In Japanese Buddhism, Lotus Sūtra can be called one of the most revered texts of the Buddhist canon. The tradition of its veneration can be traced in texts of different genres, including the collections of setsuwa tales. The paper considers stories about the Lotus sūtra from Konjaku monogatari shū. Particular attention is paid to the frequency of references to the Lotus in comparison with other sūtras, the place of stories about jikyōsha ascetics in the structure of the collection, the contexts of citation of the sūtra and the choice of fragments, as well as methods of reading sutra and other practices associated with it. Konjaku is compared with other collections of didactic tales. The teachings of the sutra about the ability of each being to become a Buddha and about the expedient means, leading to enlightenment in different ways, is not stated in stories, but shown with the examples of jikyōsha: monks and laity, hermits, sinners; the good action of the sūtra even affects animals. The similarity of human and the eternal Buddha is expressed in the miraculous longevity of the adherents of the sūtra and in the ability of the ascetics to recite it even after death. Excerpts from the Lotus sūtra in the tales for the most part are the predictions of the Buddha realized in Japan in the lives of the devoted adepts of the sūtra or those who only came in touch with it, but thereby carried out a karmic connection of the sūtra with the inhabitants of the country. Rites based on the sūtra are not firmly installed, the choice remains with the monk leading the rite, but this choice itself is determined by his connection with the sūtra through tradition, a long sequence of predecessors; compilers of didactic tales are trying to show this tradition.
Key words: Japanese Buddhism, Konjaku monogatari shū, Lotus Sūtra, veneration of the sacred text
DOI: 10.22250/20728662_2023_1_40
About the author
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Nadezhda N. Trubnikova – Doctor of Philosophy; Leading Researcher at the Laboratory of Oriental Studies, School of Advanced Studies in the Humanities, The Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration; Deputy Chief Editor of “Voprosy Filosofii” Journal, Institute of Philosophy, Russian Academy of Sciences; Institute for Logic, Cognitive Science and Development of Personality; of. 41, bd. 2, 70A Mira av., Moscow, 129110, Russia; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |