Veneration Of Three Deities By Three Practitioners

Once there were three practitioners of Myōhō-rengekyō Lotus Sūtra heading to a Saṁghārāma in Mt. Fuji. 

The first practitioner from Chichibu [秩父] came across a wolf who sat at the entrance of Hodōsan Shrine [寳登山神社] within Mt. Hodō [宝登山] while on his way to Mt. Fuji. This wolf's body was severely emaciated together with its damaged fur as well as its paws oozing blood. Despite of such appearance, the practitioner from Chichibu immediately recognized that it was the Divine Wolf of Hodōsan Shrine. The practitioner then asked:
　"What a horrid sight. What has happened to you?" To that, the Divine Wolf answered: 
　"Oh, practitioner, I'm the divine subject of the mountain deity. I've protected humans who entered the mountains wherever they went on any mountain paths, but humans hunted down all my kins and destroyed their habitats by logging numerous amounts of trees as well as removing sediments in the mountains. Alas, I'm the only one remaining, for others have all perished." There, the practitioner asked again: 
　"Oh, Divine Wolf, do you harbour hatred towards humans?" To that, the Divine Wolf responded: 
　"Not at all. No matter how exhausted I am, no matter how much my fur gets damaged, nor no matter how much my paws bleed, it's my duty as a subject of mountain deity to protect all those who traverse the mountain." Hearing this, the practitioner smiled and said: 
　"Understood. Why don't you come with me to the Saṁghārāma in Mt. Fuji? I shall venerate you with Lotus Sūtra and relieve you from all anguish." The Divine Wolf then replied: 
　"Thank you for your offer, practitioner. Please, take me to the Saṁghārāma." 
Then the practitioner lifted the Divine Wolf up with both of his arms and left to Mt. Fuji, once again. 

The second practitioner from Tōyo [東予] came across a giant white snake coiled up near a waterfall while on his way to Mt. Fuji. The scales on this snake were rough and dehydrated without a single hint of moisture. Despite of such appearance, the practitioner immediately recognized that it was the valley's Great White Snake of rainmaking. The practitioner then asked: 
　"What a horrid sight. What has happened to you?" To that the Great White Snake answered:
　"Oh, practitioner, I am the rainmaking serpent deity of this land. In old days, whenever there was a draught, the villagers summoned me by worshipping a Buddhist stone icon. To them, I went, flying from one isthmus to another as I gathered rain clouds along the way. Alas, bringing rainfall upon them. The villagers greatly rejoiced as they established a pond as votive offering and danced to praise me during the Days of Bon. These days, however, the same pond is completely abandoned and none of the villagers summon me for rain nor perform their dances to me. Hence, my appalling current look." There, the practitioner asked again: 
　"Oh, Great White Snake, do you harbour hatred towards humans?" To that, the Great White Snake responded: 
　"Not all, practitioner. I can't hate those villagers who worshipped and enshrined me all those years." Hearing this, the practitioner smiled and said: 
　"Understood. Why don't you come with me to the Saṁghārāma in Mt. Fuji? I shall venerate you with Lotus Sūtra and relieve you from all anguish." The Great White Snake then replied: 
　"Thank you for your offer, practitioner. Please, take me to the Saṁghārāma."
　Then the practitioner lifted the snake up with both arms as he rested its thick torso on to the shoulders and left to Mt. Fuji, once again. 

The third practitioner from Hata [幡多] came across a woman standing alone in the middle of Mt. Ōdō [大堂山] while on his way to Mt. Fuji. The young woman wore a dress with countless holes and shreds as her hairs were untidy as well as having dirt staining her face. Despite of such appearance, the practitioner from Hata immediately recognized that she was Komatsutama-hime [小松玉姫], the local mountain deity. The practitioner then asked: 
　"What a horrid sight. What has happened to you?" To that, the mountain deity answered: 
　"Oh, practitioner, I'm the mountain deity of this land. When I was still living, I was the daughter belonging to Komatsu Family [小松家], the reminiscent of Hei Family [平家]. One day, my older brother drew his sword and murdered me for my hair touched his garment. For that, I became a vengeful deity and cursed most of my family members to death while the few that remained attempted on comforting me by building an altar. Then one day, a pilgrim came and stole the idol from my altar. Out of fury, I once again began cursing and haunting anyone who came near my altar. For this action, no one has come here ever again to comfort me out of fear." There, the practitioner asked again: 
　"Oh, Komatsutama-hime, do you harbour hatred towards humans?" To that, the mountain deity responded:
　"I no longer do, practitioner. My current demise is all my fault. For I have cursed and haunted people away from me. I'm the only one to blame." Hearing this, the practitioner smiled and said: 
　"Understood. Why don't you come with me to the Saṁghārāma in Mt. Fuji? I shall venerate you with Lotus Sūtra and relieve you from all anguish." The mountain deity then replied: 
　"Thank you for your offer, practitioner. Please, take me to the Saṁghārāma."
Then the practitioner took the hand of Komatsutama-hime and left to Mt. Fuji, once again.

