The Stories of the Lotus Sutra

by Gene Reeves, Rafe Martin (Foreword by)

Overview

Stories are ancient and wondrous tools with the mysterious power to transform lives. And the stories and parables of the Lotus Sutra-one of the world's great religious scriptures and most influential texts-are among the most fascinating and dramatic.

In this fun, engaging, and plain-English book, Gene Reeves-the translator of Wisdom's critically acclaimed and bestselling edition of the Lotus Sutra-presents the most memorable and remarkable of the Lotus Sutra's many stories and parables, along with a distillation of his decades of reflection on them in an accessible, inspiring, and naturally illuminating way.

The Stories of the Lotus Sutra is the perfect companion to Reeve's breathtaking translation of this scriptural masterpiece as well as a thoroughly enjoyable stand-alone volume for those who want to bring the inspiring teachings of the bodhisattva path into their daily lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780861719235
Publisher:	Wisdom Publications MA
Publication date:	05/10/2010
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	384
File size:	6 MB

About the Author

Gene Reeves is a Buddhist scholar and teacher, process philosopher, and theologian who has lived in Tokyo for over 23 years studying, teaching, and practicing the Buddhism of the Lotus Sutra. He is a founder of the International Buddhist Congregation with headquarters in Tokyo, a part of the much larger Rissho Kosei-kai lay Buddhist organization. He is the translator from Chinese into English of The Lotus Sutra: A Contemporary Translation of a Buddhist Classic. His most recently published book is The Stories of the Lotus Sutra. A Buddhist Kaleidoscope: Essays on the Lotus Sutra, which he edited, was published in 2002. He retired in 2012 as distinguished professor at Renmin University of China in Beijing and continues to do field research on contemporary Chinese Buddhism in China and serve as an International Advisor at Rissho Kosei-kai in Japan. He has taught at the University of Tsukuba in Japan, the University of Peking in China, and at the University of Chicago and Meadville Lombard Theological School, Wilberforce University, and Tufts University in the United States. Born and raised in a small factory town in New Hampshire, Reeves graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a degree in psychology, from Boston University with a degree in theology, and from Emory University with a PhD in philosophy. In addition to his passion for Buddhism, Reeves has been active for over 50 years in civil rights causes, working for a time with Martin Luther King, Jr. and for Chicago Mayor Harold Washington. Reeves is married to Yayoi Reeves and has homes in Tokyo and Chicago. He has two adult daughters who live and work in the United States.

Rafe Martin is the author of over twenty award-winning books for adults, children, and young adults. He is also a lay Zen teacher in the Harada-Yasutani koan line and founding teacher of Endless Path Zendo, Rochester, NY. A personal disciple of Roshi Philip Kapleau (Three Pillars of Zen) and the editor of Roshi Kapleau’s final two books, he later trained with Robert Aitken Roshi, completing the Diamond Sangha koan curriculum and receiving inka (authorization to teach) from Danan Henry Roshi, a Kapleau lineage teacher and a Diamond Sangha (Aitken line) Dharma Master. Rafe’s books have been cited in Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, and USA Today. He is the recipient of the Empire State Award for his body of work as well as multiple ALA Notable Book Awards and Storytelling World Awards. He has spoken at such events and places as the Joseph Campbell Foundation Festival of Myth and Story, The American Museum of Natural History, The Freer Gallery/Smithsonian, the National Storytelling Festival and International Storytelling Institute, the American Library Association Annual Conference, The American Booksellers Annual Conference, many Zen and Dharma Centers around the country, and numerous literary and storytelling festivals. His writings have appeared in Buddhadharma, Tricycle, Lion’s Roar, The Sun, Zen Bow, Inquiring Mind, Parabola, and other journals of note.

