"Nichiren teaches....(paraphrased), "there are two main reasons people make mistakes in their Buddhist practice...they are ignorant of the real teachings, and they follow bad teachers." Greg Romero
"All the teachings other than the “one chapter and two halves” are Hinayana in nature and erroneous. Not only do they fail to lead to enlightenment, but also they lack the truth. Those who believe in them are meager in virtue, heavy with defilement, ignorant, poor, solitary, and like birds and beasts [that do not know their own parents]." - True Object of Worship
"The people of these schools who are ignorant of the teachings of the “Life Span” chapter are similarly like beasts. They do not understand towhom they are obligated. Therefore, Miao-lo states: “Among all the teachings of the Buddha’s lifetime, there is no place [other than the ‘Life Span’ chapter] where the true longevity of the Buddha is revealed. A person ought to know how old his father and mother are. If a son does not even know how old his father is, he will also be in doubt as to what lands his father presides over. Though he may be idly praised for his talent and ability, he cannot be counted as a son at all!” - Opening of the Eyes
"However, if one is speaking to persons who one knows have the capacity to become wise, then one should first instruct them in the Hinayana teachings, then instruct them in the provisional Mahayanateachings, and finally instruct them in the true Mahayana. But if speaking to those one knows to be ignorant persons of lesser capacity, then one should first instruct them in the true Mahayana teaching. In that way, whether they choose to believe in the teaching or to slander it, they will still receive the seeds of Buddhahood.- i.b.i.d
"In India after the Buddha’s passing, Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna was the one who truly understood the relationship between the Lotus Sutra and the other sutras, while in China the Great Teacher T’ien-t’ai Chih-chewas the first to grasp it correctly. Men like Shan-wu-wei of the True Word school, Ch’eng-kuan of the Flower Garland school, Chia-hsiang of the Three Treatises school, and Tz’u-en of the Dharma Characteristics schooleach publicly upheld the doctrines of the school they had established, but in their hearts they were all won over to the teachings of the T’ien-t’ai school. Yet their disciples were ignorant of this fact and hence developed erroneous opinions. How can they avoid being guilty p.209of slandering the correct teaching?" - Letter from Teradomsri
"But the situation in Japan today is much worse. For here the rulers appear to be supporters of the Buddhist teachings, but they assist the priests who are destroying Buddhism and persecute the practitioner of the correct teaching. As a result, ignorant people all fail to realize what is happening, and even wise persons, if they are no more than moderately wise, have difficulty grasping the situation. Even the lesser deities of heaven, I suspect, do not understand. For this reason, the confusion and depravity in Japan today are even greater than those in India or China in the past." - Repaying Debts of Gratitude
"Shakyamuni Buddha is the father, sovereign, and teacher of all the other Buddhas and all the gods, of the whole assembly of human and heavenly beings, and of all living beings. How could the heavenly gods and benevolent deities rejoice if the Buddha were killed? Today all the people of our country have proved to be enemies of Shakyamuni Buddha, but more than laymen or laywomen, it is the priests with perverse wisdom and hearts who are the Buddha’s worst enemies. There are two kinds of wisdom, correct and perverse. No matter how wise a person may appear, if his assertions are warped you should not listen to him. Nor should you follow priests merely because they are venerable or of high rank. But if a person has the wisdom to know the true meaning of the Lotus Sutra, no matter how lowly he may appear, pay respect to him and make offerings to him as though he were a living Thus Come One. Thus it is written in the sutra.6 That is why the Great Teacher Dengyō says that the men and women who believe in this sutra, even if they lack knowledge or violate the precepts, should be seated above priests who observe all two hundred and fifty precepts of the Hinayana teachings, and never be seated in a humble position, and that this is all the more true of the priests of this Mahayana sutra." - Letter to Niike
"...if they try to use the Lotus Sutra, their efforts will fail because, although the sutra itself is supreme, the practitioners are persons who hold distorted views." -Treatment of illness
"...Among the non-Buddhist leaders were many wise men and persons endowed with supernatural powers, but none of them was able to free himself from the sufferings of birth and death. Moreover, the people who gave allegiance to their teachings, whether faithful or not all ended by falling into the three evil paths."
"The evil winds of these three men have become the huge wind of the True Word leaders that blows throughout all of China and Japan. And if that is so, then the great gale that arose on the twelfth day of the fourth month in the eleventh year of Bun’ei (1274) must have been an adverse wind brought about by the Dharma Seal Kaga of the Amida Hall, one of the most learned priests of Tō-ji temple, when he was praying for rain. We must conclude that the evil teachings of Shan-wu-wei, Chin-kang-chih, and Pu-k’ung have been transmitted without the slightest alteration. What a strange coincidence indeed!" - On Repaying Debts of Gratitude
"The first part tells how the votaries of the Lotus Sutra must endure evils inflicted by the body, mouth, and mind of their opponents. This refers tonon-Buddhists and evil lay Buddhists. The next part that begins with ‘In that evil age’ deals with arrogant members of the Buddhist clergy. The third part that begins, ‘Or there will be forest-dwelling monks,’ deals with members of the clergy who [pretend to be sages and use their positions so that they can] act as leaders of all the other evil people.” And the same text goes on to say: “The section that begins, ‘Because in the midst of the great assembly,’ describes how these men will appeal to the government authorities, slandering the Law and its practitioners.”
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