case, the letters were a warning of dire things to come that would affect the destiny of not only the Regent's government but of every other official as well. Even if the officials did not heed my warning, to slander my messengers was going too far. This came about because all Japanese, high and low, have for a long time now shown hostility toward the Lotus Sutra. Thus they have piled up great offenses and become possessed by devils. The ultimatum from the Mongols has deprived them of the last remnants of sanity. In ancient China, Emperor Chou of the Yin dynasty refused to heed the admonitions of his loyal minister Pi Kan and instead had Pi Kan's heart cut out. Later his dynasty was overthrown by kings Wen and Wu of the Chou. King Fu-ch'a of the state of Wu, instead of listening to the remonstrances of his minister Wu Tzu-hsu, forced the latter to commit suicide. Eventually Fa-ch'a was killed by King Kou-chien of the state of Yueh.
Thinking how tragic it would be if our country were to meet with a similar fate, I risked my reputation and life to remonstrate with the authorities. But, just as a high wind creates waves or a powerful dragon brings forth torrential rains, so my admonitions called forth increasing animosity. The Regent's Supreme Council met to discuss whether to behead me or banish me from Kamakura and whether to confiscate the estates of my disciples and lay supporters, or to imprison, execute, or exile them to distant places.
[Hearing this,] I rejoiced, saying that I had long expected it to come to this. In the past Sessen Doji offered his life for the sake of half a verse, Bodhisattva Jotai sold his body, Zenzai Doji threw himself into a fire, Gyobo Bonji tore off a piece of his own skin, and Bodhisattva Yakuo burned his own arm. Bodhisattva Fukyo was beaten with staves, Aryasimha was beheaded, and Bodhisattva Kanadeva was killed by a Brahman, [all because of their devotion to Buddhism].
These events should be considered in terms of the times in which they occurred. The Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai declared that practice should "accord with the times." His disciple the Great Teacher Chang-an interpreted this to mean, "You should distinguish between shoju and shakubuku and never adhere solely to one or the other." The Lotus Sutra represents a single truth, but the way of its practice varies greatly according to the people's capacity and the time.
Shakyamuni Buddha made a prophecy, saying: "After my death, during the beginning of the Latter Day of the Law that follows the two millennia of the Former and Middle Days, a person will appear who will propagate only the heart of the Lotus Sutra, the five characters of the daimoku. At that time an evil king will be in power and evil priests, more numerous than the particles of dust comprising the great earth, will argue with one another over the various Mahayana and Hinayana sutras. When the votary of the daimoku challenges the priests, they will incite their lay believers to abuse, beat, or imprison him, to confiscate his lands, to exile or behead him. In spite of such persecutions, he will continue his propagation without ceasing. Meanwhile the ruler who persecutes him will be beset by rebellion and his subjects will devour each other like hungry ghosts. Finally the land will be attacked by a foreign country, for the Buddhist gods Bonten and Taishaku, the gods of the sun and the moon, and the Four Heavenly Kings have ordained that other countries shall assault a land that is hostile to the Lotus Sutra."
None of you who declare yourselves to be my disciples should ever give way to cowardice. Neither should you allow concern for your parents, wives, or children to hold you back, or be worried about your property. Since countless kalpas past you have thrown away your life more times than the number of dust particles on earth in order to save your parents, your children, or your lands. But not once have you given up your life for the Lotus Sutra. You may have tried to practice its teachings to some extent, but whenever you were persecuted, you backslid and ceased to live by the sutra. That is like boiling water only to pour it into cold water, or like trying to strike fire but giving up halfway. Each and every one of you should be certain deep in your hearts that sacrificing your life for the Lotus Sutra is like exchanging rocks for gold or dung for rice.
Now at the beginning of the Latter Day of the Law, I, Nichiren, am the first to embark on propagating, throughout the continent of Jambudvipa, the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo, which are the heart of the Lotus Sutra and the eyes of all Buddhas. During the more than twenty-two hundred years that have passed since Shakyamuni entered nirvana, not even Mahakasyapa, Ananda, Asvaghosa, Nagarjuna, Nan-yueh, T'ien-t'ai, Miao-lo, or Dengyo has propagated them. My disciples, form your ranks and follow me, and you will surpass even Mahakasyapa or Ananda, T'ien-t'ai or Dengyo! If you quail before the threats of the rulers of this little island country [and abandon your faith], how will you face the even more terrible anger of Emma, the King of Hell? If, while calling yourselves the Buddha's messengers, you give way to fear, you will be the most despicable of persons!
[While the Regent's government could not come to any conclusion,] priests of the Jodo, Ritsu, Shingon, and other sects, who realized they could not rival me in wisdom, sent petitions to the government. Finding that their petitions were not accepted, they approached the wives and widows of high-ranking officials and slandered me in various ways. [The women reported the slander to the officials,] saying, "According to what some priests told us, Nichiren declared that the late Hojo Tokiyori and Hojo Shigetoki have fallen into the hell of incessant suffering. He said that the temples Kenchoji, Jufukuji, Gokurakuji, Chorakuji, and Daibutsuji should be burned down and the high priests Tao-lung and Ryokan beheaded." Even though the Regent's Supreme Council was unable to reach a decision, my guilt could scarcely be denied. To confirm whether I had or had not made those statements, I was summoned to the court. At the court the magistrate said, "You have heard what the Regent stated. Did you say these things or not?" I answered. "Every word is mine. Only the statement that the late officials Hojo Tokiyori and Hojo Shigetoki had fallen into hell is a fabrication. Yet I have most certainly been declaring this doctrine [that the sects they belonged to lead to hell] even while they were alive.
