"The Buddhas of the Three Existences and the lives of the successive high priests since the Daishonin, passes through the procedural masters, so set your heart firmly upon the master and believe."
(9th HP Nichiu, On Formalities, Rekidai Hossu Zenshu, vol. 1, p.341)
"The formal teachers have been installed according
to the instructions of the Buddhas of the Three Existences, that is, the
successive high priests since Nichiren Daishonin. Therefore, these teachers
have been decided upon very carefully and faith must be placed in them.
In addition, my disciples must believe in me in the same manner. When this
occurs, both I and they will become the body and mind of Myoho Renge Kyo.
We will become complete Buddhas. This is called, attaining Buddhahood with
this very body."
(9th HP Nichiu, On Formalities, Rekidai Hossu Zenshu, vol. 1, p.341)
"The object of worship is the presence with which
[the believer] forms a relation. The presence gives rise to wisdom, and
wisdom leads to practice. Thus if the presence is incorrect, wisdom and
practice will also be incorrect."
26th High Priest, Nichikan Shonin
"I offer my sincere devotion to Nikko Shoni, the
primary HP of the ten thousand years of Mappo and the founder of the Head
Temple Taisekiji. I offer my sincere devotion to the HP Nichimoku Shonin,
the master of the seat of the Law and to each of the successive High Priests
to whom the Law is transmitted. In this way, one should single-mindedly
chant Nam Myoho Renge Kyo and fix one's mind on the Three Treasures, fingering
the prayer beads."
26th High Priest, Nichikan Shonin
"The Taisekiji school is the denomination which
recieved it's transmission from the Daishonin, so the followers of this
school must be sufficiently versed in the Gosho. The doctrines in the depths
of the Gosho are handed down by the **successive High Priests,** the great
principles of those teachings **must be learned from a teacher**, and the
disciples must not even for a moment adhere to their own views."
(Sixty-sixth High Priest, Nittatsu Shonin, NS Monthy)
"In the final analysis, faith, heritage and the
water of the Law are one and the same. Through faith, the believer receives
the water of the Law from the Original Buddha. The water of the Law thus
received flows within the believer's life, just as blood circulates within
the human body. For this reason, to convey the water of the Law through
faith is to transmit the heritage. Therefore, faith should never be disturbed
or shaken. If it is disturbed, the water of the Law will cease to flow.
Or, even, if it continues to run, it will become defiled and irregular,
thus cutting off the flow of Buddhism itself. As long as faith remains
unshaken, the pure and immaculate heritage of Buddhism will continue to
flow with vigor, not matter how many ages may pass."
In his "Commentary on the Kegi Sho", the fifty-ninth High Priest of Taisekiji, Nichiko Hori
"Those who practice this Buddhism must pay heed
to the path of master and disciple, trace the orthodoxy of the master's
lineage to verify that the flow of the Law he transmits is correct, and
then partake of it's clear water."
(65th High Priest Nichijun Shonin, in preface to his book, "Bennaku Kanjin-sho")
''All the benefits the individual believers enjoy have
their profound source in the unbounded life of Nichiren Daisonin, the original
Buddha of kuon ganjo. The benefits flow into the lives of individual believers,
depending on their relationship with the Gohonzon. The merit of all believers
in the Gohonzon is to have a glimpse of the profound source of the life-condition
of Nichiren Daishonin through their respective relationships with the Goihonzon.
So you must realize that generally speaking all people are potential Buddhas
but specifically Nichiren Daishonin alone is the Buddha. You should refrain
from using such expressions that someone attained some special enlightenment
or that someone attained the same original life condition of Nichiren Daishonin."
(1980, Sermons by Nikken Shonin, p. 63)
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