Within Nichiren Buddhism, the Lotus Sutra is revered as the supreme and complete expression of Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment. It is regarded as the only teaching fully capable of leading people to liberation in the present degenerate age, when more complex or esoteric practices are seen as ineffective for most. Central to its message is the affirmation that all beings inherently possess Buddha nature and can attain Buddhahood, regardless of gender, social status, or spiritual background. This universal accessibility of enlightenment undergirds a strong emphasis on the innate dignity and potential of every person.

The Lotus Sutra is also understood as revealing the “One Vehicle,” the ultimate path that encompasses and surpasses all provisional teachings. Rather than requiring arduous cultivation over countless lifetimes, it presents enlightenment as something that can be directly accessed through faith in this single, all-encompassing Dharma. In this light, the sutra is not treated merely as a text to be analyzed, but as a living reality that discloses the eternal Buddha whose enlightenment is said to extend from the infinite past, making the teaching timeless and universally relevant.

From this perspective, the core practice of Nichiren Buddhism—chanting the title of the Lotus Sutra, “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo”—is seen as the most direct way to awaken the inherent Buddhahood described in the sutra. Chanting with sincere faith is held to be sufficient for realizing liberation and genuine happiness in this very lifetime, embodying the sutra’s promise of immediate access to enlightenment. This practice crystallizes the sutra’s essence into a form that can be taken up by anyone, regardless of intellectual understanding or ritual expertise.

The Lotus Sutra further serves as the scriptural and symbolic foundation for the object of devotion known as the Gohonzon. This mandala, centered on “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” and associated figures, is regarded as the concrete embodiment of the sutra’s enlightened reality, making its power and compassion accessible in daily life. In this way, faith in the Lotus Sutra, expressed through chanting and devotion to the Gohonzon, becomes the heart of the path to liberation in Nichiren Buddhism, uniting doctrine, practice, and lived experience into a single, integrated way of awakening.