Generally speaking, when a man tries to distinguish himself in the world, even people who seem to be sages or saints envy him. How much more so ordinary people.

In ancient times, Wang Chao-chün, a consort of Emperor Wen Ti of Former Han, was so beautiful that 3,000 women in the imperial palace envied her, and it is said that innumerable queens of Indra envied Lady Kauśika, the former wife of Indra. In Japan, Prince Kaneakira, son of Emperor Daigo, was envied by Minister Fujiwara Saneyori of the Ono Palace; and Sugawara Michizane was exiled to Kyushu on a false charge made by Minister Fujiwara Tokihira.

Contemplate your own situation from the perspective of these examples. The residence of Lay Priest Lord Ema, your lord, was once vast but it is no longer so. As his young noblemen are many and retainers of long standing increase in number, just as fish become agitated when the water in a pond decreases and birds fight for a treetop when the autumn wind begins to blow, the jealousy among his men must be growing. And since you often acted against your lord and was given many slanderous reports, you were often forced to relinquish your fief. Despite all of this, according to your letter your fief was returned to you. This is wonderful indeed. This is what is meant by “What is done by night appears by day.” It is the reward for your sincere efforts in trying to bring your lord to the faith in the Lotus Sūtra.

Shijō Kingo-dono Gohenji, Response to Lord Shijō Kingo, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers I, Volume 6, Page 151

Chapter two, “Expedients” of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 1, says: “The Buddha would preach the True Dharma in the end;” and “abandoning the teachings of temporary expediency, He honestly would preach only the supreme way.” It is stated in chapter fourteen (fascicle 5), “Peaceful Practices,” compares the sūtra to “a jade kept in the topknot of the Wheel-turning Noble King” and “a jade found only on the top of the Wheel-turning Noble King’s head.” It also says, “The jade which had been protected by this powerful king for ages is about to be given away.”

The meanings of these scriptural statements is that all the scriptures of Buddhism brought over to Japan totaling 7,399 scrolls, are all subordinate to the Lotus Sūtra. Just as the Japanese people totaling 4,900,094,828 persons are all retainers of one king, all scriptures of Buddhism (except the Lotus Sūtra) are a mere temporary repose for ignorant women. For example, in building a huge tower, a scaffold is assembled from many small pieces of wood set up ten or twenty-feet high. Then, using this scaffold, the huge tower is built with lumber. Once the tower is completed, the scaffold is dismantled. The scaffold here represents all Buddhist scriptures other than the Lotus Sūtra and the great tower is the Lotus Sūtra. … Scaffolds are needed for building a great tower, and after the completion of a tower scaffolds are demolished. This is what is meant by “discarding the expedient.” A pagoda is built by using a scaffold, but no one worships a scaffold without a pagoda.

Ueno-dono Haha-ama Gozen Gohenji, A Response to My Lady the Nun, Mother of Lord Ueno, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 178-179

Chapter two, “Expedients” of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 1, says: “The Buddha would preach the True Dharma in the end;” and “abandoning the teachings of temporary expediency, He honestly would preach only the supreme way.” It is stated in chapter fourteen (fascicle 5), “Peaceful Practices,” compares the sūtra to “a jade kept in the topknot of the Wheel-turning Noble King” and “a jade found only on the top of the Wheel-turning Noble King’s head.” It also says, “The jade which had been protected by this powerful king for ages is about to be given away.”

The meanings of these scriptural statements is that all the scriptures of Buddhism brought over to Japan totaling 7,399 scrolls, are all subordinate to the Lotus Sūtra. Just as the Japanese people totaling 4,900,094,828 persons are all retainers of one king, all scriptures of Buddhism (except the Lotus Sūtra) are a mere temporary repose for ignorant women. For example, in building a huge tower, a scaffold is assembled from many small pieces of wood set up ten or twenty-feet high. Then, using this scaffold, the huge tower is built with lumber. Once the tower is completed, the scaffold is dismantled. The scaffold here represents all Buddhist scriptures other than the Lotus Sūtra and the great tower is the Lotus Sūtra. … Scaffolds are needed for building a great tower, and after the completion of a tower scaffolds are demolished. This is what is meant by “discarding the expedient.” A pagoda is built by using a scaffold, but no one worships a scaffold without a pagoda.

