According to Nichiren, Sakyamuni, a Buddha whom we should recognize as the Original Buddha, had the three virtues of master, teacher, and parent. The Buddha is our master (whom we should obey), teacher (whose words we should study), and parent (whose concern for us is boundless).

Of course, these three virtues are familiar in our everyday world, where they are recognized as ethical values. But religious philosophy must go deeper. Nichiren’s reference to the Buddha with the virtues of master, teacher, and parent are meant to humanize an otherwise abstract Buddha, making him seem more human and less transcendent.

Thus the idea of the three virtues signifies that the Buddha, as the Savior of all people, is not just a principle, but also humane in his grace and compassion, like a parent with his children. This view of the Buddha is based upon the philosophy of the Lotus Sutra.

The Buddha sings these verses to Superior-Practice Bodhisattva in Chapter 21 of the Lotus Sūtra:

Anyone who keeps this sūtra
Will be able to expound
The meanings of the teachings,
And the names and words [of this sūtra].
Their eloquence will be as boundless
And as unhindered as the wind in the sky.

Anyone who believes in and upholds the Lotus Sutra, which is transmitted from Sakyamuni, has a thorough knowledge of the meanings of its diverse teachings, words, and interpretations, and is able to expound them impartially, just as the wind sails freely through the sky. That person will be able to reach a stage of freedom, and remain there.

In Chapter 21, The Supernatural Powers of the Tathāgatas, Sakyamuni says:

Anyone who understands why the Buddhas expound [many] sūtras,
Who knows the position [of this sūtra in the series of sūtras],
And who expounds it after my extinction
According to its true meaning,
Will be able to eliminate the darkness
Of the living beings of the world where he walks about,
Just as the light of the sun and the moon
Eliminates all darkness.
He will be able to cause innumerable Bodhisattvas
To dwell finally in the One Vehicle.

Therefore, the man of wisdom
Who hears the benefits of these merits
And who keeps this sūtra after my extinction,
Will be able to attain
The enlightenment of the Buddha
Definitely and doubtlessly.

These words were especially beloved by Nichiren. Needless to say, for him all the words of the Sutra were compelling. Nevertheless, he considered this chapter, the “Supernatural Powers of the Tathagatas,” to be of singular importance. That is because it is here that Sakyamuni transmits the Four Phrases of the Primary Mystery, the essence of the Sutra, to Superb-Action and the Bodhisattvas from Underground. Nichiren believed that these Four Phrases are the Sacred Title (Odaimoku) of NAMU-MYOHO-RENGE-KYO. He maintained that in this chapter Sakyamuni calls the Bodhisattvas who had welled up from underground, headed by Superb-Action, and transmits to them the Sacred Title, the core of the Sutra manifested in its title. These Bodhisattvas, on their part, will appear in our times, the Age of Degeneration, to disseminate the Sacred Title and save all people, leading them to attain Buddhahood.

The idea of unity of doctrine … should lead logically to the concept of unity of faith. Although the ultimate Truth is one in essence, human beings have various conflicting ideas about it. Nevertheless, we are able to advance toward a higher truth, overcoming conceptual conflicts, since we all believe firmly that the Truth is only one. Indeed, human progress is possible only because we are confident of the existence of a Universal Truth. After all, it is our confidence in the ultimate Truth that leads to the formation of our attitudes toward faith.

Shakumon

The Realm of Trace or Imprinted Gate (Chapter One, “Introductory,” to Chapter Fourteen, “Peaceful Practices.”)

1. Introduction: Chapter One.
2. The Main Part: Chapter Two, “Expedients,” to Chapter Nine, “The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Sravakas Who Have Something More to Learn and of the Sravakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn.”
3. Conclusion: Chapter Ten, “The Teacher of the Dharma,” to Chapter Fourteen, “Peaceful Practices.”

Hommon

The Realm of Origin or Primal Mystery.

