[T]he “Ten Suchnesses” … form one of the Buddha’s best known teachings. Reality in the “reality of all things” means “substance” or “existence.” According to this teaching, the true nature of existence (the reality of all things) can be seen in nine aspects as such: (1) their objective appearances (attributes), (2) their subjective natures (inner natures), (3) their entities (forms), (4) their powers (inner potentials), (5) their functions and activities, (6) their primary or direct causes, (7) their environmental causes (indirect causes), (8) their effects upon others, and (9) their rewards and retributions upon themselves.

This is not a classification of existence, but an illustration of various viewpoints from which the true nature of existence may be understood. The viewer is the Buddha, these nine factors essentially make up a whole as a manifestation of his wisdom. From the first factor (appearances) through to the last (rewards and retributions), all are unified as one. Each is ultimately equal to the others, and so really only one “as such” exists. This one, the tenth factor, is called the “equality of the nine factors.’

Sun-Moon-Light Buddha expounded the Lotus Sutra prior to entering nirvana, and then assured one of his disciples of his future Buddhahood. The same can be said about Sakyamuni. The Lotus Sutra is the written teachings of Sakyamuni that were expounded prior to his death. In them, he too assured disciples of their future Buddhahood.

Sun-Moon-Light Buddha assigned one of his followers, Wonderful-Light Bodhisattva, to preserve and spread his teachings after he was gone. Likewise, Sakyamuni assigned his followers the task of spreading his teachings in this world after he should enter nirvana. This theme will be developed later, beginning in Chapter Ten, “The Teacher of the Law,” and continuing for many chapters after.

Thus this chapter introduces ideas which serve as a prelude to or foreshadowing of the philosophy of the Lotus Sutra, presenting themes which will gradually unfold in the chapters which follow.

In the Buddha’s light, the congregation could see that some wise people had given up earthly desires, aware that all forms of existence are as insubstantial as the sky. Others made offerings to the relics of the Buddhas or built monuments (stupas) for them. For those in the congregation who could not make out all the details, the Bodhisattva Maitreya, who is to be our next Buddha, recounted everything he saw. The congregation was amazed at these things and thought there must be some explanation for them. Even Maitreya did not know the answer, so he put the question to Manjusri, who was considered the wisest of all the Buddha’s disciples, wiser, it was said, than any three men.

The meaning of this chapter’s title is that Universal-Sage Bodhisattva (Samantabhadra) will appear before, protect, and encourage anyone who keeps and practices the Lotus Sutra, and he will have that person aspire to the Way to Buddhahood.

The Bodhisattva Vehicle includes those who seek or already possess the enlightenment of the Buddha. Although they neither enter into nirvana nor attain the ultimate enlightenment of Sakyamuni, Bodhisattvas share his ideal of working in this world for the salvation of others. In contrast to the Lesser Vehicle, the teaching for Bodhisattvas is called the Great Vehicle, for it seeks to guide all living things to enlightenment, just as a large vehicle can carry many passengers besides the driver.

In a book called Maha-prajna-paramitopadesa, the great Indian philosopher Nagarjuna (second century) says about dharanis, “If a Bodhisattva obtains the power of dharanis, he will never lose the Dharma from his memory, but will keep it forever.”

This idea was later developed to mean that if someone continues in this practice diligently until he can recite an entire sutra by heart, he will obtain the miraculous power inherent in that sutra. Phrases and words of the sutra are then called dharani-spells. In the Lotus Sutra, the dharani-spells are uttered to protect the practitioners, teachers, and expounders of the Sutra.

The complete name of this chapter is the “Universal Gate of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva.” Universal Gate means that he [or she], representing the gate of Buddhism, is open to everyone without exception. This does not mean that there is only one gate [as some religions teach]. There are as many gates as there are people and other creatures who are in need. Gate is mukha in Sanskrit, which also means “face” in that language. World-Voice-Perceiver has many faces, which means he is expounding many teachings.

