[Y]ou, Priest Hōren, produce golden-colored letters from your mouth every morning. As you read and recite the “jiga-ge” verse, you produce 510 golden characters. Each of these characters transforms itself to be the sun, which in turn changes to Śākyamuni Buddha, who emits the rays of bright light shining through the earth, the three evil realms (hell, realm of hungry spirits and that of beasts), the Hell of Incessant Suffering, and to all the directions in the north, south, east, and west. They shine upward to the “Heaven of neither Thought nor Non-Thought” at the top of the realm of non-form looking everywhere for the souls of the departed. Upon finding the spirit of your father, they politely say, “Whom do you think we are? We are the characters of the ‘jiga-ge’ of the Lotus Sūtra chanted by your son Hōren every morning. We will be your eyes, ears, legs, and hands.” Then your father’s spirit will say, “My son, Hōren, is not my son but a ‘good friend’ who leads me to Buddhahood,” and worship you toward the Sahā World. This is indeed true filial piety.

Hōren-shō, Letter to Hōren, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 6, Followers I, Page 56-57

There is another triple division culminating in the essential section. Innumerable sūtras beginning with the Lotus Sūtra expounded during the time of the ancient Great Universal Wisdom Buddha, those preached by Śākyamuni Buddha during fifty some years of His lifetime—including the Flower Garland Sūtra, fourteen chapters of the theoretical section of the Lotus Sūtra, and the Nirvana Sūtra—as well as those preached by Buddhas in all the worlds in the universe in the past, at present, and in the future are the preface to the great dharma of five characters hidden in the lines of the sixteenth chapter of the Lotus Sūtra, “The Life Span of the Buddha.”

Compared to the “one and two-halves chapters” of the Lotus Sūtra (the sixteenth chapter, the second half of the preceding chapter and the first half of the following chapter) which comprises the main discourse according to this division, all other sūtras may be called Hinayāna teachings, false teachings, teachings that do not lead to Buddhahood, or teachings in which the truth is not revealed. Those who listen to these “expedient” teachings have little virtue and much illusion; they are immature in thinking, poor in heart, and solitary; like birds and beasts, they do not know the existence of the Eternal Buddha, who is their father.

Kanjin Honzon-shō, A Treatise Revealing the Spiritual Contemplation and the Most Verable One, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 152

People in Japan have rejected my proposal to save the country from destruction although I have committed no sin. Moreover, they struck me in the face with the fifth fascicle of the Lotus Sūtra, in which it is preached that a practicer of the Lotus Sūtra will be persecuted with swords, sticks, and pieces of bricks and stones. This was witnessed by the King of the Brahma Heaven and Indra. Great Hachiman Bodhisattva of Kamakura also observed the incident.

In any event, I feel hopeless in this decadent world today and have entered deep in this mountain. I feel truly sorry for my followers, but I am powerless to help you though I am praying to the Lotus Sūtra day and night. Please be resolved in your strong faith and pray with all your might. If your prayer is not answered, it is not due to the power of my prayer. It depends on the seriousness of your faith.

Nanjō-dono Gohenji, Reply to Lord Nanjō, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 7, Followers II, Pages 21

The secret dharma (five characters of Myō, Hō, Ren, Ge, and Kyō), the essence of the Lotus Sūtra, that such great sages as Kāśyapa, Ānanda, Nāgārjuna and Vasubandhu of the Age of the True Dharma and Grand Masters T’ien-t’ai and Dengyō of the Age of the Semblance Dharma knew in mind but did not yet propagate outwardly, is clearly stated in the Lotus Sūtra. It is also clear, however, that this secret dharma is not explained at all in any commentary or annotation. Sages with an inborn capacity of perception should know the dharma by looking at the sūtra themselves. Wise persons should meet virtuous teachers, receive the dharma and believe it. Those with serious sins will distrust and hold in contempt such teachers and will not believe the dharma, but if they wish to listen to it even for a moment, I am willing to tell you about it.

Soya Nyūdō-dono-gari Gosho, A Letter to Lay Priest Lord Soya, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Pages 169.

Observing the present state of Japan reflected upon the clear mirror of the Lotus Sūtra and Nirvana Sūtra, it is plain to see who is revered by rulers of Japan as an arhat with six superhuman powers, and who made false charges against the practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in an attempt to behead him. Who is the person revered like a great bodhisattva by a number of people? What wise man, who devotes himself to propagating the True Dharma, has often been banished from his dwelling, has been wounded in the head, has suffered from his disciples being killed, has been exiled twice, and was nearly beheaded in the end? Those who are blind or deaf can be pardoned, but those who have eyes and ears had better read and listen to the sūtras. Everybody today claims: “I have read the sūtras or believe in them,” but such people just hate Nichiren without trying to understand what is preached in the sūtras. If such people truly believed in them, they would think about who the three kinds of resentful enemies are. Instead, they hate Nichiren, who reads and recites the sūtras and puts into practice what the sūtras preach. Doesn’t this mean they hate sūtras and despise the messenger of the Buddha?

Shimoyama Goshōsoku, The Shimoyama Letter, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Volume 5, Page 77,/strong>

Compared to this Eternal Buddha and His teaching preached in the essential section, those preached in the theoretical section, the pre-Lotus sūtras, the Sūtra of Infinite Meaning, and the Nirvana Sūtra, namely, all the sūtras preached prior to, at the same time as, and after the Lotus Sūtra, are easy to believe in and understand. It is because they are provisional teachings adjusted to meet the faith and comprehension of the unenlightened while what is preached in the essential section transcends them all and is difficult to believe in and comprehend because it adheres to the true intent of Śākyamuni Buddha.

