National Treasures & Important Cultural Properties
of National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan

This annotated edition of the Lotus Sutra (J., Myohorengekyo, commonly known as Hokekyo) covers Chapter 7, “Parable of the Phantom City,” one of the seven parables from this popular Buddhist scripture. Commentaries appear in two lines of inserted notes across the manuscript, however, it is unclear how many individuals were involved in making these annotations. The transcription of this sutra with annotations in white from the Sanron Buddhist lineage is thought to date to the first half of the Heian period (794-1185). It is a rare edition of a Lotus Sutra with annotations.