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.

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From a position of hindsight, it is difficult to fathom how Kishio Satomi could trumpet a Japanese “ideal of the absolute peace throughout the past.” By the 1920s, at the time Satomi was writing this, Japan had annexed Korea and controlled Manchuria. Still, as the country moved toward the Second World War, Japan was seen as the righteous nation that Nichiren had sought to save. As Satomi explains:

According to the rules of the Three Principles Japan has kept this ideal of the absolute peace throughout the past. It is not for her own sake but for the sake of all nations. With such conclusive ideals Japan was established, and still exists for this purpose. It is very regrettable that most people of modern Japan have lost sight of their own National Principles. Therefore Nichiren denounced the degenerated Japan while he praised and worshipped the ideal Japan. But Japan has such ideals and principles in her own self, and it is true that Japan is the country of righteousness. But Japan must not boast of the past nor of the present, but of the creation of the future. The signification of the Japanese Throne has thus been realized, as was prophesied by the Ancestor. It was indeed originated in a most religious and moral faith: Let us cite Tanaka’s Writing about the idea of the Sovereign.

“The soul of the most augustful Divine Edict, the rights of sovereignty have their origin in God’s governance of men and men’s obedience to God. The sovereign rights are to realize an assimilation of God and Man. God is embodiment of Truth, and when man identifies himself with God he is as one with Truth. This absorption of God and man the ruler of the country strives to bring about. … Heaven, Earth and Man, the threefold category, acquire a universal sympathetic life of God’s will which is Honesty. The universal phenomena roll on in perfect regularity. The Ruler is careful that he proves himself worthy of the figure … , and the rights of sovereignty are the schedule of his conduct. He is the Saint of the National Principles.”

The term “God” in the above translation is explained by Tanaka as follows:

“Gods and men are not at all unrelated beings. In Christianity, the creator and the created explain the relation between God and man, while in Shintoism and Buddhism God holds different positions in relation to men. The gods as we speak about them here are gods of broader meaning, they being interrelated with representatives of the spiritual world, such as Bodhisattvas, saints, Tathagatas. They are none else but men who had been emancipated, had become enlighteners of their fellow-beings. Gods and men explained thus are essentially an absorption and kindreds. But their respective powers are different. When men work with higher aims their lives become lives of Gods ” (Tanaka, Japan, the Heaven on Earth, the fifth chapter. See Tanaka’s “The Study of the Japanese National Principles,” pp. 32-45).

Further, again, let us cite Tanaka’s lines:

“After many struggles he (the First Emperor Jimmu) pacified the middle island, and founded the throne in Kashiwabara, Province Yamato. In the famous proclamation which he uttered on this occasion, he made it clear that the founding of the Imperial throne was not his personal affair, but it was the realization of the Goddess’ truth of humanity, the actuality and harmony of God and Man. The rights of his ancestors were remembered with the words of Gathered Happiness and Achieved Glories, and were taught to be powers of the righteous. The Holiness (which grows of Gathered Happiness) and Valor (which brings about Achieved Glories) were qualities of Jimmu’s ancestors, deities whose lives and works the Emperor realized and identified. The Three Principles of Gathered Happiness and Achieved Glories and Cultivation of Righteousness originate in the ancient spirit of Japan. It is the greatest power, originating as it did in Jimmu’s Proclamation, which gave birth to the Empire of Japan. The Grand Goddess having favored her descendants with her achievements, and Jimmu having uttered the commencement of the propaganda of Truth, the works of the righteous have become consummation of Morality, Reason, Truth and Finality. Righteousness is soul of the National Principles. … The word ‘Righteousness’ is in itself power of truth, and factualizes the redemption of mankind. Happiness spreading above and below, the world reaching final glory, all were brothers of the same family in his mind.”

Thus the Japanese National Principles mean indeed the ideal of mankind, not only that Japan is the typical realization of such ideals. The reason of Nichiren’s worship of Japan consists in this respect in spite of his severe attack and criticism of degenerated Japan. Tanaka’s interpretation runs as follows:

“The essences of the National Principles (Kokutai) are Entity, Body and Soul. Entity here is to be understood to be appertaining more to Soul than to Body, and the Soul of the country is the same in origin with the fundamental Principles of the country. The Soul of Japan explains the reason for the creation of Japan, the reason of her being. The Heavenly Law ever symphonious and all consistent, has been favorable for her birth and existence and the development of the Higher Morality. This is the fundamental spirit of the National Principles, Japan’s Ancient Path. The exegetes have taught that ‘Entity is identical with system, and System is Law.’ The Principles of the Nation are Entity, and Entity is at once the soul and the character of the nation ” (Tanaka, Japan, the Heaven on Earth, the first chapter).

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, pp199-202

Satomi brings this idea that Japan is the ideal country back to Nichiren and his teachings.

Moreover, … [Nichiren] sometimes boldly declared that even the Sun-Goddess is nothing more than a little deity. For Nichiren, therefore, there is nothing but the universal Kingdom of truth, heaven on earth. But, as I have mentioned already, the country must first of all be religionized in order to establish the universal Kingdom of Heaven. From this point of view Nichiren found the ideal country in the very country of Japan, which was established without any doubt on the Righteousness. In this sense Nichiren identified his religion, which is based on the Hokekyo, with Japan’s substance. People today seem to think Nichiren to have been simply the founder of a sect, but this is quite an error; because Nichiren declared that he claimed to be neither the founder of any sect nor the successor of any sect (Works, p. 534).