"Everything I said was with the future of our country in mind. If you wish to maintain this land in peace and security, it is imperative that you summon the priests of the other sects for a debate in your presence. If you ignore this advice and punish me unreasonably on their behalf, the entire country will have cause to regret your decision. If you condemn me, you will be rejecting the Buddha's envoy. Then you will have to face the punishment of Bonten and Taishaku, of the gods of the sun and the moon, and of the Four Heavenly Kings. Within one hundred days after my exile or execution, or within one, three, or seven years, there will occur what the sutras call 'internal strife,' rebellion within your clan. This will be followed by foreign invasion from all sides, particularly from the west. Then you will regret what you have done!" Hearing this, the magistrate Hei no Saemon, forgetting all the dignity of his rank, became wild with rage like Taira no Kiyomori.
On the night of the twelfth day of the ninth month in the eighth year of Bun'ei (1271), cyclical sign kanoto-hitsuji, I was arrested in a manner which was extraordinary and unlawful, even more outrageous than the arrest of the priests Ryoko, who was actually guilty of treason, and Ryoken, who sought to destroy the government. Hei no Saemon led several hundred armor-clad warriors to take me. Wearing the headgear of a court noble, he glared in anger and spoke in a rough voice. These actions were in essence no different from those of the Prime Minister Taira no Kiyomori, who seized power only to lead the country to destruction. Observing this, I realized it was no ordinary event and thought to myself, "I expected something like this to happen sooner or later. How fortunate that I can give my life for the Lotus Sutra! If I am to lose this worthless head for Buddhahood, it will be like trading sand for gold or rocks for jewels!"
Shou-bo, Hei no Saemon's chief retainer, rushed up, snatched the fifth scroll of the Lotus Sutra from inside my robes, and struck me in the face with it three times. Then he threw it on the floor. Warriors seized the nine other scrolls of the sutra, unrolled them and trampled on them or wound them about their bodies, scattering the scrolls all over the matting and wooden floors until every corner of the house was strewn with them.
I said in a loud voice, "See how Hei no Saemon has gone mad! You gentlemen have just toppled the pillar of Japan!" Hearing this, the assembled troops were taken aback. When they saw me standing before the fierce arm of the law unafraid, they must have realized that they were in the wrong, for the color drained from their faces.
Both on the tenth, [when I was summoned,] and on this night, the twelfth, I fully described to Hei no Saemon the heresies of the Shingon, Zen, and Jodo sects, as well as Ryokan's failure in his prayers for rain. [As his warriors listened,] they would burst into laughter, and at other times become furious. However, I will not go into the details here.
Ryokan prayed for rain from the eighteenth day of the sixth month to the fourth day of the following month, but I blocked his prayers so that no rain came. Ryokan prayed himself into a sweat, but nothing fell except his own tears. There was no rain in Kamakura, but on the contrary, strong gales blew continually.
At this news I sent a messenger to him three times, saying, "If a person cannot manage to cross a moat ten feet wide, how can he cross one that is a hundred or two hundred feet? Izumi Shikibu, a licentious woman, violated one of the eightfold precepts by writing poetry, but still she made the rain fall with a poem. The priest Noin, although he broke the precepts, was successful in bringing rainfall with a poem. How is it possible then that hundreds and thousands of priests, all of whom observe the two hundred and fifty precepts, gather to pray for rain and can do no more than raise a gale, even after one or two weeks of prayer? It should be clear from this that none of you will be able to attain rebirth in the Pure Land." The priest Ryokan read the message and wept with vexation, and to others he reviled me.
When I reported what had happened with Ryokan, Hei no Saemon attempted to defend him, but it was hopeless. In the end he was unable to utter a word. I will not record all of our conversation as it was too detailed.
That night of the twelfth, I was placed under the custody of Hojo Nobutoki, lord of the province of Musashi, and around midnight was taken out of Kamakura to be executed. As we set out on Wakamiya Avenue, I looked at the crowd of warriors surrounding me and said, "Don't make a fuss. I won't cause any trouble. I merely wish to say my last words to Bodhisattva Hachiman." I got down from my horse and called out in a loud voice, "Bodhisattva Hachiman, are you truly a god? When Wake no Kiyomaro was about to be beheaded, you appeared as a moon ten feet wide. When the Great Teacher Dengyo lectured on the Lotus Sutra, you bestowed upon him a purple surplice. I, Nichiren, am the foremost votary of the Lotus Sutra in Japan, and am entirely without guilt. I have expounded the Law to save all the people of Japan from falling into the great citadel of the hell of incessant suffering for slandering the Lotus Sutra. Moreover, if the forces of the great Mongol empire attack this country, can even Tensho Daijin and Hachiman remain safe and unharmed? When Shakyamuni Buddha expounded the Lotus Sutra, Taho Buddha and the other Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions gathered, shining like so many suns and moons, stars and mirrors. In the presence of the countless heavenly gods as well as the benevolent deities and sages of India, China, and Japan, the Lord Buddha urged each one to pledge to protect the votary of the Lotus Sutra at all times. Each and every one of you gods made this pledge. I should not have to remind you. Why do you not appear at once to fulfill your oath?" Finally I called out, "If I am executed tonight and go to the pure land of Eagle Peak, I will immediately report to Shakyamuni Buddha that Tensho Daijin and Hachiman have broken their oath to him. If you feel this will go hard with you, you had better do something about it right away!" Then I remounted my horse.
As the party passed the shrine on Yui beach, I spoke again. "Stop a minute, gentlemen, I have a message for someone living near here," I said. I sent a boy called Kumao to Shijo Kingo, who rushed to meet me. I told him, "Tonight I will be beheaded. This is something I have wished for many years. In this saha world, I have been born as a pheasant only to be caught by hawks, born a mouse only to be eaten by cats, and born human only to be killed attempting to defend my wife and children from enemies. Such things have befallen me more times than there are specks of dust on the earth. But until now, I have never given up my life for the sake of the Lotus Sutra. [In this life,] I was born to become a poor priest, unable fully to repay the debt of gratitude I owe to my parents and to my country. Now I will present my severed head to the Lotus Sutra and share the blessings therefrom with my parents, and with my disciples and believers, just as I have promised you." Then the four Shijo brothers, holding on to my horse's reins, went with me to Tatsunokuchi at Koshigoe.
