NBAA's answer:

The path to enlightenment is already described in the Lotus Sutra. We agree with and adhere to that path.

"The Law is not something that can be understood through pondering or analysis. Only those who are Buddhas can understand it. Why is this? Because the Buddhas appear in the world for one great reason alone....[The Buddhas] wish to cause living beings to awaken to the Buddha wisdom, and therefore they appear in the world. This is the one great reason for which the Buddhas appear in the world." (Shakyamuni)

"There are not two vehicles, much less three!" (Shakyamuni)

"The time will come when all people will abandon the various kinds of vehicles and take up the single vehicle of Buddhahood, and the Mystic Law alone will flourish throughout the land." (Nichiren)

The path to enlightenment is enlightenment. This is the meaning of the "Expedient Means" chapter of the Lotus Sutra, also known as the single-vehicle sutra. The single vehicle is itself Buddhahood.

What does it mean that the single vehicle to Buddhahood is Buddhahood? It means that the cause and the effect are one. In other words, the method by which a person attains Buddhahood is by making the right cause to become a Buddha (done through chanting Namu-myoho-renge-kyo) and making a strong determination to be a Buddha (also done through chanting Namu-myoho-renge-kyo). A Buddha is a person who is determined to attain enlightenment and lead all others to enlightenment. That is also the path to Buddhahood. At the instant one determines to attain enlightenment, they are already a Buddha. When the determination is lost, they are no longer a Buddha. This is something that must happen on one's own.

In the early stages of one's practice, a teacher is necessary in order to learn about Buddhism. The teacher teaches the student theory and encourages the student to have confidence in their own Buddha nature. In the end, in order for the student to actually attain enlightenment they must summon up deep conviction and take the actions of a Buddha. These actions are in themselves the path to Buddhahood. The following of a teacher is not an action of a Buddha. To say that the path to Buddhahood lies in following a teacher is to say that Learning (of the Ten Worlds) is a vehicle to enlightenment, which is is pre-Lotus Sutra teaching.

The irony is that while a teacher is required to learn about Buddhism, the more a person relies on the teacher, the less able they are to attain enlightenment. Therefore, the teaching of relying on a teacher actually leads people away from their own enlightenment. Who, in reality, considers themselves personally responsible for the enlightenment of all living beings while relying on another person for instruction? The Buddha mind says to itself, "I will find a way to eliminate the suffering of others!" The follower mind says to itself, "I will introduce others to my teacher, who will find a way to eliminate their suffering."

We believe that the teaching of needing a "master" is demeaning to human beings and slanderous of people's ability to become Buddhas, people who do not require instruction from others. This bears repeating. If your teacher is telling you that you need to follow someone (him) for your entire life, then he is slandering your Buddha nature. He is making no room for you to become a Buddha yourself in this lifetime. The teaching of requiring a "master" is not founded in the core purpose of Buddhism, which is to lead others to become Buddhas, but based on a desire to be worshipped, idolized, gain personal status, and to have control over others.

Chanting works in reality to strengthen one's life condition, allowing a person to deal successfully with all kinds of obstacles and trials, from within and without, and persevere against struggles and discouragement. Study of Buddhism, such as Nichiren or the Lotus Sutra or teachings from any number of sources, can be used by a Buddha for encouragement and guidance. A Buddha finds the path that leads him out of the realm of delusion and suffering, and he teaches that path to as many people as he can -- so that they become the Buddhas and the teachers.

A person who has taken the vow of a Buddha would be attempting to make all others equal to him -- Buddhas. If the teacher does not actually lead anyone to enlightenment through their teachings, though, then he is teaching an invalid philosophy, which ought to be discarded. If he is leading others to enlightenment, then at least some people he has taught should be Buddhas, and at least equal to him in faith and understanding. If you truly respect someone as your equal, you don't ask that they follow you. You talk to each other on an equal plane. If no one is on the same footing with the "master," if there are not many "masters," if no one in the group can disagree with the "master" without being called "egotistical," "arrogant," or "self-serving," then the "master" himself does not honestly believe that his teaching leads anyone else to enlightenment. Therefore, if there is someone who insists that everyone else needs him regardless of how long they have been practicing his teaching or how much effort, sincerity and determination they have put into it, you should automatically NOT follow his teaching, as he is implying that no one but him could ever attain his level of enlightenment through his teachings.

Since Buddhahood is not a static state of life, the Path must be one that we can follow throughout our lives and yet continually use to further our growth no matter how much we develop. The teaching of following a person restricts growth to just under the level of the teacher. It therefore fails as a teaching that can be used throughout one's life.

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