Handling and Treatment of The Gohonzon
Nichiren Buddhists treat Gohonzon with utmost respect, since most of them consider the Gohonzon to embody the "life" or "life condition" of the Buddha, and they generally avoid touching the Gohonzon except for cleaning. Gohonzon that have become soiled or damaged are returned to temples for ceremonial disposal. Photographing and copying the Gohonzon are also discouraged by certain sects (but not all)—photographing because the resulting copies can be easily desecrated, abused, or misused (e.g., for printing or creating unconsecrated Gohonzon, which are considered by temple-affiliated groups to be powerless to benefit those who venerate them).
Others, including independent (non-sect affiliated) Nichiren Buddhists, cite Nichiren's own admonition about the Gohonzon: "Never seek this Gohonzon outside yourself. The Gohonzon exists only within the mortal flesh of us ordinary people who embrace the Lotus Sutra and chant Nam-Myōhō-Renge-Kyō." For them, the paper Gohonzon is a visual representation of the "Ceremony in the Air" described in the Lotus Sutra, and serves as a means of focusing on their own innate Buddhahood.
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