Yoshikado Mibu was born in the eastern region and was brought up in the uncivilized territory. He enjoyed archery and rode various horses. He enjoyed fishing in the water to keep cool in the summer and hunted across the fields in the autumn wind. He engaged in these activities according to the local customs and habits.

A holy man, Kūshō, who excelled others in his knowledge and piety, developed a close friendship with Yoshikado. Kūshō advised Yoshikado, “Existence as a human being is difficult to attain and easy to lose while the Three Evil Worlds are easy to enter and hard to leave. You should abandon random killing, cultivate a merciful mind, give up secular profits and look forward to achieving Buddhahood.”

Following Kūshō’s suggestions, Yoshikado ended his evil deeds, stopped taking lives, corrected his wrong views, and practised the Buddhist way. He copied the Hokekyō with gold dust and offered dedicatory services for it; he made golden-hued statutes of Buddhas and bodhisattvas, and paid homage to them. His very deep faith permeated him and his many good friends.

Yoshikado offered a great vow, “In my lifetime, I will make one thousand copies of the Hokekyō with gold dust and offer dedicatory services for them.”

Since making his vow, he had abstained from eating fish and meat, and was devoted to the Way. He took all that he had saved, bought gold dust, and engaged himself in copying the sūtra, spending scores of years.

At the time of his dedicatory services, various unusual signs were revealed. Some beautiful white lotus blossoms were scattered of their own accord in the garden where the Buddhist services took place.

Delicate music was heard in the worship hall. Various Heavenly Boys appeared holding flowers. Unusual birds flew and whistled overhead. Guardian deities gathered and paid their respects by clasping their hands. Marvelous revelations sometimes were given in Yoshikado’s dreams and at other times were presented as realities.

Finally, Yoshikado realized his wish by completing one thousand copies of the sūtra as he had vowed. In his last moments, Yoshikado washed his hands and mouth, and said to the people around him, “Several thousands of Heavenly Ladies are descending from the sky with harmonious music. Following them, I am going to ascend to Tosotsu Heaven.” As he finished speaking, Yoshikado took his last breath while clasping his hands. (Page 130-131)

A woman whose name and surname are unknown lived in Nara, the capital. She was gentle by nature and beautiful in appearance. As is customary with married couples, she gave birth to several children with her husband.

As she aged, she became pious, made a copy of the Hokekyō, and decided to keep it as her principal sūtra. Since she had memorized the entire copy, she constantly recited it all the time, not sparing any moments for her daily activities. She completely ignored secular activities such as raising silkworms for silk threads, cutting, dyeing, and sewing cloth and materials. She paid utterly no attention to food, clothes and other household chores, nor to cultivation of the fields. But she fervently recited the sūtra with her palms pressed.

Her husband used to say to her, “People in general are busy making their living in this world. Why is it that you spend days idly, only reciting the sūtra, without caring for yourself, your husband, and your children? You should first engage in daily affairs, and then you may serve Buddha or recite the sūtra in your spare time.” The husband always tried to explain to her the customary mode of life, but the woman would never listen to him. She hired someone else to take care of the daily household chores.

The woman ignored everything secular and devoted herself solely to the sūtra recitation for more than twenty years.

Towards the end of her life, the woman became ill and recovered several days later. She bathed, put on clean clothes, held a copy of the sūtra and said to her husband, “We have spent the past several decades together as a man and wife. But today, I am leaving for another life. Why won’t you accompany me?” The woman turned to her children and said to them, “I delivered you into this world, and raised you while committing many sins. Dividing my body into small portions, I have created many persons. Now at the time when I leave for the other world, why is it that none of you accompany me? The sixty-thousand and three-hundred-some graphs of the Hokekyō which I have recited until today, the various Buddhas who radiate light, and the countless bodhisattvas who hold torches, will surround and accompany me to paradise.”

As the woman finished, she recited the sūtra, paid homage to Buddha, and passed away. For several days, her deceased body released a pleasant fragrance like that of jindan. Finally, her husband, relatives, and other associates in near and distant places all became pious and recited the Hokekyō. (Page 137-138)

Once an old priest and a handsome young priest were travelling together to Kumano. When they arrived at the Muro District of Kii Province, they took shelter in a roadside house. The mistress was a widow who had a few maidservants. The widow cordially entertained the two travellers.

