If one were to liken [the retribution for] the five cardinal sins and slander of the Law to illness, then the five cardinal sins would be comparable to sunstroke, the effects of which appear suddenly. Slander of the Law, on the other hand, is like white leprosy, which seems minor at first but bit by bit becomes very serious indeed. Those who commit slander of the Law are in most cases reborn in the hell of incessant suffering or, in a few cases, in one of the six lower paths. If they are reborn in the realm of human beings, then, the sutra tells us, they will suffer from poverty, low status, white leprosy, and so forth.
When I hold up the bright mirror of the Lotus Sutra before me, all is crystal-clear; there can be no doubt that in my previous existences I was guilty of slandering the Law. If in my present existence I do not wipe out that offense, then in the future how can I escape the pains of hell?
How could I gather together all the grave offenses that I have accumulated in age after age since the far distant past and eradicate them all in my present lifetime, so that I may be spared great pain in the future? When I pondered this question, it occurred to me that now, in the present age, slanderers of the Law fill every province of the nation. What is more, the ruler of the nation is himself the foremost perpetrator of such slander. If in such a time I do not expunge these heavy sins, then at what time can I expect to do so?
Now if I, Nichiren, insignificant person that I am, were to go here and there throughout the country of Japan denouncing these slanders, then innumerable persons among the four categories of Buddhists who follow erroneous doctrines would in one instant join their innumerable voices in reviling me. At that time the ruler of the nation, allying himself with those priests who slander the Law, would
come to hate me and try to have me beheaded or order me into exile. And if this sort of thing were to occur again and again, then the grave offenses that I have accumulated over countless kalpas would be wiped out within the space of a single lifetime. Such, then, was the great plan that I conceived, and it is now proceeding without the slightest deviation. So, when I find myself thus sentenced to exile, I can only feel that my wishes are being fulfilled.
Nevertheless, being no more than an ordinary person, I have at times been apt to regret having taken such a course. And if even I am troubled by such feelings, then how much more so in the case of a woman such as your wife, who is unaware of all the circumstances surrounding the matter. Persons like you and her do not have full knowledge of the Buddhist teachings, and it pains me to think how greatly you must regret that you ever chose to follow Nichiren. And yet, contrary to what might be expected, I hear that you two are even firmer and more dedicated in your faith than I myself, which is indeed no ordinary matter. I wonder if Shakyamuni Buddha himself may have entered your hearts, and it moves me so that I can barely restrain my tears.
The Great Teacher Miao-lo says in his commentary (The Annotations on “The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra,” volume seven), “Therefore we know it is because of seeds planted in previous existences that in the latter age one is able to hear the Law even for an instant, and having heard it, take faith in it.” He also says (The Annotations on “Great Concentration and Insight,” volume two), “Having been born at the end of the Middle Day of the Law, I have been able to behold these true words of the sutra. Unless one has planted the mystic cause in a previous existence, they are truly difficult to encounter.”
