A Sage Knows the Three Existences of Life

Who should we acknowledge as the votary of the Lotus Sutra in the last Five-hundred-year Period? I was yet unable to trust my own wisdom in this matter; however, [the accuracy of my predictions of] rebellion and invasion has convinced me of my wisdom. I would not purposely disclose this to others. Even so, my disciples should know and acknowledge that I, Nichiren, am the votary of the Lotus Sutra. This is because I follow in the footsteps of Bodhisattva Never Disparaging. Those who despise and slander me shall have their heads broken into seven pieces. In contrast, the fortune of those who believe in me will grow to the heights of Mount Sumeru.

(Gosho, p. 748)

Background of “A Sage Knows the Three Existences of Life”:

This Gosho was written in Minobu in the 11th month of the 11th year of Bun’ei (1274), when Nichiren Daishonin was 53 years of age. It is a letter addressed to Toki Jonin. The title of this Gosho, which was a subsequent addition, is based on the first sentence, which reads: “A sage is the one who knows in full the three existences of life.” (Gosho, p. 748)

This Gosho starts by discussing the Confucian, non-Buddhist, and Hinayana doctrines leading to the Lotus Sutra and describing the true sage (shonin). In the passage we are studying, the Daishonin states that he is, in fact, the votary of the Lotus Sutra who follows in the footsteps of Bodhisattva Never Disparaging (Fukyo bosatsu). Next, he declares, “…the sage without peer in the entire world is I, Nichiren.” (Gosho, p. 748) He predicts that, regardless of what prayers people offer, if they do not heed him, the entire country of Japan will suffer the awful conditions like those seen in Iki and Tsushima. Then he tells his disciples: “I say this not because I am saintly or noble, but because the power of the Lotus Sutra I embrace is singularly supreme.” He concludes this letter by stating: “In this impure land, only I, Nichiren, know the bliss of sublime freedom.” Thus, he revealed his precious life condition as the True Buddha.

Explanation of the Major Terms:

• Last Five-hundred-year Period: The beginning of the Latter Day of the Law. The Moon Storehouse Sutra (Daishu gatsuzo-kyo) classifies the period following Shakyamuni’s death into five periods. The fifth Five-hundred-year Period is when conflicts and disputes will arise, and the pure Law will be lost, as Shakyamuni’s teachings lose their power.
• Rebellion and Invasion: Two of the seven disasters expounded in the Sutra of the Medicine Master (Yakushi-kyo) that occur in nations where the true Law is slandered. They are internal strife (insurrections and civil wars) and foreign invasions (incursions and attacks from foreign countries). These disasters occurred in Japan in the form of the rebellion that occurred in the second month of the ninth year of Bun’ei (1272), and the foreign invasions by the Mongols, which took place on two occasions.
• Heads broken into seven pieces: The following are the words of the ten demon daughters, who swore to protect the votaries of the Lotus Sutra: “If there are those who…trouble and disrupt the preachers of the Law, their heads will split into seven pieces like the branches of the arjaka tree.” (Dharani (Darani; twenty-sixth) chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Hokekyo, p. 580; The Lotus Sutra, Watson, p. 310)
• The fortune of those who believe in me will grow to the heights of Mount Sumeru: This phrase means that one will amass heaps of good fortune as high as the towering Mount Sumeru. This description is found in Dengyo Daishi’s Collection on the Reliances of the Tendai School (Ehyo Tendai shu). (Dengyo Daishi Zenshu, 3-364)