Later that night, the mistress stealthily stepped by the young priest’s bed. Covering herself with a garment, the widow lay close to the young priest and whispered, “As you know, I have never allowed any man to stay here overnight. But I let you stay here tonight because when I first glanced at you this afternoon, I was determined to share this bed with you. So I have come here like this to realize my wish.”

No sooner had the priest heard her than he sat erect on the bed. “I have held convictions all my life. While practicing the ways of an ascetic, I decided to take the long trip to Kumano Shrine. How could I be involved in such wrong-doing?” said the young priest in refusal.

Being greatly distressed, the widow began to utilize all the means she knew and embraced the priest to tempt him. The widow’s alluring efforts annoyed the young priest all through the night. The young priest tried to dissuade her with various excuses. Finally, the priest suggested. “After visiting Kumano and making offerings at the shrine, we will return here in three days. Then will comply with your wishes.” Leaving with this promise, the young priest and his old companion left for Kumano early in the morning.

Since then, the widow had been counting the days as she waited for the priests and prepared the proper feasts and entertainments. However, the priests returned by a different route. The anxious widow went out on the road and asked each traveler about the two priests. When she saw a priest coming from Kumano, she asked if he had seen two priests, one old and the other young. The priest answered, “Yes, I saw them leaving Kumano about three days ago.”

Hearing this, the enraged widow, clapping her hands with chagrin and regret, ran into a separate room and confined herself by closing the door. After a while, an eighteen foot-long poisonous snake emerged from the room, left the house, and went down the highway pursuing the two priests.

At the sight of the snake, some frightened travelers told the two priests, “A strange thing A great eighteen-foot-long snake is coming this way, crossing the fields and mountains!” Hearing this, the two priests instantly realized their situation. “So the furious woman has transformed herself into a snake and is chasing us.”

The frightened pair of priests thought of running to the Dōjōji Temple and seeking help. When they arrived at the temple and explained their situation, the priests of the temple gathered and decided to help them. They suggested that the large bell in the belfry be taken down and the young priest be placed inside the bell. They closed all the temple doors.

Soon the great snake arrived at the temple. After circling the temple hall a few times, the snake approached the belfry door behind which the bell hid the young priest. The snake hit the door with its powerful tail for about a hundred times until the door broke. It entered the belfry and began to coil around the bell. The snake tightened its coils into a firm grip and struck the dragon-shaped stem of the bell with its tail for a few hours.

Although frightened, the wondering priests of the temple opened all the doors of the belfry and were astonished to see the snake shedding bloody tears from both of its eyes. Now it uncoiled from the bell and returned the way it had come, raising its head high and flicking its flame-like tongue. The poisonous venom of the snake had transformed the bell into molten flames, making the bell unapproachable. Finally, the priests cooled the bell by pouring cold water over it. They removed the half-melted bell. Alas, the poor young priest had been cremated to death, leaving only a handful of ashes on the ground.

Sometime later, a senior priest of the Dōjōji dreamed that a larger snake than the one which had coiled around the bell appeared and said, “I am the young priest who died in the bell the other day. I have been violated by that snake, which was the transformation of the evil widow, and have been forced to become her husband. Now I have been given the miserable status of a snake with endless sufferings. Even though I wish to escape these sufferings, I do not have enough influence to do so. While alive, I did respect the Lotus Sūtra, yet my devotion to it is not enough. So I ask you, great holy man, to have mercy and to copy the Chapter of Tathāgata of the Hokekyō to help both of us escape our status as snakes. Without the efficacy of the sūtra, how can I be relieved from these sufferings? And also please practice good to save the evil woman from her sufferings.”

After waking up from his dream, the senior priest was firm in the faith and aware of the sufferings of life and death. He copied the Chapter of Tathāgata of the Hokekyō, sold all his belongings, invited many priests, and offered a devout Buddhist service during one day for the repose of the souls of the two snakes.