But, on the contrary, he exclaimed, I will be the Eyes of Japan, I will be the pillar of Japan, I will be the great Ship (redemption) of Japan”; Japan which was regarded as the land of righteousness. To him, in this sense, nothing was of real significance except the realm of Japan, because the world, the morality, the humanity, the Buddha, the God or the truth, all things of life and being would start anew from the Reality of Japan. Thus, Japan as Truth of the world, Japan as the Foundation of Human salvation and Japan as Finality of the world concerning her moral essence and aspects is Japan in her reality. In that connection Nichiren looked upon himself as the leader of the nation and the world; so he says:

“The future of Japan depends on Nichiren alone
… Nichiren is the Soul of Japan ” (Works, p. 402; Nichiren’s view on Japan can be seen in the following pages: Works, pp. 2, 68—79, 104, 117, 136, 139, 140, 175—6, 182, 209, 264, 279, 328, 332, 382, 383, 426, 428, 447, 509, 519, 522, 526, 545, 548, 562, 575—6, 593, 604, 615, 759, 789, 790, 905, 930, 976, 1043, 1070, 1110—12, 1328, 1331, 1383, 1453, etc. etc.).

Thus there is no “Only for Japan,” but “Japan for Mankind.” The Truth of Japan is the Truth of Humanity. The millennium of the world is to be the millennium of Japan. The substance of Japan’s primitive national foundations are powers of Achieved Glories and benevolences, of Gathered Happiness, that have grown into the power of righteousness, and the power of righteousness had become the foundation of the Empire and the soul of the nation. Thus the Holy work had begun with the Edict of the Sun-Goddess and the proclamation of the Great Jimmu, and the essential meanings of the National Principles are thus interpreted by Nichiren and Modern Nichirenism.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p209-211

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Table of ContentsNext

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.

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The relationship between Nichiren’s teachings and Japan were refined by Chigaku Tanaka. That relationship sprang from the very founding of the island nation. As Kishio Satomi explains:

[W]hat are the Japanese National Principles which were recognized as the ideal of the world by Nichiren? Well, his problem has a most intimate relation with the theory of the Holy Altar. But the doctrine of the Holy Altar was not so clearly demonstrated until it was fully defined in modern times. As already mentioned, the theory of the Holy Altar was made clear by Tanaka, as also the problems of the Japanese National Principles were explained systematically by Tanaka for the first time at Nichiren’s suggestion.

There exist two of the oldest Japanese chronicles, the one is called “Ninon Shoki” or “Nihongi” and the other “Kojiki.” The former is superior to the latter for several reasons, and is translated into English by Aston, therefore I will explain the former.

Japan was established two thousand and six hundred years ago and has never since been broken nor reformed. However, there is something that ought to be noted by the nations concerning the history and the ideal of her establishment.

When the Sun-Goddess, the ancestor of the Imperial family and the nation, bestowed the land of Japan on her grandchild, she gave three kinds of treasures, viz. a mirror, a sword and a gem-bead. And she decided that the Three Treasures should be the signs of the Imperial Throne. Then what do these three symbolize?

The Mirror symbolizes Wisdom, the Sword Courage, the Gem-Bead Humanity. She meant these Three Treasures to interpret the Japanese Imperial Throne.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p188-189

Historical accuracy or quibbling by academics were distractions according to Satomi:

There are many doubts concerning the former volumes of this chronicle [of old matters in Ancient times] from a historical point of view. Many scholars have discussed them. Nevertheless the statement of the chronicle must not be regarded as a mere mythological story. The statement of the Nihongi is indeed the faith of the nation and the principle of the State. Even supposing that it might have been written as a fiction, nothing could interrupt the ideal of the nation. We find its value in the fact that it had the strongest influence on the nation during three thousand years, nay even still at the present day, it is the principle of the nation. Even if it is not matter of fact, at least it is certain that the statement of the chronicle was the national spirit from the ancient ages. At any rate this national ideal during three thousand years was always the supreme reason of the state’s existence, no matter what the researches of historians may have been on this particular point.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p197

Satomi finds three national principles guide Japan and are the measure of its greatness:

According to the statement of the Nihongi, which is the national spirit of both the Emperors and the subjects, there are three fundamental principles which are the reason of Japan’s existence. The Jimmu’s rescript, which was announced prior to his accession ceremony, and the Emperor’s proclamation, which was made on his leaving Kyūshu for the main land, will explain the Three Principles.

The Three Principles are, Gathered Happiness, Achieved Glories, and Cultivation of Righteousness. These three are called “Japan’s National Principles.” But the National Principles are not merely Japan’s principles but are indeed meant for the world’s benefit. So we must not take a narrow view of the term “the Japanese National Principles” (Nippon Kohutai implying: National teaching, fundamental character of the State, the ideal of the country, etc. But it is too difficult to translate formally into any foreign language). The propagation and realization of the Three Principles were believed to be the task of the Japanese nation, of the Emperors and subjects alike. Of course, the Emperors are the masters and the leaders, and the subjects are the assistants. Therefore the Imperial tasks of Japan are called “Heavenly Task” (Tengyo), the term which was used by the Emperor Jimmu. And the Three Principles are the highest rules of Japan, which the Emperors as well as the subjects must obey absolutely and implicitly. The ultimate aim of Japan’s Three Principles is absolute peace all over the world.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p198

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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.

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Kishio Satomi’s Nichirenism relies heavily on the importance of the final 14 chapters of the Lotus Sutra, the Honmon, to the exclusion of all else.

