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Gosho Background Information

Reply to Nii-ama

I have received a bag of dried laver from you. I would also like to express my appreciation for the offering of dried laver from O-ama Gozen.

This area is called Mount Minobu.¹ Suruga Province lies to the south, and it is more than a hundred ri² from the seaside of Ukishimagahara³ in that province to this mountain at Hakiri Village⁴ in Kai Province. The way is more difficult than ten times the distance on an ordinary path. The Fuji River, the swiftest in all Japan, runs from north to south. High mountains rise to the east and west of this river, forming deep valleys where huge rocks stand about everywhere like tall folding-screens. The waters of the river rush through the valley like an arrow shot through a tube by a powerful archer. The river is so swift and rocky that sometimes a boat will be smashed against the rapids as it travels along the riverbanks or attempts to cross the stream. Coming through this dangerous pass, one arrives at a large mountain called the peak of Minobu.

To the east stands the peak of Tenshi, to the south, Takatori, to the west, Shichimen, and to the north, Minobu, and they all tower as though four giant folding-screens had been set up. Climbing these peaks, you will see a vast stretch of forest below, while going down to the valleys, you will find huge rocks lined up side by side. The howls of wolves fill the mountains, the chatter of monkeys echoes through the valleys, stags call plaintively to their does, and the voices of cicadas sound shrilly. Here spring flowers bloom in summer, while trees bear autumn fruit in winter. Occasionally one sees a woodcutter gathering firewood, and my rare visitors are only friends of old. Mount Shang⁶ in China where the four white-haired recluses⁷ retired from the world and the deep recesses in the mountains where the Seven Worthies of the Bamboo Grove⁸ secluded themselves must have been like this place.

As you climb the peak, it looks as if kelp were growing there, but instead you find only an expanse of bracken. Going down to the valleys, you think surely it must be laver growing there, but it is only a dense growth of parsley.

Though I had long since ceased to think about my home, this laver brings back trivial nostalgic memories, making me feel sad. It is the same kind of laver I saw long ago on the shore at Kataumi, Ichikawa and Kominato⁹. I feel an unwarranted resentment that the color, shape and taste of this laver should remain unchanged while my parents have passed away, and I cannot restrain my tears.

Enough of this. O-ama has asked me to inscribe the Gohonzon for her, but I am troubled by her request. The reason is as follows. This Gohonzon was never mentioned in the writings of the many Buddhist scholars who traveled from India to China or in those of the priests who journeyed from China to India. All the objects of worship ever enshrined in the temples throughout India are described without exception in the Daito Saiiki Ki,¹⁰ the Jion Den,¹¹ and the Dento Roku,¹² [and this Gohonzon is not among them]. Nor have I found it mentioned among the objects) of worship of the various temples which were described by those sages who traveled from China to Japan or by those wise men who went from Japan to China. Since all the records of the first temples in Japan such as Gango-ji,¹³ Shitenno-ji¹⁴ and other temples as well as many histories, beginning with the Nihon Shoki¹⁵ name them without omission, the objects of worship in these temples are clearly known, but this Gohonzon has never been listed among them.

People may say in doubt: "It was probably not expounded in the sutras or treatises. That is why the many wise men have neither painted nor carved images of it." I say that, because the sutras lie before their eyes, those who so doubt should examine whether or not it is revealed in the sutras. It is wrong to denounce this object of worship merely because it was never painted or carved in previous ages.

For example, Shakyamuni Buddha once ascended to the Trayastrimsha Heaven¹⁶ to fulfill his obligations to his [deceased] mother. But no one in the entire world, except for the Venerable Maudgalyayana, was aware of it, because of the Buddha’s supernatural powers. Thus even though Buddhism may exist before their eyes, people will not realize it if they lack the proper capacity, nor will it spread unless the time is right. This is in accordance with the natural law, just as the tides of the ocean ebb and flow and the moon in the sky wanes and waxes according to the time.

Lord Shakyamuni treasured this Gohonzon in mind since the remote past of gohyaku-jintengo, but even after he appeared in this world, he did not expound it for more than forty years following his first preaching. Even in the Lotus Sutra he did not allude to it in the earlier chapters of the theoretical teaching. Only in the Hoto chapter did he begin to suggest it.¹⁷ He revealed it in the Juryo chapter, and concluded his explanation in the Jinriki and Zokurui chapters.¹⁸

Bodhisattvas such as Monjushiri living in the Golden World, Miroku in the palace of the Tushita Heaven,¹⁹ Kannon on Mount Potalaka²⁰ and Yakuo, who had served the Buddha Nichigatsu Jomyotoku,²¹ all vied with one another in asking [the Buddha’s permission to propagate faith in the Gohonzon in the Latter Day of the Law], but the Buddha refused. Those bodhisattvas were well known as men of excellent wisdom and profound learning, but since they had only recently begun to hear the Lotus Sutra, their understanding was still limited. Thus they would not be able to endure great difficulties in the Latter Day.

