This is another in a series of daily articles concerning Kishio Satomi's book, "Japanese Civilization; Its Significance and Realization; Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles," which details the foundations of Chigaku Tanaka's interpretation of Nichiren Buddhism and Japan's role in the early 20th century.
In describing Nichiren’s times, Kishio Satomi views two overlapping events as forging Nichiren’s ambition. First was the general religious situation:
Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p117-118[L]et us state the circumstances which happened surrounding Nichiren’s birth.
Nichiren was born in 1222. Japan had a most significant time historically just then, alike politically, religiously and socially.
Some seven hundred years had elapsed since Buddhism had been introduced into Japan, and it had been totally Japanesed at that time. There were several sects, several schools, numerous priests and scholars, thousands of temples: it seemed as if they were showing the glorious day of Buddhism. From an historical point of view of Buddhist doctrine, this time was the age of the general Mahayana Buddhism, while the Hinayana Buddhism was decaying. It was the beginning of the Latter Law, and by this time all Buddhist sects had fully developed.
The so-called Six sects of the old capital were, of course, in their prime soon after Buddhism was introduced into the country. Instead of them, the mixed sect, the Tendai-Shingon Secret Sect took their place, and soon after the famous battle age of Japanese Buddhism came about. During the Kamakura period of Japanese history, especially as regards religion, the people’s religious consciousness and ideas ripened into maturity, and thus many sects were established in succession after the battles between the two clans, the Minamotos and Tairas (or Genji and Heike). In particular the Zen and Nenbuts sects, as the new rising religions, were welcomed among the people, while the Shingon Sect was in favor at Court. Further, Ryōnin, Honen, Eisai and Shinran, etc., founded their own sects.
From about the middle of the Fanciful Law to Nichiren’s establishment of his religion, many sects came into existence as abundantly as mushrooms after rain, but no sect has been founded since Nichiren established the Hokekyo centric religion. At any rate, the circumstances of his day thus, in a sense, were at the time of the religious climax, and all the sects asserted themselves as the right Buddhism.
This is standard fare for Nichiren biographies. Satomi, however, adds another element influencing Nichiren, the historic defeat and exile of three former Emperors.
Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p118-119Court-nobles for a long time had indulged in every luxury and lost their actual power by degrees, while the military clans esteemed and fostered real ability more than titles of honor which were but empty titles.
The [the miliary clan of the] Minamotos had been holding the real power of politics prior to Nichiren’s birth, and they established the central government at Kamakura, far from [the empereor’s court in] the western capital Kyoto. The military clan’s government was already on a secure foundation, although the Hōjōs took the place of the Minamotos when [Nichiren] was born. The Hōjōs stuck to real ability and enforced strict modesty. They thus seized the political power of the country and consequently they were apt to interfere with the Court and Court-nobles. It had the effect of the ex-Emperor Gotoba wanting to wage war against the Hōjōs Government in order to recover political power. As soon as an urgent message was sent to the Hōjōs Government, Hōjō Yoshitoki, the Shikken (the highest representative of the Government), sent an army against the Court troops. Unfortunately the Court troops were defeated and the Hōjōs’ army made a raid on the Court’s territory. Hereupon Hōjō Yoshitoki usurped the Court and expelled three ex-Emperors to far islands remote from each other. Yoshitoki set one of H.I.H. princes on the throne who was in no way concerned with the war.
Such a terrible event, indeed, never before occurred and never must occur again in Japan, where the relation and task between sovereign and subject are strictly distinguished on the understanding and faith of the Japanese National Principles. It was in the third year of Shokyu, the 1881st year after the Accession of the Emperor Jimmu, that is to say, 1221st year of the Christian Era. Hence the Shokyu War.
[Nichiren] was born on the 16th of the second month of the fourth year of Shokyu, which is just one year later than the Shokyu War.
It is the embarrassment of the defeat of the former emperors that Satomi believes underlay Nichiren’s criticism of the Kamakura military government of his day. For Satomi’s father, Chigaku Tanaka, the Meiji Restoration of 1868, which saw the end of the Tokugawa shogunate and the return of the Emperor to power, announced the age Nichiren foresaw, the age in which Japan would lead the world in the propagation of the Lotus Sutra and thus reveal the Eternal Buddha’s Pure Land.
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