Dharma Flower (Lotus) Sutra

Should I leave this burning house
of ceaseless thought
and taste the pure rain's
single truth
falling upon my skin?
(, 84)

Chinese wood-block depicting a scene from the : the meeting of the Buddha Shakyamuni with the Buddha Prabhutaratna.

The complete title of the Sutra is the _________________________________________ . It is one of the foremost Mahayana Sutras, for it explains clearly and directly the central message of the Buddhadharma:

Shariputra, what is meant by 'All Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the world only because of the causes and conditions of the one great matter?' The Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the world because they wish to lead living beings to realize the knowledge and vision of the Buddhas and gain purity. (DFS Ch2)

In this Sutra the Buddha proclaims the ultimate principles of the Dharma that unite all previous teachings into one.

The Sutra is the major text studied by the Tyan-Tai School of Buddhism in Junggwo (China) and the Tendai and Nichiren-shoshu sects in Nippon (Japan).

English Translations:

Scripture of the Lotus Blossom of the Fine Dharma, Hurvitz Leon - Translator, New York: Columbia University Press. 1976

ISBN-10: 0231039204 ISBN-13: 978-0231039208 Paperback: 421 pages

Source: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0231039204/ref=ase_medicinebuddh-20

1) Chinese Mandarin: , Taisho No. T. 262.

2) Sanskrit: Saddharmapundarika Sutra

See also: bodhi, bodhi resolve (Bodhichitta), Three Principle Aspects of the Path, Bodhisattva, Shravaka (lacks Bodhichitta initially), Arhat (Hearer, Auditor lacks Bodhichitta initially), Pratyekabuddha (Solitary Enlightened One), enlightenment, Eighty-Eight Deluded Viewpoints, Eighty-One Cognitive Delusions, Two Vehicles, Bodhisattva, Three Vehicles, Dharma Flower Sutra - One Vehicle (Ekayana), Mahayana and Hinayana Compared, Theravada School.

See also: Tripitaka (1. Sutras, 2. Vinaya, 3. Shastras or Abhidharma, or Tantra), Taisho Catalog Numbering System, Dharma, and names of individual sutras (such as Shurangama Sutra, Avatamsaka Sutra [Flower Adornment Sutra], Lotus Sutra [Wonderful Dharma Flower Sutra], Earth Store Sutra, Dharani Sutra, Brahma Net Sutra, Medicine Master Buddha Sutra, Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra, Vajracchedika Prajna Paramita Diamond, Sixth Patriarch Platform Sutra, Sutra in 42 Sections, Sutra on the Buddha's Bequeathed Teaching, Vimalakirti Nirdesha Sutra, et al. Schools: Hwa-Yen School, Tyan-tai School

Buddhist Text Translation Society (http://www.BTTSonline.org) References: DFS.

Lotus Sutra Table of Contents

For the volumes of this Sutra that are already translated, see Buddhist Text Translation Society Publications and Ordering Information. The following unpublished chapters are available in electronic format:

Chapter One: "Introduction"

Chapter Fourteen: "Happily-Dwelling Conduct"
Chapter Fifteen: "Welling Forth from the Earth"
Chapter Sixteen: "The Thus Come One's Life Span"
Chapter Seventeen: "Discrimination of Merit and Virtue"
Chapter Eighteen: "Rejoicing in Accord with Merit and Virtue"
Chapter Nineteen: "The Merit and Virtue of a Dharma Master"
Chapter Twenty: "Never-Slighting Bodhisattva"
Chapter Twenty-one: "The Spiritual Powers of the Thus Come One"
Chapter Twenty-two: "The Entrustment"
Chapter Twenty-three: "The Former Deeds of Medicine King Bodhisattva"
Chapter Twenty-four: "The Bodhisattva Wondrous Sound"
Chapter Twenty-five, Part A: "The Universal Door of Gwan Shr Yin Bodhisattva"
Chapter Twenty-five, Part B: "The Universal Door of Gwan Shr Yin Bodhisattva"
Chapter Twenty-six: "Dharani"
Chapter Twenty-seven: "The Past Deeds of King Wonderful Adornment"
Chapter Twenty-eight: "The Encouragement of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva"