The samadhi by which one can transform himself into other living beings is a power of concentration acquired by practice. Such a miraculous phenomenon may sound impossible. However, when we sincerely devote ourselves to the service and welfare of others, we can reach a stage of nonself—real selflessness—and become one with them. In appearance, we may even look like one of them. An adult playing happily with children may look like a child himself. He may feel like a child, too. The children may even consider him to be one of them. Such “transformations” are far from impossible, but they do require a special state of mind. The samadhi by which one can transform himself into other living things is an expression of the Bodhisattva-spirit of devoting one’s self to others. Wonderful-Voice can transform himself into thirty-four bodies. In the next chapter, we meet a famous Bodhisattva with similar abilities.

The offering of burning the body, which plays such a prominent part of this chapter, should not be taken literally. It symbolizes the spirit of giving one’s whole self, believing wholeheartedly, embracing the Most-Venerable-One, and offering to serve the truth with all one’s body and soul.

Nichiren compared his own position to that of Superb-Action Bodhisattva. After he was sent into exile on the Island of Sado, Nichiren began to make this comparison with increasing frequency. He stated it explicitly in his writing, Kanjin Honzon Sho (“A Treatise Revealing the Spiritual Contemplation of the Most-Venerable-One”). This essay is considered the most important of his many writings. Although its logical arguments resist condensation into a few words, here is a brief summary of what he said.

According to the teachings of Great Master Chih-i, the practical side of the Lotus Sutra is the doctrine of “one thought is the three thousand worlds” (ichinen-sanzen). However, if this doctrine is left in its original form, it is not a suitable practice for unenlightened people in this Age of Degeneration. If the theory of “one thought is the three thousand worlds” is followed through to its logical conclusion, it will be seen that the perfect Buddha resides in the hearts of unenlightened people. Then its realistic practice is clear. The effect attained by the Buddha’s practice and all the virtues of his enlightenment are summed up and put into the five [Chinese] letters of the Sacred Title, MYO-HO-REN-GE-KYO (“The Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law”). Sakyamuni transmitted it to everyone, the enlightened and the unenlightened, so that they might uphold and practice this Sacred Title (Daimoku).

According to the teachings of the Lotus Sutra, our World of Endurance is itself the eternal and everlasting Pure Land and this ever-existing and unchanging world of the Buddha exists in our own minds. This is taught in the Lotus Sutra especially in the eight chapters, from Chapter Fifteen, the “Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground,” to Chapter Twenty-two, “Transmission.” It says in these eight chapters that Sakyamuni, who was seated in the Stupa of Treasures, summoned from beneath the earth countless Great Bodhisattvas headed by Superb-Action Bodhisattva. He transmitted to them the five letters of MYO-HO-REN-GE-KYO, which is the essence of the Lotus Sutra, and assigned them to disseminate it. The meaning of this decisive event is of fundamental significance. The scene of this transmission is the Most-Venerable-One (Honzon) and everyone should recognize it as such. All living beings should chant the Sacred Title of NAMU-MYO-HO-REN-GE-KYO and direct their veneration toward what is depicted here.

This Most-Venerable-One was revealed only in the Age of Degeneration. The Bodhisattvas from Underground did not appear during the Ages of Right Teaching and Counterfeit Teaching. They were assigned to appear here in our country, now in this Age of Degeneration. The Four Great Bodhisattvas, Superb-Action, Limitless-Action, Pure-Action, and Steadily-Established-Action, are the representatives of the Bodhisattvas who welled up from beneath the earth. They were told to come now, during the Age of Degeneration, disseminate the Sacred Title, and lead unenlightened living beings to Buddhahood.

Thus Nichiren maintains that the Bodhisattvas from Underground and their leaders’ the Four Great Bodhisattvas, will appear in Japan during the Age of Degeneration. He discusses this in his essay, Shoho Sho, “The Reality of All Things,” saying that Bodhisattva Superb-Action, who was instructecl by Sakyamuni to disseminate the Sutra in the future, has already come in the person of Nichiren himself:

I, Nichiren, a man born in the Age of Degeneration, have nearly achieved the task of pioneering the propagation of the Wonderful Law, the task assigned to the Bodhisattva SuperbAction. . . It is indeed too high an honor for me, a common mortal … I, Nichiren, am the one who takes the lead of the Bodhisattvas from Underground. Then may I not be one of them? If I am one of them, why may not all my disciples and followers be their kinsmen? If you are one in faith with Nichiren, you too are one of the Bodhisattvas from Underground.