Then the Buddha declared, "There are my true disciples whom I have hidden at the bottom of the earth since gohyaku-jintengo. I will entrust it to them." So saying, the Buddha summoned those bodhisattvas led by Jogyo in the Yujutsu chapter and entrusted them with the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo, the heart of the essential teaching of the sutra, [in the Jinriki chapter].

Then the Buddha stated: "You must not propagate it in the first millennium of the Former Day of the Law or in the second millennium of the Middle Day following my death. In the beginning of the Latter Day of the Law, slanderous priests will fill the entire world, so that all heavenly gods will be enraged and comets will appear in the sky and the earth will shake like the movement of huge waves. Innumerable disasters and calamities such as drought, fires, floods, gales, epidemics, famine and war will all occur at once. The people throughout the world will don armor and take up bows and staves, and since none of the Buddhas, bodhisattvas or benevolent deities will be able to help them, they will all die and fall like rain into the hell of incessant suffering. At this very time, kings can save their countries and the people will escape calamities if they embrace and believe in this great mandala of the five characters, and in their next life they will not fall into the great fires of hell."²²

Now I, Nichiren, am not Bodhisattva Jogyo, but perhaps by his design I have already attained a general understanding of this teaching, and I have been expounding it for these more than twenty years. When one resolves to propagate it, he will meet difficulties, as the sutra states: "Since hatred and jealousy [toward this sutra] abound even during the lifetime of the Buddha, how much worse will it be in the world after his passing?"²³ and, "The people will be full of hostility, and it will be extremely difficult to believe." Of the three types of powerful enemies²⁴ predicted in the sutra, the first indicates the sovereign, district and village stewards and lords of manors as well as the ordinary populace. Believing the charges leveled by the second and third types of enemies, who are priests, they will vilify or slander the votary of the Lotus Sutra, or attack him with swords and staves.

Tojo Village in Awa Province, though it is a remote place may well be called the center of Japan because the Sun Goddess resides there. In ancient times she lived in Ise Province.²⁵ Later on, the emperor came to take deep faith in Bodhisattva Hachiman and in Kamo Shrine²⁶ and neglected the Sun Goddess, so that she became enraged. At that time, Minamoto no Yoritomo wrote a pledge and ordered Aoka no Kodayu²⁸ to enshrine her in the outer shrine of Ise. Probably because Yoritomo²⁷ thus satisfied the goddess’s desire, he became the shogun and ruled the whole of Japan. He then decided on Tojo District as the residence of the Sun Goddess, and so she no longer lives in Ise Province but in Tojo District in Awa Province. This is similar to Bodhisattva Hachiman who, in ancient times, resided at Dazaifu in Chikuzen Province²⁹ but later dwelt at Otokoyama³⁰ in Yamashiro Province and now lives at Tsurugaoka³¹ in Kamakura in Sagami Province.

Nichiren began to propagate this true teaching in Tojo District in Awa Province in Japan, out of all places in the entire world. Accordingly, the Tojo steward became my enemy, but his clan has now been half destroyed.

O-ama Gozen is insincere and foolish. She was also irresolute, believing at one time, while renouncing her belief at another. When Nichiren incurred the displeasure of the government authorities,³² she quickly discarded the Lotus Sutra. This is why, even before, I told her the Lotus Sutra is "the most difficult to believe and the most difficult to understand,"³³ whenever we met.

If I give her the Gohonzon because I am indebted to her, then the Ten Goddesses will certainly think I am a very partial priest. On the other hand, if I follow the sutra and do not give her a Gohonzon because of her lack of faith, I will not be partial, but she may well harbor a grudge against me because she does not realize her fault. I have explained the reasons for my refusal in detail in a letter to Suke no Ajari.³⁴ Please send for the letter and show it to her.

You are of the same family as O-ama Gozen, but you have demonstrated the sincerity of your faith. Because you have often sent offerings to me, both to Sado and here to Minobu, and because your resolve does not seem to wane, I have inscribed a Gohonzon for you. But I still worry whether you will maintain your faith to the end and feel as if I were treading on thin ice or facing a drawn sword. I will write to you again in more detail.

When I incurred the displeasure of the government, even in Kamakura 999 out of 1,000 discarded their faith, but since popular feeling toward me has now softened, some of them seem to regret. I do not class O-ama Gozen with those people and I feel deeply sorry for her, but I can no more bestow the Gohonzon upon someone who goes against the Lotus Sutra than flesh can replace bone. Please explain to her thoroughly why I cannot grant her request.

With my deep respect,
Nichiren

The sixteenth day of the second month.

