The main point of the Lotus Sutra is this: all Buddhas, whatever names they may use, are temporary manifestations of this Eternal Buddha. He appears in other forms in order to lead people to enightenment. However, these Buddhas are limited. They are provisional, only a reflection of the true form of the Eternal Buddha Sakyamuni in a given time and place.

Since the Original Buddha is eternal, this world, where the Buddha lives, is also eternal. It can never be destroyed. However, ordinary people, deluded by worldly desires and unable to see with the eyes of the Buddha, think that this world is a defiled land, one which will burn away in the future. We see grief, pain and fear wherever we look. To us this is the “real world.” But our Buddha-nature can be realized in this defiled world. To enlightened eyes, the real world is revealed as a glorious Pure Land where all beings can attain Buddhahood.

The Six Perfections are considered the bodhisattva way of practice. They are generosity, the performance of service to others in both a spiritual and material sense; morality, living an ethical life by avoiding the taking of life, stealing, indulgence in harmful sexual activity, lying, or becoming intoxicated with alcohol or drugs; patience,showing patience in dealing with obstacles and opposition from others; endeavor, making the best effort one can; concentration, focusing the heart and mind on the task at hand; and wisdom, which is more than simple knowledge or understanding. The Buddha’s realization of the Truth was wisdom. With this wisdom, the Buddha’s person and the Truth are one: subjective character and objective truth merge and are unified.

Buddhism requires regular practice; in fact, most students of Buddhism – including those who do not necessarily consider themselves Buddhists – say that Buddhism cannot be understood without at least trying the practice for a period of time.

Of course, one might wonder why simply repeating a phrase is considered the most important practice for Nichiren Buddhists. Nichiren Shonin himself explained that the Buddha prescribed the Odaimoku as a good medicine to cure living beings of the sufferings of birth and death. To become more like someone we admire, it is helpful to act like that person. If we want to become like the Buddha, we must act like the Buddha. In the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha revealed that all Buddhas including himself became enlightened by revering the Lotus Sutra itself. This is what we are doing when we chant the Odaimoku. Through this practice, we become one with the Buddha and cultivate our own Buddha nature.

Another part of the core practice is reciting sections from the Lotus Sutra. … The basis of this practice is the words of the Lotus Sutra itself. In almost every chapter, the sutra describes the merit and importance of reading, reciting, and copying the sutra. This practice also serves to inspire us with the words of the Buddha in his highest teachings, which is only possible if we understand the words. This is why it i good to recite in one’s own languages.

Nichiren Shonin spoke of one other practice required of Buddhists: to express compassion and gratitude to our fellow humans; this is propagation of the teachings of the Lotus Sutra. There are two forms of propagation, shoju and shakubuku. Shoju means gentle persuasion, and is used to describe the propagation of one who sets a good example. People are naturally drawn to such a person and seek to emulate him or her. However, the means that Nichiren Shonin advocated for his time and for the Declining Age of the Dharma in general is shakubuku, which means to break and subdue. However, this does not mean subduing people, being rude and dogmatic, or breaking violently. Instead, this simply means to speak the truth about the primary effectiveness of the Lotus Sutra and to speak truthfully about the deficiencies of other teachings. This does not mean attacking people with an attitude of insulting their beliefs; Nichiren Shonin says that the correct form of shakubuku is shown in the example of Bodhisattva Never Despise in Chapter Twenty of the Lotus Sutra.

There is one final element that deserves mention because it is so easy to overlook. Though not a part of our ritual practice, it is very important that we, as Buddhists, express the virtue of generosity in our lives. Donation to a Buddhist does not mean only the giving of money, but sharing our time and compassion. Therefore, social action should be an important part of our lives. This can mean many different things – Buddhism does not impose political or social beliefs upon its practitioners. However, whether it is working to feed the hungry, supporting disarmament, or whatever cause suits our personal beliefs within the context of Buddhist ethics, we should reach out to our communities and give our time and energy to make the world a better place. This is, after all, the goal of Buddhism – making this world the Buddha’s Pure Land and easing the suffering of all sentient begins.

Now that we have the parts that makeup practice, let’s take a brief look at how these elements come together. You should remember that there is no one correct recipe; as in your favorite home cooking, the recipe is there to give you the general idea, but the chef creates a wholesome dish with some personal discretion.