The Great Master Dengyo, with reference to [the precept platform], adopted the Shakumon centric idealistic commandment, while he rejected the Hinayanistic ones and those of the general Mahayanism. Dengyo, however, held, with the Shakumon centric commandment, the former fourteen chapters of the Hokekyo; therefore, he could not go further with the Honmon. Consequently, he adopted the Tenfold Prohibitive Commandments of the Bonmokyo (Skt. Brahma Djāla Sūtra), holding at the same time with the Shakumon centric idealistic commandment.

Nichiren, on the contrary, adopted only the Honmon-centric one and strictly prohibited any other kinds; because he saw the reason from the fact and the proof of the Scriptures that there is no authority maintained concerning the formal commandment in the days of the Latter Law. It would be too ineffectual to stipulate that a man should be such and such only by formal rules in this world of five turbidities or impurities.

We must attach more essential significance to commandment by refraining from such external rules; in other words, it is much more important to give signification of life in the depths of people’s minds than to give the ordinal arrangement of actions and appearances. Of course, there is no doubt that these old-fashioned commandments were very effective at one time in early ages but are too formal and too powerless to adapt to the age of the Latter Law. The age and people must have more internal authority, namely the commandment must be such as to give fundamental rules in the internal personality, with the most simple and authoritative dignity. Nichiren, therefore, rejected the Hinayanistic and general Mahayanistic commandments in consideration of their powerlessness, and, it may be added, with the authority of many Buddhist Scriptures on this point. He says:

“Now, the commandments are the Hinayanistic Two Hundred and Fifty rules. … With reference to the first commandment, namely “Thou shalt kill no living being,” in all the Scriptures except the Hokekyo, it is said that the Buddha kept this law. But the Buddha, who is revealed in these Scriptures with pious imposition, starts by killing, so to speak, from the point of view of the Hokekyo. Why? Because, although it seemed that the Buddha in these Scriptures kept the law in His daily affairs, yet He did not keep the True Commandment of “Kill no living being because He killed the possibility of Attainment of Buddhahood of all other beings except Buddhas Themselves, so that the beings were not allowed to attain Buddhahood. Thus, the leader, the Buddha, is not yet released from the sin of Killing, how ‘much less the disciples” (Works, pp. 365—6).

Therefore, Nichiren gives significance to one’s free will, which means in a sense an imperative category. This is a different point from that of the ordinal commandment which governs several of our acts superficially. He united the teachings and commandments which are explained together in the Nehan-gyo, from the point of view of the doctrine of the Hokekyo.

Although a man makes himself a perfect Buddhist, if it is limited to a mere individual personality and has no positive effect in protecting and spreading the Buddhist Law, then all exertions are in vain. How ever much one may be faithful to the mere individual formal commandment, it is of no use unless one awakes to the signification of one’s existence. Thus Nichiren thought. According to him, the signification of one’s existence can be filled up with ardent vows for the protection and enlargement of the Law.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p96-98

Upholding this interpretation was the center of Satomi’s Nichirenism:

The protection of moral law is the sole task of human life, and this is the greatest invention and discovery of our lives. When one digresses from and acts against the moral principle, one is no longer worthy of being a human being, thus Nichiren thought. Consequently, weapons, army, education, commerce or the life, everything must be for the sake of true human life, which means the practice and the protection of moral laws. Buddha says in the Nehan-gyo:

“In spite of a man accepting and keeping the Five Commandments, he cannot be called a man of the true Mahayana Buddhism. One who protects the right law is the man of the true Mahayana Buddhism, even though he does not keep the Five Commandments. The man who protects the right law shall be armed. Him do I call the true practitioner of the Buddhist Commandments though he is armed.”

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p105-106

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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.

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For Kishio Satomi, individual salvation was of little use. Saving the world requires entire countries to act.

[A]ccording to Nichiren, if religion really wants to redeem the world, it must religionize the country. … He thought that the state is the unit of the world, and that the individual could never be the unit of the world. In other words, it is useless to uphold the fallacy that if religion instructs individuals one by one, the world, will, naturally, sooner or later, become religionized. On the contrary, let us suppose that the state has the conviction of true morality, and of politics, education and diplomacy, or that everything has been done morally; then the individual who belongs to the state is, as it were, a snake in a narrow and straight bamboo-tube. It may seem like bondage, nevertheless such a right bondage must be welcomed. Is the so-called free will surely free? Man cannot live without being to a certain extent in bondage, though one may be proud to live and decide everything by one’s own free will, for free will, too, is a sort of bondage. … Hence the country that is moral must take up as her mission the task of the guardianship and espousal of truth, morality and righteousness with all her accumulated power. However religionized a man may be, if the country is not made just, then even the man of righteousness is liable to be obliged to commit a crime in an emergency for the sake of a nation’s covetous disposition. … Nichiren, therefore, examined the essence of the various countries and he decided Japan as being the typical moral country. According to Nichiren, Japan is distinctly the typical country based on strict morality, consequently the mission of Japan consists in setting an example of the moral country to the world. Therefore, he says :

“The first and great Supreme Being shall be established in this country ” (Works, p. 104).

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p108-110

Masaharu Anesaki, wrote “Nichiren, The Buddhist Prophet”  in 1916. Satomi felt  Anesaki held a very wrong view of Nichiren’s relationship to Japan and the world. Satomi wrote:

[On the question of Japan and the world, Masaharu] Anesaki gives the following explanation:

“In this latter sense, Japan meant for him the whole world ” (Anesaki, ” Nichiren, the Buddhist Prophet.” Harvard University Press, p.98).

But this appears to be incorrect because the character of “the World” does not mean here the world in the usual sense, but it means “the World Benefit,” namely one of the Four Siddhānta, the Four Instructive Methods (Shi-shits-dan). In other words, this is a special technical term, the full name is “The Completion of the world with the benefit of delight” (Sekai Shits-dan Kangi no Yaku). Hence, “the World is Japan” means “Japan has the mission to propagate the law of the Hokekyo and thereby redeem the world.”

