Ni·chi·ren (n??ch?-r?n?) Originally Zennichimaro. 1222-1282. Japanese Buddhist monk and founder of a sect of Buddhism that bears his name. He believed that the true teachings of the Buddha were found only in the Lotus Sutra.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.Nichiren (?ni?t?i??r?n) n (Buddhism) a Buddhist sect of Japan based on the teachings of the Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222?82), who claimed that the Lotus Sutra contained the only way to enlightenmentCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014