"If I may be allowed to state my humble opinion on this matter, I would like to suggest a possible reason why, although the various Mahayana sutras cited above exist in this nation, prayers have no effect and these disasters arise in the country."

Nichiren is pointing out a fundamental contradiction: Japan had many Buddhist temples and sutras, and people were praying constantly, yet disasters kept getting worse. He's saying the problem isn't lack of religion, but something deeper - people are following teachings that actually weaken rather than strengthen the spiritual foundation of society.

"Evil monks fill the country and preach doctrines that lead to the destruction of the nation and the violation of the Buddhist Law. The rulers and the four kinds of Buddhist believers who live in that nation, failing to perceive the truth of the situation, listen to and put faith in their words."

The real problem isn't obvious enemies of Buddhism, but corrupt religious leaders within Buddhism itself. These teachers promote practices that sound Buddhist but actually undermine people's spiritual strength. Leaders and citizens can't tell the difference between helpful and harmful spiritual teachings, so they unknowingly support what weakens them.

"When we consider the situation now, we find that the people of this country put profound faith in the Honorable Hōnen and are much taken by this book of his. Hence, when the ignorant priests and lay believers see the words 'discard, close, ignore, and abandon' in his book, they think it means to 'discard, close, ignore, and abandon' all the sutras, Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and heavenly gods and benevolent deities other than the three Pure Land sutras and the Buddha Amida."

Nichiren identifies the specific problem: Hōnen's Pure Land teaching told people to abandon all Buddhist practices except chanting to Amida Buddha. This caused people to stop supporting temples, stop studying other sutras, and neglect the spiritual practices that had traditionally protected the nation. When people abandoned these practices, the protective spiritual forces that had guarded Japan also departed.

"One must quickly take measures to deal with those who slander the Law. If this is not done, then although endless prayers are offered, they will not put an end to these disasters."

Prayer alone won't solve the crisis - people must take action to correct the underlying spiritual problem. As long as teachings that weaken Buddhism continue to spread, no amount of praying will be effective. The solution requires actively promoting correct spiritual teachings and stopping support for harmful ones.