The Lotus Sutra is among the most venerated scriptures of Buddhism. Composed in India some two millennia ago, it affirms the potential for all beings to attain supreme enlightenment. Donald Lopez and Jacqueline Stone provide an essential reading companion to this inspiring yet enigmatic masterpiece, explaining how it was understood by its compilers in India and, centuries later in medieval Japan, by one of its most influential proponents.

In this illuminating chapter-by-chapter guide, Lopez and Stone show how the sutra's anonymous authors skillfully reframed the mainstream Buddhist tradition in light of a new vision of the path and the person of the Buddha himself, and examine how the sutra's metaphors, parables, and other literary devices worked to legitimate that vision. They go on to explore how the Lotus was interpreted by the Japanese Buddhist master Nichiren (1222-1282), whose inspired reading of the book helped to redefine modern Buddhism. In doing so, Lopez and Stone demonstrate how readers of sacred works continually reinterpret them in light of their own unique circumstances.

An invaluable guide to an incomparable spiritual classic, this book unlocks the teachings of the Lotus for modern readers while providing insights into the central importance of commentary as the vehicle by which ancient writings are given contemporary meaning.
Two Buddhas Seated Side by Side: A Guide to the Lotus Sutra, Donald S. Lopez, Jacqueline I. Stone, Princeton University Press, Hardcover, 2019, 296 pp, $29.95

Donald S. Lopez Jr. is the Arthur E. Link Distinguished University Professor of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies at the University of Michigan. His books include The "Lotus Sutra": A Biography (Princeton). He lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Jacqueline I. Stone is professor of religion at Princeton University. Her books include Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese Buddhism. She lives in Kingston, New Jersey.

CONTENTS: Two Buddhas Seated Side by Side
Acknowledgments	ix
A Note on Sources	xi
Authors' Introduction	1
CHAPTER ONE: Introduction	35
CHAPTER TWO: Skillful Means	53
CHAPTER THREE: A Parable	74
CHAPTER FOUR: Willing Acceptance	89
CHAPTER FIVE: Herbs	97
CHAPTER SIX: Prediction	105
CHAPTER SEVEN: The Apparitional City	110
CHAPTERS EIGHT AND NINE: The Five Hundred Disciples Receive Their Predictions and The Predictions for Those Who Still Have More to Learn and for Those Who Do Not	122
CHAPTER TEN: Expounder of the Dharma	129
CHAPTER ELEVEN: The Appearance of the Jeweled Stupa	136
CHAPTER TWELVE: Devadatta	149
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Perseverance	160
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Ease in Practice	166
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Bodhisattvas Emerging from the Earth	170
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: The Lifespan of the Tathagata	179
CHAPTERS SEVENTEEN AND EIGHTEEN: Description of Merits and The Merits of Joyful Acceptance	192
CHAPTER NINETEEN: The Benefits Obtained by an Expounder of the Dharma	201
CHAPTER TWENTY: Bodhisattva Sadaparibhuta	206
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE and TWENTY-TWO: The Transcendent Powers of the Tathagata and Entrustment	213
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: Ancient Accounts of Bodhisattva Bhaisajyaraja	223
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR and TWENTY-FIVE: Bodhisattva Gadgadasvara and The Gateway to Every Direction	237
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX: Dharani	243
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: Ancient Accounts of King Subhavyuha	249
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: Encouragement of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra	258
Conclusion	263
Notes	267
Index	285