"The eight-year-old daughter of the dragon king [in her reptile form] attained Buddhahood, and the Buddha’s aunt, Gautami, and the nun Yashodhara are given prophecies of the attainment of Buddhahood. Our mothers are human women; they do not belong to the realm of animals, nor have they the bodies of reptiles. If the eight-year-old dragon king’s daughter can become a Buddha, then what reason is there to believe that our mothers, through the power of this sutra, cannot become Buddhas? Therefore a person who upholds the Lotus Sutra is repaying the debt of gratitude owed to father and mother. Even if one does not feel in one’s own heart that one can do so, one can repay it through the power of this sutra."
From Gosho "Four Virtues and Four Debts of Gratitude" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume I, page 638)
From Gosho "Four Virtues and Four Debts of Gratitude" (The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin Volume I, page 638)
