(Hitherto missing) A sleeping lion does not turn angry unless it is provoked. Waves do not rise unless a pole is thrust in the river. Likewise, if we do not refute the slanderer of the True Dharma, we will not encounter hardship. It is preached in the Nirvana Sūtra, “If a virtuous priest upon seeing a person who destroys the dharma disregards him and does not censure him, such a priest is a mortal enemy of the Buddha Dharma.” If we do not take the word “disregard” seriously in this citation, it is inevitable that we will fall into the Hell of Incessant Suffering in the next life, though we seemingly may be able to pass through this life without trouble.
Therefore, Grand Master Nan-yüeh states in his Lotus Sūtra’s Four Peaceful Practices, “Suppose a bodhisattva protects an evil person and is unwilling to punish him, allowing his evil to increase, thus bringing trouble to virtuous people, and destroying the True Dharma. Such a bodhisattva is not a true bodhisattva. Outwardly he pretends to be a bodhisattva to deceive others, saying always, ‘I am practicing the paramita of perseverance.’ Such a person will fall into hell together with all the other evil people.”
The Ten Wheel Sūtra also preaches, “Do not live with a slanderer of the True Dharma. Do not befriend him or approach him. Doing so, will inevitably lead you to fall into the Avīci Hell.” When one enters a forest of sandalwood, the sweet fragrance clings to one’s body even though no branches are broken. Likewise, when one befriends or approaches a slanderer of the True Dharma, the merits one has accumulated will vanish and that person will fall into hell together with the slanderer. Therefore, Grand Master Miao-lê warns in his Annotations on the Great Concentration and Insight, “If one, who is not initially evil, approaches and befriends an evil person, it is inevitable that one will become evil in time, spreading his wicked ways throughout the country.”
Nambu Rokurō-dono Gosho, A Letter to Lord Nambu Rokurō, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 170-171