The school of Japanese Buddhism established by Nichiren (1222-82) grew, in the centuries after the founder's death, into a vigorous religious community in both eastern and western Japan. Nichiren's teachings and practice were based on the Lotus Sutra. He taught that the votary of the sutra must be willing to give up his life for the sake of propagating its teachings, and he identified the aggressive proselytization (shakubuku) as not merely a means to spread the teachings but as the ultimate and authenticating practice of the true believer in the Lotus Sutra.
In the years after his death, the practice of shakubuku evolved in the several forms, including the refusal to give or accept alms (fuju fuse) from non-believers. The different lineages of the Nichiren sect observed this principle faithfully and incorporated it in the regulations governing their communities of monks and lay followers. Toward the end of the sixteenth century, however, as a national government took shape, the Nichiren community found itself in confrontation with the state over the issue of refusal to participate in state-sponsored religious ceremonies and accept offerings.
In the years from 1596 to 1630, this future course of the Nichiren sect was decided in a serious of debates between Busshoin Nichio (1565-1630), who upheld the fuju fuse practice, and Jakushoin Nichiken (1560-1635), who advocated revising the policy. The present study traces the emergence of this issue, the crisis within the Nichiren sect, and its resolution, focusing on the figure of Nichio and three texts: Nichio's lay follower of the sect. It was entitled Hokkeshu Shomonryu Kindan Hose JoJo (Articles of the Various Lotus Sect Lineages Concerning the Refusal of Offerings From Those Who Slander the Dharma); Nichiken's Ha O Ki (Refuting Nichio); and a major work of the Nichiren sect, Nichio's Shugi Seiho Ron, or Treatise on the Regulations Based on the Teachings of Our Sect. Translations of these works are offered and the merits of their arguments and their implications for the future development of the Nichiren sect are discussed.
