Friday, September 25, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 25, 2026

The blessings that you, the Honorable Jōren, acquire through your faith in the Lotus Sutra will lend strength to your kind father. Though Devadatta fell into the Avīchi hell, the Buddha predicted that he would in the future become a Buddha named Heavenly King Thus Come One. This was because he belonged to the same extended family as the Buddha. In your case, the relationship is one of father and son. How could the fact that you embrace the Lotus Sutra fail to bring blessing to the departed spirit of your late father?

From Gosho "Letter to Joren-bo" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume II, page 572)

Thursday, September 24, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 24, 2026

"In essence, the appearance of the treasure tower indicates that on hearing the Lotus Sutra the three groups of voice-hearers perceived for the first time the treasure tower within their own lives. Now Nichiren’s disciples and lay supporters are also doing this. In the Latter Day of the Law, no treasure tower exists other than the figures of the men and women who embrace the Lotus Sutra. It follows, therefore, that whether eminent or humble, high or low, those who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo are themselves the treasure tower, and, likewise, are themselves the Thus Come One Many Treasures. No treasure tower exists other than Myoho-renge-kyo. The daimoku of the Lotus Sutra is the treasure tower, and the treasure tower is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo."

From Gosho "On the Treasure Tower" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 299)
Gosho passage - September 23, $year$
"The Lotus Sutra is made up of 69,384 characters. Though in our eyes each individual character may appear to be no more than a character in black ink, in the Buddha’s eyes, each one is a Buddha. For example, a ruler called King Golden Grains turned sand into gold. A man named Mahanama turned rocks into gems. Wood immersed in the Spring of Jewels changes into lapis lazuli. Waters that enter the sea all become salty. Birds that approach Mount Sumeru turn golden-hued. Agada medicine changes poison into medicine. And the wonder of the Lotus Sutra is also like that; it changes ordinary people into Buddhas."

From Gosho "Offerings for the Object of Devotion" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume II, page 671)

Tuesday, September 22, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 22, 2026

"Entering into the relation of teacher and lay supporter is the result of a bond that bridges the three existences. Never seek the three benefits of sowing, maturing, and harvesting from anyone else. These golden words cannot possibly be wrong: “Those persons who had heard the Law dwelled here and there in various Buddha lands, constantly reborn in company with their teachers,” and “If one stays close to the teachers of the Law, one will speedily gain the way of enlightenment. By following and learning from these teachers one will see Buddhas as numerous as Ganges sands.” How could the person mentioned in the “Devadatta” chapter where it says, “In the place where they are born they will constantly hear this sutra,” refer to anyone but you?"

From Gosho "On the Five Seasonal Festivals" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume II, page 375)

Monday, September 21, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 21, 2026

"Never seek this Gohonzon outside yourself. The Gohonzon exists only within the mortal flesh of us ordinary people who embrace the Lotus Sutra and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. The body is the palace of the ninth consciousness, the unchanging reality that reigns over all of life’s functions. To be endowed with the Ten Worlds means that all ten, without a single exception, exist in one world. Because of this it is called a mandala. Mandala is a Sanskrit word that is translated as “perfectly endowed” or “a cluster of blessings.” This Gohonzon also is found only in the two characters for faith. This is what the sutra means when it states that one can “gain entrance through faith alone.”"

From Gosho "The Real Aspect of the Gohonzon" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume I, page 832)

Sunday, September 20, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 20, 2026

"When we revere Myoho-renge-kyo inherent in our own life as the object of devotion, the Buddha nature within us is summoned forth and manifested by our chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. This is what is meant by “Buddha.” To illustrate, when a caged bird sings, birds who are flying in the sky are thereby summoned and gather around, and when the birds flying in the sky gather around, the bird in the cage strives to get out. When with our mouths we chant the Mystic Law, our Buddha nature, being summoned, will invariably emerge. The Buddha nature of Brahma and Shakra, being called, will protect us, and the Buddha nature of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, being summoned, will rejoice. This is what the Buddha meant when he said, “If one can uphold it [the Mystic Law] even for a short while I will surely rejoice and so will the other Buddhas."

From Gosho "How Those Initially Aspiring to the Way..." (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 887)
Gosho passage - September 19, $year$
"The Great Teacher Miao-lo says: “You should understand that one’s life and its environment at a single moment encompass the three thousand realms. Therefore, when one attains the Buddha way, one puts oneself in accord with this fundamental principle, and one’s body and mind at a single moment pervade the entire realm of phenomena.”"

From Gosho "The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume I, page 366)

Friday, September 18, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 18, 2026

"Before, I had thought that your sincerity was just an ordinary matter, but now, for the first time, I have sensed the depth of your faith. If anything should happen to you, just as the moon emerges to shine in the dark night, so the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo will appear as a moon for you."

From Gosho "The Sons Pure Storehouse and Pure Eye" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume I, page 1050)

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Gosho Passage - September 17, 2026

"A fire burns higher when logs are added, and a strong wind makes a kalakula grow larger. The pine tree lives for ten thousand years, and therefore its boughs become bent and twisted. The votary of the Lotus Sutra is like the fire and the kalakula, while his persecutions are like the logs and the wind. The votary of the Lotus Sutra is the Thus Come One whose life span is immeasurable; no wonder his practice is hindered, just as the pine tree’s branches are bent or broken. From now on, always remember the words “This sutra is hard to uphold."

From Gosho "The Difficulty of Sustaining Faith" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume I, page 471)