[W]e are very wrong in our judgment if we interpret the form of salvation superficially. For example, it is stated in chapter 25, “The All-Sidedness of the Bodhisattva Regarder of the Cries of the World,” that anyone who keeps in mind the Bodhisattva Regarder of the Cries of the World will be delivered from various sufferings. If we interpret this statement literally, it seems to mean that we do not have to work hard at practicing the Buddha’s teachings; but with such an attitude, none of the teachings of the Lotus Sutra will bear fruit. Anyone can easily understand that in the last six chapters the Buddha cannot have been so illogical and contradictory as to deny fundamentally all of the teachings preached up through chapter 22. It is surprising to find that for centuries many people have put a shallow interpretation on something that should be so easily understood and have turned to an easy, lazy faith that they thought would allow them to become free of suffering merely by keeping in mind the Bodhisattva Regarder of the Cries of the World.

When we read chapter 25 carefully and in depth, we understand that the supernatural powers of this bodhisattva are essentially identical with the power of the Law preached by the Tathāgata Sakyamuni. We also realize that we must depend spiritually upon the Law to the last, but that in cultivating and practicing it we should take the model of the Bodhisattva Regarder of the Cries of the World as our immediate goal. It is most regrettable that misunderstanding and simplistic interpretations of Buddhist sutras have sunk deeply into the minds of the general public over a period of many centuries, vitiating the true spirit of Buddhism. It is earnestly hoped that readers of this book will not make the same mistake.