The following excerpt from The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra, vol. 5, can also be found in The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, part 3, revised edition, chapter 22, installment 1, pp. 31, 37–40.
Soka Gakkai members’ greatest pride is their mission and vow as Bodhisattvas of the Earth. Ikeda Sensei has described the Soka Gakkai as “a gathering of champions of humanity, leading unparalleled lives of the highest significance” and “an assembly of fellow Bodhisattvas of the Earth who share the noble mission of achieving kosen-rufu and world peace.”
The Bodhisattvas of the Earth are the Buddha’s true disciples who, in the essential teaching (comprising the latter 14 chapters) of the Lotus Sutra, vow to work for people’s happiness in this troubled saha world in the evil age after the Buddha’s passing. Only these bodhisattvas can carry out kosen-rufu, or the widespread propagation of the correct teaching of Buddhism, in this age known as the Latter Day of the Law.
In any place or land, it is always the Bodhisattvas of the Earth who shoulder the mission of widely spreading the correct teaching received from the Buddha, imparting it to all human beings. Why is this? It is because, in terms of their inner enlightenment, they have the same life state as the Buddha, but in terms of their outward actions, they strive as bodhisattvas. They could be described as “bodhisattva-Buddhas.”
If they did not possess the same life state as their teacher, the Buddha, they could not correctly propagate the Mystic Law. Furthermore, carrying out kosen-rufu in this trouble-filled world necessitates going out into society and among the people as fellow human beings. The Bodhisattvas of the Earth thus fulfill both these conditions—embodying the inner life state of Buddhahood and actively engaging with the real world. That is why it says at the end of the “Supernatural Powers of the Thus Come One” chapter of the Lotus Sutra, “This person … advances through the world” (The Lotus Sutra and Its Opening and Closing Sutras, p. 318). The Bodhisattvas of the Earth are engaged in the world. They go out among the people.
The Bodhisattvas of the Earth are like the sun. They are also like lotus flowers, which bloom beautifully in muddy water; they live in this corrupt world yet remain unsullied by its evils.
When we are like the sun, all darkness is banished from our lives. Each day is filled with light, and we can brightly illuminate the lives of others too. When we are like the lotus, we can change the muddy swamp of desire and suffering into joyous enlightenment.
The “Emerging from the Earth” chapter of the Lotus Sutra describes the Bodhisattvas of the Earth as being “like the lotus flower in the water” (LSOC, 263). As Bodhisattvas of the Earth, we dwell in the “swamp” of society; we certainly do not seek to escape from reality. In addition, our lives are in no way stained or tainted by the mire of society. Why? Because we never forget our mission.
The Daishonin says of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth, “Their sole purpose is to propagate Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the one great reason for the Buddha’s appearance in this world” (Gosho zenshu, new ed., p. 1161 [GZ, 833]).[1]
In other words, they are committed to kosen-rufu and embody the spirit to share the Mystic Law with others. Striving in Buddhist practice with wholehearted devotion to kosen-rufu is the spirit of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth.
The Bodhisattvas of the Earth have been steadfastly practicing the Mystic Law since the distant past. They have forged lives that are centered on faith and the Mystic Law. The Daishonin describes them as “the ones who had thoroughly forged their resolve” (“General Stone Tiger,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 953). That’s why they can endure great hardships in this troubled saha world to spread the correct teaching of Buddhism. In the depths of their lives, they dwell in the world of Buddhahood.
The bodhisattvas of the theoretical teaching and the bodhisattvas from other worlds who are described in the Lotus Sutra are bodhisattvas still aspiring to attain enlightenment. They are therefore not strong enough to propagate Buddhism in this saha world. The only ones who can bear the weight of this mission are the bodhisattvas of the essential teaching—the Bodhisattvas of the Earth—who are seasoned experts in practicing the Mystic Law of time without beginning.
The first president of the Soka Gakkai, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, said:
Although there is a saying that even dust, when it accumulates, can form a mountain, there are in fact no mountains that are made of accumulated dust. The most that accumulated dust might form is a small mound. Real mountains are formed by massive shifts in the earth’s crust. In the same way, you can accumulate all the minor good you want, but it will never become great good.[2]
The bodhisattvas of the theoretical teaching are like those trying to attain Buddhahood by accumulating minor good. In contrast, the bodhisattvas of the essential teaching—the Bodhisattvas of the Earth—make the great life force of the world of Buddhahood issue forth from “the depths of the Dharma nature” (The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, p. 119), the innermost reaches of their being, with the explosive force of an erupting volcano.
The Bodhisattvas of the Earth constantly practice the Mystic Law and live each moment deeply attuned to the eternal dimension of life. While in terms of their practice they are bodhisattvas, in terms of their inner enlightenment they are Buddhas.
But the image people tend to have of a Buddha is that of a transcendent or superhuman being. Contrary to this image, Bodhisattvas of the Earth devote themselves as bodhisattvas who are ordinary human beings practicing the Mystic Law. They devote themselves as real people. This is profoundly significant.
A restoration of trust and faith in human beings—this is the key for a religion of the 21st century. I believe the world is eagerly awaiting the appearance of such a great teaching of humanism and life.
February 6, 2026 World Tribune, p. 2
References
- Translated from Japanese. From “Oko kikigaki” [The recorded lectures]; not included in The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vols. 1 or 2. ↩︎
- Translated from Japanese. Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, Makiguchi Tsunesaburo zenshu [The collected writings of Tsunesaburo Makiguchi], vol. 10 (Tokyo: Daisanbunmei-sha, 1987), pp. 140–41. ↩︎
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