The title of Chapter 28 of the Lotus Sutra can reasonably be translated as “Encouragement of Universal Sage Bodhisattva.” There is widespread agreement among translators about the term “encouragement” in this title, but not about the name of the bodhisattva, in Sanskrit known as Samantabhadra.

In Chinese he is consistently known as P’u-hsien (Puxian) and in
Japanese, pronouncing the same Chinese characters, he is known as Fugen. The first of the two Chinese characters in the name means “universal” or “universally.” It is the same character as that found in the title of Chapter 25 of the Dharma Flower Sutra, the chapter on the Universal Gateway of Kwan-shih-yin Bodhisattva. In both cases, this universality has not so much to do with being everywhere as with being open or available to everyone.

The meaning of the second character in the name of this bodhisattva is more problematic. It clearly can mean “virtue” or “virtuous,” and most often does. Thus, the name has been rendered as “Universal Virtue” or “Universal Good.” And since to be virtuous is to be worthy, one translator has used “Universally Worthy.” The character in question can also mean “wise” or “wisdom.” And so the name has also been translated as “Universally Wise.” In an attempt to combine virtue and wisdom in a single term, like one other translator of the Lotus Sutra, I think “Universal Sage” is the most appropriate name in English, as a sage is normally both virtuous and wise. The excellent translation of the Lotus Sutra into modern French also uses “Sage.”