Letter from Sado
This letter is addressed to Toki Jonin. It should also be shown to
Shijo Kingo, Tonotsuji Juro, Sajiki no Ama and my other disciples.
Send me the names of those killed in the battles at Kyoto and
Kamakura. Also please have those who are coming here bring me
the Geten Sho, volume two of the Hokke Mongu and volume four of
the Hokke Gengi, as well as the collected Imperial reports and
edicts.
The most dreadful things in the world are the pain of fire, the flashing
of swords and the shadow of death. Even horses and cattle fear
being killed; no wonder human beings are afraid of death. Even a
leper clings to life; no wonder a healthy person struggles to live. The
Buddha taught that offering one's little finger for the sutra is more
rewarding than covering an entire galaxy with seven kinds of jewels.
Sessen Doji offered his life, and Gyobo Bonji ripped off his own skin
to seek the truth of Buddhism. Since nothing is more precious than
life itself, those who dedicate their l ives to the Buddhist practice are
certain to attain Buddhahood. If they are prepared to offer their
lives, why should they begrudge any other treasure for the sake of
Buddhism? On the other hand, if one is loath to part with his material
possessions, how can he possibly give away his life, which is far
more valuable?
Society dictates that one should repay a great obligation to another
even at the cost of his own life. Many warriors die for their lords,
perhaps even more than one would imagine. A man will die to defend
his honor; a woman will die for a man. Fish want to survive; they
deplore their pond's shallowness and dig holes to hid in, yet tricked
by bait, they take the hook. Birds in a tree fear that they are too low
and perch in the top branches, yet bewitched by bait, they too are
caught in snares. Human beings are equally vulnerable. They give
their lives for shallow, worldly matters but rarely for the noble cause
of Buddhism. Small wonder they do not attain Buddhahood.
Buddhism should be spread by the method of either shoju or
shakubuku, depending upon the age. These are analogous to the
two worldly arts of the pen and the sword. The bodhisattvas of old
practiced the Law as befitted the times. Sessen Doji offered his own
body when told that he would be taught the Law in return. Prince
Satta gave his own flesh and blood to carry out his bodhisattva
practice. But should one sacrifice his life at a time when it is not
required? In an age when there is no paper, one should use his own
skin. In an age when there are no pens, one should use his own
bones. In an age when society accepts the True Law and honors
the percepts while denouncing those who break or ignore them, one
should strictly follow them all. In an age when Confucianism or
Taoism is used to assail Buddhism, one should risk his life to debate
with the emperor, as did the priests Tao-an, Hui-yuan and Fa-tao. In
and age when people confuse Hinayana and Mahayana, provisional
and true teachings or exoteric and esoteric doctrines, as though
unable to distinguish gems from pebbles or cows' milk from asses'
milk, one should strictly differentiate between them, following the
example of the Great Teachers T'ien-t'ai and Dengyo.
It is the nature of beasts to threaten the weak and fear the strong.
Our contemporary scholars are just like them. They despise a wise
man without power but fear the evil rulers. They are merely servile
courtiers. Only by defeating a powerful enemy can one prove his
real strength. When an evil ruler in consort with heretical priests
tries to destroy true Buddhism and banish a man of wisdom, those
with the heart of a lion will surely attain Buddhahood as Nichiren did.
I say this not out of arrogance but because I am committed to true
Buddhism. An arrogant man will be overcome with fear when he
meets a strong enemy, just like the haughty ashura who shrank and
hid himself in a lotus flower blossoming in Munetchi Lake when
reproached by Taishaku. Even a word or phrase of true Buddhism
will lead one to the path of enlightenment, if it suits the times and the
capacity of the people. Even though one may study a thousand
sutras and ten thousand doctrines, he cannot attain Buddhahood,
should those teachings not fit the times and the people's capacity.