Kanjin Honzon-shō, A Treatise Revealing the Spiritual Contemplation and the Most Verable One, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 2, Page 152

Because it is lamentable to see the possibility of our land and ourselves destroyed, I have determined to point this out even at the cost of my life. If the ruler of the land wishes to maintain peace, he should have begun to wonder and investigate what I have said. Believing in only the words of slanderers, on the contrary, he is persecuting me, Nichiren. The King of the Brahma Heaven, Indra, the sun, the moon, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the terrestrial gods, whose duty it is to protect the Lotus Sūtra, regarded slanderers of the True Dharma as outrageous in the past. However, when nobody pointed out such slanderers, these deities sometimes ignored them just as parents overlook the mischief of their sole child, although at other times they punished him with as little as a warning. Today, however, the ruler not only appoints slanderers of the True Dharma to official positions but also persecutes the man who happened to remonstrate him, not just for one or two days, one or two months, and one or two years, but for many years. Nichiren has been persecuted more severely than Never-Despising Bodhisattva, who was beaten with sticks and pieces of wood, and Monk Virtue Consciousness, who was about to be murdered, upholding the True Dharma in the past. Therefore, the King of the Brahma Heaven, Indra, the sun, the moon, the Four Heavenly Kings, the stars, and the terrestrial gods all are angry with the ruler and warn him often by sending strange phenomena in the sky and natural calamities on earth. Since he does not perceive their warnings and only intensifies the persecution of the man who remonstrates, they order the sagacious ruler of a neighboring land to chastise the ruler of Japan and send demons into his land to deceive the people and cause internal disruption.

Great events, regardless if they are good or bad, are foreshadowed by great omens. We saw the largest comet we have ever seen in 2,230 years or so since the death of the Buddha and experienced the severest earthquake we have ever had in history. They foretell the destruction of Japan, at the same time they are omens of the appearance of the true practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in Japan. There have been many sages endowed with wisdom and talent in China and Japan, but none has ever believed in the Lotus Sūtra as firmly as I, Nichiren, nor has anyone had as many strong enemies in the land as I do. From these facts, you should recognize Nichiren to be the prime practicer of the Lotus Sūtra in the world.

Senji-shō, Selecting the Right time: A Tract by Nichiren, the Buddha’s Disciple, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 1, Page 236-237

Śākyamuni Buddha’s lifetime preaching can be divided into five periods. The first is called the Flower Garland period, when the Buddha expounded the Flower Garland Sūtra for two or three weeks on the Diamond-seat under the Bodhi Tree for bodhisattvas in the Dharma Body during the eight meetings at seven places. The Flower Garland Sūtra is a provisional Mahāyāna teaching compared to the Lotus Sūtra, however, it is the distinct teaching (teaching for bodhisattvas) as well as the perfect teaching. The conclusion of this sūtra is in the Brahma-net Sūtra, which expounds the Mahāyāna precepts for bodhisattvas. …

The second of the five periods is the Āgama (or Deer Park) period, when for 12 years Śākyamuni Buddha preached the Hinayāna Āgama sūtras in the Deer Park in Bārāpasī and various other places in 16 great states. The Āgama sūtras roughly consists of four groups: Long Āgama Sūtras; Middle Length Āgama Sūtras; Increasing-by-One Āgama Sūtras; and Miscellaneous Āgama Sūtras. These sūtras preach such doctrines as the “four noble truths” (the truth of suffering, the truth regarding the cause of sufferings, the truth regarding the extinction of suffering, and the truth regarding the path to Nirvana) and the “eightfold holy path” (right views, thoughts, speech, acts, living, effort, mindfulness, and meditation), which preach for men of the Two Vehicles (śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha) that all things and phenomena are transient and void. The concluding sūtra is the Sūtra of Legacy Teachings preached just before Śākyamuni Buddha’s death as His final instruction to His disciples. This is known as the Hinayāna precepts. …

The third of the five periods is the Hōdō period, when Śākyamuni Buddha preached a variety of Mahāyāna sutras. This period of preaching is said to have lasted eight years, sixteen years, or an indeterminate amount of years. The sūtras preached in this period include the Revealing the Profound and Secret Sūtra, the Necklace Sūtra, the Entering Laṅkā Sūtra, the Great Sun Buddha Sūtra, the Diamond Peak Sūtra, the Sūtra on the Act of Perfection, the Sūtra of the Buddha of Infinite Life, the Sūtra of Meditation on the Buddha of Infinite Life, and the Amitābha Sūtra. …

The fourth of the five periods is the Hannya (Wisdom) period, when Śākyamuni Buddha preached the doctrine of void for 14 or 22 years. The Hannya sūtras include such as the Kōsan hannya, Kongō hannya, Tennōmon hannya, Maka hannya, Daibon hannya, Ninnō hannya, etc. The last mentioned is considered the conclusion of the Hannya sūtras. …

The last of the five periods is the Lotus-Nirvana period, when the two sūtras of Lotus and Nirvana were preached. Of the two, the Lotus Sūtra is the principal text while the Nirvana Sūtra is like a gleaning after the harvest in autumn. Established on the basis of the Lotus Sūtra is the Tendai (T’ien-t’ai) School, which is also known by various designations such as the Lotus School, School Established by the Buddha, School Depended-on by Various Other Schools, Secret School, and Exoteric School of Illumination.

The Sūtra of Meditation on the Buddha of Universal Sage Bodhisattva, the conclusion of the Lotus Sūtra, provided the spiritual foundation for the establishment of the Mahāyāna Perfect and Sudden Precept Dais on Mt. Hiei.

Ichidai Goji Keizu, Genealogical Chart of the Buddha’s Lifetime Teachings in Five Periods, Writings of Nichiren Shōnin, Doctrine 3, Page 238-243