The Three Powerful Enemies
The Three Powerful Enemies
The “Encouraging Devotion,” Chapter 13 of the Lotus Sutra , contains a passage known as the “twenty-line verse.”
It describes three kinds of people who strongly oppress those who propagate the Lotus Sutra after Shakyamuni's passing. Collectively, they are called the Three Powerful Enemies .
They are:
Arrogant Lay People
Arrogant Priests
Arrogant False Sages
1. Arrogant Lay People
Arrogant lay people are those who, being ignorant of Buddhist teachings, attack practitioners of the Lotus Sutra .
Because Nichiren Daishonin propagated the Lotus Sutra, he was slandered and attacked with swords and staves , just as the Lotus Sutra predicted.
2. Arrogant Priests
Arrogant priests are members of the Buddhist clergy who persecute practitioners of the Lotus Sutra .
During Nichiren Daishonin's time, Buddhist priests who clung to their own shallow views and interpretations slandered the Lotus Sutra and persecuted the Daishonin.
3. Arrogant False Sages
Arrogant false sages are high-ranking Buddhist priests who present themselves as sages or saints and use their status and influence to persecute practitioners of the Lotus Sutra.
Ryokan as an Example
During Nichiren Daishonin's time, Ryokan of Gokuraku-ji Temple best fit the description of an arrogant false sage.
Although he was highly respected as a saint by the people of Kamakura, according to the supplied material he was primarily concerned with personal profit and advantage and sought to destroy the votary of the Lotus Sutra.
He ingratiated himself with the wives of certain government officials and spread rumors and false accusations against Nichiren Daishonin and his followers.
Through these efforts, he sought to influence the authorities to oppress the Daishonin.
This contributed to the Tatsunokuchi Persecution , a failed attempt to execute Nichiren Daishonin, followed by his exile to Sado Island .
Nichiren Daishonin's Persecutions
Nichiren Daishonin experienced major persecutions exactly as the Lotus Sutra predicted would happen to its votary.
He was also exiled twice:
First exile: Izu
Second exile: Sado Island
Because of this, the Daishonin stated that he had “read” the Lotus Sutra with his own life , referring to the passage in the Encouraging Devotion chapter:
“Again and again we will be banished.”
His actual experiences corresponded closely with the predictions contained in the Lotus Sutra.
Nichiren Daishonin — The Votary of the Lotus Sutra
Because Nichiren Daishonin encountered the persecutions predicted in the Lotus Sutra while propagating its teachings, he demonstrated through his own life that he was its genuine votary.
In “The Selection of Time,” he states:
“There can be no room to doubt that I, Nichiren, am the foremost votary of the Lotus Sutra in all of Japan.”
— WND-1, 575
He further states:
“I, Nichiren, am the foremost votary of the Lotus Sutra in the entire land of Jambudvipa.”
Reading the Lotus Sutra With One's Life
The life of Nichiren Daishonin demonstrates the relationship between the predictions of the Lotus Sutra and actual proof .
The Lotus Sutra predicts that its votary in the Latter Day of the Law will encounter severe persecution.
Nichiren Daishonin experienced those persecutions while propagating the Lotus Sutra.
Therefore, by “reading” the Lotus Sutra with his life and fulfilling its predictions, he demonstrated the validity of Shakyamuni's teachings.
Key Points to Remember
Chapter 13 of the Lotus Sutra = “Encouraging Devotion.”
The Twenty-Line Verse describes the Three Powerful Enemies .
The Three Powerful Enemies are:
Arrogant Lay People
Arrogant Priests
Arrogant False Sages
Arrogant Lay People — ordinary people who attack practitioners out of ignorance.
Arrogant Priests — Buddhist clergy who persecute practitioners because of attachment to their own views.
Arrogant False Sages — high-ranking priests who appear respectable but use their status and influence to persecute practitioners.
Ryokan of Gokuraku-ji Temple is presented as an example of an arrogant false sage.
Nichiren Daishonin experienced major persecutions while propagating the Lotus Sutra.
He was exiled twice: Izu and Sado .
Tatsunokuchi Persecution = failed attempt to execute Nichiren Daishonin, followed by his Sado exile.
“Again and again we will be banished” — a prediction from Chapter 13, Encouraging Devotion that Nichiren Daishonin fulfilled through his life.
In “The Selection of Time,” Nichiren Daishonin states that he was the foremost votary of the Lotus Sutra in Japan .
Exam takeaway: Nichiren Daishonin demonstrated that he was the votary of the Lotus Sutra by experiencing the very persecutions that the Lotus Sutra predicted would befall its votary in the Latter Day of the Law.
This is an example of reading the Lotus Sutra with one's life and demonstrates the validity of Shakyamuni's words.