The Difficulty of Sustaining Faith
About the difficulty of sustaining faith in this sutra: According to Nissho, you said to him, "I have been practicing this sutra correctly since last year, when you told me that those who embrace this sutra will enjoy peace and security in this life and good circumstances in the next. But instead I have been deluged by hardships".Is this true, or did he give me a false report? In either case, I will take advantage of this opportunity to resolve any doubts you may have.
A passage from the Lotus Sutra reads,
"...difficult to believe and difficult to understand. "Many hear about and accept this
sutra, but few continue their faith in the face of great obstacles. To accept is easy; to
continue is difficult. But Buddhahood lies in continuing faith. Those who embrace this
sutra should be prepared to meet difficulties. It is certain, however, that they will
quickly obtain the supreme enlightenment. "To sustain faith means to cherish
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the teaching by which all Buddhas throughout past, present
and future attain enlightenment". The sutra reads, "We will uphold what the Buddha has
entrusted to us. "The Great Teacher T'ien-t'ai stated, "One accepts out of the power of
faith and continues because of the power of prayer." Another part of the sutra reads,
"It is difficult to sustain faith in this sutra. One who embraces it even for a short time
will delight me and all other Buddhas."
A fire burns higher when logs are added, and a
strong wind makes the gura swell. The boughs of the long-lived pine tree become
bent and twisted as it grows older. The votary of the Lotus Sutra is like the fire
and the gura, while his persecutions are like the logs and wind.
The votary of the Lotus Sutra is the Buddha of eternal life; no wonder his practice is
hindered, just as the pine tree's branches are bent or broken. From now on, you should
always remember the words, "It is difficult to sustain faith in this sutra."
With my deep respect, The sixth day of the third month in the twelfth
year of Bun'ei (1275) MWND Vol. 1,
p. 127.
The topic of this reply to Shijo Kingo is the difficulty of maintaining the practice.
And since Shijo Kingo received thirty-seven such letters (extant), the title here derives
from the subject matter. Hence, "The Difficulty of Sustaining Faith", written in March 1275.
Shifo Kingo was then in a precarious situation. His lord, and his fellow warriors at the
manor, showed open resentment toward him. The message he received from Nichiren Daishonin
was brief, and to the point: stand fast and don't allow anything to disturb your faith.
Nichiren Daishonin expresses wonder that Shijo Kingo, in facing life's problems, did not
recall the prediction in the Lotus Sutra that its followers in the time of the Latter Day
of the Law would incur harsh opposition. He even questions wether the report he heard of
Kingo's anxiety is true or not. In any case, he tells Kingo that the only solution is strict
discipline in his practice of Buddhism. The benefits, he adds, will be strength of faith
and Buddhahood.
There is another matter of importancehere. The sutra offers the promise of "...peace and
security in this life and good circumstances in the next..." Happiness is not the absence
of problems. That is the point the Daishonin is making. The sutra promises happiness
by endowing the sincerely practicing Buddhist with vitality, fortune and wisdom, for
these are the keys to happiness in the real world.
Nichiren
Amongst the scores of personal letters included in the Gosho, there are many in which
the reader can see himself mirrored in the circumstances the Dashonin treats. One gets an
uncanny feeling that the documents, written some seven hundred years ago, were forecast
of the destiny facing all mankind, and therefore appropriate for the people practicing
true Buddhism today.