The Strategy of the Lotus Sutra

"Employ the strategy of the Lotus Sutra before any other. All others who bear you enmity or malice will likewise be wiped out. These golden words will never prove false. The heart of strategy and swordsmanship derives from the Mystic Law. Have profound faith. A coward cannot have any of his prayers answered." - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin - 1, p 1001 

 Key points of the Gosho passage:

1. Life is a series of intense, unceasing struggles. When we are defeated, we suffer and when we win, we become happy. This is the true nature of life and happiness. How can we ensure victory and happiness? Nichiren Daishonin teaches us, "Employ the strategy of the Lotus Sutra before any other." This means to take on every challenge based on faith. It means to always begin with prayers of absolute conviction in the Gohonzon, to summon forth courage and wisdom from the depths of our lives and exert ourselves to the fullest.

2. Normally when faced with a problem, people start by devising plans and then making efforts to solve them and only when things do not work out or get worse, will they pray to the Gohonzon for help. Such plans and efforts are what Nichiren refers to as "strategies and swordsmanship". If one's life condition is low, whatever plans or efforts one made will have limited results. Buddhism teaches the immense strength and unlimited potential within us can only be fully unleashed based on the state of Buddhahood. So if we are always based on faith and prayers, our life state will be elevated to Buddhahood and our plans and efforts will then have the best possible results. This is the meaning of "The heart of strategy and swordsmanship derives from the Mystic Law."

3. The Daishonin also reminds us, "Have profound faith. A coward cannot have any of his prayers answered." The greatest enemy that obstructs one from unleashing the tremendous power within is "cowardice". Cowardice arises from doubts about our ability to win over a difficulty. To be cowardly means that we have doubts about the Gohonzon and the Buddha nature within us. Only by winning over one's "cowardice" and with absolute faith in the Mystic Law can one unleash limitless power within. Faith is a challenge to have complete and absolute belief in one's own inherent potential.