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p110-111

And Satomi considered the idea of Japan forcing redemption on other countries something Nichiren would endorse.

It is evident that [Nichiren] proclaims the necessity of subjecting all countries to one moral law, approving, of course, the pluralistic existence of all countries. But it is totally different from the Utopian’s fancy, because of his positive adoption of all material forces.

Therefore the commandment of his religion is recognized by the act of keeping and practicing the Hokekyo for his own sake and at the same time for the sake of humankind. Consequently, the vow and its practice are the essential elements in his religion. In order to keep the law bodily means that in daily life we must be determined to do anything. Rich men shall protect the law by means of their wealth and learned men shall extend the law by means of their knowledge and wisdom, etc. All the accumulated power of human civilization must make it a duty to help to realize the law on the earth. In an emergency, we shall be martyrs to the law. In short, we must keep the law for dear life and then the sincerity and signification of life will be realized. Such being the case with individuals, the country, too, must be established on righteousness. The country is, indeed, an organ for the realization of the moral law of security with all her accumulated powers. When the country attains to such conviction that it becomes the highest organ for the protection of righteousness, and that it can sacrifice itself whenever it is obliged to do so for the sake of the law, then the ideal World will be realized before our very eyes. …

To realize this ideal we are expected to have absolute faith even at the risk of our lives. Although persecution, innumerable difficulties and troubles might be our lot we could go through fire and water if our faith were strong and true.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p112-113

One can understand how such sentiment encouraged those who sought to make Japan a world power through conquest in Asia. And, as I’ll show later in discussing Japanese Lotus Millennialism: From Militant Nationalism to Contemporary Peace Movements,” these same teachings of Nichiren empower the modern peace movement in Japan.

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Table of ContentsNext

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.

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In considering Kishio Satomi’s ideas regarding Nichirenism it is important to put his 1923 book in historical perspective. By the 1920s, the Japanese had reformed their country’s government, social structure, educational system, and more. They were the first non-Western people to industrialize. They had won two foreign wars and acquired territories overseas. But these successes provided little comfort to government leaders. Leaders were increasingly uneasy about Japan’s future. (Source)

For Satomi, military might was necessary to secure the ideal Buddhist land.

[Protecting the Right Law is] apparent in the Hokekyo. It says in Chapter XIV:

“It is a case, Mañjuśrī (Japanese, Monju or Monjushiri), similar to that of a King (Tenrinjo-o; Skt. Chakravarti-raja), a ruler of armies, who by force has conquered his own Kingdom, whereupon other Kings, his adversaries, wage war against him. That ruler of armies has soldiers of various descriptions to fight with various enemies. As the King sees those soldiers fighting, he is delighted with their gallantry, enraptured, and in his delight and rapture he makes to his soldiers several donations, such as villages and village ground, towns and grounds of a town ; garments and head-gear ; hand-ornaments, necklaces, gold threads, ear-rings, strings of pearls, bullion, gold, gems, pearls, lapis lazuli, conch-shells, stones(?), corals ; he, moreover, gives elephants, horses, cars, foot soldiers, male and female slaves, vehicles and litters ” (Kern, p. 274 ; Yamakawa, p. 415).

Therefore, Nichiren proclaims :

“Know ye, that when these Bodhisattvas act in accordance with the positive instruction, they will appear as wise kings and attack foolish kings in order to instruct them; when they will act negatively then will they appear as priests and propagate and keep the right law ” (Works, p. 103).

In that relation did Nichiren acknowledge military force, he accordingly wrote an instruction to one of his great supporters, Shijo Kingo, who was a typical Japanese warrior:

“Prefer the art of war to any other art, even any branch connected therewith shall be rooted in the Law of the Hokekyo ” (Works, p. 907).

Of course in this connection it is not his intention to interfere with anything relating to the substance itself, but it is mentioned for the fundamental enlightenment of all existence. In this relation Buddha makes the suggestions:

“All the pluralistic laws which are preached in several instances, do not contradict nor contravene Suchness by their signification. Even the moral books in the world or political words or industry or the like may be explained to the people, they shall all comply with the right law” (Yamakawa, pp. 539-40 ; there are no equivalent lines in Kern).

Hereupon Nichiren emancipated the ordinal conception of religion into the broadest sense, which is the synthetic creation. The moral books in the above quotation, imply philosophy, ethics, literature or the like; political words mean legislation, the judicature and administration, and industry means agriculture, commerce and the manufacturing industry, etc. Nichiren gave this instruction to his disciples:

“The priests among my disciples shall be the Masters to the Emperors or the ex-Emperors, and the laymen shall take seats in the Ministry; and thus in the future, all the nations in the world shall adore this law” (Works, p. 583).

He goes on to say :

“In brief, my religion is the law path” (Works, p. 391).

Therefore, for Nichiren, the professional practice of religion is not only the method, but verily also the justification and purification of our daily lives at every turn. Keeping this in mind, read the following instruction of Nichiren to Shijo Kingo:

“Consider your daily works in your Lord’s service as being the practice of the Hokekyo” (Works, p, 893).

Thus, he established the religious method of the synthetic creation, and he decided that the country should be the unit of the worldly salvation.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p106-108

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Table of ContentsNext

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.

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In Satomi’s Nichirenism the “Holy Altar” is not only the key to the enlightenment of the country, but of the world.