That night, the senior priest had a second dream. A smiling priest and a woman came to the temple. They reverenced the Three Treasures and the priest, and said, bowing and rejoicing, “Thanks to your merit accumulated by your pure heart, both of us have left our evil status and will be reborn in the heavens, the priest in the Tōriten and the widow in the Tosotsu Heaven.”

As they finished speaking, they ascended into the air separately.

It is diffcult to listen to The Lotus;
It is difficult to make comments, copy, and recite it;
It is diffcult to meet those who venerate it.
Those who see, hear, praise or slander it
Will equally become Buddhas.

(Page 145-146)

A good man, leisurely walking along Suzaku Avenue, met a beautifully dressed attractive woman who spoke to him in a graceful voice and immediately touched his heart. The overwhelmed man took the woman to a quiet unpeopled place where they had a more intimate conversation.

The man said to the woman, “Our karmic relation from our previous lives has caused this meeting. I want to have a relationship with you tonight.”

The woman replied, “It is not difficult to realize your wish. But you will lose your life if you associate with me. This is why I cannot accept your offer.”

The man insisted, “I am not concerned about my life. I only wish to sleep with you.”

“Oh, no, no. Do not think like that. You have an official title and rank as well as a wife and children. One’s existence is a life-long treasure while desire is a momentary pleasure. How can one lose one’s precious life for a transient pleasure?” inquired the woman.

The man did not give up and continued to persuade her. “Although I understand your reasoning, I am infatuated by your enchanting appearance. The love between man and woman is something natural and beautiful. Listen sympathetically and grant my wish.”

Finally the woman accepted and agreed, saying, “Your kind and sincere words impress me so much that I can no longer refuse you. I will prolong your life by dying in your place. I hope that you will copy the Hokekyō and offer a dedication service to relieve me from my sufferings.”

The joyful man said that he would repay the woman with his treasures. So they spent the night intimately. At daybreak when the time for their separation arrived, the man said, “I wish to know if you will die in my place. I will return home and copy the sūtra.”

“If you wish to know when I die, go near the Butokuden in the morning and look for me,” replied the woman and asked him to give her his fan, saying, “This fan will be your sign.” Thus they parted tearfully.

In the morning, the man walked around the Butoku Palace and found a dead fox lying on the ground behind the palace with his fan over its face. The man clearly understood the situation. From that day on, the man made a copy of the Hokekyō every seventh day and offered a dedication service with a lecture. Before the forty-ninth day after the death of the woman, the man dreamed that the woman appeared dressed in the attire of a Heavenly Lady, accompanied by hundreds of similarly dressed women. She said to the man, “Thanks to the power of the Hokekyō which you had copied, I am relieved from my eternal sufferings and am travelling to the Tōri Heaven. My obligation to you is limitless and I will reward you for generations.”

As the woman finished speaking, she ascended to the sky. Beautiful music was heard in the sky, and a pleasant fragrance filled the man’s room. (Page 142-143)

Priest Renchō was a good friend and a colleague of Holy Man Chōen of Sakurai. Renchō was most devoted to the Way, and never idled away his time, but fervently recited the Hokekyō. Except when bathing, he never loosened his sash. He stayed up day and night, and hardly slept. He neither used a pillow nor a stand to rest his arms and elbows. He avoided sleeping and lying a long time in bed and remained sitting.

When reciting the sūtra, he was spirited and his attention never slackened. He constantly recited the Hokekyō and rested from time to time when his mind felt tired. Otherwise, his recitation was always enjoyable.

He visited and recited one thousand copies of the sūtra at each of the famous mountains and sacred places, including Mount Mitake, Kumano, Shiga, and Hatsuse.

Renchō used to recite the sūtra so rapidly that he could easily finish one thousand copies within a month. He had recited numerous copies of the sūtra since his youth.

One night a person staying with Renchō dreamed that four armored and helmeted strangers, dressed in celestial robes, surrounded Renchō and constantly protected him.

