SGI THEN and NOW

THEN

This is taken from the 1986 edition of the NSIC Major Writings, Volume IV. 

"Next, Nichiren Daishonin compares a wooden or painted image to the
living Buddha.  Wooden and painted images of the Buddha are inferior to
the living Buddha because they lack not only the feature of the pure and
far reaching voice but also the Buddha's mind, that is, his spiritual
aspect.  The pure and far reaching voice is the manifestation of the
Buddha's mind.  The Buddha's compassion to save the people manifests
itself in his voice, that is, in his teachings.  Thus, when a sutra is
placed before a Buddha image (i.e., used to 'open the eyes' of the image
or consecrate it), it is the same as if it possessed the pure and far
reaching voice.  This is because a sutra embodies the Buddha's teachings
conveyed by his voice. 

However, the Daishonin goes on to explain that the kind of sutra used to
consecrate an image will determine the nature of the spiritual aspect
that the image manifests.  He concludes that since the Lotus Sutra
embodies the Buddha's spiritual aspect, when the Lotus Sutra is used to
'open the eyes' of a Buddha image, that image will become equal to the
living Buddha.  This accords with the principle of the attainment of
Buddhahood by plants (somoku jobutsu), plants here representing all
insentient life. 

This concept of the enlightenment of plants in turn derives from the
profound principle of ichinen sanzen, which teaches that all life -
insentient as well as sentient - possess the Buddha nature.  In a
similar context, Nichiren Daishonin states in the 'The True Object of
Worship': 'Both the Buddhist and non-Buddhist scripture permit wooden or
painted images to be used as objects of worship, but T'ien-t'ai and his
followers were the first to explain the principle behind this act.  If a
piece of wood or paper did not have both material and spiritual aspects
or lacked the inherent cause to manifest a spiritual nature, then it
would be futile to rely upon it as an object of worship' [The Major
Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 48], and '... without ichinen
sanzen, the seed of enlightenment, sentient beings cannot attain
enlightenment, and any statue or object would be an object of worship in
name alone' [ibid., p.63].  This concept of manifesting the Buddha
nature inherent in an insentient image through the 'eye opening
ceremony' thus making it an object of worship, also applies to the
Gohonzon, though the Daishonin does not mention the true object of
worship in this particular Gosho. 

Subsequently the Daishonin sharply attacks the use of Shingon rituals
for 'opening the eyes' of Buddha images.  He points out that using
distorted teachings such as those of Shingon to consecrate images will
cause demons or devils to occupy them - that is, it will bring forth not
the Buddhahood but the diabolical nature inherent in the insentient life
of the image causing suffering for individual believers and disaster for
the land in which they live."  MW IV: 37 to 39. 

****[Note that this explanatory comment states that the eye opening
ceremony applies to the Gohonzon.]**** 

Now

"No Eye Opening Ceremony is required for a Gohonzon" -- SGI official doctrine