Just as Sakyamuni regards all living beings as his own children, so may each individual man do likewise. The Buddha and the people are, in fact, one and the same; there is neither difference nor distinction between them. In the Kegon Kyo it is said that the Mind, the Buddha, and the people are not different from each other, although they have different names and different appearances.
Doctrines of Nichiren (1893)