This essay is part of a continuing series of translations from a volume of inspirational writings by the late founder of Rissho Kosei-kai. Dharma World will continue to publish these essays because of their lasting value as guidance for the practice of one's faith in daily life.

Nikkyo Niwano, the late founder of the Buddhist association Rissho Kosei-kai, was an honorary president of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP) and was honorary chairman of Shinshuren (Federation of New Religious Organizations of Japan) at the time of his death in October 1999.

Merely being born physically is not enogh to make us human. Only when we awaken to the realm of eternal life and are reborn to the realm of the spirit are we truly human.

Nichiko Niwano is president of Rissho Kosei-kai and the Niwano Peace Foundation, a president of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP), and vice-chairman of Shinshuren (Federation of New Religious Organizations of Japan).

Paul H. Sherbow is a special consultant for Hindu affairs at the WCRP International office in New York.

A very special embassy was set up in Rome less than ten years ago. In fact, after centuries of misunderstandings, in the year 1994 the Roman Catholic church and the Jews set their seal on official relations with the establishment of the Israeli Embassy to the Holy See. His Excellency Yosef Lamdan, appointed in 2000 as the third ambassador to the Holy See, agreed to be interviewed by Dharma World about his unique assignment.

Eva Ruth Palmieri worked for the Embassy of Israel to the Vatican for several years and has a deep personal interest in interreligious dialogue.

From 1984 to 1994, Jacqueline Rouge was an active president of the International Committee of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP) and is now its honorary president. She is also now official WCRP representative with UNESCO.

The intuitive path, which the sages have traversed for thousands of years, is now converging with the scientific path, which tries to figure out reality in terms of equations and relationships.

Ruben L.F. Habito is professor of world religions and spirituality, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas. He is the author of numerous scholarly articles and a dozen books in Japanese and English, including Original Enlightenment: Tendai Hongaku Doctrine and Japanese Buddhism (Tokyo: International Institute for Buddhist Studies of ICABS, 1996).

Just what is interreligious dialogue and what is its aim? How can we maintain our own faith and beliefs and effect true dialogue with those of other faiths? Should we look to an "ethic of survival" or a "vision of hope" as we move into the future? These and many other questions are examined here in detail.

John D'Arcy May, Th.D. (ecumenics), Ph.D. (history of religion), served as director of the Irish School of Ecumenics, Trinity College in Dublin, and is now associate professor of interfaith dialogue and ethics there. He is a member of the International Interfaith Centre (IIC) in Oxford.

The Lotus Sutra delights us with its imaginative vision. It represents the Buddha's attempt to teach all of us that we should hear and share the Dharma. Just as heavenly flowers fell upon the holy assembly at Sacred Eagle Peak, so does it shower its blessings upon all who hear and revere its teachings.

Gene Reeves, former dean of the Meadville/Lombard Theological School in Chicago, recently retired from teaching at the University of Tsukuba, where he taught Buddhism and American Studies. He is currently doing research, teaching, and writing on the Lotus Sutra at Rissho Kosei-kai in Tokyo.

One of the best-known works of Japanese sculpture abroad, this thirteenth-century rendition of an itinerant priest is filled with power and majesty. Especially striking are the six small Amida figures that issue forth on his intoning the name of the Buddha Amida.

Takeshi Kuno, formerly a director of the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, is now director-general of the Institute of Buddhist Art Research in Tokyo.

Izumi Ogino is a member of the Fukuchiyama Branch of Rissho Kosei-kai in Kyoto.

This installment describes how the Buddha Sakyamuni rejected the invitation of the Licchavi nobles in order to dine at the house of a successful courtesan, who had been the first to honor him with an invitation. During the meal, his words convert Ambapali, who then donates her mango grove to the Buddha and the Sangha.

The late Hajime Nakamura, an authority on Indian philosophy, was president of the Eastern Institute in Tokyo and a professor emeritus of the University of Tokyo at the time of his death in October 1999. This ongoing series is a translation of Gotama Budda, vol. 2, Tokyo, Shunjusha, 1992.

This is the sixty-sixth installment of a detailed commentary on the Threefold Lotus Sutra by the late founder of Rissho Kosei-kai, Rev. Nikkyo Niwano.