he underlined the, to his mind, supremacy of the Lotus Sutra. He advocated the attainment of Buddhahood during one's lifetime and regarded his interpretation of the Buddhist teachings as the correct form of practice for the Latter Day of the Law mappō. One of his major treatises is the "Rissho Ankoku Ron" (On Establishing the Correct teaching for the Peace of the Land). The chanting of the Mantra "Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō" is to this day the central practice to almost all Nichiren Buddhist schools and organisations. Early modern thought Whereas the ancient and medieval thought of Japan was tied closely to Buddhism, the early modern thought of Japan was mainly Confucianism or Neo-Confucianism, which was designated for official study by the Tokugawa shogunate. In addition, rational Confucianism stimulated Kokugaku, Rangaku and the non-official popular thought after the middle Edo period. Confucianism In the Edo period, Confucianism was the authorised study. Various schools of neo-Confucianism were popular. The Zhu Xi school of neo-Confucianism respected family-like feudal order which upheld fixed social positions. Hayashi Razan assumed the Zhu Xi school of neo-Confucianism to be the theoretical basics of the Tokugawa shogunate. Through the principle of civilian government, Yushima Seidō dedicating to Confucius was established. By the Kansei Reforms, the Zhu Xi school of neo-Confucianism were still more strengthened and authorized by the Tokugawa shogunate. In addition, the thought of a school of the Zhu Xi school of neo-Confucianism gave big influence to the political movement advocating reverence for the Emperor and the expulsion of foreigners of the late Tokugawa era. In contrast with the Zhu Xi school of neo-Confucianism, the Wang Yangming school of neo-Confucianism respecting practical ethics was consistently monitored and oppressed by the Tokugawa shogunate because of its criticisms against the socio-political conditions under the Tokugawa shogunate. The third schools of neo-Confucianism took consideration into the real intentions of original texts by Confucius and Mencius. Yamaga Sokō established his philosophy on Confucian ethics, and assumed the samurai to be the highest class. Itō Jinsai paid attention to "ren" of Confucius and he respected "ren" as the love for another person and "truth" as pure consideration. In addition, deriving from his substantial studies of ancient Chinese classics, Ogyū Sorai insisted that the original Confucian spirit is to rule the world and to save a citizen. Kokugaku and Rangaku In the middle of the Edo period, Kokugaku, the study of ancient