[Nichiren] beheld the signification of the relation between the Hokekyo and Nichiren himself through the fact of the wonderful combination of Japan. According to him, the world must be united as bretheren, namely as a moral world, and in the future the Holy Altar of the Hokekyo, especially the Honmon centric commandment, shall be established in Japan. He says in one of his significant essays, “On the Three Great Secret Laws” (San dai Hihō Shō):

“At a certain future time, when the state law will unite with the Buddhist law and the Buddhist law harmonizes with the state law, and both sovereign and subjects will keep sincerely the Three Secret Laws, then will be realized such a golden age in the degeneration of the Latter Law, as it was in olden times under the rule of King Utoku. Thus the Holy Altar will be established with Imperial Sanction or the like at a place like the excellent paradise of Vulture Peak. We must only prepare and await the advent of the time. There is no other law or commandment which is practicable, only this one. This Holy Altar is not only the sanctuary for all nations of three countries (India, China and Japan) and the whole world, but even the great deities, Brahma and Indra, have to descend in order to initiate into the perfect truth of the Hokekyo ” (Works, pp. 240-41).

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p111-112

Western ideas about separating matters of religion from affairs of government are foreign to Nichiren’s thinking, according to Satomi.

In the religious sense, the unification of the world or the salvation of the world is impossible unless the religion and the country assimilate. Nichiren, there fore, determined the country as the unit of salvation of the world as far as method is concerned. He says:

“Hearken! the country will prosper with the moral law, and the law is precious when practiced by man. If the country be ruined and human beings collapse, who would worship the Buddha, who would believe the law? First of all, therefore, pray for the security of the country and afterwards establish the Buddhist Law” (Works, p. 13).

This is a paragraph in his important essay, “Rissho Ankoku-ron” or “An Essay on the Establishment of Righteousness and Security of the Country.” He discoursed on the relation between the country and religion in this essay and sent it to the Hojos Government at an early date as an intimation of his religious movement; but this thought fully developed by degrees and eventually the doctrine of the Holy Altar was founded. There is no doubt that Nichiren thus thought of the country as the most concrete basis on which to propagate religion.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p102-103

For Satomi’s Nichirenism, religion is necessary in all aspects of material life.

Religion is intended to redeem living beings and their environment. Therefore, religion must purify the whole concrete life of man in order to religionize all individuals and the world. If religion does not in any sense concern material life, but merely spiritual life, then is religious influence almost in vain. A belief which purposely eliminates material affairs from the religious field is not only a misunderstanding of the essential meaning of religion, but is a very wrong view of human life. The true religious Empire can be established in the material world which is purified with spiritual signification. Nichiren’s doctrine of the Holy Altar is, indeed, an enlightenment of religion with material purification.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p104

Satomi explains that the faithful must reconstruct the country so that it may exist “hand in hand with righteousness.”

According to Nichiren, in the degenerate days of the Latter Law, there is no Buddhist commandment outside of our vow for the reconstruction of the country and the realization of the Heavenly Paradise in the world. Even the so-called virtuous sage, if he does not embrace this great and strong vow, in other words only enjoys virtue individually, such a sage is pretty useless.

Although a man be imperfect, let him carry out Buddha’s task with the strong vow for the realization of Buddha’s Kingdom, with preaching or with economical power or with knowledge of sciences and with all sorts of such things. We can find the true significance of religion, of commandment, of human life therein.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p105

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Table of ContentsNext

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.

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Another focus of Kishio Satomi’s Nichirenism that distinguishes it from traditional Nichiren Shu is its focus on the Three Great Secret Laws and, in particular, what it calls the “Holy See.”

Nichiren Shu doctrine describes the Three Great Secret Dharmas as the Gohonzon, the Daimoku and the Kaidan, or Precept Platform. Here’s Satomi’s summary:

The Three Great Secret Laws are the three aspects of his religion, and they emanated from the One Law which is indicated by the Sacred Title of the Hokekyo. Each of the Three is the independent principle on the one hand, and again each of them is the essential moment of the One Law on the other hand, that is to say something like Hegel’s “aufgehobenes Moment.”

It is the three aspects of reality in the sense of the observance of Law; it is the three expressions of the principle of typical personality in the significance of Buddha; it is the three principles of the modes of our lives in the significance of being. Let us reduce the three aspects, then it will be the One Law, and vice versa. From another point of view, the Sacred Title is the religious subject which indicates the Self, containing He. The Supreme Being of the three is the religious object in which the religious subject exists, in other words, it is the He which contains our Selves therein. The Holy See of the three is the concrete realization of the religion.

The Sacred Title is the law of awakening of the individual, the Holy See is the principle of idealization of the country, and the Supreme Being is the harmonious manifestation of the world.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p66-67

In Satomi’s Nichirenism, the Holy Altar has special importance:

It is absolutely useless to seek the ideal world under the name of paradise after completing this life. Of course, we believe in an after-life as well as a past life in a religious sense. But we cannot demonstrate the past nor the after-life, therefore the after-life is possible only as a religious postulation. In short, we must apprehend the meaning of past and future in the very present, hence the present centric consistentism through the three lives, viz. the past, present and future. In respect thereof we shall have a full explanation and idea of Nichiren by our understanding of the doctrine of the Holy See.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p90

And later:

The third important thought in Nichirenism is the Holy Altar (or the Holy See). Nichiren founded his most concrete idea of his religious practice on this doctrine. As I have stated above, the Sacred Title was mentioned for the instruction of individuals, the Supreme Being was for the world or universe, and, from this point of view, this Holy Altar is the key to the enlightenment of the country. Moreover, this Holy Altar, in a sense, is the connection between the Sacred Title and the Supreme Being; namely the Holy Altar shows the concrete method of entering the Supreme Being, and how to adore the Sacred Title, the essential law of Buddhism.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p94-95

This discussion of the Three Great Secret Laws or Dharmas is based on a single letter by Nichiren, Sandai Hiho Honjo-ji, The Transmission of the Three Great Secret Dharmas. The letter appears in the Doctrine 2 volume of the Writings of Nichiren Shōnin. The fact that this concept of Three Great Secret Dharmas is addressed only once in all of Nichiren’s writings has prompted controversy.

From 2000 to 2001, Rev. Gyokai Sekido wrote a series of articles for Nichiren Shu News about the advances in the study of Nichiren’s doctrines over the years. In discussing this letter he writes:

Nichiren Shonin’s “The Transmission of the Three Great Secret Dharmas” written in the fourth year of the Koan Era (1281) preaches the doctrine of the Three Great Secret Dharmas (the honzon, daimoku, and kaidan based on the doctrine revealed in the essential section: hommon of the Lotus Sutra), especially the establishment of the kaidan of the hommon.

The authenticity of this document, however, has often been questioned from ancient times. Utilizing the latest computer technology, Professors Zuiei Ito and Masakatsu Murakami, of Rissho University and Ministry of Education Center for the Study of Mathematical Principle respectively, tried to see if they could find the answer to this problem.

All sentences of Nichiren’s writings were divided up into grammatical units (such as nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, postpositional particles, prefixes, suffixes and conjunctions), to be analyzed by a computer in order to find out the characteristic use of the parts of speech in Nichiren’s writings and its yearly changes.

Then they compared it against what is found in similar analysis of the “Transmission of the Three Great Secret Dharmas.” Beginning the project in 1975, this Ito-Murakami group reported its tentative conclusion in 1980 saying that the “Transmission of the Three Great Secret Dharmas” is probably genuine. Their final conclusion in 1991 declared, “The writing is genuine,” creating a stir in the study of Nichiren’s writings.

Professor Ken’ichi Kammuri of Rissho University, however, has a strong doubt about the validity of handling words in the basic documents.

How Study on Nichiren Buddhism Has Made Progress in the 20th Century, p19-20

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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.

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Nichiren’s position as the leader of the Bodhisattvas from Underground, the Eternal Buddha’s original followers, is made explicit in Satomi Kishio’s explanation of Nichirenism.

If ever Japan produced a religious man worthy of the name, Nichiren was the man. He felt convinced that he was the incarnation of Honge Jogyo (Skt. Viśiṣṭacāritra) throughout the experiences and practices of his religious life. Now the so-called Honge Jogyo is the man who was foretold by Buddha Shakyamuni (Skt. Śākyamuni) in the Hokekyo or Myō-hō-renge-kyō (Skt. Saddharma-puṇḍarīka-sūtra), and it is my duty to offer my tribute of respect to the Hokekyo itself.

It is, of course, an established fact that the Hokekyo is the highest development of Buddhism. If the Hokekyo is not contained in Buddhism, then, even though there exist therein seven thousand Scriptures, all these books are but contradictory teachings. Therefore when a man desires to make a study of Buddhism, it is absolutely necessary for him to learn the position of the Hokekyo in all Buddhist Scriptures.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p29-30

Satomi points out that Nichiren chose his name – Sun Lotus – in part from the Lotus Sutra’s description of the Bodhisattvas from Underground and thus identified himself with Honge Jogyo:

The latter part of the verses in [Chapter 21: The Supernatural Powers of the Tathāgatas] runs as follows:

“He will, after the complete extinction of Tathagata, know the origin and orders, and he will preach the law as it is according to the real signification of Buddha’s Scriptures. Just as the light of the sun and moon does shine into darkness and dimness on the earth, so does this person expel ignorance (or gloom) from all beings.”

It must be noted firstly that the term “keep,” which is used in the above quotation, means not only mouth and mind, but the reading of the Hokekyo with body and life or flesh and blood, i.e. the practice. The Japanese technical term “Juji” is the equivalent. And secondly, that by “the Sun,” as above, and “the lotus” in the following eulogy of Honge Jogyo’s character [in Chapter 15: The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground]: “Those who have well learned the way of Bodohisattovas purify themselves from the evil law of the world, just as the lotus does in the water.” (Yamakawa, p. 450 ; Kern, p. 296). Nichiren was suggested, and got his name “Nichiren” when he left Hiei monastery and made his first denouncement at Kiyosumi in 1253 ; for “Nichi” means the Sun and “ren” means “the lotus.”

Thus, the Scripture and Buddha Himself were entrusted to Honge Jogyo.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p48-49

For Satomi, Nichiren systemized his religion while in exile in Sado, working from his role as Honge Jogyo.

[Nichiren] finished “Opening the Eyes” in two volumes, amidst snowy winds in the desert [of Sado Island]. … The following year, 1273, was the most important year to him. He had explained his own personality and mission, so now his systematized philosophy of religion must be the next course to follow. Early in the year, he wrote “The Heritage of Buddha’s Introspective Religion ” (Hokkeshū Naishō Buppō Kechimyaku, Works, pp. 294-301), which he clearly laid down as follows:

“The heritage of my religion can adopt Tendai’s view of Heritage mainly, but from the true introspective point of view, only the Buddha Shakyamuni and Honge Jogyo are the ancestors.”