Towards the end of his life, Renchō held in his hand a beautiful white lotus blossom which was out-of-season. As one of his friends asked about the blossom, Renchō said, “This is the Lotus of the Buddha Nature.” After speaking, Renchō passed away and the lotus blossom in his hand suddenly disappeared. (Page 84-85)

The wife of a government official of Tsukushi Province, whose name is unknown, suddenly became blind in the prime of her life. Unable to see, she lamented tearfully. She thought, “My blindness must be due to a karmic result. I will surely be of no use to others in this life. Nothing will be better for me than praying for my future life.”

So the blind woman talked to a nun and learned how to recite the Hokekyō. The blind woman became very familiar with the sūtra and single-mindedly recited it during the day and night for three to four years.

At one time, the blind woman dreamed that a priest said, “You have lost your sight due to a karmic cause. But you have developed a good mind and recited the Hokekyō. Thanks to the power of the sūtra, your darkness will be lifted, and you will regain perfect vision.” As the priest finished speaking, he stroked the blind woman’s eyes with his hand and the woman’s eyes opened.

Waking up, the woman opened her eyes and could see everything clearly. Shedding tears, the joyful woman was greatly moved by the power of the Hokekyō. Her husband, children, relatives, friends, and other people in her country were all deeply impressed and said that the woman regained her sight owing to the power of the sūtra.

Afterwards, the woman put a firmer faith in the Hokekyō, copied, and recited it without any negligence, and was solely dedicated to the sūtra. (Page 138)

A governor of Shinano Province completed his tour of duty in the province and went to the capital. During the journey he noticed that he was accompanied by a three-foot-long snake. During the day the snake either preceded or followed him; at night it coiled under his clothes chest.

When they saw this, people felt very uneasy and spoke to the governor. One man told him, “The snake should be killed.” But the governor stopped him and would not allow him to kill the snake. The governor prayed silently, “Is this due to the deity of this province or to the evil inflicted by the spirit of someone living or dead? Possess me and reveal the truth in my dream.”

The night the governor dreamed that a man in speckled hunting clothes knelt before him and said, “I have been accompanying you to kill an old enemy of mine who has been hiding in your clothes chest. If I can have him, I will no longer follow you.” The governor awoke and realized that the snake had said this.

In the morning the governor looked inside the chest and found a frightened old rat crouching at the bottom. The people who saw this said, “You should let it go.” But the merciful governor thought, “If I drive the rat out now, he will surely be swallowed up by the snake, and so it is better not to let him go.”

For the sake of the snake and the rat, the governor made a copy of the Hokekyō and had a service of dedication performed on that same day. That night two handsome men, dressed in fine white clothes, appeared in his dream. They said to him respectfully:

“We have been old enemies during successive lives and have killed each other for many generations. However, thanks to the influence of your virtuous deed, we have now left our sinful state and are to be reborn in the Tōri Heaven. For generations we will not be able to repay you for your great virtue.”

After they had said this, they ascended into the sky, which was filled with soft music. In the morning, when the governor woke up, he found that the snake and the rat were both dead. (Page 140-141)

Priest Chōen of Tsukushi Province was of the Tendai Sect. He had entered into the Buddha’s Way in his youth and continued to recite the Hokekyō and worship Acala. After many years of ascetic practices, he acquired miraculous powers.

On one occasion, when Chōen was fasting for twenty-seven days and reciting the Hokekyō on Mount Katsuragi, he dreamed that the Eight Followers of Acala, all equipped with weapons, including swords and three- and five-pronged iron vajra, listened to his recitation and said admiringly, “The ascetics who serve the Buddha are the same as the Buddha and will attain the supreme enlightenment just as other bodhisattvas!”

At another time, Chōen wished to cross an ice-covered river. Unable to locate the shallow places for fording, Chōen was lamenting by the river bank. A large cow appeared from the mountain, and crossed the river several times, breaking the ice to make a passage, and vanished. Chōen safely crossed the river following the path of the cow. He clearly knew that a guardian of the Law had become a cow to assist him in crossing.

On another occasion, when crossing Mount Ōmine from Mount Kumano in the direction of Mount Mitake, Chōen lost his way. While he was fervently reciting the Hokekyō, a boy appeared in his dream and indicated the correct route, just as the verses of the Hokekyō say, “Guardians of the Law will help and show the correct path and remove the devotee’s weariness.” After waking up, Chōen took the correct route to Mount Mitake.

