Background
This letter, dated the eleventh day of the second month in 1272, was sent by Nichiren Daishonin to Sairen-bō Nichijō, a former Tendai priest who, for reasons that are unclear, was also living in exile on Sado Island. Details about Sairen-bō are scarce, but it is known that he was originally from Kyoto, and that he had studied at Mount Hiei, the seat of the Tendai school, before his exile. He was also present at the Tsukahara Debate, held in front of Sammai-dō, the Daishonin's dwelling at Tsukahara, on the sixteenth and seventeenth days of the first month in 1272. In this debate the Daishonin was the clear victor over Pure Land, True Word, and other priests from Sado and from various provinces of northern Japan. A number of people converted to his teachings at this time, among them Sairen-bō.
Sairen-bō was a highly educated priest to whom the Daishonin sent several important essays, including The True Aspect of All Phenomena and The Heritage of the Ultimate Law of Life. He had a number of unresolved questions about Buddhist theory, and he addressed them one by one to the Daishonin, who in turn answered these questions in written form. The Daishonin praised him, saying, "How admirable that you have asked about the transmission of the ultimate Law of life and death!" In his reply the Daishoninoffers a look into the wonder of the Buddha's own enlightenment, as well as the practical means whereby ordinary people may attain the same end.
In the first paragraph, the Daishonin states that Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the heritage of the ultimate Law of life, p.219and that the transmission of this Lawis made from the Buddha to all living beings. Then he refers to the question ofhow we can inherit the ultimate Law of life and manifest it within ourselves.
This Law flows in the depths of the lives of those who believe in the teachings of the Lotus Sutra, practice in exact accord with them, and chant the daimoku. The Daishonin declares that there is no distinction whatsoever between Shakyamuni Buddha, the Lotus Sutra, and us ordinary people.
Viewed from the standpoint of the Daishonin's Buddhism, this can be taken as a declaration that there is absolutely no difference or separation between Nichiren Daishonin as the Buddha of the Latter Day, the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo—or the Gohonzon which embodies that Law—and ourselves, who chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
In terms of time, the heritage—the mystic relationship between the Lawand the lives of the people—courses eternally through past, present, and future, unbroken in any lifetime. In terms of space, the Daishonin proclaims that the heritage of the ultimate Law flows within the lives of his disciples and lay supporters who work in perfect unity for the realization of a peaceful world and happiness for all humanity.
Having stated that the ultimate Law is within the lives of human beings, Nichiren Daishonin further explains how to inherit the Law. He emphasizes the importance of the attitude, "now is the last moment... ," in order tomanifest innate Buddhahood, a state that transcends both life and death.
In discussing the thousand Buddhas and the ten kings of hell, he reveals the continuity of cause and effect spanning past, present, and future. Whatever state of life predominates while one is alive will continue in the next life. Whether one can succeed to the heritage of the Law depends entirely on one's faith. This is why he strictly warns in his conclusion, "Even embracing the Lotus Sutra would be useless without the heritage of faith."
