It is predicted in the Lotus Sūtra: “Many people hate this sūtra with jealousy even in My lifetime. Needless to say, more people will hate this sūtra after My death.” The difficulties the Buddha encountered were incalculable. Above all He was forced to feed himself with fodder for 90 days; a huge rock was dropped on Him; His toes were injured and bled; eight disciples of the Buddha such as Sunakṣatra sided with non-Buddhists and tried to attack Him while off guard day and night; King Virūḍhaka murdered countless members of the Śākya clan; and King Ajātaśatru killed countless disciples of the Buddha by making drunken elephants tread on them. However, these were minor difficulties during the lifetime of the Buddha when compared to what is to come. Major difficulties that was predicted by the Buddha to occur after “His extinction” have not been experienced by either Nāgārjuna, Vasubandhu, T’ien-t’ai, or Dengyō. If someone says that they were not the practicers of the Lotus Sūtra, for what reasons are they not? On the contrary, if we say that they were the practicers, why have they not shed blood like the Buddha? Much more than that, they have never encountered greater difficulties than those of the Buddha. How can we call them the practicers of the Lotus Sūtra? Otherwise, the scriptural statement “More people will hate this sūtra after My death” would be futile, and the teachings of the Buddha would be a big lie.

However, during my propagation of the teaching of the Lotus Sūtra in the past 27 years, I, Nichiren, encountered many persecutions. I was exiled to the Province of Izu on the twelfth day of the fifth month in the first year of Kōchō (1261), injured on the forehead and my left hand was broken on the eleventh day of the eleventh month in the first year of Bun’ei (1264), placed on the execution mat on the twelfth day of the ninth month in the eighth year of Bun’ei (1271), and exiled to Sado Province in the end. Moreover, numerous disciples of mine were killed, wounded, expelled, or fined. I do not know whether or not my difficulties may equal or surpass those of the Buddha, but those of Nāgārjuna, Vasubandhu, T’ient’ai, and Dengyō cannot compare to mine, Therefore, if I had not appeared in the Latter Age of Degeneration [as a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra], the Buddha would have been a big liar, and the Buddha of Many Treasures and the Buddhas in manifestation from all the worlds in the universe would testify to this great falsehood. In the 2,220 years or so since the passing of the Buddha, I, Nichiren, am the only one who has verified the Buddha’s Words in the whole world.

Shōnin Gonan Ji, Persecution Befalling Nichiren Shōnin, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 5, Page 118