Korea Journal of Buddhist Studies ISSN:1598-0642(Print) 불교학연구

Discussions about the Great Scripture of Buddhism (佛敎大典) have changed rapidly since it became known in 2002 that it was influenced by the Sacred Scripture of Buddhism (佛敎聖典) published in Japan in 1905. Since then, papers have shown that the relative identity of the Great Scripture of Buddhism is still confirmed. However, if we consider that the Sacred Scripture of Buddhism was composed from the viewpoint of the Pure Land School (淨土門) and the Great Scripture of Buddhism was composed from the viewpoint of the Sacred Way School (聖道門), we can be free to some extent to discuss this work’s uniqueness. In this study, referring to the Sacred Scripture of Buddhism, two questions are raised. The first one is, why did Manhae (萬海) cite in the preface a quotation from the Infinite Purity, Impartiality, and Awakenment Sutra (無量清淨平等覺經), not from the Sutra of the Buddha of Infinite Life (無量壽經), which was the first citation of the Sacred Scripture of Buddhism? The second question is the possibility of a helper in the composition of the Great Scripture of Buddhism. By examining the original text of the quotation, answers were derived. The answer to the first question is that Manhae’s quotation of the sutras of the Pure Land could not be seen as acknowledging the door of other power (他力門) and that there was a subjective intention in changing the quotation from the Sutra of the Buddha of Infinite Life in the Sacred Scripture of Buddhism to the Infinite Purity Impartiality and Awakenment Sutra. It is suggested that this change reflected a simple resistance to imperialism based on the spirit of peace that “the strong should not invade the weak (強不凌弱, 各得其所).” The answer to the second question is that some of the citations may be far from “All things are done alone (獨自執辦)” in the sense that he did all the work without any help from others. However, the presence of an assistant is inferred when some citations are scrutinized. It should be emphasized, though, that this point does not diminish the value of Great Scripture of Buddhism. The contribution of an assistant was due to time and work constraints, and it can be seen as an expression of the aspirations of Buddhist monks and Buddhists related to Manhae’s work. This paper uses the word “reading” to emphasize the significance of the work of comparing the original Chinese text. Although this should have been done a long time ago, “reading” in this sense is still in its infancy. Since the Great Scripture of Buddhism and the Sacred Scripture of Buddhism share the original Chinese text, the work of comparing the original text can produce unexpected results. I look forward to the vitalization of discussions on the Great Scripture of Buddhism based on the original text.