Wednesday, March 14, 2012

The Long Sutra




Gene Reeves did an excellent job in translating The Lotus Sutra from the Chinese into English.  It is here, the entire work, not abridged.  The translation is clear and easy to read.  He made concessions to English speaking audiences in certain places, making the text more accessible. 

That is the both the virtue and vice of this work.  It is ALL here, and for readers simply interested in the flavor of the work, this is not the book for you. The Lotus Sutra  is structured around individual sutras, usually speeches in prose by the Buddha.  Following the prose, there same ideas are presented in verse.  This pattern is more or less replicated for over thirty sutras.

So, for a reader wanting to immerse herself in The Lotus Sutra, this is the work for you.  For those who wish to get the flavor of the book without wading into its repetitions, look elsewhere.  

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