1. Introduction: The first half of Chapter Fifteen, “The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground.”
2. The Main Part: The second half of Chapter Fifteen to the first half of Chapter Seventeen, “The Variety of Merits,” with Chapter Sixteen as its core. This is called the “one chapter and two halves.”
3. Conclusion: From the second half of Chapter Seventeen to Chapter Twenty-eight, “Encouragement of Universal-Sage Bodhisattva. “

Sakyamuni had numerous followers and believers. Because their social and educational backgrounds were so diverse, he expounded the law in various ways according to each individual’s background. Furthermore, as the level of their understanding also differed, the Buddha adjusted his ways of preaching accordingly. This approach is called the expedient method of teaching. It resulted in a variety of sutras. The teachings in these sutras were not necessarily the same. They were presented as expedients for one single purpose: to lead people to aspire to the same enlightenment as that of the Buddha. Because all of these expedients came out of the Buddha’s wisdom and compassion, and were results of his desire to communicate the truth of his enlightenment, their fundamental idea must be one and the same despite their apparent differences.

Sakyamuni describes the great merit to be gained from taking the first step, “Understanding by Faith in a Single Moment’s Thought.” He says that the merits which Bodhisattvas gain by practicing the five perfections (Paramitas), which consist of generosity, morality, patience, effort, and meditation, are indeed great. However, when compared to the benefits of Understanding by Faith in a Single Moment’s Thought, all those merits are not equal to a hundredth, a thousandth, a hundred thousand myriadth of a koti of the merits for Understanding by Faith in a Single Moment’s Thought. These five perfections are the same as the well-known “Six Perfections,” minus the sixth and culminating one, the Perfection of Wisdom. To have faith in a single moment’s thought when hearing the Buddha’s deepest teaching, even if it is just a tiny bit, is an incomparably precious venture of the heart. Its merit is equal to that of the Perfection Of Wisdom (which it achieves at one stroke). It is equal to the wisdom of the Buddha.

Because the Original Buddha is eternal and immortal, the Pure Land in this World of Endurance, where the Buddha lives, is also eternal and immortal. It can never be destroyed. However, we ordinary people, deluded by worldly desires and unable to see through the pure eyes of the Buddha, think that the World of Endurance is a defiled land, one which will finally burn away. We see this world as either incinerated by the sun, burned by hellfire, or consumed by worldly desires. We find ourselves in a hostile environment, where the forces of nature seek only to destroy us. We see grief, pain, and fear everywhere we look. To us, this is the “real world.” Because of our corrupted hearts, this world, which should be a paradise, is utter defilement. It is this world, however, which our Buddha-nature can transfigure and realize in all its original glory.

Sakyamuni, when seen as the eternal being, is called the Original Buddha (Hombutsu), who was enlightened in the remotest past. The other Buddhas are called “manifestations of the Buddha.” The existence of each of them is a provisional manifestation in some time or place of the Original Buddha. The second half of the Lotus Sutra (Hommon) reveals the concept of the eternity of Sakyamuni, in contrast with the historical Buddha, who is a temporal representation of himself.

According to Kamon, which is an ancient method of analyzing the Lotus Sutra, the first half of the Sutra, consisting of fourteen chapters, is called Shakumon—teachings “derived” from a source (shaku literally means “footprint; mon is “gate”). The second half, consisting of the final fourteen chapters, is known as Honmon or Hommon—the “Primary Gate” or Primary Mystery (hon means “root” or “source”). This second half reveals the Original and Eternal Buddha (Kuon Hombutsu). The appearance of the Bodhisattvas from Underground (Jiyu-no-bosatsu, literally “Bodhisattvas who well up from the earth”) is an introduction to the second half of the Sutra; and the next chapter, “The Duration of the Life of the Tathagata,” is its principal part.

That is to say, [Chapter 15, The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground] presents the ideal Bodhisattvas in the persons of the Bodhisattvas from Underground. The following chapter, the “Duration of the Life of the Tathagata,” reveals the true nature of the Buddha (the Original and Eternal Buddha) and his true Pure Land. It is none other than this Saha-world of ours. Thus the “Duration of the Life of the Tathagata” will emerge as the Sutra’s heart and center.