Finally we came to a place that I knew must be the site of my execution. Indeed, the soldiers stopped and began to mill around in excitement. Shijo Kingo, in tears, said, "These are your last moments!" I replied, "You don't understand! What greater joy could there be? Don't you remember what you have promised?" I had no sooner said this when a brilliant orb as bright as the moon burst forth from the direction of Enoshima, shooting across the sky from southeast to northwest. It was shortly before dawn and still too dark to see anyone's face, but the radiant object clearly illumined everyone like bright moonlight. The executioner fell on his face, his eyes blinded. The soldiers were filled with panic. Some ran off into the distance, some jumped down from their horses and huddled on the ground, while others crouched in their saddles. I called out, "Here, why do you shrink from this vile prisoner? Come closer! Come closer!" But no one would approach me. "What if the dawn should break? You must hurry up and execute me--once the day breaks it will be too ugly a job!" I urged them on, but they made no response.
They waited a short while, and then I was told to proceed to Echi in the same province of Sagami. I replied that since none of us knew the way, someone would have to guide us there. No one was willing to take the lead, but after we had waited for some time, one soldier finally said, "That's the road you should take."
Setting off, we followed the road and around noon reached Echi. We then proceeded to the residence of Homma Rokurozaemon. There I ordered sake for the soldiers. When the time came for them to leave, some bowed their heads, joined their palms, and said in a most respectful manner, "We did not realize what kind of a man you are. We hated you because we had been told that you slandered Amida Buddha, the one we worship. But now that we have seen with our own eyes what has happened to you, we have realized how worthy a person you are, and will discard the Nembutsu that we have practiced for so long." Some of them even took their Nembutsu rosaries out of their tinder bags and flung them away. Others pledged that they would never again chant the Nembutsu. After they left, Rokurozaemon's retainers took over the guard. Then Shijo Kingo and his brothers took their leave.
That evening, at the hour of the Dog (7:00-9:00 P.M.), a messenger from Kamakura arrived with an order form the Regent. The soldiers were sure that it would be a command to behead me, but Umanojo, Homma's magistrate, came running with the letter, knelt and said, "We were afraid that you would be executed tonight, but now the letter has brought wonderful news. The messenger said that since the lord of Musashi has left for a spa in Atami this morning at the hour of the Hare (5:00-7:00 A.M.), he set off at once and rode for four hours to get here because he feared that something might happen to you. The messenger will leave immediately to take news to the lord in Atami tonight." The accompanying letter read, "This person is not really guilty. He will shortly be pardoned. If you execute him you will have cause to regret."
Now it was the night of the thirteenth. There were scores of warriors stationed around my lodging and in the main garden. Because it was the middle of the ninth month, the moon was very round and full. I went out into the garden and there, turning toward the moon, recited the verse portion of the Juryo chapter of the Lotus Sutra. Then I spoke briefly about the relative merits of the various sects and about the teachings of the Lotus Sutra. I said, "You, the god of the moon, participated in the ceremony of the Lotus Sutra. When the Buddha expounded the Hotoi chapter, you received his order, and in the Zokurui chapter, when the Buddha laid his hand on your head, you vowed to fulfill the World-Honored One's command [to transmit and protect the Lotus Sutra]. You are that very god. Would you have an opportunity to fulfill the vow you made in the Buddha's presence if it were not for me? Now that you see me in this situation, you should rush forward joyfully to receive the sufferings of the votary of the Lotus Sutra in his stead, thereby carrying out the Buddha's command and also fulfilling your vow. It is strange indeed that you have not yet done anything. If nothing is done to set this country to rights, I will never return to Kamakura. Even if you do not intend to do anything for me, how can you go on shining with such a complacent face? The Daijuku Sutra says, 'The sun and moon will not show their brightness.' The Ninno Sutra says, 'Both the sun and the moon shall act discordantly.' The Saishoo Sutra says, 'The thirty-three heavenly gods will be enraged What about these passages, moon god? What is your answer?"
Then, as though in reply, a large star, bright as the Morning Star, fell from the sky and hung in a branch of the plum tree in front of me. The soldiers, astounded, jumped down from the veranda, fell on their faces in the garden, or ran behind the house. Immediately the sky clouded over and a fierce wind started up, raging so violently that the whole island of Enoshima seemed to roar. The sky shook, echoing with a sound like pounding drums.
At dawn on the fourteenth day, around the hour of the Hare (5:00-7:00 A.M.), a man called Juro Nyudo came and said to me, "Last night there was a huge commotion in the Regent's residence at the hour of the Dog (7:00-9:00 P.M.). They summoned a diviner, who said, 'The country is going to erupt in turmoil because you punished that priest. If you do not call him back to Kamakura immediately, there is no telling what will happen to this land.' At that someone said, 'Let's pardon him!' Others said, 'Since he predicted that war would break out within a hundred days, why don't we wait and see what happens.' "
I was kept at Echi for more than twenty days. During that period seven or eight cases of arson and an endless succession of murders took place in Kamakura. Slanderers went around saying that my disciples were setting the fires. The government officials thought this might be true and made up a list of over 260 of my followers who they believed should be expelled from Kamakura. Word spread that these persons were all to be exiled to remote islands and that those disciples already in prison would be beheaded. It turned out, however, that the fires were set by the Nembutsu and Ritsu believers in an attempt to implicate my disciples. There were other things that happened, but they are too numerous to mention here.
I left Echi on the tenth day of the tenth month (1271) and arrived on Sado Island on the twenty-eighth day of the same month. On the first day of the eleventh month, I was taken to a small hut that stood in a field called Tsukahara behind Homma Rokurozaemon's residence in Sado. One room with four posts, it stood on some land where corpses were abandoned, a place like Rendaino in Kyoto. Not a single statue of the Buddha was enshrined there; the boards of the roof did not meet and the walls were full of holes. The snow fell and piled up, never melting away. I spent my days there, sitting in a straw raincoat or lying on a deerskin. At night it hailed and snowed and there were continual flashes of lightning. Even in the daytime the sun hardly shone. It was a wretched place to live.
