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LUSB 404 – THE LOTUS SUTRA

DESCRIPTION

The Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra 妙法蓮華經 (The Lotus Sutra) is one of the most influential and venerated Buddhist Mahāyāna sūtras. It is the primary text for the Tiantai, Tendai, Nichiren and Soka Gakkai schools of Buddhism. It is also vastly influential on other schools of East Asian Buddhism, such as Zen. According to the British Buddhologist Paul Williams, "For many Buddhists in East Asia since early times, the Lotus Sūtra contains the final teaching of Shakyamuni Buddha—complete and sufficient for salvation." The American Buddhologist Donald S. Lopez Jr. writes that the Lotus Sūtra "is arguably the most famous of all Buddhist texts."

Primary Reading

The Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra

Suggested Reading

Donald S. Lopez Jr. The Lotus Sutra: A Biography (Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2016)

SYLLABUS

⛩️Chapter 1 - Buddha Emits a Light⛩️Chapter 2 - Upāya (’Skillful Means’)⛩️Chapter 3 - Simile and Parable⛩️Chapter 4 - Complete Confidence⛩️Chapter 5 - The Parable of the Medicinal Herb⛩️Chapter 6 - Vyākaraṇa (Predictions)⛩️Chapter 7 - The Parable of the Phantom City⛩️Chapter 8 - Five Hundred Disciples’ Predictions⛩️Chapter 9 - Learners and Adepts’ Prophecies⛩️Chapter 10 - The Dharma Teacher⛩️Chapter 11 - The Jeweled Stupa⛩️Chapter 12 - Devadatta⛩️Chapter 13 - Encouragement ⛩️Chapter 14 - Peaceful Practices

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⛩️Chapter 15 - Emerging from the Earth⛩️Chapter 16 - The Lifespan of the Tathagata⛩️Chapter 17 - Distinctions in Benefits⛩️Chapter 18 - The Merit of Joy⛩️Chapter 19 - The Merit of the Dharmabhānaka ⛩️Chapter 20 - Sadāparibhūta Bodhisattva⛩️Chapter 21 - The Spiritual Power of the Tathagata⛩️Chapter 22 - Parīndanā (’Entrustment’)

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⛩️Chapter 23 - Bhaiṣajyarāja Bodhisattva Chapter 24 - Gadgadasvara Bodhisattva Chapter 25 - Avalokiteśvara BodhisattvaChapter 26 - DhāraṇīsChapter 27 - King Śubhavyūha Chapter 28 - Samantabhadra Bodhisattva