Translated from the Chinese by the
Buddhist Text Translation Society
(c) Buddhist Text Translation Society

Source: http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/BTTStexts/Lotus.htm

Saddharma-pundarika-sutra

[法華経] (Skt; Jpn Hoke-kyo )

Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law
[妙法�華経] (Skt Saddharma-pundarika-sutra; Chin Miao-fa-lien-hua-ching; Jpn Myoho-renge-kyo )

Also known as the Sutra of the Lotus of the Wonderful Law or the Sutra of the Lotus Blossom of the Fine Dharma. A Chinese translation of the Sanskrit scripture Saddharma-pundarika-sutra, known in English as the Lotus Sutra, produced by Kumarajiva in 406. It consists of eight volumes and twenty-eight chapters. Six Chinese translations are recorded as having been made of the Saddharma-pundarika-sutra, three of which survive today. Among these, Kumarajiva's Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law is by far the most popular and is the basis of the T'ient'ai teachings that spread in China and Japan. Nichiren (1222-1282) also regarded the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law as the best of the Chinese translations. The titles of the twenty-eight chapters are (1) Introduction, (2) Expedient Means, (3) Simile and Parable, (4) Belief and Understanding, (5) The Parable of the Medicinal Herbs, (6) Bestowal of Prophecy, (7) The Parable of the Phantom City, (8) Prophecy of Enlightenment for Five Hundred Disciples, (9) Prophecies Conferred on Learners and Adepts, (10) The Teacher of the Law, (11) The Emergence of the Treasure Tower, (12) Devadatta, (13) Encouraging Devotion, (14) Peaceful Practices, (15) Emerging from the Earth, (16) The Life Span of the Thus Come One, (17) Distinctions in Benefits, (18) The Benefits of Responding with Joy, (19) Benefits of the Teacher of the Law, (20) The Bodhisattva Never Disparaging, (21) Supernatural Powers of the Thus Come One, (22) Entrustment, (23) Former Affairs of the Bodhisattva Medicine King, (24) The Bodhisattva Wonderful Sound, (25) The Universal Gateway of the Bodhisattva Perceiver of the World's Sounds, (26) Dharani, (27) For-mer Affairs of King Wonderful Adornment, and (28) Encouragements of the Bodhisattva Universal Worthy. The sutra opens with Shakyamuni Buddha and an assembly of his countless listeners gathered on Eagle Peak. The "Introduction" (first) chapter through the first half of the "Treasure Tower" (eleventh) chapter is set on Eagle Peak. The latter half of the "Treasure Tower" chapter through the "Entrustment" (twenty-second) chapter describes the so-called Ceremony in the Air in which the entire gathering is suspended in space. Finally, the "Medicine King" (twenty-third) chapter through the "Encouragements" (twenty-eighth) chapter is set again on Eagle Peak. These divisions are referred to as the "two places and three assemblies." In The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra, T'ient'ai (538-597) divided the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law into two parts: the first fourteen chapters, which he called the theoretical teaching, and the latter fourteen chapters, which he called the essential teaching. The theoretical teaching takes the form of preaching by the historical Shakyamuni who is depicted as having first attained enlightenment during this lifetime in India. The essential teaching takes the form of preaching by the Buddha who dis-cards his transient role as the historical Shakyamuni and reveals his true identity as the Buddha who actually attained enlightenment in the unimaginably remote past. In the theoretical teaching, the Buddha declares that the three vehicles—the teachings for voice-hearers, cause-awakened ones, and bodhisattvas stressed in the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings—are not ends in themselves but only means to lead people to the one supreme vehicle of Buddhahood. T'ient'ai defines this revelation, known as the "replace-ment of the three vehicles with the one vehicle," to be the principal doctrine of the theoretical teaching. This doctrine is first revealed in the "Expedient Means" (second) chapter, which T'ient'ai regards as the principal chapter of the theoretical teaching. This chapter reveals "the true aspect of all phenomena," indicating theoretically that there is no essential difference between an ordinary person of the nine worlds and a Buddha, and that the potential for enlightenment exists in everyone. The chapter further clarifies this by declaring that