I felt like Li Ling in China, who was imprisoned in a rocky cave in the land of the northern barbarians, or the Tripitaka Master Fa-tao, who was branded on the forehead and exiled to the area south of the Yangtze by Emperor Hui-tsung of the Sung. Nevertheless, King Suzudan received severe training under the hermit sage Ashi to obtain the blessings of the Lotus Sutra, and even though Bodhisattva Fukyo was beaten by the staves of arrogant monks, he achieved honor as votary of the one vehicle. Therefore, nothing is more joyful to me than to have been born in the Latter Day of the Law and to suffer persecutions because I propagate the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo. For more than twenty-two hundred years after the death of Shakyamuni, no one, not even the Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai, experienced the truth of the passage in the sutra that says, "The people will resent [the Lotus Sutra] and find it extremely difficult to believe." Only I have fulfilled the prophecy in the sutra, "We will be banished again and again." The Buddha conferred a prediction of Buddhahood upon all who embrace even a single phrase or verse from the sutra; thus there can be no doubt that I will reach supreme enlightenment. It is Regent Hojo Tokimune above all who has been of greatest aid to me. Hei no Saemon is to me what Devadatta was to Shakyamuni. The Nembutsu priests are comparable to Kokalika and the Ritsu followers to Sunaksatra. Shakyamuni lives today; this is the age of the Buddha. This is what the Lotus Sutra describes as the true aspect of all phenomena, or more precisely, consistency from beginning to end.
The fifth volume of the Maka Shikan states: "As practice progresses and understanding grows, the three obstacles and four devils emerge, vying with one another to interfere." It also states: "A wild boar scraping up against a gold mountain only makes it glitter, rivers flowing into an ocean increase its volume, fuel added to the fire only makes it burn higher, and the wind inflates the body of the aura insect." These passages mean that if one understands and practices the Lotus Sutra just as it teaches in accordance with the people's capacity and at the right time, then these seven obstacles and devils will confront him. Among them, the Devil of the Sixth Heaven [is the most powerful. He] will possess one's sovereign, parents, wife or children, lay believers or evil men, and through them will attempt in a friendly manner to divert him from his practice of the Lotus Sutra, or will oppose him outright. The practice of Buddhism is always accompanied by persecutions and difficulties corresponding in severity to whichever sutra one may uphold. To practice the Lotus Sutra the highest sutra of all, will provoke particularly harsh persecutions. To practice as it teaches, and in accordance with the time and the people's capacity, will incite truly agonizing ordeals.
The eighth volume of the Guketsu states: "So long as a person does not try to depart from the cycle of birth and death and aspire to the Buddha vehicle, the devil will watch over him like a parent." This passage means that even though one may cultivate roots of goodness, so long as he practices Nembutsu, Shingon, Zen, Ritsu, or any teaching other than the Lotus Sutra, he will have the devil for a parent. The devil will cause other persons to respect that man and give him alms, and people will be deluded into believing that he is a truly enlightened priest. If he is honored by the sovereign, for instance, the people are sure to offer him alms. On the other hand, a priest who incurs the enmity of the ruler and others [because of the Lotus Sutra] is surely practicing the True Law.
Devadatta more than anyone else proved the validity of Shakyamuni's teachings. In this age as well, it is not one's friends but one's enemies who assist his progress. We find examples before our very eyes. The Hojo clan in Kamakura could not have firmly established itself as the ruler of Japan had it not been for the challenges posed by Wada Yoshimori and the Retired Emperor Gotoba. In this sense these men were the best allies the Hojo clan could have. For me, my best allies in attaining Buddhahood are Tojo Kagenobu, the priests Ryokan, Tao-lung, and Doamidabutsu, and Hei no Saemon and Regent Hojo Tokimune. I am grateful when I think that without them I could not have proved myself to be the votary of the Lotus Sutra.
In the yard around the hut the snow piled deeper and deeper. No one came to see me; my only visitor was the piercing wind. The Maka Shikan and the Lotus Sutra lay open before my eyes and Nammyoho-renge-kyo flowed from my lips. My evenings passed in discourse to the moon and stars on the differences among the various sects and the profound meaning of the Lotus Sutra. Thus, one year gave way to the next.
One finds people of mean spirit wherever one goes. The rumor reached me that the Ritsu and Nembutsu priests on the island of Sado, including Yuiamidabutsu, Shoyu-bo, Insho-bo, and Jido-bo and hundreds of their followers, had met to decide what to do about me. One of them is reported to have said, "Nichiren, the notorious enemy of Amida Buddha and an evil teacher to all people, has been exiled to our province. As we all know, exiles to this island seldom manage to survive. Even if they do, they never return home. So no one is going to be punished for killing an exile. Nichiren lives all alone at a place called Tsukahara. No matter how strong and powerful he is, if there's no one around, what can he do? Let's go together and shoot him with arrows!" Another said, "He was supposed to be beheaded, but his execution has been postponed for a while because the Regent's wife is about to have a child. The postponement is merely temporary, though. I hear he is eventually going to be executed." A third said, "Let's ask Lord Homma to behead him. If he refuses, we can plan something ourselves." There were many proposals about what to do with me, and eventually several hundred people gathered at the constable's office.
Homma Rokurozaemon addressed them, saying, "An official letter has arrived from the Regent directing that the priest shall not be executed. This is no ordinary, contemptible criminal, and if anything happens to him, I will be guilty of grave dereliction. Instead of killing him, why don't you confront him in religious debate?" Following this suggestion, the Nembutsu and other priests, accompanied by apprentice priests carrying the three Jodo sutras, the Maka Shikan, the Shingon sutras, and other literature under their arms or hanging from their necks, gathered at Tsukahara on the sixteenth day of the first month (1272). They came not only from the province of Sado but also from the nearby provinces of Echigo, Etchu, Dewa, Mutsu, and Shinano. Several hundred priests and others gathered in the spacious yard of the hut and in the adjacent field. Homma Rokurozaemon, his brothers, and his entire clan came, as well as lay priest farmers, all in great numbers. The Nembutsu priests uttered streams of abuse, the Shingon masters turned pale with rage, and the Tendai monks vowed to vanquish the opponent. The lay believers cried out in hatred, "There he is--the notorious enemy of our Amida Buddha!" The uproar and the jeering resounded like thunder and seemed to shake the earth. I let them clamor for a while and then said, "Silence, all of you! You are here for a religious debate. This is no time for abuse." At this, Homma and several others voiced their accord, and some of them grabbed the abusive Nembutsu priests by the neck and pushed them back.
