Questions and Answers on the Object of Devotion Chapter8-5

In the ages that followed, though among the eminent Buddhist priests of Japan there were some who were very wise and learned, none could match the three great teachers [Kōbō, Jikaku, and Chishō]. Thus, for over four hundred years now everyone in Japan has accepted the opinion that the True Word teachings are superior to the Lotus Sutra.

To be sure, at times there have been persons who, in studying the doctrines of the Tendai school, have come to realize that the True Word teachings can never measure up to the Lotus Sutra. But out of fear of offending the chief priests of the Tendai school or the prelates of Ninna-ji temple, they have refrained from speaking out. Others, though not as discerning as they should have been, have ventured to suggest that the True Word teachings and the Lotus Sutra should be regarded as of equal worth. But the True Word teachers have uniformly condemned this view as absurd and laughed it to scorn.

———————————-（continued to Chapter9-1)————————————–