See 45 days of the Lotus Sutra
In March 2015, I began my 32 Days of the Lotus Sutra Practice. Mornings I use the Nichiren Buddhist Sangha of Greater New England’s Myoho Renge Kyo Romanized, which provides the shindoku version of the Lotus Sutra divided into 32 parts. Each afternoon, I read aloud the same section of the Lotus Sutra in English. (For more on the value of reciting in shindoku, a reading of the Chinese translation of the Sūtra with a Japanese pronunciation, see The Dharma Sound blog post.)
For the first 40 32-day cycles I used the Third Edition of Senchu Murano’s English translation of the Lotus Sutra. Then I started using alternate translations. After 10 cycles through those, I have returned to Murano.
Beginning July 23, 2019, following my self-styled 21-Day Retreat Encouraged by Universal Sage Bodhisattva, I added the recitation of The Sutra of Contemplation of the Dharma Practice of Universal Sage Bodhisattva (Reeves) following Day 32 and the recitation of the Sutra of Innumerable Meanings before Day 1. Since I don’t have shindoku versions of these sutras, I am reading one half in the morning and the remainder in the evening.
Here I note what I read each day.
- Sutra of Innumerable Meanings
- Day 1 covers the first half of Chapter 1, Introductory [Text]
- Day 2 completes Chapter 1, Introductory. [Text]
- Day 3 covers the first half of Chapter 2, Expedients. [Text]
- Day 4 finishes Chapter 2, Expedients, and completes the First Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 5 begins Chapter 3, A Parable [Text]
- Day 6 continues Chapter 3, A Parable [Text]
- Day 7 concludes Chapter 3, A Parable, and begins Chapter 4, Understanding by Faith. [Text]
- Day 8 concludes Chapter 4, Understanding by Faith, and closes the Second Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 9 covers Chapter 5, The Simile of Herbs, and introduces Chapter 6, Assurance of Future Buddhahood. [Text]
- Day 10 concludes Chapter 6, Assurance of Future Buddhahood, and opens Chapter 7, The Parable of a Magic City. [Text]
- Day 11 continues Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City [Text]
- Day 12 concludes Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City, and completes the Third Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 13 covers all of Chapter 8, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Five Hundred Disciples. [Text]
- Day 14 covers all of Chapter 9, The Assurance of Future Buddhahood of the Śrāvakas Who Have Something More to Learn and the Śrāvakas Who Have Nothing More to Learn, and opens Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma. [Text]
- Day 15 concludes Chapter 10, The Teacher of the Dharma, and opens Chapter 11, Beholding the Stūpa of Treasures. [Text]
- Day 16 concludes Chapter 11, Beholding the Stupa of Treasures, and completes the Fourth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 17 covers all of Chapter 12, Devadatta, and opens Chapter 13, Encouragement for Keeping this Sutra. [Text]
- Day 18 concludes Chapter 13, Encouragement for Keeping this Sutra, and begins Chapter 14, Peaceful Practices. [Text]
- Day 19 concludes Chapter 14, Peaceful Practices, and begins Chapter 15, The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground. [Text]
- Day 20 completes Chapter 15, The Appearance of Bodhisattvas from Underground, and concludes the Fifth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 21 covers all of Chapter 16, The Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata. [Text]
- Day 22 covers all of Chapter 17, The Variety of Merits. [Text]
- Day 23 covers all of Chapter 18, The Merits of a Person Who Rejoices at Hearing This Sutra, and opens Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma. [Text]
- Day 24 concludes Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma and closes the Sixth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 25 covers all of Chapter 20, Never-Despising Bodhisattva, and opens Chapter 21, The Supernatural Powers of the Tathāgatas. [Text]
- Day 26 concludes Chapter 21, The Supernatural Powers of the Tathāgatas, includes Chapter 22, Transmission, and introduces Chapter 23, The Previous Life of Medicine-King Bodhisattva. [Text]
- Day 27 concludes Chapter 23, The Previous Life of Medicine-King Bodhisattva. [Text]
- Day 28 covers all of Chapter 24, Wonderful-Voice Bodhisattva, and concludes the Seventh Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Day 29 covers all of Chapter 25, The Universal Gate of World-Voice-Perceiver Bodhisattva. [Text]
- Day 30 covers all of Chapter 26, Dhāraṇīs [Text]
- Day 31 covers Chapter 27, King Wonderful-Adornment as the Previous Life of a Bodhisattva. [Text]
- Day 32 covers Chapter 28, The Encouragement of Universal-Sage Bodhisattva, closing the Eighth Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma. [Text]
- Contemplation of Universal Sage
(For more on what I’m doing and why, see this blog post.)