According to this, it is certain that Nichiren’s heritage of Buddhism is derived from the Buddha Shakyamuni’s introspection directly through the medium of the conception of Honge Jogyo’s personality. In April, he wrote an essay, “The Spiritual Introspection of the Supreme Being, Revealed for the First Time in the Fifth Five Hundredth Year after the Tathagata’s Death,” which is the chief work among the important works. His doctrine, the Fivefold Three Divisions were set down in this essay. All aspects of his doctrine and thoughts are strictly united here, so it is said that this essay is indeed the fundamental one concerning Nichirenism. And it must be noted by readers that nobody will understand this essay fully unless he reads the whole works carefully in order to get preparatory knowledge for the essay, and also the Hokekyo as the fundamental article for this single essay. We can read and understand well any other Buddhist articles if we know certain technical terms in general and have an idea of Buddhism, but it must be admitted that this essay needs deeper knowledge than knowledge of Buddhism in general. Therefore when we read it we must include his whole works as its interpretation.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p166-167

Satomi saw Nichiren’s awareness of his relationship to Honge Jogyo reached its fullest extent in Minobu.

As regards his conviction of Honge Jogyo, it attained perfect maturity [at Minobu]. The following are a few of the examples:

“Already the great Bodhisattva out of the earth has appeared, so that the great Law which the Buddha made over to him, summing up the salient points of His Laws shall be in evidence ” (Works, p. 325).

“I, Nichiren, am the greatest practitioner of the Hokekyo in the world ” (Works, p. 119).

“I, Nichiren am the greatest sage in the world” (Works, p. 513).

Moreover, he wrote clearly identifying himself as the Honge Jogyo in one of the representations of the Supreme Being which he diagrammatized in the mountains of Minobu; it runs as follows:

“In the beginning of the Fifth Five Hundred Period the Bodhisattva Honge Jogyo appeared and propagated this Law for the first time.”

Thus his conviction was, now, expressed perfectly and there is no more doubt that his firm conviction of being the prophesied man in the beginning of the Fifth Five Hundred Period, was firmly realized. He wrote “On the Three Great Secret Laws” in 1281, and in it he tried to make suggestions rather concretely concerning the Holy Altar.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p181-182

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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.

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In Kishio Satomi’s presentation of Nichirenism, and by extension his father Chigaku Tanaka’s view,  several concepts distinguish it from more traditional Nichiren theology. As discussed earlier, one aspect is the idea that Nichiren was greatly disturbed by the exile of three former emperors following the Shokyu War. Another aspect is Satomi’s emphasis on Nichiren seeing himself as a reincarnation of Jogyo, Viśiṣṭacāritra in Sanskrit, one of four leaders of the Bodhisattvas in Chapter 15, The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground.

In the following quote summarizing the five areas of Nichiren’s criticism of Buddhism of his day, Nichiren being Honge Jogyo is an important demonstration of the source of Nichiren’s insight.

The criticism of Nichirenism is what is called “Five Critical Principles.” Nichiren attained an enlightenment after a long research spread over twenty years, and systematized the Five Critical Principles as the result of his four careful perusals of all the Buddhist Scriptures. He agreed with Tendai’s critical doctrine, “Five Epochs and Eight Doctrines” to a certain extent, but he deepened and widened the method from his unique point of view (which is the subject of this work), and established the perfect criticism on the authority of his conviction of Honge Jogyo by his religious practice of the Hokekyo.

His criticism, when observing both the general effect and the minute details of Buddhism, has five aspects, explained as follows, according to the suggestion by Chiō Yamakawa of the Kokuchukai:

1. Comparative study of Buddhist doctrines.
2. Psychological research into the people’s capacity for Buddhism.
3. Sociological study of the times.
4. State-ethnical study of religious influence.
5. Evolutionistic study of Buddhism.

He was actuated by the following phrase of the Hokekyo, and he established this critical doctrine at Izu when he was exiled there by the Hojos government. It says:

“He will, after Buddha’s Death, unravel (or know) the origin and orders, and he will preach the law as it is according to the real signification of the Buddhist Scriptures ” (Yamakawa’s Japanese translation, p. 567; cf. Kern, p. 369).

Nichiren writes in his article, “Analogue of Wise and Foolish,” “First of all, doctrine, capacity, the times, the country and retrocession and progress (or Backward and Forward) of religious distribution must be evident in order to propagate Buddhism and to benefit mankind ” (Shōgu Mondō-shō, Works, p. 223 ; cf. pp. 262-263, p. 1383).

How wonderful it is that so thorough a system for the study of religion has been established by him seven hundred years ago.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p14-16

In my reading of Nichiren’s letters I have found just one place where he says outright that he is Honge Jogyo. That occurs in Sandai Hiho Honjo-ji, The Transmission of the Three Great Secret Dharmas, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2:

These three great secret dharmas are certainly what I, Nichiren, at the head of the group of bodhisattvas emerged from underground received from Lord Śākyamuni Buddha orally more than 2,000 years ago. Therefore, what I practice today are the “actual” three great secret dharmas revealed in “The Life Span of the Buddha” chapter, which are exactly the same as what was transmitted on Mt. Sacred Eagle without a shred of difference.

This letter says a number of things that are unique to this letter and thus has generated a good deal of controversy. I will discuss that letter in a post July 10 entitled Transmission of the Three Great Secret Laws

More common among Nichiren’s letters are statements like this from Honzon Mondō Shō, Questions and Answers on the Honzon, he writes:

Nobody has ever propagated this honzon in the world (Jambudvīpa) in more than 2,230 years since Śākyamuni Buddha expounded on it. Grand Masters T’ien-t’ai in China and Dengyō in Japan roughly knew about it, but did not at all propagate it. Today, in the Latter Age of Degeneration, it should be widespread. The Lotus Sūtra, states that Bodhisattvas Superior Practice (Viśiṣṭacaritra) and Limitless Practice (Anantacāritra) will appear in the world to spread it, but they have not yet done that. I, Nichiren, am not as great a man as those bodhisattvas, yet I have roughly understood it. So, as a forerunner, until those bodhisattvas appearing from underground emerge, I more or less propagated this sūtra and became the spear point of the passage that prophecies about the “time after My extinction” in the “Teacher of the Dharma” chapter of the Lotus Sūtra. It is my hope to transfer my merits to my parents, my teacher and all the people in the world.

