. Nichiren's teachings developed over the course of his career and their evolution can be seen through the study of his writings as well as in the annotations he made in his personal copy of the
Lotus Sutra, the so-called
Chū-hokekyō. According to Anesaki, Nichiren, upon his arrival at Minobu, quickly turned his attention to consolidating his teachings toward their perpetuation. The scope of his thinking was outlined in an essay , considered by
Nikkō Shōnin as one of Nichiren's ten major writings. Nichiren also set a precedent for Buddhist
activism centuries before its emergence in other Buddhist schools. He held adamantly that his teachings would permit a nation to right itself and ultimately lead to world peace. Some of his religious thinking was derived from the
Tendai tradition and the works of Chinese
Tiantai masters
Zhiyi and
Zhanran, as well as from new perspectives that were products of
Kamakura Buddhism. According to various
Mahayana sutras, during the age of decline, most of the Buddha's teachings would be lost or lose their efficacy. Nichiren held that since Japan had entered Mappō, teachings like
nembutsu, Zen and esoteric practices were no longer effective – only
Lotus Sutra practices were effective. For Nichiren, the activities of the Japanese elite had caused the current state of chaos. Nichiren argued that the various protective deities had abandoned Japan because the court and the people had turned away from the true Dharma of the
Lotus Sutra to false teachings. Thus, if the government and the people turned to the true Dharma, society would transform into an ideal world in which peace and wisdom prevail and "the wind will not thrash the branches nor the rain fall hard enough to break clods."''
Five Principles Nichiren also taught Five Principles (
gogi) or five criteria for evaluating Buddhist teachings and establishing the supremacy of the
Lotus Sutra as the highest and best teaching for Japan at his time. The five are: • The teaching (
kyō) - Following the
Tiantai classification system, Nichiren sees the Lotus as part of the last teaching period of the Buddha and as the real true (jitsu) teaching, while all other teachings are provisional (gon). He cites Tiantai masters like
Zhiyi, and the
Lotus Sutra itself and points to its teachings on the one vehicle and the eternal immanent nature of the Buddha to prove this. • The innate capacity (
ki) of the people - Nichiren held that people of the Final Dharma Age lack good roots (honmi uzen). Thus, they first need to encounter the
Lotus Sutra to plant these good roots. Nichiren rejects the view of
Hōnen that the Lotus is too profound for beings of the Final Age. Nichiren cites
Zhanran who writes "the more true the teaching, the lower the stage [of the practitioners it can bring to enlightenment]". Thus, Nichiren argues that faith in the
Lotus Sutra can save all types of people, even the most ignorant or lowly. • The time (
ji), which refers to the Final Dharma Age. Nichiren believed that the
Lotus Sutra was the right sutra for the Final Age, and that the
daimoku was the right teaching for this time, being easy and accessible to all. • The land or country (
koku) - As Stone writes "following earlier Tendai thinkers such as
Saichō,
Annen, and
Genshin, Nichiren argued that the country of Japan is related exclusively to the
Lotus Sutra." • The sequence of Dharma propagation (
kyōhō rufu no zengo), which means that one should not teach an inferior or provisional teaching in a place where a superior teaching has already been taught.
Buddhahood and the mutual inclusion of all realms within the mind (
xin, 心) of a fetus. Nichiren stressed the idea that the Buddha's
Pure Land is
immanent in this present world (
shaba soku jakkōdo) and that all beings have the innate potential to attain
Buddhahood in this very body (
sokushin jōbutsu), though this can only be achieved by relying on the
Lotus Sutra. Nichiren was influenced by earlier ideas taught by
Kūkai and
Saichō, who had taught the possibility of becoming a Buddha in this life and the belief all beings are "originally enlightened" (
hongaku). However, he also saw his own teaching of ichinen sanzen as different and as going beyond that which was taught by Zhiyi. This is because Nichiren held that his teaching of the "true ichinen sanzen" was based on the latter half of the
Lotus Sutra (the origin teaching), instead of on second chapter. For Nichiren this is "the doctrine of original cause (hon’in) and original effect (honga). The nine realms are inherent in the beginningless Buddha realm; the Buddha realm inheres in the beginningless nine realms." This teaching "demolishes" all views of gradual training.