The priests proceeded to cite the doctrines of the Maka Shikan and the Shingon and the Nembutsu teachings. I responded to each point, establishing the exact meaning of what had been said, then coming back with questions. However, I needed to ask only one or two at most before they were completely silenced. They were far inferior even to the Shingon, Zen, Nembutsu, and Tendai priests in Kamakura, so you can imagine how the debate went. I overturned them as easily as a sharp sword cutting through a melon or a gale bending the grass. They were not only poorly versed in Buddhism but contradicted themselves. They confused sutras with treatises or commentaries with treatises. I discredited the Nembutsu by telling how Shantao fell out of the willow tree, and refuted the story about the Great Teacher Kobo's three-pronged vajra implement and of how he transformed himself into Dainichi Buddha. As I demonstrated each falsity and aberration, some of the priests swore, some were struck dumb, while others turned pale. There were Nembutsu adherents who admitted the error of their sect; some threw away their robes and beads on the spot and pledged never to chant the Nembutsu again.
The members of the group all began to leave, as did Rokurozaemon and his men. As they were walking across the yard, I called the lord back to make a prophecy. I first asked him when he was departing for Kamakura, and he answered that it would be around the seventh month, after his farmers had finished their work in his fields. Then I said, "For a warrior, the 'work in the fields' means assisting his lord in times of peril and receiving lands in recognition of his service. Fighting is about to break out in Kamakura. You should hasten there to distinguish yourself in battle, and then you will be rewarded with fiefs. Since your warriors are renowned throughout the province of Sagami, if you remain here in the countryside tending to your farms and arrive too late for the battle, your name will be disgraced." I do not know what he thought of this, but Homma dumbfounded, did not utter a word. The Nembutsu and Ritsu priests and lay believers looked bewildered, not comprehending what I had said.
After everyone had gone, I began to put into shape a work in two volumes called Kaimoku Sho or "The Opening of the Eyes," which I had been working on since the eleventh month of the previous year. I wanted to record the wonder [of my enlightenment], in case I should be beheaded. The essential message in this work is that the destiny of Japan depends solely upon me. A house without pillars collapses and a person without a soul is dead. I am the soul of the people of Japan. Hei no Saemon has already toppled the pillar, and the country grows turbulent as unfounded rumors and speculation rise up like phantoms to cause dissension in the Hojo clan. Further, Japan is about to be attacked by a foreign country, as I described in my "Rissho Ankoku Ron." Having written to this effect, I entrusted the manuscript to Shijo Kingo's messenger. The disciples around me thought that what I had written was too provocative, but they could not do anything about it.
Just then a ship arrived at the island on the eighteenth day of the second month. It carried the news that fighting had broken out in Kamakura and then in Kyoto, causing indescribable suffering. Homma Rokurozaemon, leading his men, left on fast ships that night for Kamakura. Before departing, he humbly begged for my assistance with palms joined.
He said, "I doubted the truth of the words you spoke on the sixteenth day of last month, but they have come true in less than thirty days. I see now that the Mongols will surely attack us, and it is equally certain that believers in the Nembutsu are doomed to the hell of incessant suffering. I will never chant the Nembutsu again."
To this I replied, "Whatever I may say, unless Regent Hojo Tokimune heeds my words, the people of Japan will not heed them either, and in that case our country will surely be ruined. Although I myself may be insignificant, I propagate the Lotus Sutra and therefore am the envoy of Shakyamuni Buddha. Tensho Daijin and Hachiman are respected as tutelary gods of this country, but they are only minor gods as compared with Bonten, Taishaku, the gods of the sun and moon, and the Four Heavenly Kings. It is said, however, that to kill someone who serves these two gods is equal to the sin of killing seven and a half ordinary persons. The Prime Minister Taira no Kiyomori and the Retired Emperor Gotoba perished because they did so. Thus, persecuting me is incomparably worse than molesting the servants of those two gods. As I am the envoy of Shakyamuni Buddha, Tensho Daijin and Hachiman should prostrate themselves before me with their palms pressed together. The votary of the Lotus Sutra is attended by Bonten and Taishaku on either side, and the gods of the sun and moon light his path before and behind. Even if my counsel is heeded, if I am not given due respect [as the votary of the Lotus Sutra], then the country will perish. How ominous that the authorities have turned hundreds of persons against me and have even banished me twice! This country is surely doomed, but since I have asked the Buddhist gods to withhold their punishment on our land, it has survived until now. However, that punishment has finally descended because these unreasonable actions continued. And if my counsel is not heeded on this occasion, Japan will undoubtedly be destroyed by the attacks of the Mongol forces. That would seem to be the kind of disaster that Hei no Saemon is intent upon calling forth. When it happens, I doubt that you and your followers can find any safety even on this island!" After I had finished speaking, Homma, looking deeply perplexed, set off on his way.
The lay believers, hearing of this, said to one another, "Perhaps this priest has some kind of spiritual powers. How terrifying! From now on, we had better cease giving any alms and support to the Nembutsu and Ritsu priests!" The Ritsu priests, who were followers of Ryokan, and the Nembutsu priests said, "[Since this priest predicted the outbreak of rebellion in Kamakura,] perhaps he is one of the conspirators himself." After this things grew somewhat quieter.
Then the Nembutsu priests gathered again in council. "If things go on this way," they said, "we will die of starvation. By all means, let us rid ourselves of this priest! Already more than half the people in the province have gone over to his side. What are we to do?"
