Winter Always Turns to Spring

o the lay nun Myoichi:

IF the sun and moon were not in the heavens, how could plants and trees grow? Human beings have both a father and a mother. It is hard for children to grow up when even one parent is missing. Your husband had to leave behind a daughter, a son who is ill, and you, their mother, who suffer from a poor constitution. To whom could he have entrusted his family before leaving this world? At the time of his extinction, the World-Honored One of Great Enlightenment lamented, Now I am about to enter nirvana. The only thing that worries me is King Ajatashatru. Bodhisattva Kashyapa then asked him, Since the Buddhas mercy is impartial, your regret in dying should stem from compassion for all living beings. Why do you single out only King Ajatashatru? The Buddha replied, Suppose that a couple has seven children, one of whom falls ill. Though the parents love all their children equally, they worry most about the sick child.1 Tien-tai, commenting on this sutra passage in his Great Concentration and Insight, said, Even if the parents of seven children are never partial, they are still particularly concerned about the sick one. In essence, the sutra is saying that, even if there are many children, the parents hearts are with the child who is ill. To the Buddha, all living beings are his children. Among them, the sinful man who slays his own parents and becomes an enemy of the Buddha and the sutras is like the sick child. King Ajatashatru was the ruler of Magadha. He murdered his father, King Bimbisara, a powerful patron of Shakyamuni Buddha, and became an enemy of the Buddha. In consequence, the heavenly gods forsook him, the sun and moon rose out of rhythm, and the earth shook violently to cast him off. All his subjects defied the Buddhas teachings, and other kingdoms began to attack Magadha. All this happened because King Ajatashatru took the wicked Devadatta for his teacher. As a result, one day virulent sores broke out all over his body, and it was foretold that on the seventh day of the third month he would die and fall into the hell of incessant suffering. Saddened by this, the Buddha was reluctant to enter nirvana. He lamented, If I can save King Ajatashatru, I can save all offenders in the same way. Your late husband had an ailing son and a daughter. I cannot help thinking that he may have grieved that, if he were to abandon them and leave this world, his aged wife, as feeble as a withered tree, would be left alone, and would probably feel very sorry for these children. In addition, he may also have worried about Nichiren. Since the Buddhas words are in no way false, the Lotus Sutra is sure to spread widely. In that regard, perhaps your husband felt that certainly something would happen and this priest would become highly respected. When I was exiled contrary to his expectations, he must have wondered how the Lotus Sutra and the ten demon daughters could possibly have allowed it to happen. Were he still living, how delighted he would be to see Nichiren pardoned! How glad he would be to see that my prediction has been fulfilled, now that the Mongol empire has attacked Japan and the country is in a crisis. These are the feelings of ordinary people. Those who believe in the Lotus Sutra are as if in winter, but winter always turns to spring. Never, from ancient times on, has anyone heard or seen of winter turning back to autumn. Nor have we ever heard of a believer in the Lotus Sutra who turned into an ordinary person. The sutra reads, If there are those who hear the Law, then not a one will fail to attain Buddhahood.2 Your husband gave his life for the Lotus Sutra. His entire livelihood depended on a small fief, and that was confiscated because of his faith in the Lotus Sutra. Surely that equals giving his life for the Lotus Sutra. The boy Snow Mountains was able to give his body for half a verse of a Buddhist teaching, and Bodhisattva Medicine King was able to burn his arms as an offering to the Buddha because both were sages, and it was like pouring water on fire. But your husband was an ordinary person, so it was like putting paper in fire. Therefore, he must certainly have received blessings as great as theirs. He is probably watching his wife and children in the heavenly mirrors of the sun and moon every moment of the day and night. Since you and your children are ordinary persons, you cannot see or hear him; neither can the deaf hear thunder nor the blind see the sun. But never doubt that he is protecting you. Moreover, he may be close at hand. Just when I was thinking that, if at all possible, I must somehow come and see you, you had a robe sent here to me. This was a totally unexpected circumstance. Since the Lotus Sutra is the noblest of all sutras, I may yet gain influence in this lifetime. If so, rest assured that I will look after your children whether you are still living or are watching from under the sod. While I was in the province of Sado and during my stay here [at Minobu], you sent your servant to help me. In what lifetime could I ever forget what you have done for me? I will repay this debt of gratitude by serving you in the next lifetime. Nammyoho-renge-kyo, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. With Nichiren The fifth month my deep respect,