all Buddhas appear in the world for one reason alone: to expound the one Buddha vehicle, that is, to enable all people to attain the Buddha wisdom. In the ensuing chapters up until the "Prophecies" (ninth) chapter, Shakyamuni explains the same idea through the parable of the three carts and the burning house and by revealing the connections he formed with his disciples in the dis-tant past. Thus three times he explains the teachings—elucidating the principle, parable, and connections respectively—and each time one of the three groups of his voice-hearer disciples, groups of progressively lesser capacity, understands, and he in turn pronounces prophecies of their enlightenment. The remaining five chapters of the theoretical teaching refer to the time after Shakyamuni Buddha's death and the propagation of the Lotus Sutra in that period. The "Teacher of the Law" (tenth) chapter explains both the difficulty and the great benefit of propagating the sutra, and the "Treasure Tower" (eleventh) chapter describes the Buddha urging the bodhisattvas present to spread the sutra after his death. The "Devadatta" (twelfth) chapter illustrates dramatically the principle that all people can equally attain Buddhahood. It does this with the examples of the enlightenment of Devadatta, an evil man, and the dragon king's daughter, a woman in reptile form. In the "Encouraging Devotion" (thirteenth) chapter, the assembled bodhisattvas respond to the Buddha's earlier call and vow to propagate the sutra in the face of any obstacles that will occur after his death. The "Peaceful Practices" (fourteenth) chapter sets forth the four peaceful practices to be employed in propagating the sutra. This concludes the theoretical teaching. The essential teaching begins with the "Emerging from the Earth" (fifteenth) chapter. The most important doctrine in the essential teaching, T'ient'ai says, is the revelation of Shakyamuni Buddha's original enlightenment in the remote past. Though explicitly stated in the "Life Span" (sixteenth) chapter, the whole process of this revelation begins with the latter half of the "Emerging from the Earth" chapter, continues through the entire "Life Span" chapter, and ends in the first half of the "Distinctions in Benefits" (seventeenth) chapter. T'ient'ai terms this part of the sutra the "one chapter and two halves" and regards it as the core of the Lotus Sutra. At the beginning of the "Emerging from the Earth" chapter, countless Bodhisattvas of the Earth appear, and Bodhisattva Maitreya addresses the Buddha, asking by whom these bodhisattvas were taught. Shakyamuni replies that they are his original disciples whom he has been teaching since long ago. This revelation T'ient'ai terms "opening the near and revealing the distant in concise form." The latter half of the chapter begins with Maitreya's second question: How could Shakyamuni possibly have trained all these bodhisattvas in the mere forty-odd years since his enlightenment? This opens the way for the Buddha's revelation in the "Life Span" chapter in which he discloses that he actually attained enlightenment in the inconceivably distant past. This revelation T'ient'ai terms "opening the near and revealing the distant in expanded form." The Buddha then describes in some detail the magnitude of the time that has elapsed since his enlightenment, a period known as numberless major world system dust particle kalpas. Ever since this original enlightenment, Shakyamuni says, he has been always in this saha world, appearing as Buddhas of different names and using various expedient means to teach and convert the people. The first half of the "Distinctions in Benefits" chapter describes the distinct benefits obtained by those who listened to the Buddha's description of his immeasurable life span. The latter half of the "Distinctions in Benefits" chapter and the final eleven chapters are concerned with the propagation of the sutra after Shakyamuni's death. The portion of the sutra from the latter half of the "Distinctions in Benefits" chapter through the "Never Disparaging" (twentieth) chapter urges that the sutra be propagated and declares the benefits of doing so. The "Supernatural Powers" (twenty-first) and "Entrustment" (twenty-second) chapters describe Shakyamuni Buddha's transfer of the sutra respectively to the Bodhisattvas of the Earth in particular and to all the bodhisattvas in general. The remaining six chapters further stress the necessity and benefits of propagation.

