Editing Nichiren (section)

== Posthumous influence ==
[[file:Choshjoji Statue of Nichiren.jpg|thumb|The statue of Nichiren at [[Chōshō-ji]] in [[Kamakura]]]]
In the centuries after his death, the [[Nichiren Buddhism|Nichiren movement]] experienced many internal divisions and further persecutions. Nevertheless, Nichiren's Lotus (Hokke) tradition grew steadily and maintained Nichiren's teachings. In the years after his death, Nichiren's teachings were interpreted in different ways by his followers. As a result, Nichiren Buddhism encompasses several major branches and schools, each with its own doctrine and set of interpretations of Nichiren's teachings.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hein |first=Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GDFQBwAAQBAJ&q=nichiren+legacy&pg=PA63 |title=The Goddess and the Dragon: A Study on Identity Strength and Psychosocial Resilience in Japan |date=2 October 2014 |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |isbn=978-1-4438-6872-3 |pages=67, 71 |access-date=3 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601210843/https://books.google.com/books?id=GDFQBwAAQBAJ&q=nichiren+legacy&pg=PA63 |archive-date=1 June 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> Today his followers are found in influential lay movements as well as traditional Nichiren schools like [[Nichiren-shū|Nichiren shū]] and [[Nichiren Shōshū|Nichiren shoshū]].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofle0000unse|url-access=registration |title=Encyclopedia of leadership |editor=Goethals, George R. |editor2=Sorenson, Georgia Jones |editor3=Burns, James MacGregor |publisher=Sage Publications|page=1089|isbn=978-1-4522-6530-8|location=Thousand Oaks, CA |oclc=162107505|date=29 February 2004}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Religion In Japanese History|last=Kitagawa |first=Joseph M.|date=2010|page=121 |publisher=Columbia University Press|others=Recorded Books, Inc.|isbn=978-0-231-51509-2|location=New York|oclc=945079172}}</ref> With an estimated 10 millions followers, modern [[Nichiren Buddhism]] is the second largest tradition of [[Buddhism in Japan|Japanese Buddhism]] (second only to [[Pure Land Buddhism]] with 22 million followers).<ref name="shukyo23">{{cite web |date=2023-12-28 |title=文化庁 宗教年鑑 令和5年版 |url=https://www.bunka.go.jp/tokei_hakusho_shuppan/hakusho_nenjihokokusho/shukyo_nenkan/pdf/r05nenkan.pdf#page=65 |access-date=2024-03-17 |publisher=[[Agency for Cultural Affairs]] |page=51}}</ref>

A massive body of scholarship on Nichiren has been written in Japanese. This includes sectarian and secular academic works. The Institute of Nichiren Buddhist Studies at [[Rissho University|Risshō University]] (Risshō Daigaku Nichiren Kyōgaku Kenkyūjo 立正大 学日蓮教学硏究所) is a major Japanese institution which focuses on Nichiren studies. It is affiliated with [[Nichiren-shū|Nichirenshū]].<ref name=":0" /> Nichiren has drawn less attention from Western scholars than other Japanese Buddhist figures, and he was initially stereotyped as intolerant or militant. Nevertheless, scholars like Gaston Renondeau, Alicia Matsunaga, Daigan Matsunaga, Bruno Petzold, Lucia Dolce and [[Jacqueline Stone]] have written in English on Nichiren.<ref name=":0" />