Dsisaku Ikeda is more afraid of mad elephants than slanderers of the Law

"Carelessness is our greatest enemy. Take precautions to prevent traffic accidents and fires from occurring, and beware of scam artists and purse-snatchers. Let's remind each other to be vigilant so that we can thwart accidents before they happen." -- Daisaku Ikeda

"Yet it should be known that, while the non-Buddhist practitioners possessed such impressive powers, they could not escape the flames of the Avichi hell, not to mention those with only trivial powers of transformation. Even less can slanderers of the great vehicle avoid this fate. The priests of the True Word school are evil friends to all living beings. Avoid them; fear them. The Buddha states: “Have no fear of mad elephants. What you should fear are evil friends! Why? Because a mad elephant can only destroy your body; it cannot destroy your mind. But an evil friend can destroy both body and mind. A mad elephant can destroy only a single body, but an evil friend can destroy countless bodies and countless minds. A mad elephant merely destroys an impure, stinking body, but an evil friend can destroy both pure body and pure mind. A mad elephant can destroy the physical body, but an evil friend destroys the Dharma body. Even if you are killed by a mad elephant, you will not fall into the three evil paths. But if you are killed by an evil friend, you are certain to fall into them. A mad elephant is merely an enemy of your body, but an evil friend is an enemy of the good Law.” Therefore, even more than venomous serpents or malevolent demons, one should fear the evil friends who follow Kobo, Shan-tao, and Honen. This is just a brief clarification of the error of holding distorted views." -- Nichiren Daishonin