On another occasion, when Chōen was reciting the sūtra through the night, an old man of unusual virtue appeared before Chōen and gave his name card as he said, “I am King Uten, related to Mañjuśrī of Wu-t’ai-shan. I offer you this card on account of your great virtues and merits acquired by reciting the Hokekyō. With Mañjuśrī, I will guard you in present and future generations.”

Chōen once visited the Kiyomizu Temple and was reciting the Hokekyō through the night. A beautiful woman of noble appearance, and decorated with beads and necklaces, appeared before him with her palms together and said in praise, “Those who are in the samādhi meditation will hear the sound of the hora instrument which resounds throughout the entire universe. The voice reciting the Hokekyō will never tire the listeners.”

Unusual events happening to Chōen were numerous. This truly must have been due to power of the marvelous Law and the assistance of Acala. Who would doubt and mistrust this sūtra? Shōen passed away during the Chōkyü era. (Page 114-115)

Long ago, when a man of Yamashiro Province was playing a go game with a priest, a Hokekyō reciter came by and begged for food while reciting the Hokekyō. Hearing the recitation, the priest sneered at and scorned the reciter. Immediately, the priest’s mouth became twisted; he was losing his voice and became useless.

Seeing and hearing about the priest, people were all frightened and awestruck saying, “Since he scorned the Hokekyō reciter, he was punished right in his present life.”

The annoyed priest went to an herbalist who tried to give the priest some medicinal treatment, but all was of no avail. The priest’s mouth became more twisted, his voice became fainter, and he was unable to speak.

Since retribution in one’s present life can be like this, the suffering and pain in one’s future life cannot be calculated, just as can be noted in the Hiyu Chapter of the Hokekyō. This story appears in the Ryōiki. (Page 118)

Ezō was a priest of the Daigoji Temple. Since taking the tonsure, he had a close relationship to the Hokekyō. He only recited the Hokekyō. He neither read other sūtras, nor studied secular writings. He did not maintain the Shingon teachings, nor learn the Tendai doctrines. But he fervently recited and memorized the Hokekyō. Yet he could not memorize two characters in the Verse of the Priest in the sūtra’s Chapter of Skillfulness. For several years, Ezō tried to learn these characters in vain. While looking at the text, he knew and understood the characters very clearly, but as soon as he left the text and tried to recite from memory, he could not remember the characters. He mourned over his past sins which might cause this hardship, and wished to know the reason.

Finally, he visited the Hatsusedera Temple, sequestered himself for seven days and prayed, “Great Merciful Kannon, please let me learn these two characters in the sūtra!” Seven days had passed and Ezō dreamed that an old priest appeared behind the sacred hanging in front of the altar and said to Ezō, “Priest, I will let you learn the two characters with the Buddha’s expedience and explain why you have not remembered these characters.

“You were born as a human being both in this and your past lives. In your former existence, you were born in the Kamo District of Harima Province, where your parents still live. In the past of your former life, you recited the Hokekyō, facing a fire whose flames burned the two characters in the text. You had not written and supplied these burned characters in the text at that time. Due to this mistake, you are not able to learn them in this life, no matter how hard you have tried. Your old text is still extant in Harima. You should go there, pay your respects to the old text, write the missing characters in the text, and atone for your past sins.”

The awakened Ezō recited the sūtra. This time, he recalled the two characters with no difficulty. To learn the truth, he went to the Kamo District of Harima Province. As the master of the house came out and saw Ezō and heard his voice, the master said to his wife, “Our child has returned! His face and voice are no different than those of our child.”

Hearing this, Ezō explained to the couple why he had come. The parents were tearfully overjoyed. As Ezō read the old text of the sūtra, he saw that the two characters were missing. He added them to the text and kept it for a long time. Thus, in his present life, Ezō had four parents whom he served well and treated with filial piety. Ezō devoted himself to the Way and was never negligent in practicing good deeds. (Page 57-58)