Day 30 covers all of Chapter 26, Dhāraṇīs

Having last month considered the dhārāni spells offered by Vaiśravaṇa Heavenly-King, we consider the dhārāni spells offered by World-Holding Heavenly-King.

Thereupon World-Holding Heavenly-King, accompanied by thousands of billions of nayutas of gandharvas who were surrounding him respectfully, came to the Buddha, joined his hands together, and said to him, “World-Honored One! I also will protect the keeper of the Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma with dhārānis, with divine spells.”

Then he uttered spells,” Akyanei (1), kyanei (2), kuri (3), kendari (4), sendari (5), matōgi (6), jōguri (7), furoshani (8), atchi (9).”

[He said to the Buddha:]

“World-Honored One! These dhārānis, these divine spells, have already been uttered by four thousand and two hundred million Buddhas. Those who attack and abuse this teacher of the Dharma should be considered to have attacked and abused those Buddhas.”

World-Holding Heavenly-King is represented on the Gohonzon in the upper right corner. He is also known as Dai Jikoku Tenno, or Dhrtarastra, or The Heavenly King of the East according to Senchu Murano’s The Gohonzon.

The Lotus World by Rev. Ryuei McCormick says:

The Flammarion Iconographic Guide: Buddhism describes Dhritarashtra as follows: “This guardian king governs in the east and presides over the spring. He is ‘He who maintains the kingdom (of the Law)’, ‘the maintainer of the state’ … He commands an army of celestial musicians (Gandharvas) and vampire demons (Pishacha).” The gandharvas are one of the eight kinds of supernatural beings who are said to revere and protect the Dharma; the pishachas are a type of hungry ghost.

According to the Kumarajiva translation of the Lotus Sutra, it is Dhritarashtra who offers dharanis in Chapter 26 for the benefit of those who keep the Lotus Sutra.