Lotus Sutra
The Lotus Sutra or Sutra on the White Lotus of the Sublime Dharma (Sanskrit: Saddharmapundarīka-sūtra; Chinese: 妙法蓮華經 or MiÃÂàofǎ LiÃÂánhuā Jīng; Japanese Myoho Renge Kyo) is one of the most popular and influential Mahāyāna sutras in East Asia and the basis on which the Tiantai and Nichiren sects of Buddhism were established. Like all Buddhist texts, it was written several hundred years after the death of Shakyamuni Buddha. According to translator Burton Watson it may have been originally composed in a Prakrit dialect, and then later translated into Sanskrit to lend it greater respectability. This sutra is well-known for its extensive instruction on the concept and usage of expedient means , mostly in the form of parables.
The Lotus Sutra was originally translated into Chinese in seven fascicles, by Kumārajīva in 406 CE. It was translated into English by Leon Hurvitz, Burton Watson, and others. The Chinese title is usually abbreviated to 法華經, which is read as Fǎhuā Jīng in Chinese or Hokkekyo in Japanese.
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