That’s not to say it is somehow radical to consider Nichiren a manifestation of Honge Jogyo. Rev. Igarashi of the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church has often referred to this. During the 2021 Oeshiki Service memorializing the death of Nichiren, Rev. Igarashi said that the memorial service for Nichiren is different than the ones we hold for our ancestors. The difference, he explained, is that we know where Nichiren went after he died. He returned to his existence as Honge Jogyo.

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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.

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Senchu Murano, in his introduction to Bruno Petzold’s book, Buddhist Prophet Nichiren–A Lotus In The Sun, mentions that Kishio Satomi’s description of Nichiren’s life incorporates legends into the life story of Nichiren, but, Murano adds, these legends “do not adversely affect his outline of Nichiren Buddhism.”

Nichiren started for Kamakura on missionary work and he founded a cell at Matsbagayats of Nagoe in Kamakura. He was looking out for a good opportunity there.

At the outset, he was used to going out to preach his new doctrine on one of the crossroads named Komachi, which was one of the gayest places in Kamakura. Sometimes he preached the truth of the Hokekyo, sometimes he denounced Buddhist fallacies, and sometimes he would criticize politics, etc. A crowd of people always surrounded him. Most of them turned persecutors on the spot, while some took advantage of the extraordinary instruction. He was now hated by almost all the citizens. He was stoned, he was beaten with sticks, he was abused every day whenever he appeared before the public.

At that time people were panic-stricken by famines, comets, fearful epidemics and earthquakes, etc., which followed one another incessantly. The miserable condition was such that people could hardly bear to look at it. Nichiren pondered over what might be the root of these calamities, so he went to the library of the Zisso temple not very far from Kamakura in order to reread all the Scriptures.

He wrote an essay in order to get his idea into shape and entitled it “Rissho Ankoku Ron.” It is written in a flowery style with care for rhetoric and much more dialogue in the original than in the following translation. The title means “The Establishment of Righteousness for the Security of the Country.” (The Japanese Emperor conferred an honorable title on Nichiren as The Great Master Risshō on the thirteenth of October in the eleventh year of Taisho, A.D. 1922). [Rissho Ankoku Ron] begins thus:

“A visitor came forth unto me bewailing that: From a few years ago to this very day, there have been calamities and catastrophes in heaven and in earth, famines and plagues accompanied with misery throughout the land. Horses and cattle are dying on the roadsides, and the skeletons are scattered on the road; more than one-half of the population have died, and there is no one who does not mourn it” (Works, p. 1).

Out of compassion, not only for the sake of the people who were suffering as a result of these calamities, but also in consequence of the superstitious practices to which they resorted, Nichiren turned the question over in his mind and exclaimed: What are the causes of these evils, and how can they be remedied? After examining All the Scriptures, especially the significant letters of those Scriptures, viz. the Konkōmyokyo (Śuvarṇa Prabhāsa), Daishukkyo, Ninnōkyo, Yakushikyo (Bhesajyaguru-sūtra), etc., he considered the causes of these calamities. As a result, he reached the final conclusion that these calamities were caused by the people’s negligence of the righteousness of the Hokekyo. Thereupon he described with the authority of the Scriptures what he thought, in other words he gave his ardent warnings in his powerful letters. The calamities are nothing but a great warning from heaven to human beings concerning their adhesion to heresy; so he believed. Thus, he sent this essay to the Hōjōs Government, and also laid it before the public. He prophesied in this book. According to it, if the Government and the nation would not turn to the Truth of the Hokekyo, the country would experience foreign invasions and internal disturbances (Works, p. 19). He presented this essay to the Government authorities on the 16th day in the seventh month of 1260. But most of the authorities of the Government were the believers or converts of the Zen or Nenbuts Sects, and they were influenced by some other priests who were opponents of Nichiren. The Government ignored his warning and said nothing openly about it, while they tacitly permitted the people’s plot of attack on Nichiren’s life; not only the common people, but even men of honor and high position joined together.

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p127-130

Satomi offers some (for me) new perspectives on the players in the drama around Nichiren’s first exile.

When he dispatched [Rissho Ankoku Ron] letter to Hei no Saemon, the course to be pursued by the government towards Nichiren had already been decided upon. Probably soon after reading this letter Hei no Saemon in person set off to seize Nichiren, and he was in command of about three hundred armed soldiers under Shōbō’s guidance, who was one of Nichiren’s disciples, and whom we may compare with Judas who betrayed Christ. All of a sudden, the troops broke into Nichiren’s hut and destroyed whatever came within their reach (Works, pp. 529-30, 394). Nichiren did not show the least agitation, but exclaimed in a loud voice:

” How strange is the madness of Hei no Saemon! Behold! You are now going to let the Pillar of Japan fall” (Works, p. 394).

Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles, p147

This “Judas” plays an important role in Nichiren’s telling of the events:

At that moment, Shō-bō, a ranking vassal of Saemonnojō, rushed at me, snatched the fifth fascicle of the Lotus Sūtra from my bosom, beat my face with it three times, and tore it to pieces.

Shuju Onfurumai Gosho, Reminscences: from Tatsunokuchi to Minobu, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Biography and Disciples, Volume 5, Page 1

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