Now, twenty-six years since the battle of Hoji, the Kamakura
government is again plagued by internal strife. Rebellions have
already broken out twice on the eleventh and the seventeenth day of
the second month of this year. Neither non-Buddhists nor the
enemies of Buddhism can destroy the Buddha's True Law, but the
Buddha's disciples definitely can. As the sutra says, a parasite in
the lion's bowels will devour the lion. A man of great fortune cannot
be ruined by his enemies but only by those close to him. The current
rebellion is what the Yakushi Sutra means by "the disaster of
internal strife." The Ninno Sutra states, "When the sage departs, the
seven types of calamity will invariably arise." The Konkomyo Sutra
states, "The thirty-three heavenly gods become furious because the
king permits evil to run rampant." Although Nichiren is not a sage, he
is equal to one, for he embraces the Lotus Sutra exactly as the
Buddha taught. Furthermore, since he has long understood the ways
of the world, all the prophecies he wrote have come true without
exception. Therefore you should not doubt what he has told you
concerning your future existence.
Nichiren is the pillar, sun, moon, mirror and eyes of the ruling clan of
Kanto. On the twelfth day of the ninth month of last year when I was
arrested, I boldly declared that if the country should lose Nichiren,
the seven disasters would occur without fail. Didn't this prophecy
come true just sixty and then one hundred fifty days later? And those
battles were only the first signs. What lamenting there will be when
the full effect appears People foolishly wonder why Nichiren is
persecuted by the government if he is truly a wise man. Yet it is all
just as I expected. King Ajatashatru killed his father and nearly
murdered his mother, for which he was hailed by the six royal
ministers. When Devadatta killed an arhat and shed the Buddha's
blood, Kokalika and others were delighted. Nichiren is father and
mother to the ruling clan and is like a Buddha or an arhat to this age.
The sovereign and his subjects who rejoice at his exile are truly the
most shameless of all. Those heretical priests who have been
bewailing the exposure of their errors may be overjoyed for the
moment, but eventually they will suffer no less than Nichiren and his
disciples. Their joy is like Fujiwara Yasuhira's when he killed his
brother and Minamoto Yoshitsune. The devil who shall destroy the
ruling clan has already entered the country. This is the meaning of
the passage from the Lotus Sutra which reads, " The devil enters
one's body."
The persecutions Nichiren has faced are the result of karma formed
in previous lifetimes. The Fukyo chapter states, "... after expiating
his sins," indicating that Bodhisattva Fukyo was vilified and beaten
by countless slanderers because of his past karma. So, too, it is
with Nichiren, who in this life was born poor and lowly to a chandala
family. In my heart I cherish some faith in the Lotus Sutra, but my
body, while outwardly human, is fundamentally that of an animal,
which once subsisted on fish and fowl and was conceived of the
male and female fluids. My spirit dwells in this body like the moon
reflected in a muddy pond or gold wrapped in a filthy bag. Since my
heart believes in the Lotus Sutra, I do not fear even Bonten or
Taishaku, but my body is still that of an animal. With such disparity
between my body and my mind, no wonder the foolish despise me.
Without doubt, when compared to my body, my mind shines like the
moon or gold. Who knows what slander I may have committed in the
past? I may possess the soul of Priest Shoi or the spirit of
Mahadeva. Maybe I am descended from those who contemptuously
persecuted Bodhisattva Fukyo or am among those who forgot their
original faith in the Lotus Sutra. I may even be related to the five
thousand arrogant people who would not remain to hear the sutra, or
belong to the third and lowest group of Daitsu Buddha's disciples. It
is impossible to fathom one's karma. Iron, when heated in the flames
and pounded, becomes a fine sword. Wise men and saints are
tested by abuse. My present exile is not because of any crime. It is
solely so that I may expiate in this lifetime my past heavy slanders
and be freed from the three evil paths in the next.
The Hatsunaion Sutra states, "In the coming age, there will be those
who enter the priesthood, don surplices and make a show of
studying my teachings. However, being neither diligent nor serious
about their practice, they will slander the Mahayana sutras. You
should be aware that these people are the ones who are following
the heretical religions of today." Those who read this passage
should reflect deeply on their own practice. The Buddha is saying
that those of our contemporary priests who are lazy and remiss
were disciples of the six non-Buddhist teachers in Shakyamuni's
day. The followers of Honen who call themselves the Nembutsu sect
not only turn people away from the Lotus Sutra, telling them to
"discard, close, ignore and abandon" it, but advocate chanting only
the name of Amida, a Buddha described in the provisional teachings.
