This study presents an introduction to, and clarifies the features of, the Shinpuku-ji manuscript Kegon hokkai gikyō 華厳法界義鏡, written by the Todai-ji monk Gyōnen 凝然 （1240-1321） in the Kamakura period.
The Hokkai gikyō was written in Einin 3 （1295） at the Kaidan-in of Todai-ji, when Gyōnen was 56 years old. There are only two extant manuscripts, both of which are owned by the Todai-ji- library: the Tenshō 18 （1590） two-volume manuscript, and the Tenshō 2 （1574） first volume. The Tensho 18 work later became the source of the Genroku 8 （1695） printed edition, and this edition became the source for the Dai Nihon Bukkyō Zensho and the Nihon Daizōkyō that are currently in circulation.
At present, apart from these manuscripts, it has been newly revealed that the Shinpuku-ji manuscript owned by the Ōsu Kannon Hōshō-in Ōsu-bunko大須観音宝生院大須文庫 collection in Nagoya City is the Gyōnen shimpitsu-bon 真筆本, that is, it is an autograph of Gyōnen. Further, it has also become clear that this is the draft-manuscript of the Hokkai gikyō. After writing it, Gyōnen made copies twice in order to present it to Shōchū 聖忠 （1268-1391）, the Todai-ji Tonan-in 東南院 head monk, and to his nephew Jitsuen 実円. Among these, the copy presented to Jitsuen is the source of the Hokkai gikyō included in the current series of publications. In the Shinpuku-ji manuscript, the yomiten （punctuation marks） and the okurigana （kana reading of the Kanji characters） were added by Gyōnen himself, and there are many readings that are different from those in the abovementioned two manuscripts. One is presented with a perspective that is different from the conventional one, if one follows these kundoku or Japanese readings of the Kanji characters.
In this study, I present a part of the kundoku and interpretations of a Shinpuku-ji manuscript in conjunction with the various manuscripts of Hokkai gikyō, identifying issues in the sources.
