Paternalist Deception in the Lotus Sutra: A Normative Assessment

The aim of this paper is to compare the contents of the Lotus Sūtra and the style of presentation of its message with the thrust of the Buddha’s teachings as they are preserved in the early Buddhist sources, particularly the Sutta Pitaka of the Pāli Canon, and also in the Pāli commentarial literature. In the process it attempts to identify in the early sources the precedents of some of the bold statements in the Lotus Sūtra which appear as complete innovations, but may be elaborations of elements contained in Pāli sources in germinal form. Despite the difference in style, language and mythological imagery, the conclusion is that both the Sutta Pitaka and the Lotus Sūtra express in their respective manners the true spirit of the Buddhist message. Attention is drawn also to the striking parallels between the Buddhist picture of the multiple universe and modern cosmological theories.

Indologica Taurinensia, 2003

In the present paper we want to refer to an aspect which offers the Lotus Sūtra: this Sūtra may be considered as an apologetic work that exposes a defense that the Mahāyānists made of the new form of Buddhism they propounded, in face of the charges or accusations they received from the Hīnayānists. The apologetic function has, according to us, a capital importance in the Lotus Sūtra specially in Chapters I-XIII dedicated to the historical Buddha. Many episodes in these chapters have to do directly or indirectly with the problem of the authenticity of the Mahāyānist Sūtras, with the well-known thesis of the Hīnayāna that these Sūtras were not the Buddha's word because they contain doctrines different from those of the Hīnayāna or even contrary to them, or with the argument by means of which the Sūtra refutes the thesis of the Hīnayāna. On this matter we have published an article in Hokke Bunka Kenkyū, Tokyo, 1998: "The Conflict of Change in the Lotus Sūtra: the Hīnayānist Reaction".

Dharma World 49, 2022, 2022

If dismissive interpretation can break religious myth and metaphor, rendering it incapable of carrying us over to transcendence in daily life, and if we people of the postmythological vision cannot or will not read the text literally, what are we to do? Is the power of religious myth and metaphor to create meaning and put us in touch with transcendence utterly lost?

Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 2017

2001

IN discussing the Japanese reception of the philosophy and culture based on the Lotus SËtra, one must note that in the development of the Lotus SËtra, one of the most influential events in the history of Japanese Buddhism was the emergence of Saichō (767–822), the founder of the Japanese Tiantai sect, and Nichiren (1222–1282), the founder of the Nichiren Hokke (Lotus) sect. In addition, with regard to the influence of the Lotus SËtra on literature, art and the performing arts, the Tiantai sect played an overwhelming role, and from the Muromachi period (1336–1573) onwards one can note the influence of the Nichiren Hokke sect. This paper introduces the Japanese reception of the philosophy and culture based on the Lotus SËtra within the span from the official introduction of Buddhism up to Nichiren. Owing to the limitations of my research and to the length of this paper, I wish to summarize my observations along the following points: the Hokke-gisho (a four-fascicle annotation on the L...

A Companion to Buddhist Philosophy, edited by Steven M. Emmanuel, 512–23. London: John Wiley & Sons., 2013

The Sutra on the White Lotus of the Sublime Dharma (Sk., Saddharmapuṇḍarīka-sūtra; Ch., Miàofǎ liánhuá jīng; Jp., Myōhō renge kyō), commonly known as the Lotus Sutra, is arguably the most influential sutra of Mahāyāna Buddhism, and certainly one of the most revered sacred texts in East Asia. Via parables and short stories, the twenty-eight chapters of the Lotus Sutra indirectly present a number of core doctrines of the early Mahāyāna, the form of Buddhism that first emerged in India and West Asia roughly five centuries after the death of the historical Buddha Siddhartha Gautama (c. 563–486 BCE) and would eventually come to dominate East Asian Buddhism. The Lotus Sutra is a devotional text rather a philosophical one—i.e., it seems intended to work on the level of the emotions and the senses rather than the intellect. And yet, despite its otherworldly aspects, the Lotus Sutra has been employed over the centuries as a political text, both as a tool for maintaining the status quo and—especially in the twentieth century but with a few historical precedents—as an inspiration and justification for political transformation or reform. This chapter explores some of the various ways in which the Lotus Sutra has been understood and utilized as a political text.

This paper concludes the study of the Lotus Sutra in Tibetan Buddhist History and Culture that was initially published in Volume 32 of the Bulletin. The Lotus Sutra, an important Mahāyāna Buddhist scripture, influenced many East Asian Buddhist traditions such as the Tiantai School in China and Korea, its Japanese Tendai derivative, and Nichiren based traditions in Japan. A recent paper argued that the Lotus Sutra had a significant place in the history of Indian Buddhism (Apple 2016). This essay examines the place of the Lotus Sutra in Tibetan Buddhist history and culture. Part 1 outlined the initial Tibetan translations of the Lotus Sutra in the late eighth century and highlights Tibetan Buddhist understandings of the Lotus Sutra in the early history of Buddhism in Tibetan culture. Part 2 examines the Tibetan understanding of the Lotus Sutra among scholarly commentators from the twelfth century up to the present day. The paper also discusses the differences between East Asian and Tibetan Buddhist beliefs and practices related to the Lotus Sutra.

The Lotus Sutra, an important Mahāyāna Buddhist scripture, influenced many East Asian Buddhist traditions such as the Tiantai School in China and Korea, its Japanese Tendai derivative, and Nichiren based traditions in Japan. A recent paper argued that the Lotus Sutra had a significant place in the history of Indian Buddhism (Apple 2016). This essay examines the place of the Lotus Sutra in Tibetan Buddhist history and culture. Part 1 outlines the initial Tibetan translations of the Lotus Sutra in the late eighth century and highlights Tibetan Buddhist understandings of the Lotus Sutra in the early history of Buddhism in Tibetan culture. Part 2 examines the Tibetan understanding of the Lotus Sutra among scholarly commentators from the twelfth century up to the present day.

Buddhist Studies Review, 2020

This article illustrates the importance of research methods in Buddhist Studies using the recent article on the Heart Sutra by Ng and Ānando (2019) as a case study. The authors make a novel conjecture about the Heart Sutra to explain a difference between the Xīnjīng (T 251) and the Dàmíngzhòujīng (T 250) but in doing so they neglect the relevant research methods and critical thinking. Their selection of literary resources is somewhat erratic and their evaluation of them appears to contain bias. The authors did not consult relevant Sanskrit texts (including the Sanskrit Heart Sutra). The logic applied to their source materials appears to be faulty at times and this causes them to arrive at an unconvincing conclusion. By going over the same ground, using more appropriate methods and materials, a far better explanation of the problem emerges.