The followers of Dainichi, known as the Zen sect, claim that the true
teachings of Buddhism have been transmitted apart from the sutras.
They ridicule the Lotus Sutra as nothing more than a finger pointing
to the moon or a meaningless string of words. These priests were
certainly followers of the six non-Buddhist teachers, only now they
have entered the stream of Buddhism. According to the Nirvana
Sutra, the Buddha had enabled everyone to attain enlightenment by
teaching the Juryo chapter of the Lotus Sutra. Yet, alas, when he
illuminated the hundred and thirty-six hells underground, instead of
finding them empty, he saw that the slanderers of Buddhism who
were people of incorrigible disbelief were still being confined there
by the guards of hell. They proliferated until they became the people
of Japan today.
Since Nichiren himself committed slander in the past, he became a
Nembutsu priest in this lifetime, and for several years he also
laughed at those who practiced the Lotus Sutra, saying, "Not a
single person has ever attained Buddhahood through that sutra" or
"Not one person in a thousand can reach enlightenment through its
teachings." Awakening from my slanderous condition, I feel like a
drunken son, who, in his stupor, strikes his parents but thinks
nothing of it. When he returns to his senses, he regrets it bitterly but
to no avail. His offense is extremely difficult to erase. Even more so
are past slanders of the Law, which stain the depth of one's heart. A
sutra states that both the crow's blackness and the heron's
whiteness are actually the deep stains of their past karma. The
Brahmans and other non-Buddhists refused to recognize this
causality and claimed it was the work of nature, and today, when I
expose people's slanders in an effort to save them, they deny it with
every excuse possible and argue back with Honen's words about
barring the gates to the Lotus Sutra. From Nembutsu believers this
is scarcely surprising, but even the Tendai and Shingon priests
actively support them. On the sixteenth and the seventeenth day of
the first month of this year, hundreds of priests and believers from
the Nembutsu and other sects came to debate with Nichiren.
Representing the Nembutsu, Insho-bo said, "Saint Honen did not
instruct us to discard the Lotus Sutra. He simply wrote that
everyone should chant the Nembutsu, and its great blessings will
assure their ascension to the pure land. Even the Tendai priests of
Onjo-ji and Enryaku-ji temples exiled to this island praise Saint
Honen and say how excellent his teaching is. How do you dare try to
refute it?" The local priests are even more ignorant than their
counterparts in Kamakura. They are absolutely pitiful.
How terrible are the slanders Nichiren committed in his past and
present existences! Since you have been born into this evil country
and become the disciple of such a man, there is no telling what you
may have to endure. The Hatsunaion Sutra reads, "Men of devout
faith, because you committed countless sins and accumulated much
evil karma in the past, you must expect to suffer retribution for
everything you have done. You may be reviled, cursed with an ugly
appearance, be poorly clad and poorly fed, seek wealth in vain, be
born to an impoverished or heretical family, or be persecuted by
your sovereign." It further states, "It is due to the blessings obtained
by protecting the Law that one can diminish in this lifetime his
suffering and retribution." Were it not for Nichiren, these passages
from the sutra would virtually make the Buddha a liar. For none,
save Nichiren have experienced all eight sufferings described in the
sutra: (1) to be slighted; (2) to posses an ugly physical form; (3) to
lack clothing; (4) to lack food; (5) to seek wealth in vain; (6) to be
born to a poor family; (7) to be born to a heretical family; and (8) to
be persecuted by one's sovereign. One who climbs a high mountain
must eventually descend. One who slights another will in turn be
despised. One who deprecates those of handsome appearance will
be born ugly. One who robs another of food and clothing is sure to
fall into the world of hunger. One who mocks noble men or anyone
who observes the precepts will be born to a poor family. One who
slanders a family that embraces the True Law will be born to a
heretical family. One who laughs at those who cherish the precepts
will be born a commoner and meet with persecution from his
sovereign. This is the general law of cause and effect.
Nichiren's suffering, however, are not ascribable to this causal law.
In the past he despised the votaries of the Lotus Sutra and ridiculed
the sutra itself, sometimes with exaggerated praise and other times
with contempt. He has met all eight of these terrible sufferings for
such acts against the Lotus Sutra which is as magnificent as two
jewels combined, two moons shining side by side, two stars
conjoined or one Mount Hua placed atop another. Usually these
sufferings would torment a person over many lifetimes, appearing
one at a time. but Nichiren has denounced the enemies of the Lotus
Sutra so severely that all eight descended upon him at once. His
situation is like that of a peasant heavily in debt to his lord and
others. As long as he remains on the estate, they are likely to defer
his debts from one year to the next, rather than mercilessly hounding
him. But as soon as he tries to leave, everyone will rush over and
demand that he repay everything at once. Thus the sutra states, "It
is due to the blessings obtained by protecting the Law that one can
diminish...his suffering and retribution."
The Lotus Sutra reads, "There are many ignorant people who will
vilify and attack us, the votaries of the Lotus Sutra, with swords,
staves and stone... they will denounce us to the sovereign,
ministers, Brahmans and other influential men... we will be banished
again and again." Without hell's guards to torment them, slanderers
could never emerge from hell. Were it not for the authorities who
now persecute Nichiren, he could not expiate his past sin of
slandering the Law. Nichiren is like Bodhisattva Fukyo who lived in
ages past, and the people of this day are like the priests, nuns and
lay men and women who disdained and persecuted Fukyo. The
people are different, yet the cause is the same. Different people
may kill their parents, but they all fall into the same hell of incessant
suffering. Since Nichiren is making the same cause as Fukyo, he is
certain to become a Buddha equal to Shakyamuni. Moreover, those
who now persecute him are like Bhadrapala and the others who
persecuted Fukyo. They will be tortured in the depths of hell for a
thousand aeons. I therefore pity them deeply and wonder what can
be done for them. Those who at first disdained and persecuted
Fukyo later took faith in his teachings and became his followers. The
greater part of their slander was thus expiated, but even the small
part which remained caused them to suffer as terribly as one who
had killed his parents a thousand times over. The people of this age
refuse to repent at all and must therefore suffer for interminable
aeons as described in the Hiyu chapter, perhaps even for the
duration of sanzen- or gohyaku-jintengo.
There are also those who appeared to believe in Nichiren but began
doubting when they saw him persecuted. They have not only
forsaken the Lotus Sutra but actually think themselves wise enough
to instruct Nichiren. The pitiful thing is that these perverse people
must suffer in the depths of hell even longer than the Nembutsu
believers. Ashura contended that the Buddha had only eighteen
sensory functions but that he himself had nineteen. Brahmans
claimed that the Buddha offered only one way to enlightenment but
they had ninety-five. In the same way, the renegade disciples say
that although Priest Nichiren is their teacher, he is too rigid, and
they will spread the Lotus Sutra in a more flexible way. In so
asserting, they are being as ridiculous as fireflies laughing at the sun
and moon, an anthill belittling Mount Hua, small inlets despising the
boundless sea, or a magpie mocking the Chinese phoenix. Nam-
myoho-renge-kyo.
Nichiren
The twentieth day of the third month in the ninth year of Bun'ei
(1272)
There is very little writing paper here in the province of Sado, and to
write to you individually would take too long. However, if even one
person fails to hear me, it will cause resentment. Therefore, I want
all sincere believers to meet and read this letter together for
encouragement. When disaster strikes, our personal troubles seem
insignificant. I do not know how accurate the reports reaching me
are, but there must surely be intense grieving over those killed in the
recent battles. What has become of Izawa no Nyudo and Sakabe no
Nyudo? Send me news of Kawanobe, Yamashiro, Tokugyo-ji and the
others. Also, please be kind enough to send me the Essentials of
Government in the Chen-kuan Era, the Anthology of Tales, and the
Esoteric Teachings of the Eight Sects. Without these, I cannot even
write letters.