Yuiamidabutsu, the leader of the Nembutsu priests, along with Dokan, a disciple of Ryokan, and Shoyu-bo, who were leaders of the Ritsu priests, journeyed in haste to Kamakura. There they reported to Hojo Nobutoki, lord of the province of Musashi, "If this priest remains on the island of Sado, there will soon be not a single Buddhist hall left standing or a single monk remaining! He takes the statues of Amida Buddha and throws them in the fire or casts them into the river. Day and night he climbs the high mountains, bellows to the sun and moon, and curses the Regent. The sound of his voice can be heard throughout the entire province."
When Hojo Nobutoki heard this, he decided there was no need to report it to the Regent. Instead he sent private orders that any followers of Nichiren in the province of Sado should be driven out of the province or imprisoned. He also sent official letters containing similar instructions. He did so three times. I will not attempt to describe what happened thereafter--you can probably imagine. Some people were thrown into prison because they were said to have walked past my hut, others were exiled because they were reported to have given me donations, or their wives and children were taken into custody. Hojo Nobutoki then reported what he had done to the Regent. But quite contrary to his expectations, the Regent issued a letter of pardon on the fourteenth day, the second month, of the eleventh year of Bun'ei (1274), which reached Sado on the eighth day of the third month.
The Nembutsu priests held another council. "This man, the archenemy of the Buddha Amida and slanderer of Priest Shan-tao and Saint Honen, has incurred the displeasure of the authorities and happened to be banished to this island. How can we bear to see him pardoned and allowed to return home alive!"
While they were engaged in various plots, for some reason there was an unexpected change in the weather. A favorable wind began to blow and I was able to leave the island. The strait can be crossed in three days with a favorable wind, but not even in fifty or a hundred days when the weather is bad. I crossed over in no time at all.
Thereupon the Nembutsu, Ritsu, and Shingon priests of the provincial capital of Echigo and the Zenkoji in Shinano gathered from all directions to hold a meeting. "What a shame that the Sado priests should have allowed Nichiren to return alive! Whatever we do, we must not let this priest make his way past the living body of the Buddha Amida!"
But in spite of their machinations, a number of warriors from the provincial government office in Echigo were dispatched to escort me. Thus I was able to pass safely by Zenkoji, and the Nembutsu priests were powerless to stop me. I left the island of Sado on the thirteenth day of the third month, and arrived in Kamakura on the twenty-sixth day of the same month.
On the eighth day of the fourth month, I had an interview with Hei no Saemon. In contrast to his behavior on previous occasions, his manner was quite mild and he treated me with courtesy. An accompanying lay priest asked me about the Nembutsu, a layman asked about the Shingon sect, and another person asked about Zen, while Hei no Saemon himself inquired whether it was possible to attain enlightenment through any of the sutras preached before the Lotus Sutra. I replied to each of these questions by citing passages from the sutras.
Then Hei no Saemon, apparently acting on behalf of the Regent, asked when the Mongol forces would invade Japan. I replied, "They will surely come within this year. I have already expressed my opinion on this matter, but it has not been heeded. If you try to treat someone's illness without knowing its cause, you will only make the person sicker than before. In the same way, if the Shingon priests are permitted to try to overcome the Mongols with their prayers and imprecations, they will only bring about the country's military defeat. Under no circumstances whatever should the Shingon priests, or the priests of any other sects for that matter, be allowed to offer up prayers. If each of you has a real understanding of Buddhism, you will understand this matter on hearing me explain it to you.
"Also, I notice that, although advice from others is heeded, when I offer advice, it is for some strange reason invariably ignored. Nevertheless, I would like to state certain facts here so that you may think them over later. Emperor Gotoba was the sovereign of the nation and Hojo Yoshitoki was his subject, [and yet the latter attacked and defeated the emperor]. Why would the Sun Goddess Tensho Daijin permit a subject to attack an emperor, who should be like a father to him? Why would Bodhisattva Hachiman allow a vassal to attack the lord with impunity? And yet, as we know, the emperor and the courtiers supporting him were defeated by Hojo Yoshitoki. That defeat was no mere accident. It came about because they put their faith in the misleading teachings of the Great Teacher Kobo and the biased views of the Great Teachers Jikaku and Chisho, and because the monks of the monasteries of Mount Hiei, Toji, and Onjoji, in their opposition to the Kamakura Shogunate, offered prayers for its defeat. Thus their curses 'returned to the originators,' as the Lotus Sutra says, and as a consequence the emperor and his courtiers were forced to suffer defeat. The military leaders in Kamakura knew nothing of such rituals, so no prayers to subdue the enemy were offered; thus they were able to win. But if they now offer such prayers, they will meet with the same fate as the courtiers.
The Ezo people of northern Japan have no understanding of the principles of birth and death. Ando Goro was a pious man who knew the laws of cause and effect and erected many Buddhist halls and pagodas. Why is it, then, that the Ezo cut off his head? In view of these events, I have no doubt that if these priests are allowed to go on offering prayers for victory, Your Lordship will meet with some untoward event. And when that happens, you must not under any circumstances say that I failed to warn you!" Such was the stern manner in which I addressed him.
When I returned home, I heard that the priest Hoin of the Amida Hall had been asked to pray for rain from the tenth day of the fourth month. This Hoin is the most learned priest of Toji and the teacher of Dojo of Ninnaji. He has mastered the esoteric teachings of the Great Teachers Kobo, Jikaku, and Chisho and has memorized all the doctrines of the various sects such as Tendai and Kegon. He began praying for rain on the tenth day, and on the eleventh a heavy rain fell. There was no wind, but only a gentle rain that fell for a day and a night. Hojo Tokimune, the lord of the province of Sagami, was said to have been so deeply impressed that he presented Hoin with thirty ryo in gold, a horse, and other gifts as a reward.
