phantom city ［化城］ ( kejō): A magically conjured city described in the “Parable of the Phantom City” (seventh) chapter of the Lotus Sutra. In the parable presented in that chapter, a guide with supernatural powers conjures up the city to allow his party of weary travelers to rest en route to the treasure land, which is their true destination. The phantom city represents the three vehicles, or expedient means; the guide represents the Buddha; and the treasure land, the one vehicle of Buddhahood. The phantom city also represents the Hinayana concept of nirvana. Nichiren’s Conversation between a Sage and an Unenlightened Man, reads in part, “Long ago, when the Buddha taught the Hinayana doctrines in Deer Park, he was opening the gate to a phantom city” (102). See also parable of the phantom city and the treasure land.