Gosho: The individual and collective writings of Nichiren Daishonin, True Buddha and founder of Nichiren Shoshu. Goshos are generally divided into letters of personal encouragement, treatises on Buddhism and recorded oral teachings. Go is an honorific prefix and sho means writing(s).
January 2025 Gosho passage
“The Four Stages of Faith and the Five Stages of Practice”
(“Shishin gohon-sho”)
Early April, 1277 (Age 56)
Murky water does not have a mind, but it can become clear by capturing the [reflection of the] moon. When the grass and trees are showered with rain, they cannot possibly be aware of it, yet they produce blossoms. The five characters of Myoho-Renge-Kyo are neither the text of the sutra nor its meaning. They are none other than the essential intent of the entire sutra. Beginning practitioners may be unaware of this essence, but by practicing [Myoho-Renge-Kyo], they will naturally follow the sutra’s intent.
(Gosho p. 1114 / Nichiren Shoshu Monthly January 2025)
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