When the people of Kamakura heard this, eminent and humble alike clapped their hands, pursed their lips, and laughed with derision, saying, "That Nichiren preached a false kind of Buddhism and came near to getting his head cut off. He was finally pardoned in the end, but instead of learning his lesson, he goes on slandering the Nembutsu and Zen sects, and even dares to speak ill of the esoteric teachings of Shingon. How fortunate that we have had this rain to serve as proof of the power of Shingon prayers!"
Faced with such criticism, my disciples became quite downcast and complained that I had been too provocative in my attacks on the Shingon sect. But I said to them, "Just wait a while. If the evil teachings of the Great Teacher Kobo could in fact produce effective prayers for the welfare of the nation, then the Retired Emperor Gotoba would surely have been victorious in his struggle with the Kamakura Shogunate, and Setaka, the favorite boy attendant of Dojo of Ninnaji, would not have had his head cut off. Kobo in his Jujushin Ron states that the Lotus Sutra is inferior to the Kegon Sutra. In his Hizo Hoyaku he claims that the Shakyamuni Buddha of the Juryo chapter of the Lotus Sutra is an ordinary mortal, and in his Ben Kemmitsu Nikyo Ron he calls the Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai a thief. Moreover, Shokaku-bo, in his Shari Koshiki states that the Buddha who preached the one vehicle of the Lotus Sutra is not even worthy to tend the shoes of a Shingon master. Hoin of the Amida Hall is a follower of the men who taught these perverse doctrines. If such a man could show himself superior to me, then the Dragon Kings who send down the rain must be the enemies of the Lotus Sutra, and they will surely be chastised by the gods Bonten and Taishaku and the Four Heavenly Kings. There must be more to this than meets the eye! "
"What do you mean by 'more than meets the eye'?" my disciples asked with scornful smiles.
I replied, "Shan-wu-wei and Pu-k'ung both caused rain to fall in answer to their prayers, but it appears that they also brought-about high winds. When Kobo prayed for rain, it fell after twenty-one days had passed. But under such circumstances, it is the same as though he had not caused it to rain at all, since some rain is naturally bound to fall in the course of a twenty-one day interval. The fact that it happened to rain while he was praying for it is in no way remarkable. What is really impressive is to cause it to fall through a single ceremony, the way T'ien-t'ai and Senkan did. That is why I say there must be something peculiar about this rain."
I had not even finished speaking when a great gale began to blow. Houses of every size, temples and shrines, old trees, and government buildings all were swept up into the air or toppled to the ground. A huge shining object flew through the sky, and the earth was strewn with beams and rafters. Men and women were blown to their death, and many cattle and horses were struck down. One might have excused such an evil wind if it had come in autumn, the typhoon season, but this was only the fourth month, the beginning of summer. Moreover, this wind did not blow throughout the country but struck only the eight provinces of the Kanto region, and in fact only the two provinces of Musashi and Sagami. It blew strongest in Sagami; and within Sagami, it blew strongest in Kamakura; and within Kamakura, it blew strongest at the government headquarters, Wakamiya, and the temples Kenchoji and Gokurakuji. It was apparent that it was no ordinary wind, but rather the result of Hoin's prayers alone. The people who had earlier pursed their lips and laughed at me suddenly turned sober, and my disciples too were astonished.
As I had expected all along, my warnings had gone unheeded. If after three attempts to warn the rulers of the nation one's advice is still unheeded, one should leave the country. With that thought in mind, I accordingly left Kamakura on the twelfth day of the fifth month and came here to Mount Minobu.
In the tenth month of the same year (1274), the Mongols launched their attack. Not only were the islands of Iki and Tsushima assaulted and captured, but the forces of the Dazaifu government office in Kyushu were defeated as well. When the military leaders Shoni Nyudo and Otomo received word of this, they fled from the scene, and the remaining warriors were struck down without difficulty. [Though the Mongol forces withdrew,] it was apparent just how weak Japan's defenses would be if they should launch another attack in the future.
The Ninno Sutra says, "When the sage departs, the seven types of calamity will invariably arise." The Saishoo Sutra states, "Because evil men are respected and favored and good men are subjected to punishment, marauders will appear from other regions and the people of the country will meet with death and disorder." If these pronouncements of the Buddha are true, then evil men certainly exist in our country and the ruler favors and respects such men while treating good men with enmity.
The Daijuku Sutra states, "The sun and moon do not show their brightness and there is drought on every side. Thus do evil kings and evil monks who commit unrighteous acts bring destruction upon my True Law." In the Ninno Sutra we read; "The evil monks, seeking for all the fame and gain they can get, will appear in the presence of the ruler, the heir apparent, and the princes and expound doctrines that lead to the destruction of Buddhism and the destruction of the state. The ruler, unable to discern the true nature of the monks' words, listens to them with trust, and thus they become the cause for the destruction of Buddhism and the destruction of the state." And the Lotus Sutra speaks of the "evil monks of a defiled age." If these passages in the sutras are true, then there must unquestionably be evil monks in this country. The crooked trees should be cut down on the treasure-filled mountains, and dead bodies should not be consigned to the great sea. Though the Great Sea of the Buddhist Law and the Treasure Mountain of the One Vehicle may admit the rubble and trash of the five cardinal sins or the dirty water of the four major offenses, they have no room for the "dead bodies" of those who slander the Lotus Sutra, or for the "crooked trees" who are icchantika, men of incorrigible disbelief. Therefore those who endeavor to practice the Buddhist Law and who care about what happens to them in future lives should know what a fearful thing it is to slander the Lotus Sutra.
Many people wonder why anyone should pay heed to a person like myself who speaks ill of Kobo, Jikaku, and others of their group. I do not know about other regions, but I know that the people of Tojo and Saijo in the province of Awa have good reason to believe what I say. They have seen the proof right before their eyes. Endon-bo of Inomori, Saigyo-bo and Dogi-bo of Kiyosumi, and Jitchi-bo of Kataumi were all eminent monks; but one should inquire what kind of death they met with. However, I will say no more of them. Enchi-bo spent three years in the great hall of Seichoji copying the text of the Lotus Sutra in laborious fashion, bowing three times as he copied each character. He had memorized all ten volumes, and every day and night recited the entire sutra twice for a period of fifty years. Everyone predicted that he would surely become a Buddha. But I alone said that he, along with Dogi-bo, was even more certain to fall into the depths of the hell of incessant suffering than were the Nembutsu priests. You would do well to inquire carefully just how these men met death. If it had not been for me, people would have believed that these monks had attained Buddhahood.
