Nichiren’s own writings … give less attention to Kishimojin than to the ten rāksasis, whom he mentions more than fifty times. Unlike such bodhisattvas as Bhaiṣajyarāja, Gadgadasvara, and Avalokiteśvara of the immediately preceding chapters, whom he understood to have been active chiefly in the True Dharma and Semblance Dharma ages, the ten demon women were, in Nichiren’s understanding, presently active on behalf of Lotus devotees and devising plans to facilitate the sūtra’s spread. Toward the end of the present chapter, the Buddha praises them, saying, “Splendid, splendid! You protect those who preserve the name of the Lotus Sūtra! Your merit is immeasurable.” In the sūtra, the Buddha goes on to say that the merit of protecting those who serve the sūtra in various other ways is greater still. For Nichiren, however, the passage just quoted underscored the overriding importance of the daimoku:

QUESTION: What proof is there that one should embrace the name of the Lotus Sūtra, in particular, in the same way that people embrace the name of a buddha?

ANSWER: The sūtra states, “The Buddha said to the rāksasis, ‘Splendid, splendid! You protect those who preserve the name of the Lotus Sūtra! Your merit is immeasurable’ (322). This passage means that, when the ten rāksasis vowed to protect those who embrace the title of the Lotus Sūtra, the world-honored one of great enlightenment praised them, saying, “Splendid! Splendid! The merit you will receive for protecting those who accept and uphold Namu Myōhō-renge-kyō will be incalculable and marvelous!” This passage implies that, whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, we living beings should chant Namu Myōhō-renge-kyō.

Elsewhere, Nichiren interprets the same sūtra passage to stress the unfathomable benefits of the chanting the daimoku: “This merit [deriving from the vow of the ten rāksasis] to protect those who embrace the daimoku of the Lotus Sūtra is beyond even the reach of the buddha wisdom, which perfectly comprehends the past, present, and future. One might think that nothing could exceed the grasp of the buddha wisdom, but the Buddha here declares that the merit accruing from accepting and upholding the daimoku of the Lotus Sūtra is the one thing alone that it cannot fathom.”