Footnotes:

1. Minobu: A mountain in what is now Yarnanashi Prefecture located to the west of Tokyo. Nichiren Daishonin remained there from May 1274 through September 1282.
2. Ri: See p. 2.5, rL 72.
3.  
4.  
5.  
6. Shang, Mt.: A mountain in Shensi Province in northern China.
7. Four white-haired recluses: Master Tung-yiian, Scholar Lu-1i. Ch'i Li-chi and Master Hsia-huang.
8. Emperor Kao-tsu (2.47-195 B.C.), founder of the Ha
9. Kataumi, Ichikawa and Korninato: Places along the Pacific coast in Awa, the Daishonin's native province. The precise location of Kataumi is difficult to identify clearly.
10. Dait5 Saiiki Ki: "Record of the Western Regions." A twelve-volume account by Hsaan-tsang of the Tang dynasty, recording his travels through Central Asia and India between 629 and 645 in search of Buddhist scriptures. of Nara. he con uction of h was bbe n by the court official
11. i s t 588 b he arup I t in 5 0.
12. Soga no Umako and was co e ed 596.
13. 13
14. Shitenn6ji: The oldest extant Japanese Buddhist temple, founded by Prince Shatoku in 587 and located in what is now Osaka. It is said that Shotoku built it in gratitude for his victory together with Soga no Umako over Mononobe no Moriya, and that he enshrined statues of the Four Heavenly Kings (Jap Shitenn6) therein.
15. Nihon Shoki: "Chronicles of Japan." A thirty-fascicle history of Japan written in 72o and one of the two oldest extant histories, along with the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) written in 712. Both were compiled by imperial order.
16. Trayastrimsha Heaven: The Heaven of the Thirty-three Gods. See p. 44, n. 6. Accordin t the Kako Genzai Inga Sutra, Shakyamuni ascended to this heaven after t teoleath of his mother, Maya, where he expounded the Maya Sutra for her.
17. 116th chapter: The eleventh chapter of the Lotus Sutra, which describes the Treasure Tower of Taho Buddha, who comes to bear witness to the truth of
18. Jinriki and Zokurui~hapters: The twenty-first and twenty-second cha ters of the Lotus Sutra. In thefinriki chapter, Shakyamuni Buddha transfers essence of the sutra specifically to the Bodhisattvas of the Earth led by J59yo. Then, in the Zokurui chapter, he makes a general transfer of the sutra to all the bodhisattvas. Thereafter all the Buddhas who have gathered from throughout the universe return to their respective lands; the Treasure Tower returns to its or, Peatal place; and the location of the assembly shifts from midair back to Eagle
19. Tushita Heaven: The fourth of the six heavens in the world of desire. it is said that bodhisattvas are reborn there just before their last rebirth in the world when they attain Buddhahood. Bodhisattva Miroku is said to reside in the inner court of this heaven.
20. Potalaka, Mt.: A mountain regarded as the home of Bodhisattva Kannon, said to be located on the southern coast of India.
21. Nichigatsu Jomy6toku: A Buddha who expounded the Lotus Sutra to Bodhisattva Yakuo when the latter was ra ticing austerities in a past existence as a bodhisattva called Kiken. This Buddha is referred to in the Yakuo (23rd) chapter of the Lotus Sutra.
22. Lotus Sutra, chap. 10.
23. Ibid., chap. 14.
24. Three types of powerful enemies: See Three powerful enemies in Glossary. in the Yujutsu chapter the Lotus Sutra. After Shakyamuni's proclamations in the preceding chapters that the men of Learning and Realization will attain Buddhahood in t e future, a magnificent tower emerges from beneath the earth and hangs suspended in midair. This marks the beginning of the Ceremony in the Air, which symbolizes the Budd: tenment.
25. Ise Province: Presently Nhe Prefecture, the location of the Grand Shrines of Ise, the outer and inner shrines, each of which houses a traditional Japanese deity sacred to the imperial clan.
26. Kamo Shrine: A shrine in Kyoto dedicated to three traditional Japanese deities.
27. Nlinamoto no Yoritomo (1147-H99): The first shogunof the Kamakura government (1192-1333), who initiated a state administration by samurai, or Warriors. He shifted the virtual power of government from the imperial court in Kyoto to Kamakura.
28. Aoka no Kodayti: The first attendant of the shrine to Tensho Daijin or the Sun Goddess, erected in T-6jo Village by Minamoto no Yoritomo.
29. Dazaifu: The government headquarters established in Kyushu to regulate contact with the mainland and also for defensive measures. The main shrine of Hachiman was formerly located nearb *
30. Otokoyama: A mountain to the south where Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine is located.
31. Tsurugaoka: A reference to the shrine built in 1063 by Minamoto noYoriyoshi (988-1075) at Tsurugacka, for an emanation of the spirit of Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine. Even after Minamoto no Yoritomo relocated the shrine in 1180 at Kitayama in Kamakura, it still retained the name of Tsurugaoka.
32. Displeasure of the government authorities: Reference to the Tatsunokuchi Persecution, an unsuccessful attempt to execute Nichiren Daishonin on September 12, 1271. Shortly after this incident, he was exiled to Sado Island.
33. Lotus Sutra, chap. 10.
34. Suke no Ajari: Believed to have been a follower of the Daishonin who was very close to the local lord in Tojo District. According to another view, he may have been amon the priests of Seicho-ji temple where the Daishonin entered the priesthood.

Major Writings of Nichiren Daishonin; Vol. 3, page 61.

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