Table of Contents

Foreword Rafe Martin vii

Introduction 1

1 The Enchanting World of the Lotus Sutra 11

2 Stories of the Lotus Sutra 19

3 The Dharma Flower Assembly 29

4 Sun and Moon Light Buddha 39

5 A Burning House and Three Vehicles 47

6 Shariputra 57

7 The Rich Father and the Poor Son 67

8 One Great Cloud and Many Kinds of Plants 75

9 Doing the Common Good 83

10 A Fantastic Castle-City 93

11 Great Treasure Is Very Near 101

12 Ananda and Rahula 111

13 Dharma Teachers 123

14 The Great Stupa of Abundant Treasures Buddha 137

15 Devadatta and Violence 147

16 The Dragon Princess 157

17 Two Nuns 167

18 The Jewel in the Topknot 177

19 Bodhisattvas of the Earth 187

20 The Good Physician 199

21 Never Disrespectful Bodhisattva 209

22 Divine Powers of a Buddha 221

23 Entrusting the Dharma to Us 233

24 Seen with Joy by All the Living 243

25 Wonderful Voice Bodhisattva 257

26 Kwan-yin 269

27 The Family of King Wonderfully Adorned 283

28 Universal Sage Bodhisattva 295

Acknowledgments 311

Notes 317

Bibliography 323

Index 349

About the Author 369

Editorial Reviews

"As the stories of The Lotus Sutra are skillful means to help us see the Dharma, so Gene Reeves' transmission of those stories is a skillful means for conveying the narrative heart and meaning of the sutra to contemporary readers. It is a clever form of exegesis that entertains as it instructs."

The Rev. Ken Arnold

"What a lovely book, especially for someone like me who loves story. Profoundly transformative."

Lin Jensen

"Gene Reeves opens up the bloom of the Dharma Flower and frees it from its own history. His Lotus embraces all forms of Buddhist community and all manner of Buddhist paths by laying bare the living humanity of the sutra. Here I met its characters as if for the first time: heroes and fools whose stories at last seemed to be taking place in our world. Reeves lets a living breath flow through the stories so that they open their arms to us. A liberation for the sutra and for ourselves!"

Franz Metcalf

Renmin University of China's Outstanding Book of the Year in philosophy and religion, 2012.

Renmin University of China

"In The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, Gene Reeves gives us a deceptively simple introduction to key stories and chapters from one of the most popular Mahâyâna sutras. Well written and effective."

Mark Unno

"Underneath all the attention given to the meditation techniques and teachings of Buddhism today lies a more fundamental level—the stories that tell us what it means to be a Buddhist, what Buddhism is. Reeves' The Stories of the Lotus Sutra opens up a wealth of stories about the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and does so in a way that allows us to hear them as living narratives supporting the rest of the tradition."

Richard Payne

Renmin University of China's Outstanding Book of the Year in philosophy and religion, 2012.

“Gene Reeves opens up the bloom of the Dharma Flower and frees it from its own history. His Lotus embraces all forms of Buddhist community and all manner of Buddhist paths by laying bare the living humanity of the sutra. Here I met its characters as if for the first time: heroes and fools whose stories at last seemed to be taking place in our world. Reeves lets a living breath flow through the stories so that they open their arms to us. A liberation for the sutra and for ourselves!”
—Franz Metcalf, author of What Would Buddha Do?

“As the stories of The Lotus Sutra are skillful means to help us see the Dharma, so Gene Reeves’ transmission of those stories is a skillful means for conveying the narrative heart and meaning of the sutra to contemporary readers. It is a clever form of exegesis that entertains as it instructs.”
—The Rev. Ken Arnold, author of Circle of the Way

“In The Stories of the Lotus Sutra, Gene Reeves gives us a deceptively simple introduction to key stories and chapters from one of the most popular Mahâyâna sutras. Well written and effective.”
—Mark Unno, author of Buddhism and Psychotherapy Across Cultures

“What a lovely book, especially for someone like me who loves story. Profoundly transformative.”
—Lin Jensen, author of Bad Dog!

“Underneath all the attention given to the meditation techniques and teachings of Buddhism today lies a more fundamental level--the stories that tell us what it means to be a Buddhist, what Buddhism is. Reeves' The Stories of the Lotus Sutra opens up a wealth of stories about the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and does so in a way that allows us to hear them as living narratives supporting the rest of the tradition.”
—Richard Payne, editor of How Much is Enough?

From the Publisher