The first one that arrived at Mt. Fuji's Saṁghārāma was the practitioner from Chichibu together with the Divine Wolf. As they entered the hall of worship, the practitioner sat in front of the Mahāmandala [大曼荼羅] and began reciting "Myōhō-rengekyō Darani-hon" [妙法蓮華経 陀羅尼品] as well as chanting "Namu-myōhō-rengekyō" [南無妙法蓮華経] a hundred times over. Suddenly, the Divine Wolf emitted an intense amount of light and when it dissipated, the Divine Wolf was no more. But in its place was a levitating strong man with a sharp gaze and wide shoulders. The man said to the practitioner: 
　"Thank you, practitioner. With your help through veneration, I have become a Gohōzenjin [護法善神] and now, I shall enter Dharmadhatu and cite my own dhārānī to the countless buddhas. From this day onwards, I shall protect every practitioners who traverse through mountain paths." 
After stating so, the deity ascended towards Mt. Fuji's peak and vanished. At the same time, the stone statue of the Divine Wolf in Hodōsan Shrine spontaneously shattered and crumbled down to smithereens.

The second one that arrived at Mt. Fuji's Saṁghārāma was the practitioner from Tōyo together with the Great White Snake. As they entered the hall of worship, the practitioner sat in front of the Mahāmandala and began reciting "Myōhō-rengekyō Darani-hon" as well as chanting "Namu-myōhō-rengekyō" a hundred times over. Suddenly, the Great White Snake emitted an intense amount of light and when it dissipated, the Great White Snake was no more. But in its place was a levitating handsome man possessing a noble demeanor with pale and smooth white skin. The man said to the practitioner: 
　"Thank you, practitioner. With your help through veneration, I have become a Gohōzenjin and now, I shall enter Dharmadhatu and cite my own dhārānī to the countless buddhas. From this day onwards, I shall bring down rain whenever a practitioner of Lotus Sūtra requests." 
After stating so, the deity ascended towards Mt. Fuji's peak and vanished. At the same time, a huge crack formed at the bottom of the pond that the villagers built for the Great White Snake and began sucking in water. When the pond got completely drained, sun shower poured down on to the land. 

The third one that arrived at Mt. Fuji's Saṁghārāma was the practitioner from Hata together with Komatsutama-hime. As they entered the hall of worship, the practitioner sat in front of the Mahāmandala and began reciting "Myōhō-rengekyō Darani-hon" as well as chanting "Namu-myōhō-rengekyō" a hundred times over. Suddenly, the mountain deity emitted an intense amount of light and when it dissipated, Komatsutama-hime was no more. But in her place was a levitating heavenly goddess adorned with luxurious clothes accompanied by a floating scarf. The goddess then said to the practitioner: 
　"Thank you, practitioner. With your help through veneration, I have become a Gohōzenjin [護法善神] and now, I shall enter Dharmadhatu and cite my own dhārānī to the countless buddhas. From this day onwards, I shall dedicate my efforts to growing new trees so that the practitioners of Lotus Sūtra may log them to build new monasteries and pagoda." 
After stating so, the deity ascended towards Mt. Fuji's peak and vanished. At the same time, a landslide occured in Mt. Ōdō and as a result, the altar of Komatsutama-hime got buried under the flowing debris. 

After witnessing the three deities ascending to Dharmadhatu as they attained anuttara-samyaksambodhih, the three practitioners of Lotus Sūtra returned to their respective land with a sense of satisfaction.