“The Heritage of the Great Thing Concerning Life and Death”

The work to be done was, of course, of quite a different sort from that which he had done in combating others. The fifty years before the “resurrection” were introductory to the proper part of his mission. There, in Sado, he was to arrive at the climax of his life, the revelation of the profound truth of his gospel. This idea was a necessary consequence of Nichiren’s belief that his own life was an embodiment of the Lotus of Truth, because the [Lotus Sutra] was always divided by interpreters into three parts, the introduction, the climax, and the consummation and perpetuation. Nichiren conceived his own mission in conformity with this division, and the task to be done in the climax of his life, now begun, was to reveal the essence of his religion, which in the event proved to be the revelation of the “Supreme Being” [Gohonzon Maṇḍala] in a symbolic representation of the universe.

For this ultimate revelation he had to prepare the way, just as the revelation of the Tathāgata’s infinite life (chapter 16) had been preceded by the issuing of the innumerable hosts of the primeval disciples (chapter 15). These preparations consisted of a concise exposition of his doctrines, and of a critical estimate of the relative values of various religious and ethical systems. The exposition is contained in an essay entitled, “The Heritage of the Sole Great Thing Concerning Life and Death,” together with a cognate essay on “The Oral Instruction for the Attainment of Buddhahood by Trees and Grasses.” After this, in the same month, was finished the “Opening the Eyes,” Nichiren’s greatest treatise on the ethical aspect of his religion, with reference to his own mission as well as to his followers’ duties toward himself and Buddha. All these were completed by the time the first winter in Sado was coming to an end, and, with the return of vernal breezes, the outlook was growing brighter. “Do even trees and grasses attain Buddhahood?” you ask. “But the truth is, Buddha manifests himself as trees and grasses. The whole universe in its essence is nothing but Buddha’s own body.” In these utterances we can see the cosmological aspect of Nichiren’s doctrine, as well as the surroundings in which the words were written down.

Now, let us see what is said concerning the Heritage of the Great Thing.

“What I call the Heritage of the Great Thing Concerning Life and Death is nothing else than the Scripture, the Lotus of the Perfect Truth. For the Sacred Title of the Lotus was handed down from the two Buddhas, Śākyamuni and Prabhūtaratna, to the Bodhisattva Viśiṣṭacāritra, when the Buddhas appeared in the Heavenly Shrine, and from eternity the heritage has been kept without interruption. “Perfect” represents death, and “Truth” life; while life and death make up the essence of the ten realms of existence – the essence identical with that of the Lotus. … All that is born and dies is a birth and death of the [Lotus Sutra] (Truth), the Lotus in its ultimate reality. … Then, to utter the Sacred Title of the Lotus with the conviction that the three are one – the three, that is, Śākyamuni, the Buddha who from eternity has realized Buddhahood; the Lotus of Truth, which leads all beings, without exception, to Buddhahood; and we, beings in all the realms of existence. To utter the Sacred Title is, therefore, the Heritage of the Sole Great Thing Concerning Life and Death. This is the essential key to (the religious life of) Nichiren’s disciples and followers, namely, adherence to the Lotus of Truth. …

“Wherever Nichiren’s disciples and followers utter the Adoration of the Lotus of the Perfect Truth – being united in heart, even in separate existences, like the association existing between fish and water, there, lies the Heritage of the Sole Great Thing Concerning Life and Death. This is the essence of what is promulgated by Nichiren. If it should be fulfilled, the great vow of propagating (the Truth throughout the Latter Days) over the whole world would be achieved. …

“Will the Bodhisattva Viśiṣṭacāritra appear in these days of the Latter Law to open wide the gateway of the Truth, or will he not appear? The [Lotus Sutra] tells us so; yet will it surely happen? Will the Bodhisattva appear, or not? At any rate, I, Nichiren, have now accomplished the pioneer work.

“Whatever may happen to you, arouse in yourselves a strong faith and pray that you may, at the moment of death, utter the Sacred Title in clear consciousness and with earnest faith! Do not seek besides this any heritage of the sole great thing concerning life and death. Herein lies the truth of the saying that there is Bodhi even in depravities, and Nirvāṇa even in birth and death. Vain it is to hold the Lotus of Truth without this heritage of faith! I shall tell you more about this at another time. In sincerity and reverence.”

(Nichiren interpreted the word “Perfect” (Sanskrit, sad) to mean resurrection, the mysterious continuity and perpetuity of life through births and deaths. In this sense death is but a phase in the perpetual flow of life, a step to another manifestation of life. Therefore, this interpretation. This thought of Nichiren’s reminds us of Marcus Aurelius, when he said: Death, like birth, is a revelation of nature.)

Nichiren had passed through many perils and was now going to reveal the kernel of his mission. For whose sake? Of course, for the sake of all beings living and going to live; but his vision was chiefly directed toward the future. Hence the “coming myriad of years” was the motto of his work. But could that task for the future be fulfilled without a remote cause and solid foundation laid in the past? All beings are to be saved. The task is grand and the end remote. The preparation for it must be proportionate to the magnitude of the future accomplishment. The necessary connection between the future and the past is shown in the revelation of the Heavenly Shrine before which all primeval disciples of Buddha were summoned and took the vow to perpetuate the Truth throughout the coming ages. The link between the past and future is Nichiren, who represents in this country at this moment the solemn pledge of salvation and is commissioned to work in the days of degeneration. Thus, his person is the key to the efficacious working of the everlasting Truth, which has its origin in eternity and is destined to prevail forever in the future.

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NICHIREN: THE BUDDHIST PROPHET

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