Single-minded devotion to the Lotus Sutra Nichiren held that this teaching of the interfusion of all reality, the ultimate meaning of the
Lotus Sutra, could now be realized solely through devotion to the sutra, especially by the practice of faithfully chanting the title of the sutra (daimoku). This allowed one to contemplate one's mind (kanjin) and to attain the fruit of Buddhahood in this life. According to Nichiren, Buddhahood would manifest when a person faithfully chants the sutra's title and shares it with others, at whatever the cost.Nichiren emphasized the importance of faith, practice, and study. Faith meant embracing the
Lotus Sutra, something that needed to be continually deepened. "To accept (
ju) [faith in the sutra] is easy," he explained to a follower, "to uphold it (
ji) is difficult. But the realization of Buddhahood lies in upholding [faith]." This could only be manifested by the practice of chanting the
daimoku as well as teaching others to do the same, and study. Consequently, Nichiren consistently and vehemently objected to the perspective of the
Pure Land School that stressed an other-worldly aspiration to some
Pure Land outside of this world. Behind his assertion is the concept of the
nonduality of the subjective realm (the individual) and the objective realm (the land that the individual inhabits) which indicates that when the individual taps into Buddhahood, his or her present world becomes peaceful and harmonious. For Nichiren the widespread propagation of the
Lotus Sutra and consequent world peace ("
kosen-rufu") was achievable and inevitable. He thus tasked his future followers with a mandate to accomplish it. While Nichiren critiqued
Hōnen's Pure Land tradition for sidelining the
Lotus Sutra, he was also influenced by it.
Hōnen had introduced the concept of focusing on a single practice over all others (which was to be
nembutsu). This practice was revolutionary because it was simple and accessible to all. It also minimalized the
elitist and monopolistic role of the Buddhist establishment. Nichiren appropriated the structure of a universally accessible single practice but substituted the nembutsu with the recitation of the daimoku (
Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō), while also affirming that this practice could lead to Buddhahood in this life, instead of just leading to birth in a Pure Land. Nichiren held that these three Dharmas are the concrete manifestations of "the actualization of ichinen sanzen" (ji no ichinen sanzen) specific to the Age of Dharma Decline. According to Nichiren, practicing the Three Secret Dharmas results in the "Three Proofs" which verify their validity. The first proof is "documentary," whether the religion's fundamental texts, here the writings of Nichiren, make a lucid case for the eminence of the religion. "Theoretical proof" is an intellectual standard of whether a religion's teachings reasonably clarify the mysteries of life and death. "Actual proof," deemed the most important by Nichiren, demonstrates the validity of the teaching through the actual improvements and experiences which manifest in the daily life of practitioners.
Daimoku Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō, the
daimoku ("the title" of the
Lotus Sutra preceded by "Namu", meaning "homage to"), is both the essence of the
Lotus Sutra Dharma and the means to discover that truth, i.e. the interconnected unity of self, others and environment with Buddhahood itself. Nichiren sees this as the only truly effective practice, the superior Buddhist practice for this time. Thus, according to Nichiren, "it is better to be a leper who chants Nam(u) Myōhō Renge Kyō than be a chief abbot of the Tendai school." Furthermore, the daimoku is also said to contain the Buddha's enlightenment and all his spiritual powers.Like other Tendai figures of his time, Nichiren held that the
Lotus Sutra taught the unity of the cause (skillful means) and the effect (Buddhahood). Nichiren held that the term
Renge (Dharma Flower) represents how the cause and the effect (practice and Buddhahood) are one. This is symbolized by the lotus flower because its blossoms and seed pods grow at the same time.For Nichiren, Buddhahood is immanently accessible through the daimoku. Nichiren also saw the daimoku as granting worldly benefits, such as healing and protection from harm. According to Stone, the logic of this mandala is influenced by
Esoteric Buddhist yogas, in which the yogi visualizes their unity with the Buddha realm. Nichiren also made a "great vow" that he and all his followers would create the conditions for a peaceful
Dharmic nation. This is described in the
Lotus Sutra as
kosen-rufu (lit. "to extensively declare and spread [the
Lotus Sutra] far and wide"). In earlier Japanese Buddhism the concept of "nation" was equated with
Imperial rule and peace with political stability. Nichiren's teachings embraced a new view which held that "nation" referred to the land and the people. Nichiren was unique among his contemporaries in charging the actual government in power (the
bakufu), as responsible for peace and for the thriving of Dharma. For Nichiren, all human beings were equal in the eyes of the Buddha and all were responsible for the state of their nation. Furthermore, enlightenment is not restricted to one's inner life, but is actualized by making efforts toward the transformation of nation and society. Because of this, Nichiren saw himself as responsible for saving the Japanese nation, which he believed could only be accomplished by spreading the teaching of the
Lotus Sutra. In addition to formalized religious debates, the Kamakura period was marked by flourishing and competitive oral religious discourse. Temples competed for the patronage of elites through oratorical sermonizing and temple lecturers (kōshi
