Wise
Buddhism can be correctly propagated only by a person of
unsurpassed wisdom. This is why Shakyamuni, after
expounding all the sutras, entrusted the Hinayana
teachings to nanda and the Mahayana teachings to
Monju, but refused to transfer the ultimate principle of
the Lotus Sutra to any of his immediate disciples.
Shakyamuni instead summoned Bodhisattva Jogyo, his
disciple from ages past, and entrusted it to him.
Even if there should be a person of wisdom who embraces
Buddhism, how could he propagate it without believers
who support him? Shakyamuni had the support of
Bonten and Taishaku who dwell in heaven. From among
the six paths, the Buddha chose the worlds of Heaven
and Humanity, and of these two; he chose to be born
among human beings. Of all places in the universe
inhabited by men, he appeared in India, in the kingdom
of Magadha. The king of Magadha should have been a
protector of the Buddha, but the ruler was King
Ajatashatru, an evil man. The most unfortunate destiny
for a Buddha is to be born in the reign of an evil
monarch. King Ajatashatru had murdered his father, a
wise king who had supported the Buddha. Even worse,
he had taken Devadatta as his mentor. Devadatta
committed three of the five cardinal sins, worst of all
injuring the Buddha and causing him to bleed. The
impious and evil king joined forces with this slanderer of
Buddhism, compounding the great harm to humanity.
Not only for one or two years but for several decades,
this king repeatedly harassed the Buddha and killed a
great many of his disciples. This infuriated the heavens,
and the skies reacted violently. Moreover, the terrestrial
Nichiren
The sixth day of the ninth month in the second year of Kenji
[1276 C. E.]