File:E innga kyo.jpg

The Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect: 8th century, Japan. 26.5cm height. ink, colour on paper, handscroll.　Total length 1100.5cm. One scene of The Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect handscroll later part of volume 4th . Now in the University Museum: Tokyo National University of Fine arts and Music, Tokyo, Japan. Original Province: Kōfuku-ji Temple in Nara, Japan. This sutra is called the Sutra of Cause and Effect in the Past and Present(Kako genzai inga kyō in Japanese), more commonly known as the Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect (E inga kyō in Japanese). The words of the sutra are copied in the lower half, while the upper half illustrates representative scenes described in the text. The story begins with the training of the historical Buddha Sakyamuni in his past lives, how he was freed suffering and delusion, and how he achieved enlightenment and became a Buddha. In other words, this sutra is somewhat like the Buddha's biography.