The Buddha preached the two doctrines … that those who slander the practicer of the Lotus Sūtra will fall into the Hell of Incessant Suffering and those who praise and admire the practicer of the Lotus Sūtra will be rewarded with merit superior to that of those who embrace the Buddha, but they are difficult to understand. Just how, one may wonder, can serving an ordinary person be more meritorious than serving the Buddha? If, however, we say that these two doctrines are false, we call into question the golden words of Śākyamuni Buddha, neglect the testimony of the Buddha of Many Treasures, and negate the proof of the long, wide tongues of the numerous Buddhas in manifestation from all the worlds in the universe. We will then fall into the Avīci Hell. It is as dangerous as riding a wild horse running on the rocks. On the other hand, if we believe in these two doctrines, we will become Buddhas of great Enlightenment. We therefore must establish a firm faith in the Lotus Sūtra during this lifetime. Practicing this sūtra without having a firm faith is like trying to grab hold of a jewel in a mountain of treasures without hands or walking a journey of 1,000 ri (4,000 km) without feet. It is best for us to put faith in the Buddha by observing the objective phenomena.

Hōren-shō, Letter to Hōren, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 49