Source: http://www.sgilibrary.org/search_dict.php?id=1321

Lotus Sutra
[法華経] (Skt Saddharma-pundarika-sutra; Chin Fa-hua-ching; Jpn Hoke-kyo )

One of the Mahayana sutras. Several Sanskrit manuscripts are extant, and Sanskrit fragments have been discovered in Nepal, Kashmir, and Central Asia. There is also a Tibetan version. Six Chinese translations of the sutra were made, of which three are extant. They are (1) the Lotus Sutra of the Correct Law, in ten volumes and twenty-seven chapters, translated by Dharmaraksha in 286; (2) the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law, in eight volumes and twenty-eight chapters, translated by Kumarajiva in 406; and (3) the Supplemented Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law, in seven volumes and twenty-seven chapters, translated by Jnanagupta and Dharmagupta in 601. Among these, Kumarajiva's Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law has known the greatest popularity. Therefore, in China and Japan, the name Lotus Sutra usually indicates the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law (Chin Miao-fa-lien-hua-ching; Jpn Myoho-renge-kyo ).In India, Nagarjuna (c. 150-250) often cited the Lotus Sutra in his Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom, and Vasubandhu wrote a commentary on the Lotus Sutra known as The Treatise on the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law. In China, Kumarajiva's Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law exerted a great influence and was widely read. Many scholars, including Fa-yyn (467-529), wrote commentaries on it. T'ient'ai (538-597), in The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra, formulated a system of classification of the entire body of Buddhist sutras called the "five periods and eight teachings," which ranks the Lotus Sutra above all the other sutras. His lectures on the sutra's text are compiled as The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra, and on his method of practice as Great Concentration and Insight. These two works and Profound Meaning are the records of T'ient'ai's lectures compiled by his disciple Chang-an and are together known as T'ient'ai's three major works. In Japan, Prince Shotoku (574-622) designated the Lotus, Shrimala, and Vimalakirti sutras as the three sutras that could protect the country, and he wrote commentaries on each of them. After that, the Lotus Sutra gained wide acceptance in Japan. Emperor Shomu (701-756) built provincial temples for priests and nuns throughout the country. In the temples for nuns, the Lotus Sutra was honored above all other sutras for its teaching that women can attain Buddhahood. Dengyo(767-822) established the Tendai (Chin T'ient'ai) school, which was based on the Lotus Sutra and became one of the major Buddhist schools in Japan. Nichiren (1222-1282) also upheld the Lotus Sutra, which describes all living beings as potential Buddhas, and identified its essence as Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, spreading this teaching. In his later years he lectured on the Lotus Sutra, and his lectures were compiled by his disciples, by Nikkoas The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings and by Nikoas The Recorded Lectures. See also Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law.

http://www.sgilibrary.org/search_dict.php?id=1318

(NOTE: Numerous corrections and enhancements have been made under Shastra tradition and "Fair Use" by an Anonymous Buddhist Monk Redactor (Compiler) of this Online Buddhist Encyclopedia Compilation)

Primary Original Source: The Tripitaka Sutra, Shastra and Vinaya teachings
(as found in the scripture storehouse of the Indian Sanskrit-Siddham, Chinese, Tibetan and Japanese traditions of the Nalanda Tradition of ancient Nalanda University) of Shakyamuni Buddha, and his Arya Sagely Bodhisattva Bhikshu Monk and Upasaka disciples.

