Buddhism for Today: A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra [Paperback]

Nikkyo Niwano (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 15, 1989

This concise, readily understandable book is designed as a guide to one of the supreme scriptures of Mahayana Buddhism: the Threefold Lotus Sutra. The first publication of the complete sutra in English (Kosei, 1975) was widely acclaimed, and an ever-growing audience has been created for what is certainly among the greatest of the world's religious documents. Like the Bible and the Koran, however, the Threefold Lotus Sutra requires explanation by a gifted teacher, and it is for this reason that Niwano has written this guide. Giving careful consideration to the relationships among the thirty-two chapters of the sutra, he not only outlines the contents but also explains the major points.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Nikkyo Niwano, well-known author of such works on Buddhism as Shakyamuni Buddha and Buddhism for Today and winner of the 1979 Templeton Foundation Prize for Progress in Religion, is the founder of Rissho Kosei-kai, a lay Buddhist organization that numbers well over six million members throughout the world.

Product Details

• Paperback: 504 pages
• Publisher: Kosei Publishing Company (December 15, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 4333002702
• ISBN-13: 978-4333002702
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #96,993 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing clarification on the highest teaching of Shakyamuni, October 1, 2003

By 

Raheim Baltazar (West Hills, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buddhism for Today: A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra (Paperback)

This book expands the reader's knowledge of the Threefold Lotus Sutra. Niwano incorporates all the important details of each cosmic scene and uses modern examples as parallels of the situation. The introduction was most fascinating, as it gave a thorough background of Buddhism and its relevancy to the Shakyamuni's time and the compilation of the Lotus Sutra.

Each chapter provides an introductory on how the scene starts and leading to its hidden meaning. The style of quoting from the actual sutra is very simple with easy words to understand and follow. Furthermore, it gives a deep perspective on what Shakyamuni really meant as far as keeping the consistency throughout the whole book and not being susceptible to easy misleading/seemingly contradictory errors. Nevertheless, the use of japanese words to provide better clarity also make up the excellent construction of this book. Certain chapters like Chapter 2 on Tactfulness, 16 on Tathagatha and Chapter 25 on Kannon were the most enjoyable part of this book. Though I was somewhat dissapointed on Niwano forgetting to note that Kannon or Kanzeon takes the form of a female deity in asian mythology. I think this would make a large impact as to strengthening the equality of women in the text.

This is a wonderful book for those who are very interested in the profound meaning of the Lotus sutra. I highly recommmend this book and Niwano's "A guide to the Lotus Sutra". Excellent work.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Read the Lotus Sutra Without This Book!, January 8, 2006

By 

Allan Carpenter (Erie, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Buddhism for Today: A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra (Paperback)

To generalize a bit, Americans, and modern people as whole, want to get "straight to the sources", and today's Buddhists are no different. Unfortunately, when western Buddhists pick up the Lotus Sutra without any preparation, they're left befuddled. It all seems so multi-leveled, symbolic, and dream-like. Where is the practical side of this sutra? How can this be the most important sutra for millions of Mahayana Buddhists?

Luckily, we have Nikkyo Niwano's enjoyable book as a guide. Niwano was the founder of the second-largest Buddhist organization in Japan, and he manages to make the Lotus Sutra accessible, understandable, and even applicable to everyday life. Having studied the sutra his entire adult life, Niwano anticipates many of the questions the reader will have when he or she encounters the Lotus Sutra. No matter what faith tradition you belong to (Buddhist or otherwise), you'll find reading this book rewarding and frequently enlightening. Although profound, this isn't a work for scholars: its a work for laypeople, practicing the dharma in everyday life.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good general study guide for Buddhism, November 16, 2010

By 

John J. Petry (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buddhism for Today: A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra (Paperback)

This translation has been recently updated but the essentials remain the same. Niwano's work is a condensed version of a Japanese language multi-volume scholarly commentary of the Lotus Sutra done many years ago by priests of the Nichiren Shu lineage in Japan. I do not mean to disparage his efforts by using the term condensed as he took an extensive, extremely comprehensive scholarly work and presents the essential points in terms non-scholars can understand. If I had any criticism for this work at all it would be that it is still overly influenced by a Japanese mindset which can be sometimes difficult for a Westerner to follow. The underemphasis of women as well as the Japanese overemphasis of societal duty and ancestral worship are not truly in keeping with the Lotus Sutra or the Japanese monk, Nichiren Shonin, who provided the doctrinal underpinnings for the original work. Still it is the most comprehensive of the English language study guides on the Lotus Sutra and while the Shinju Suguru "Introduction to the Lotus Sutra" is more modern and easier to read, it is not nearly as complete as this work is. Anyone seeking to understand the meaning of the words written in the "King of the Sutras" should buy this book and the Shinju Suguru book and use them in any study of the Lotus Sutra or they likely will be completely lost.