“MA JI SA ZE NEN, I GA RYO SHU JO, TOKU NYU MU JO DO, SOKU JO JU BUS SHIN” (in Chinese Characters). This is the passage of the Lotus Sutra Chapter 16, “The Duration of the Life of the Buddha”. This means that I am always thinking “How can I cause all living beings to enter the supreme way and quickly become Buddhas?”

Sakyamuni Buddha was born almost 2500 years ago at a foothill of the Himalaya Mountain Range as a prince of Sakya clan. Having renounced the world, the price practiced asceticism for 6 years before attaining enlightenment to be called the Buddha, the Enlightened One. Ever since then, He has taught many people the dharma of the truth. To say the truth, however, the Buddha originally is the one with the eternal life, appearing temporarily in this world in order to lead it along the right direction. As stated in the Lotus Sutra, “Since I attained Buddhahood, it has been very many aeons. The duration of My life is limitless; I have always been for an incalculable number of Kalpa without extinction”.

The real Sakyamuni is the Buddha of the limitness life who never passes away. He continues living today, watching and guiding us always. He is called the Original True Buddha Englightened since the Eternal Past.

It is generally considered that this saha world, a land of transience and corruption, where people are burned by hell fire, scorched by the fire of evil passions, and made to suffer from various fears and pains. In reality, however, it is the world embraced by the compassion of Sakyamuni Buddha, who saves us all from suffering in this corrupted land. As this Buddha lives forever, His wish to save the suffering people is also eternal. His great vow is helping all the people to attain Buddhahood by leading them all equally into one Buddha Land in order to realize in this relative world what we may call an absolute peace of mind for individuals and absolute tranquility in society.

NICHIREN Daishonin said in the Rissho Ankoku Ron, you should promptly discard your false beliefs and take up the true and righteous teaching of the One vehicles. Then this world will never decay. All the worlds in the universe will become treasure worlds and the treasure worlds will never be destroyed. When our world does not decay and is not destroyed, our bodies will be safe and hearts tranquil. Believe these words and revere them.

NICHIREN Daishonin taught us that upholding the Lotus Sutra is the gist of the Lotus training and that chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, is the training of upholding the Lotus Sutra. Thus he appealed to us saying that as we sincerely put faith in the Lotus Sutra and chant Odaimoku, we can penetrate deeply into the world of the Buddha’s compassion and wisdom, causing the idea of Rissho Ankoku to become reality. The term Rissho Ankoku means for us to convert our country to be a Pure Land through our virtuous actions and lives in societies based on the belief in the Lotus Sutra, which is the True Dharma. When all the people seek refuge in the True Dharma, and governmental, economic, and cultural activities all are ruled by the spirit of the Lotus Sutra, the establishment of the Buddha Land will be a reality. It means that an ideal world of the Pure Land does not exist in the next world or other worlds but in this real world. And I think, is this not the time when we should learn the teachings of the Lotus Sutra, lead righteous life, and exert ourselves to make this earth a better world to live? When that is done, it is the time when the Pure Land of the Buddha referred to “This domain of mine is peaceful and it is always filled with heavenly beings”. That is the passage of the Lotus Sutra, chapter 16, is realized.