Ueno-dono Haha-ama Gozen Gohenji, A Response to My Lady the Nun, Mother of Lord Ueno, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Faith and Practice, Volume 4, Page 178-179

There are seventy states in India, all of which are included in the name of India. Sixty-six provinces of Japan are included in the name of Japan. The name of India includes seventy states in India and all the things in them such as people, cattle, and treasures. The name of Japan includes sixty-six provinces, wings of eagles donated from Dewa Province, gold dug out in Mutsu Province and all the treasures, human beings, cattle as well as Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines. Through heavenly eyes we can see in the two Chinese characters for Japan sixty-six provinces, treasures as well as human beings and cattle. Through dharma eyes we can even see human beings and cattle being born and dying here and there. Just as we can recognize the body of a man by hearing his voice, the size of an elephant by looking at its footprints, the size of a pond by seeing lotus flowers in it, the size of a dragon by seeing the rain it caused, a portion includes the whole in everything.

The title of the Āgama sūtras seem to contain everything in it, but it has only one Śākyamuni Buddha of Hinayāna Buddhism and not any other Buddha. Such sūtras as the Flower Garland Sūtra, the Sūtra of Meditation on the Buddha of Infinite Life, and the Great Sun Buddha Sūtra seem to contain everything, but they have no Eternal Śākyamuni Buddha who has attained Enlightenment in the eternal past and the doctrine of the Two Vehicles (śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha) attaining Buddhahood. These sūtras are like flowers without fruits, thunder without rain, drum without sound, eyes with out sight, women without children, and men without life or spirit.

Hōon-jō, Essay on Gratitude, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 52-53.

The Nirvana Sūtra states also that benefits of understanding the teachings of the Buddha through such means as the “five periods,” “eight teachings (four doctrinal teachings and four methods of teaching),” provisional and true teachings, and Mahāyāna and Hinayāna doctrines are like the shadow of the tree, which is the doctrine of “The Life Span of the Buddha” chapter in the essential section of the Lotus Sūtra. The sūtra also declares that those who negate the eternal life of the Buddha are like a tree without a shadow in darkness. It means that benefits of those sūtras expounded by Śākyamuni Buddha during His lifetime before “The Life Span of the Buddha” chapter are likened to the shadow of a tree in darkness. They are of those who had listened to the teaching of “The Life Span of the Buddha” chapter and been planted with the seed of Buddhahood in the distant past. Those who had not received the seed have neither a tree nor a shadow to speak about.

Toki Nyūdō-dono Go-henji: Hongon Shukkai-shō, A response to Lay riest Lord Toki: Treatise on Overcoming Illusions of the Triple World by Provisional Teachins, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 277

The people of Japan, both wise and ignorant, and rulers as well as the ruled, all say, “How can Priest Nichiren claim to be superior to the commentators, Buddhist teachers, grand masters, and virtuous priests of the past?” In order to clear their suspicions of me, I predicted two great calamities to overtake Japan in the near future: domestic disturbance and foreign invasion, which I foresaw upon seeing the severe earthquakes of the Shōka Era and the great, long comet of the Bun’ei Era. The domestic disturbance would be the fighting among the descendants of Lord Hōjō Yoshitoki, while the foreign invasion would occur in all directions but mostly in the western region. The sole cause for this to happen is that Buddhists in Japan all believe in false teachings, causing the King of the Brahma Heaven and Indra, protectors of the True Dharma, to order a neighboring country to attack Japan. Unless the Japanese people listen to me, Nichiren, even if they have millions and tens of millions of generals such as Taira Masakado, Fujiwara Sumitomo, Abe Sadatō, Fujiwara Toshihito, and Sakanoue Tamuramaro, there is no way to defend the country. I spoke far and wide, “If this prediction of mine does not prove to be true, you may believe in the false teachings of Shingon and Pure Land Buddhism.”

