Honcho Hoke Genki - The Tale of the Lotus Sutra

A collection of Buddhist tales from the mid-Heian period. Three volumes. A compilation of tales of Lotus Sutra followers and miraculous tales to prove the power of the Lotus Sutra. Also called Dai Nipponkoku Hoke Kenkyoki (Record of the Experiences of the Lotus Sutra in Great Japan). It was written by the Tendai monk Chingen around 1043 (Chōkyū 4). It contains not only tales of famous and high priests, but also tales of anonymous saints who left their religious orders to train in the mountains and travel to sacred places around the country, and many tales of common people and animals who benefit from the Lotus Sutra and go to paradise or heaven. It reflects the rise of religious activities by saints and the spread of Pure Land Buddhism. The tales are generally stereotypical, and the writing style is clumsy, using a variant of Japanese-style Chinese, but they capture a new spirit that goes beyond the doctrines of established Buddhism.

[Masato Mori]

"Mitsumasa Inoue and Shosuke Ozone eds., Japanese Thought Series 7: The Legend of the Afterlife and the Lotus Sutra (1974, Iwanami Shoten)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

平安中期の仏教説話集。三巻。法華経(ほけきょう)の威力を実証するための、法華経信奉者の伝と霊験説話の集成。『大日本国法華経験記』ともいう。天台宗の僧鎮源が1043年（長久4）ごろに撰述(せんじゅつ)した。名僧高僧の説話ばかりでなく、教団を離れて山林で修行し各地の霊場を巡歴する無名の聖(ひじり)の説話、庶民や動物が法華経の利益を被り、極楽や天に往生する説話も多い。聖の宗教活動の隆盛と、浄土教の浸透を反映している。説話はおおむね類型的で、文体も和習の変体漢文でつたないが、既成仏教の教義を超える新しい精神をとらえている。

［森　正人］

『井上光貞・大曽根章介編『日本思想大系7　往生伝・法華験記』（1974・岩波書店）』

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