) faced pressure to attract crowds. Sermonizing spread from within the confines of temples to homes and the streets as wandering mendicants (shidōso
, hijiri
, or inja'') preached to both the educated and illiterate in exchange for alms. In order to teach principles of faith preachers incorporated colorful storytelling, music, vaudeville, and drama—which later evolved into
Noh. A predominant topic of debate in Kamakura Buddhism was the concept of rebuking "slander of the Dharma", a topic found in the
Lotus Sutra. Thus, Nichiren's critiques of other sects must be understood in the context of a time in which religious
polemics were common. The first target of his polemics was
Hōnen's Pure Land teaching which had by now become very popular. Nichiren's detailed rationale is most famously articulated in his first major work, the . While Nichiren's polemics were often harsh, he always chose personal or written debate and did not resort to
religious violence. Nichiren remained non-violent even while experiencing persecution and living in a world in which established sects like the
Tendai school wielded armies of warrior monks (
Sōhei) to attack their critics. Nichiren is said to have stated: "Whatever obstacles I may encounter, as long as men [persons] of wisdom do not prove my teachings to be false, I will never yield." For Nichiren,
Buddhist texts discuss to main approaches to spreading the
Buddhadharma: the gradual method of shōju (摂 受) in which one leads others without confronting or challenging them, and shakubuku (折伏), an assertive method of critiquing others' views. Nichiren held that depending on the time and place, one could use either of these. Modern detractors criticize his exclusivist perspective as
intolerant. Apologists argue his arguments should be understood in the context of his times and not through a modern lens that rejects religious confrontation. Nichiren's polemics included sharp criticisms of the Pure Land,
Shingon (meaning
Esoteric Buddhism in general),
Zen, and
Ritsu schools. The core of Nichiren's critique was that these schools had turned people away from the
Lotus Sutra, making them focus on other thing like a postmortem destination (Pure Land), secret and elitist master disciple transmissions (Zen, and Esotericism) and
monastic rules (Ritsu). His criticisms have become known as the "Four Denunciations". He also critiqued the Japanese Tendai school for its appropriation of esoteric elements (Taimitsu). Reliance on esoteric rituals, he claimed, was useless magic and would lead to national decay. He held that Zen was devilish in its belief that attaining enlightenment was possible through a "secret transmission outside the scriptures", and that Ritsu was thievery because it hid behind token deeds such as public works. In modern parlance, the Four Denunciations rebuked demoralized and disengaged people by discouraging
occultism,
clericalism,
legalism, and
escapism. In spite of his critiques, Nichiren did not reject all other Buddhist traditions or practices in full. His focus remained on those whom he saw as "slandering the Dharma", i.e. those who turned people away from the
Lotus Sutra or argued that it was a sutra of a lower class. Thus, he writes in
The Opening of the Eyes: I believe that the devotees and followers of the
Flower Garland,
Meditation,
Mahāvairochana, and other sutras will undoubtedly be protected by the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and heavenly beings of the respective sutras that they uphold. But if the votaries of the
Mahāvairochana, Meditation, and other sutras should set themselves up as the enemies of the votary of the
Lotus Sutra, then the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and heavenly beings will abandon them and will protect the votary of the
Lotus Sutra. It is like the case of a filial son whose father opposes the ruler of the kingdom. The son will abandon his father and support the ruler, for to do so is the height of filial piety.
Bodily reading the Lotus Sutra and repay his debts to the triple gem, to one's parents, nation, and to all of beings. Nichiren thus taught that when confronting difficult karmic situations, chanting of the daimoku would open the wisdom of the Buddha and transform one's karma, awakening a universal concern for one's society. In some of his letters, Nichiren extended his theory of facing persecution for the
Lotus Sutra to personal problems like familial discord or illness. He encouraged his followers to take ownership of negative life events, and to view them as opportunities to repay karmic debts and to practice Dharma, which help could shorten the length of these events. However, Nichiren did not regard this Pure Land as realm separate from this world. Even though it encompasses the faithful deceased, this land is ultimately the sacred space of enlightenment accessible here and now through devotion to the
Lotus Sūtra. It is thus the "land of tranquil light" (
jō jakkōdo), the highest Pure Land in the Tendai system. He also taught that neither social class nor gender were barriers to one's Buddhahood. This view was rare in Japan, which was a society dominated by elite men. Women were not even allowed on
Mount Hiei for example, and were traditionally considered to be impure during menstruation. Nichiren emphasized that women are equal in their spiritual capacity: Many women in their prime became nuns during Shakyamuni's time and practiced the way of the Buddha, but they were never despised because of their menstrual periods. Menstruation is not a pollution that comes from without. It is simply a feminine characteristic... == Nichiren and his followers ==