Seichōji Daishū-chū, A Letter to the People of the Seichōji Temple, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 5, Page 176

The Hell of Great Burning Heat, the seventh of the eight major hells, is located beneath the Hell of Burning Heat, and its length and breadth are the same as the Hell of Burning Heat. However, the torment in this hell is ten times more severe than all the torments of the six hells mentioned above combined. The life span of sinners in this hell is half the length of a medium kalpa.

Those who commit the sin of violating a nun who observes the precept of purity, in addition to the grave sins of killing, stealing, adultery, drinking intoxicants, lying and harboring a false view will fall into this hell. Buddhist monks violating women who observe the precept against adultery by making them drunk with sake or fooling them with the gift of property or money will fall into this hell. Many Buddhist monks today are committing this grave sin.

Referring to this, the Great Compassion Sūtra preaches: “In the Latter Age of Degeneration many men and women in the laity are being reborn in heaven, but many priests and nuns are falling into hell.” People with conscience should be ashamed of themselves.

Ken Hōbō-shō, A Clarificaton of Slandering the True Dharma, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 110-111.

The 16th chapter of the Lotus Sūtra on “The Life Span of the Buddha” states, “Various sūtras preached by the Buddha ever since His attainment of Buddhahood in the eternal past are nothing but the truth; none of them are provisional.” This is interpreted by Grand Master T’ien-t’ai in his Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 9: “All those who overcame illusions of the triple world through provisional teachings inevitably attained enlightenment. From this we can see that provisional pre-Lotus sūtras were expounded for the purpose of leading the people to the True Dharma of the Lotus Sūtra.”

Grand Master Miao-lê explains it further in his Annotations on the Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sūtra, fascicle 9: “Overcoming illusions of the triple world through provisional teachings of pre-Lotus sūtras is provisional, not true, extinction. Therefore, it is termed ‘provisional extinction.’ Those who practiced three kinds of Buddhist practice (bodhisattvas, men of śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha) during the pre-Lotus periods all got rid of illusions of the triple world, and there exist no humans and heavenly beings who did not escape from the suffering of the three lowest realms (hell, realm of hungry spirits and that of beasts). Compared to the complete extinction of illusions of the triple world through the teaching of the Lotus Sūtra, however, theirs is merely a provisional extinction.”

Toki Nyūdō-dono Go-henji: Hongon Shukkai-shō, A response to Lay riest Lord Toki: Treatise on Overcoming Illusions of the Triple World by Provisional Teachins, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 276

[T]he official oppression of the followers of the Lotus Sūtra does not seem to end, and I am worried about what the future holds. Nevertheless, the fact that you endured the oppression till today is too surprising to be a reality. Please keep doing your best as it is preached by the Buddha that it is difficult to put faith in the Lotus Sūtra even for a moment during the Latter Age of Degeneration. This is so even though a person may be able to enter a fire without being burnt or jump into water without getting wet, even if a huge mountain were to fly to the sky or an ocean ascend to the heavens.

Emperor Hui-tsung, the sovereign of Sung China, was taken prisoner by the Mongols. Ex-Emperor Gotoba was the ruler of Japan, but he was defeated by Lord Hōjō Yoshitoki (Ukyō no Gonnotayū) and died on Oki Island as an exile. If these sovereigns had died for the cause of the Lotus Sūtra, they would have become Buddhas with their present bodies. As you know, people risk their lives for trivial matters, but no one is willing to undergo persecution for the cause of the Lotus Sūtra. Nevertheless, you have done so and experienced it yourself. How noble you are! How noble it is!

Ueno-dono Gohenji, Reply to Lord Ueno, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Followers II, Volume 7, Page 46-47