These Good and Wise Advisors (Kaliyanamitra) Dharma Master teachers include Arya Venerables Nagarjuna, Ashvaghosha, Aryasura, Kumarajiva, Shantideva, Chandrakirti, Chandragomin, Vasubandhu, Asanga, Hui Neng, Atisha, Kamalashila, Dharmarakshita, Tsong Khapa, Thogme Zangpo, Patanjali, Sushruta, Charaka, Vagbhata, Nichiren, Hsu Yun, Hsuan Hua, Shen Kai, Tenzin Gyatso, Kyabje Zopa, Ajahn Chah, Vasant Lad, and other modern day masters. We consider them to be in accord with Master Hsuan Hua’s "Seven Guidelines for Recognizing Genuine Teachers"

Nalanda Online University's teachings are based especially on the Dharma Flower Lotus Sutra, the Avatamsaka Sutra, the Shurangama Sutra, the Ksitigarbha Sutra, the Bhaisajya Guru Sutra, the Dharani Sutra, the Vajra Sutra, the Prajna Paramita Hridayam Sutra, the Guhyasamaja, the Kalachakra and their commentaries (shastras) by the above Arya Tripitakacharya Dharma Masters.

At Nalanda Online University we practice daily and introduce you to (via downloadable multimedia MP3 audio and WMV video lectures) the teachings and practices of the Five Traditions transmitted by the Buddha Shakyamuni:

1. Teaching School (Mahayana Sutrayana - Paramitayana - Hua Yan and Tian Tai, Yogachara, Nalanda Prasangika Madhyamika, Theravada Sutta)

See also: Tripitaka (1. Sutras, 2. Vinaya, 3. Shastras or Abhidharma, or Tantra), Taisho Catalog Numbering System, Dharma, and names of individual sutras (such as Shurangama Sutra, Avatamsaka Sutra [Flower Adornment Sutra], Lotus Sutra [Wonderful Dharma Flower Sutra], Earth Store Sutra, Dharani Sutra, Brahma Net Sutra, Medicine Master Buddha Sutra, Sixth Patriarch Platform Sutra, Sutra in 42 Sections, Sutra on the Buddha's Bequeathed Teaching, et al.

2. Moral Regulations School (Vinaya Pratimoksha Shila - Bodhisattva Pranidhana - Vajrayana-Samaya - Yogic Yama)

3. Esoteric School (Vajrayana - Mantrayana - Tantrayana - Dharani - Secret School of the Mahayana)

4. Meditation School (Indian Dhyana Samadhi - Shamatha - Vipassana, Chinese Chan, Japanese Zen,
        Tibetan Mahamudra of Kagyupa, and Tibetan Dzogchen of Nyingmapa)

5. Pure Land Devotional School (Bhakti Puja - Buddha-Bodhisattva Mindfulness and Nama Japa --
         Name Recitation of Buddhas Amitabha-Amitayus, Medicine Buddha - Bhaisajya Guru - Akshobhya,
         and Bodhisattvas: Avalokiteshvara-Guanyin-Chenrezig-Mahakala, Tara, Samantabhadra Universal Worthy,
         Manjushri-Kalarupa Great Wisdom, Maitreya Great Loving-Kindness, Mahasthamaprapta Great Strength,
         Ksitigarbha - Earth Store Great Vows, Vajrapani, Vajrasattva,
         Chandraprabha Moonlight Radiance, Suryaprabha Sunlight Radiance, Medicine King Bodhisattva, Medicine Superior Bodhisattva
         and others Dharma Protecting Dharmapala Lokapala Bodhisattvas, Gods and Goddesses)

Compilation Sources for the Above Material on the Teachings of the Buddha:

Primary Compilation Source: Epstein, Ronald B., Ph.D, compiler, Buddhist Text Translation Society's Buddhism A to Z, Burlingame, California: Buddhist Text Translation Society, 2003. ISBN: 0881393533 Paperback: 284 pages. www.BTTSOnline.org www.Amazon.com
http://www.bttsonline.org/product.aspx?pid=118 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0881393533/ref=ase_medicinebuddh-20

