he devised a calligraphic MANDALA, depicting the as-
sembly of the Lotus Sutra, as an object of worship
(honzon) for his followers. While defining himself in
opposition to the established Buddhism of his day,
Nichiren also creatively assimilated into his Lotusex-
clusivism many older elements of both exoteric and
esoteric Buddhist thought and practice.
Based on MAHAYANAand especially Tendai teach-
ings of the profound interrelationship between persons
and their outer world, Nichiren saw contemporary dis-
asters, including famine, epidemics, and Mongol inva-
sion attempts, as karmic retribution for collective
rejection of the Lotus in favor of “inferior” teachings;
conversely, he asserted, the spread of faith in the Lo-
tus Sutrawould transform this world into a buddha
land. This conviction underlay his commitment to
shakubuku, an assertive approach to spreading the
dharma by directly critiquing opposing views.
Nichiren’s repeated criticisms of the Buddhist estab-
lishment and of its patrons in government incurred the
wrath of the authorities; he himself was twice exiled
and attempts were made on his life, while his follow-
ers were arrested, banished, and in a few cases exe-
cuted. Undeterred, Nichiren urged defiance of worldly
authority when it contravenes Buddhist truth, and he
valorized encounters with harsh trials. Undergoing
such persecution, he taught, serves to eradicate past
evil deeds, proves the validity of one’s practice, and
guarantees the realization of buddhahood. Nichiren’s
ideal of establishing the buddha land in the present
world has inspired modern followers, who have as-
similated it to a range of political agendas as well as
social and humanitarian projects. Today more than
forty religious organizations claim association with
him, including traditional schools and new religious
movements.
See also:Exoteric-Esoteric (Kenmitsu) Buddhism in
Japan; Kamakura Buddhism, Japan; Tiantai School
Bibliography
Habito, Ruben L. F., and Stone, Jacqueline I., eds. Revisiting
Nichiren.Special issue of Japanese Journal of Religious Stud-
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Lamont, H. G. “Nichiren.” In Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan,
Vol. 5. Tokyo: Kodansha, 1983.
Stone, Jacqueline I. “Nichiren and the New Paradigm.” In Orig-
inal Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval
Japanese Buddhism.Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press,
1999.
Watanabe Hoyo. “Nichiren.” In The Encyclopedia of Religion,
Vol. 10, ed. Mircea Eliade. New York: Macmillan, 1987.
Yampolsky, Philip B., ed. Selected Writings of Nichiren,tr. Bur-
ton Watson and others. New York: Columbia University
Press, 1990.
Yampolsky, Philip B., ed. Letters of Nichiren,tr. Burton Watson
and others. New York: Columbia University Press, 1996.JACQUELINEI. STONENICHIREN SCHOOLThe term Nichiren school(Nichirenshu) broadly de-
notes the entire Buddhist tradition deriving from the
medieval Japanese teacher NICHIREN(1222–1282). It
comprises more than forty independent religious in-
stitutions, including traditional temple denomina-
tions, lay associations, and new religious movements.
Originally a monk of the Tendai tradition, Nichiren
did not regard himself as the founder of a new sect,
nor did he designate his following by any particular
sectarian name. Because he taught exclusive faith in the
LOTUSSUTRA(SADDHARMAPUNDARIKA-SUTRA), after
his death, his following became known as the Lotus
sect (Hokkeshu). The name Nichirenshu came into
broad usage from around the late sixteenth century.Present organization and observances
The largest of the Nichiren Buddhist temple denomi-
nations takes Nichirenshuas its legal name and has its
head temple at Kuonji at Mount Minobu in Yamanashi
Prefecture, where Nichiren spent his last years. Other
Nichiren Buddhist denominations include, for exam-
ple, Hokkeshu (Shinmon, Honmon, and Jinmon
branches), Honmon Butsuryushu, Honmon Hok-
keshu, Kenpon Hokkeshu, Nichiren Honshu, Nichiren
Komonshu, Nichiren Shoshu, and Nichirenshu Fuju
Fuse-ha. Many of these temple organizations trace
their history back to the original monastic lineages es-
tablished by Nichiren’s immediate disciples, which un-
derwent repeated schisms during the fourteenth
through sixteenth centuries due to geographic separa-
tion, institutional rivalry, and differences of doctrinal
interpretation. The nineteenth century saw the flour-
ishing of Nichiren Buddhist lay associations (kochuor
ko), sometimes independent of priestly guidance,
which were the predecessors of today’s Nichiren- or
Lotus Sutra-based lay organizations. Of these latter
groups, the most prominent are Reiyukai, Rissho
Koseikai, and SOKAGAKKAI, which number amongNICHIRENSCHOOL