To the lay nun Myoichi

Background
This letter, written in the fifth month of the first year of Kenji (1275), is one of several that Nichiren Daishonin wrote to the lay nun Myoichi, who lived in Kamakura and was related to Nissho, one of the Daishonins six senior priest-disciples. Myoichi was an educated woman who had lost her husband and was struggling with the difficulties of raising her children alone. Nichiren Daishonin wrote to encourage her, explaining that believers of the Lotus Sutra are as if in the midst of winter, but that winter unfailingly turns to spring. This letter reveals that the lay nuns husband was a strong believer, since he continued to follow the Daishonin even when his estate was confiscated because of his faith. He died worrying about the Daishonin, who was then in exile, and about his wife, whose constitution was frail, and who would have to support their two children. But the Daishonin assures Myoichi that her husband has received the same benefits as sages such as the boy Snow Mountains and Bodhisattva Medicine King, and that he is protecting his bereaved family. One theory maintains that the lay nun is the same person as a believer named Myoichi-nyo who received the letter The Doctrine of Attaining Buddhahood in Ones Present form.

Good Fortune in This Life

ARLY in the New Year1 I received your greetings from your messenger. Let us congratulate each other! And I have

received your various gifts, including seventy slabs of rice cake, a bamboo container of sake, a horseload of taros, one paper bag of river laver, two bundles of radishes, and seven yams. These articles demonstrate your warmhearted sincerity. The eighth volume of the Lotus Sutra says, Their wishes will not be in vain, and in this present existence they will gain the reward of good fortune.2It also states, In this present existence he will have manifest reward for it. 3 The Great Teacher Tien-tai said, The Son of Heaven uttered not a single word in vain, and The words of the Dharma King contain no falsehoods.4 If one is a worthy ruler, one never lies, even if it would bring about ones ruin. How much more is this true of the Thus Come One Shakyamuni, who, when he was King Universal Brightness in a previous existence, returned to the palace of King Spotted Feet [to be executed] because he observed the precept against lying! When he met King Kali in another past existence, he declared that those people who speak little truth or tell great lies will fall into hell. In addition, referring to the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha himself declares there, The World-Honored One [has long expounded his doctrines and] now must reveal the truth,5 and furthermore, it was expounded at the assembly where Many Treasures Buddha and the Buddhas of the ten directions had gathered as if the sun, the moon, and countless stars were ranged side by side. If there are any falsehoods in the Lotus Sutra, what then can people believe in? Those who offer even a flower or a stick of incense to such a sutra have offered alms to a hundred thousand million Buddhas in their previous existences. Moreover, in the Latter Day of the Law of Shakyamuni Thus Come One, when the world is in chaos, and the ruler, his ministers, and the common people all alike hate the votary of the Lotus Sutra; when this votary is like a fish living in a puddle during a drought, or like a deer surrounded by all sorts of people, those who visit this votary on their own will obtain far greater blessings than they would by making offerings with their mind, mouth, and body for the space of an entire kalpa to the living Shakyamuni Buddha, the lord of teachings. The golden words of the Thus Come One are clear. The sun is brilliant, and the moon, clear. The words of the Lotus Sutra are brilliant and clear, clear and brilliant, like the reflection of a face in a bright mirror, or the image of the moon on clear water. Yet could the Thus Come Ones pronouncement In this present existence they will gain the reward of good fortune, or his proclamation In this present existence he will have manifest reward for it possibly be empty only for Nanjo Shichiro Jiro? It is certain that, even if there were an age when the sun rises in the west, or a time were to come when the moon emerges from the ground, the Buddhas words would never prove false. Judging from this, there cannot be the least doubt that your late father is now in the presence of Shakyamuni Buddha, the lord of teachings, and that you will receive great blessings in your present existence. How wonderful, how splendid! Nichiren The nineteenth day of the first month in the second year of Kenji (1276) Reply to Nanjo

Background
This letter was written at Minobu when the Daishonin was fifty-five years old. Its recipient was Nanjo Shichiro Jiro Tokimitsu, commonly known as Nanjo Tokimitsu, a staunch follower of the Daishonin and the steward of Ueno Village in Fuji District of Suruga Province. In the letter, citing the Lotus Sutra, the Daishonin says that those who serve the votary of the Lotus Sutra in the Latter Day of the Law, even for a short time, will gain incalculably greater good fortune than those who serve Shakyamuni Buddha for an entire kalpa. Since all Buddhas have attested to the truth of the Lotus and it contains not a particle of falsehood, no doubt can exist that Tokimitsus sincerity not only will bring him great blessings in his present existence, as the sutra promises, but also will benefit his deceased father

The Bow and Arrow

HAVE received one thousand coins and a bamboo container.