Secondary Compilation Source: The Seeker’s Glossary of Buddhism, 2nd ed., San Francisco, California: Sutra Translation Committee of the United States and Canada, 1998: www.budaedu.org.tw

Secondary Compilation Source: Muller, Charles, editor, Digital Dictionary of Buddhism [DDB], Toyo Gakuen University, Japan, 2007: Username is "guest", with no password.
http://buddhism-dict.net/ddb - Based in large part on the Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms with Sanskrit and English Equivalents (by Soothill and Hodous) Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass, 1997.

Secondary Compilation Source: Ehrhard, Diener, Fischer, et al, The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, 1991. 296 pages. ISBN 978-0-87773-520-5 www.Shambhala.com, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0877735204/ref=ase_medicinebuddh-20,
http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-0-87773-520-5.cfm

The Dharma is a Priceless Jewel,
thus these research compilations
and audio and video teaching materials are
offered free-of-charge by this anonymous Buddhist Monk
for the Bodhi Resolve benefit of All Sentient Beings in the Universe...

...under a Creative Commons License.

The rights to textual segments ("quoted, paraphrased, or excerpted") of the are owned by the author-publisher indicated in the brackets next to each segment and are make available and commented on (under the "shastra tradition") under Fair Use. For rights regarding the Buddhist "Encyclopaedia - Glossary - Dictionary" compilation as a whole, please know that it is offered under this Creative Commons License.

This Nalanda University site (www.Nalanda-University.com)
is redacted by an anonymous Buddhist monk
for the benefit of all living beings
so they may diligently (virya paramita) cultivate freely to
realize Bodhi enlightenment for the sake of all.

On the Buddha Shakyamuni's Birthday 2007,
this free redaction is offered (received, upheld, read, recited, studied, pondered, explained, and written out),
in accordance with the Lotus Saddharma Pundarika Sutra Chapter 19: "Merit and Virtue of a Dharma Master" as a
selfless offering to the Buddhas and Bodhisattva Sangha above to adorn the Pure Lands and
to liberate living beings suffering in samsara below by compassionately helping them to plant good roots in this and their future rebirths.

The merit is dedicated to anuttarasamyaksambodhi.

Increasing Effect Mantra:
Om Sambhara Sambhara (These Bhikshu Bodhisattva Bodhichitta Vows) Bimana Sara (Spread) Maha (Greatly) Java (Rapidly) Hum (recited 7x)

To increase by 100,000 times the merit created:
Tadyatha Om Pancha Griya (five offerings or five faces) Ava Bodhani Svaha (7x)

Om Dhuru Dhuru Jaya (Victory) Mukhe (Face or Mouth) Svaha (7x)

I Now Universally Transfer the Merit and Virtue of to All Beings to realize Anuttara-Samyak-Sam-Bodhi
(“Unsurpassed Proper and Equal Right Enlightenment”)

Sarva Mangalam.
May all be Auspicious.

Arya Bhikshu Shantideva’s Bodhisattvacharyavatara says:
Just as Manjushri works
To fulfill the aims of all limited beings
To the far reaches of space in the ten directions,
May my behavior become just like that.

For as long as space remains,
And for as long as wandering beings remain,
May I too remain for that long,
Dispelling the sufferings of wandering beings.

(Like Ananda says in the Shurangama Sutra introduction to the Shurangama Mantra,
"And even could the nature of shunyata melt away, my vajra-like Supreme Resolve would still remain unmoved.)

Whatever sufferings wandering beings might have,
May all of them ripen on me,
And through the Bodhisattva assembly,
May wandering beings enjoy happiness.

May the teachings,
the sole medicine for the sufferings of wandering beings
And the source of all happiness,
Continue to endure for a very long time,
With material support and shows of respect.

Updated May 10, 2008