[A]mongst all the sutras, it is supreme. Just as the Buddha is king of the laws, so is it also with this sutra; it is king amongst all the sutras. . . .This sutra is that which can save all the living. . . .In the last five hundred years, after my extnction, proclaim and spread it abroad. .  . .

The Threefold Lotus Sutra, Chapter 23

The Latter Day of the Law - (Mappo)

IN THE Yakuo (23rd) chapter of the Lotus Sutra there is a sentence which reads, "In the last five hundred years, after my extinction, proclaim and spread [this Law of Namu-myoho-renge-kyo] abroad in the [the world of men], lest it be lost and Mara the Evil [One], his [agents], gods, dragons, [the attendants of the Four Heavenly Kings], [demons] and others gain their opportunity." What this means is, since the guardians of heaven, bodhisattvas and others who were present during the lifetime of the Buddha are no longer responsible for the Lotus Sutra in the Latter Day, do not ask them for aid. It is the living beings of the Latter Day who must guard this Law of Namu-myoho-renge-kyo in their place.

The last five hundred year period mentioned in this phrase refers to the age of Mappo, the Latter Day of the Law. As a rule, all Buddhists had been taught the Buddha's teaching that there are three time periods after the Buddha's decease:

1. The Former Day of the Law (the righteous law) = 1000 years.

2. The Middle Day of the Law (the imitative law) = 1000 years.

3. The Latter Day of the Law (the last law) = All the years thereafter.

There have been various theories advanced as to the year of Shakyamuni Buddha's death. Nichiren Daishonin trusted and followed the division of the period which T'ien-t'ai and Dengyo the Great espoused (T'ien-t'ai founded the T'ien-t'ai sect in China based on the Lotus Sutra; Dengyo the Great transmitted the Lotus Sutra to Japan.) According to these sources Shakyamuni Buddha's date of birth is April 8, 1029 B.C., and his death, February 15, 949 B.C. The period of the Former Day of the Law ranges from 949 B.C. to 51 A.D.; the Middle Day of the Law ranges from 51 A.D. to 1052 A.D.; and the Latter Day of the Law begins in 1052 A.D. Thus the Daishonin's year of birth, 1222 A.D., falls upon the 170th year after the beginning of the Latter Day.

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