You should realize from this that the manner of the death of Kobo, Jikaku, and the others indicated that a truly miserable fate was in store for them. But their disciples contrived to keep the matter secret, so that even the members of the imperial court never learned of it. Hence these men have been looked up to with increasing reverence in later ages. And if there had been no one like me to reveal the truth, they would have gone on being honored in that manner for endless ages to come. The heretical teacher Uluka [turned to stone at his death,] but eight hundred years later [his errors were brought to light and] the stone melted and turned to water. And in the case of another heretical teacher, Kapila, a thousand years passed before his faults were brought to light.
A person is able to be born in human form because he or she has observed the five precepts in a previous existence. And if he continues to observe the five precepts in this life, then the twenty-five benevolent deities will protect him, and Dosho and Domyo, the two heavenly messengers who have been with him since birth on his left and right shoulders respectively, will guard him. So long as he commits no fault, the demons will have no chance to do him harm. And yet in this country of Japan, there are countless people who cry out in misery. We know, too, that the people of the islands of Iki and Tsushima had to suffer at the hands of the Mongols, and what befell the defenders of the Dazaifu in Kyushu. What fault were the people of this country guilty of that they should meet with such a fate? One would surely like to know the answer. One or two of the persons there may have been guilty of evil, but is it possible that all of them could have been?
The blame lies entirely in the fact that this country is filled with Shingon priests who follow the doctrines handed down from Kobo, Jikaku, and Chisho; with Nembutsu priests who are later-day disciples of Shan-tao and Honen; and with the followers of Bodhidharma and the other patriarchs of the Zen sect. That is why the gods Bonten and Taishaku, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the other deities, true to the vow they took when the Lotus Sutra was expounded to split into seven pieces the head [of anyone who troubles a preacher of the sutra], have sent down this punishment.
Some people may be perplexed at this point and object that, although those who do harm to the votary of the Lotus Sutra are supposed to have their heads split into seven pieces, there are men who slander Nichiren and yet do not have broken heads. Are we to conclude, they may ask, that Nichiren is not a true votary of the Lotus Sutra?
I would reply by saying that, if Nichiren is not a votary of the Lotus Sutra, then who is? Is Honen a votary, who in his writings ordered people to throw the Lotus Sutra away? Is the Great Teacher Kobo a votary, who said that Shakyamuni was still in the region of ignorance? Or are Shan-wu-wei or Jikaku votaries, who taught that although the Lotus Sutra and Shingon are equal in theory, the latter is superior in practice?
Again, this matter of the head being split into seven pieces--one need not imagine the kind of split made by a sharp sword. On the contrary, the Lotus Sutra says that the split is like that of the "branches of the arjaka tree." In a person's head there are seven drops of liquid and outside there are seven demons [who try to drink them]. If the demons drink one drop, the person's head begins to ache. If they drink three drops, his life will be endangered, and if they drink all seven drops, he will die. People in the world today all have heads that have split apart like the branches of the arjaka tree, but they are so steeped in evil karma that they are not even aware of the fact. They are like persons who have been injured while they were asleep or in a state of drunkenness and have not yet become conscious of their injury.
Rather than saying that the head is split into seven pieces, we sometimes say that the mind is split into seven pieces. The skull bone under the scalp breaks apart at the time of death. Many people of our own period had their heads split open in the great earthquake of the Shoka era (1257) or at the time of the appearance of the great comet in the Bun'ei era (1264). At the time their heads split open, they had a coughing condition, and when their five major internal organs failed to function correctly, they suffered from dysentery. How could they have failed to realize that they were being punished because they slandered the votary of the Lotus Sutra!
Because venison is tasty, the deer is hunted and killed; because oil can be obtained from the turtle, the turtle loses his life. If a woman is attractive, there will be many who envy her. The ruler of a nation has much to fear from other nations, and the life of a man with great wealth is constantly in danger. He who abides by the Lotus Sutra will inevitably attain Buddhahood. Therefore the Devil of the Sixth Heaven, the lord of this threefold world, will become intensely jealous of anyone who abides by the sutra. This devil king, we are told, attaches himself like a plague demon to people in a way that cannot be detected by the eye. Thereafter, like persons who gradually become drunk on fine old wine, rulers, fathers and mothers, wives and children gradually become possessed by him and are filled with envy toward the votary of the Lotus Sutra. And that is precisely the situation we face today in the world around us. Because I chant Nammyoho-renge-kyo I have for over twenty years been driven from place to place. Twice I have incurred the wrath of the authorities, and in the end I have retired to this mountain.
Here I am surrounded by four mountains, Shichimen to the west, Tenshi-no-take to the east, Minobu to the north, and Takatori to the south. Each is high enough to touch the sky, and so steep that even flying birds have trouble crossing them. In their midst are four rivers called Fujigawa, Hayakawa, Oshirakawa, and Minobugawa. In the middle, in a ravine some hundred yards or so across, I have built my hut. I cannot see the sun in the daytime or the moon at night. In winter there is deep snow, and in summer the grass grows thick. Because so few people come to see me, the trail is very hard to travel. This year, especially, the snow is so deep that I have no visitors at all. Knowing that my life may end at any time, I put all my trust in the Lotus Sutra. In these circumstances, your letter was particularly welcome. It seemed almost like a message from Shakyamuni Buddha or from my departed parents, and I cannot tell you how grateful I was.
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
[The text is based on "On Various Actions," (Shuju Onfurumai Gosho), in Selected Writings of Nichiren. It is also known as Sado Sho, or "Concerning Sado. This autobiographical letter was written in the third month of 1276 to the widow Konichi-ama in Awa.]