Nichiren Quotes
Nichiren was a Japanese Buddhist priest of the Kamakura period and the founder of the school of Buddhism that bears his name. After decades of study across the major schools of Japanese Buddhism, he came to the conviction that the Lotus Sutra alone contains the complete teaching of the Buddha and that, in the degenerate age of the Latter Day of the Law, salvation is to be sought through devotion to it expressed in the chant Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. The quotes below are attributed to Nichiren, organized by topic.
Browse Nichiren by topic
Nichiren on God
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Attributed to Nichiren:
“Devotion to the Lotus Sutra is the only complete path in the Latter Day of the Law.”
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Attributed to Nichiren:
“Even one who knows little can be saved by chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.”
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Attributed to Nichiren:
“Buddhism is the foundation of all civilizations.”
Nichiren on Happiness
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Attributed to Nichiren:
“Suffer what there is to suffer, enjoy what there is to enjoy. Regard both suffering and joy as facts of life.”
Nichiren on Justice
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“The people of today all turn their backs upon what is right; to a person, they give their allegiance to evil.”
p. 7
Nichiren on Mind
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“In judging the relative merit of Buddhist doctrines, I, Nichiren, believe that the best standards are those of reason and documentary proof. And even more valuable than reason and documentary proof is the proof of actual fact.”
Three Tripitaka Masters Pray for Rain," in The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin , as edited and translated by the Gosho Translation Committee (Soka Gakkai: 1999), p. 599
Nichiren on Time
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Attributed to Nichiren:
“The age of decline calls for a single-minded faith.”
Nichiren on Virtue
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“If we do not admonish the evil priests, how can we hope to do good?”
p. 12