It is the power of the bow that determines the flight of the arrow, the might of the dragon that controls the movement of the clouds, and the strength of the wife that guides the actions of her husband. In the same way, it is your support that has enabled Toki to visit me here now. We know the fire by its smoke, discern the nature of the dragon by the rain, and recognize the wife by observing her husband. Thus, meeting here at this moment with Toki, I feel as if I were seeing you. Toki has told me that, while grieved at his mothers death, he was grateful that she passed away peacefully, and that you gave her such attentive care. He said joyfully that he would never be able to forget this in any lifetime to come. My greatest concern now is your illness. Fully convinced that you will recover your health, you should continue moxibustion treatment for three years, as regularly as if you had just begun. Even those who are free from illness cannot escape the transience of life, but you are not yet old, and because you are a votary of the Lotus Sutra, you will not meet an untimely death. Your illness is surely not due to karma, but even if it were, you could rely on the power of the Lotus Sutra to cure it. King Ajatashatru extended his life by forty years by embracing the Lotus Sutra. Chen Chen added fifteen years to his life. You also are a practitioner of the Lotus Sutra, and your faith is like the waxing moon or the rising tide. Be deeply convinced, then, that your illness cannot possibly persist, and that your life cannot fail to be extended! Take care of yourself, and do not burden your mind with grief. When sorrows arise, think of Iki and Tsushima, and of the Dazaifu office. 1 Or think of the people of Kamakura, who were enjoying the delights of the heavenly realm; but when the soldiers left for Tsukushi, their parting with their wives and children who stayed behind was like bark being ripped from a tree. They pressed their faces together and lamented while gazing into each others eyes. Now the men gradually grow more distant, traveling through Yui Beach, Inamura, Koshigoe, Sakawa, and the Hakone pass. And so, as one day passes and then another goes by, they march farther and farther away, and rivers, mountains, and clouds are interposed between them and their families. Tears accompany them, and grief is their companion. How sorrowful they must be! If the Mongol armies should come and attack while they are thus lamenting, they will be taken prisoner, whether in the mountains or on the sea, and will suffer misery in ships or in Kory[Korea]. This is entirely because of the treatment people have accorded Nichiren, the votary of the Lotus Sutra, who has committed no fault and is father and mother to all the living beings of Japan. Without reason, they revile and beat him, and parade him through the streets. Such insanity has provoked reprimands from the ten demon daughters, causing the present situation to arise. In addition, events that are a hundred, thousand, ten thousand, million times more difficult to endure will occur in the future. You will see such mysteries unfold before your eyes. There is nothing to lament when we consider that we will surely become Buddhas. Even if one were to become an emperors consort, of what use would it be? Even if one were to be reborn in heaven, what end would it serve? Instead, you will follow the way of the dragon kings daughter and rank with the nun Mahaprajapati. How wonderful! How wonderful! Please chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. With Nichiren my deep respect,

The twenty-seventh day of the third month

To the lay nun Toki

Background
Nichiren Daishonin wrote this letter to the lay nun Toki in the third month of the second year of Kenji (1276) and entrusted its delivery to her husband, Toki Jonin, who was visiting Minobu at the time. Tokis mother had passed away toward the end of the second month of the year. In the third month, Toki carried her ashes from his home in Wakamiya, Shimosa Province, to distant Minobu, where a memorial service was performed for her. From a letter the Daishonin sent to Toki one year earlier, in 1275, it is clear that Tokis mother was over ninety years old when she died. It is also thought that she had been extremely fond of her son. The contents of this letter suggest that the lay nun Toki did her best to support and assist her husband. In addition, the Daishonin likens her faith to the waxing moon or the rising tide, suggesting that she was diligent in her practice. He also conveys Tokis feelings regarding his mothers death as well as his sense of gratitude toward the lay nun for her attentive care of her mother-in-law. Thus the Daishonin compassionately encourages the lay nun Toki during her illness, which she had been battling since the previous year. It is possible that her illness was due at least in part to the exhausting effort of caring for her mother-in-law. The Daishonin expresses concern over her health in this letter and in another letter sent to Toki Jonin in the eleventh month of 1276, in which he writes: I think of your wifes illness as if it were my own, and am praying to heaven day and night. Although the year of the lay nuns death is not certain, one source indicates 1303, which suggests that she was indeed able to recover and live many years longer.